Biathanatos. A Declaration of that Paradoxe, or Thesis, that Selfe-homicide is not so Naturally Sinne, that it may never be otherwise. (one of the earliest Western works on suicide)

Donne, John

Published by John Dawson, London, 1644

About this Item

First edition, first issue, with the "Authors cited in this booke leaves and undated title page. Contemporary full calf with the initial blank (generally found missing), an old well-done rebacking, hinges heavily rubbed, title page browned, the other pages browned primarily at the margins. All in all a Very Good and more importantly complete copy. University of Cambridge bookplate on title page verso. ** Donne s complex work on suicide written during troubled times that he never wanted published a desire unheeded by his son after his death. ** 'Biathanatos was written during a lengthy period of unemployment, during which Donne suffered from low spirits. In 1608, around the time that Biathanatos was originally composed, Donne wrote to his friend Henry Goodyer, "Every Tuesday I make account that I turn a great hourglass, and consider that a week s life is run out since I writ. But if I ask myself what I have done in the last watch, or would do in the next, I can say nothing." Although John Sym s Lifes Preservative Against Self-Killing (London, 1637) was published earlier, Biathanatos was the first book written in the Western tradition on the subject of suicide.' (Cardiff)***Please email us for better pricing.

Seller Inventory # ABE-19164940851

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Biathanatos. A Declaration of that Paradoxe, or Thesis, that Selfe-homicide is not so Naturally Sinne, that it may never be otherwise. (one of the earliest Western works on suicide)
• Publisher: John Dawson, London
• Publication Date: 1644
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: Very Good