"It was He that placed thee in this body, as in a prison: where thy capacities are cramped, thy desires debased, and thy liberty lost."
— Mason, John (1706-1763)
Author
Work Title
Place of Publication
London
Publisher
Printed by J. Waugh
Date
1745
Metaphor
"It was He that placed thee in this body, as in a prison: where thy capacities are cramped, thy desires debased, and thy liberty lost."
Metaphor in Context
--Let us then hereupon seriously recollect ourselves in the following soliloquy:
'O my soul, look back but a few years, and thou wast nothing!---And how didst thou spring out of that nothing?--Thou couldst not make thyself. That is quite impossible—-Most certain it is that that almighty, self-existent, and eternal Power, which made the world, made thee also out of nothing; called thee into being when thou wast not; gave thee these reasoning and reflecting faculties, which thou art now employing in searching out the end and happiness of thy nature.—-It was He, O my soul, that made thee intelligent and immortal. It was He that placed thee in this body, as in a prison: where thy capacities are cramped, thy desires debased, and thy liberty lost. It was He that sent thee into this world, which by all circumstances appears to be a state of short discipline and trial. And wherefore did He place thee here, when he might have made thee a more free, unconfined, and happy spirit? But check that thought; it looks like a too presumptuous curiosity. A more needful and important inquiry is, What did He place thee here for? And what doth He expect from thee whilst thou art here? What part hath he allotted me to act on the stage of human life; where He, angels, and men are spectators of my behaviour? The part He hath given me to act here is, doubtless, a very important one; because it is for eternity. And what is it, but to live up to the dignity of my rational and intellectual nature; and as becomes a creature born for immortality.
(I.ii, pp. 17-19)
'O my soul, look back but a few years, and thou wast nothing!---And how didst thou spring out of that nothing?--Thou couldst not make thyself. That is quite impossible—-Most certain it is that that almighty, self-existent, and eternal Power, which made the world, made thee also out of nothing; called thee into being when thou wast not; gave thee these reasoning and reflecting faculties, which thou art now employing in searching out the end and happiness of thy nature.—-It was He, O my soul, that made thee intelligent and immortal. It was He that placed thee in this body, as in a prison: where thy capacities are cramped, thy desires debased, and thy liberty lost. It was He that sent thee into this world, which by all circumstances appears to be a state of short discipline and trial. And wherefore did He place thee here, when he might have made thee a more free, unconfined, and happy spirit? But check that thought; it looks like a too presumptuous curiosity. A more needful and important inquiry is, What did He place thee here for? And what doth He expect from thee whilst thou art here? What part hath he allotted me to act on the stage of human life; where He, angels, and men are spectators of my behaviour? The part He hath given me to act here is, doubtless, a very important one; because it is for eternity. And what is it, but to live up to the dignity of my rational and intellectual nature; and as becomes a creature born for immortality.
(I.ii, pp. 17-19)
Categories
Provenance
Reading
Citation
20 entries in ESTC (1745, 1746, 1748, 1753, 1754, 1755, 1758, 1760, 1764, 1767, 1769, 1774, 1778, 1784, 1788, 1791, 1792, 1794, 1797).
Self-Knowledge. A Treatise, Shewing the Nature and Benefit of that Important Science, and The Way to attain it. Intermixed with various Reflections and Observations on Human Nature. By John Mason, A.M. (London: J. Waugh, 1745). <Link to Google>
Self-Knowledge. A Treatise, Shewing the Nature and Benefit of that Important Science, and The Way to attain it. Intermixed with various Reflections and Observations on Human Nature. By John Mason, A.M. (London: J. Waugh, 1745). <Link to Google>
Date of Entry
06/11/2013
