A treatise of jealousie, or, Means to preserve peace in marriage wherein is treated of I. The nature and effects of jealousie, which for the most part is the fatal cause of discontents between man and wife, II. And because jealousy is a passion, it's therefore occasionally discoursed of passions in general ... III. The reciprocal duties of man and wife ... / written in French, and faithfully translated.

CHAP. I. Of the Subject of the ensuing Treatise.

THe Errour into which the great∣est* 1.1 part of the World is apt▪ to fall, believing, That Jealousie is not only an ordinary Effect of 〈…〉〈…〉ve, but even the strongest and most 〈…〉〈…〉nvincing proof of its Ardure, has gi∣〈…〉〈…〉n occasion to the transmitting this 〈…〉〈…〉eatise abroad: Jealousie (say they) in speaking properly, an excess of Love, which, because of excess, may properly be led a sickly Love, viz. A Love that

flames with the Fire, or greatest heat of a Lever, and by consequence is the strongest Ardure that true Love is capable of: So that a Person presumes to himself Honour, and to render his Love very com∣mendable▪ when he expresses an exceeding Jealousie; Since Jealousie in this excess, is the highest degree that Love can reach to. It is this Errour, which is designed in this Treatise, to Encounter with all. It is this Jealousie unbounded, that Intro¦duces these Civil-Bro••ls into Families that kindles the Fire of Discord between Man and Wife, and that breaks their Matrimonial-bands, which we shall in this Treatise endeavour to destroy; and the rather, since Erroneous Abuse would Authorize it, though in it self so perni¦cious.

That it may be the better known, it is* 1.2 requisite in the first place, to distinguish it from certain other Jealousies, which indeed do retain its name, but not at all its qualities. Some do excite in them selves, as we have had the experience certain feign'd and counterfeit Jealousies which they use to amuse or posse〈…〉〈…〉 some simple or stupid Genius's withal As for example, some Husbands pretend

〈…〉〈…〉o〈…〉〈…〉 be Jealous of their wives, to per∣swade them of the entireness of their Love, according to these false Princi∣ples, we now endeavour to refute, and to give way to this sort of Reasoning, My Husband is Jealous of me, therefore ••e must have a most A••d••nt Love for me. On the other hand, there are certain Fe∣males, which neither being Ignorant of this popular Maxime, fail not to make 〈…〉〈…〉t a Vei 〈…〉〈…〉o cover other designs. They 〈…〉〈…〉re themselves to death, with wearying their Husbands by affected Jealousies; yea, and often succeed so happily, that the most part, instead of warily avoid∣ing the Pallacie, give place for advan∣tage, by their Transports; flattering themselves▪ that their own Merits are the motives of these Passions; and at the same time languish with tender re∣sentments of such their extraordinary Testimonies of their Love, which not∣withstanding, are no more than tricks of nimble Wi••••: they will not dare to open their Mouths to complain of any thing amiss, they number their very 〈…〉〈…〉ces, they constrain themselves in e∣very thing▪ and abstain from any thing a••g〈…〉〈…〉 give offence, 〈…〉〈…〉east (say they)

we should cast these poor Women into Despair; but we shall not at all med¦dle with these Personated Com••dies, in¦tending to treat only of real Evils.

It is indeed much the same with these* 1.3 sort of Jealousies, which happen be¦tween Lovers, and their Beloved〈…〉〈…〉 mean such as are not yet united in Mar¦riage: For the most part these are like∣wise no more than Fictions, or Sleights of Love, wherewith they endeavour to kindle and maintain the Sacred Fire of Love; or, if perchance th••••e may be something of truth on reality in their Jealousie, yet it has ordinarily nothing of offence in it, and tends only to move a Tenderness and Compassion in the Person Beloved; such are M••naces to stab themselves, to poison themselves, to throw themselves headlong from some Precipice, or, in short, to Enrich and Adorn the Romance of their Loves with some or other Tr••gical C••t••st〈…〉〈…〉¦phe. Since therefore it▪ would exact a Voluminous Romance to display the di∣vers incidents and attendants of this kind of Jealousie, whether real o•• feigned, we shall not endeavoun it any further in this place, because it con〈…〉〈…〉∣ces

not to our present purpose, and be∣sides, for the most part, no great In∣conveniences need to be feared there from.

It is likewise requisite to observe, that,* 1.4 for example, when a Man has a watch∣ful Eye over the Actions of his Wife, when he gives her seasonable▪ Instructi∣ons for her Conduct, and endeavours to hinder her falling, perhaps, into the Snares that attend the Age; these are in no case the effects of Jealousie, but on the contrary▪ the effects of Charity, who ordains them as a general Law to all sorts of Persons, and which the Laws of Marriage do indispensably impose upon all Husbands; which an Eminent Philosopher confirms in these words, It is not at all, properly, to be Jealous, to* 1.5 endeavour to shun any Evil, when there is just cause to fear it.

It is also to be understood, that Jea∣lousie* 1.6 in general, considered as it is a Passion of the Mind, is not at all culpa∣ble in it self, but on the contrary, de∣serves a worthy esteem, if the end to which it tends be Laudable; for to use the words of the same Philosopher, Na∣ture has imprinted in Man no Passion that

is always Vi••••••us, and of which he may not make some good use. A Governour of a place is Praise worthy in being Jea∣lous, that is, to have a distrust of any means whatsoever, whereby the place under his Command might be Surpri∣zed. An honest Woman is not at all to be blamed for being Jealous of her Ho∣nour, to wit, not only to have a stu〈…〉〈…〉¦ous restraint of her self from commit¦ing Evil, but also to have a sollicitous care to shun the giving of the least oc∣casion of Scandal. She is to be ap∣plauded for admitting of Jealousie, so far, as that it may excite her to please and give content to her Husband in e∣very thing, and to excel in Merit, what∣ever may stand in competition. So that it ought to be established for a Principle, (saith the same Philosopher) that A Passion is always good, when it a∣riseth from a good Principle; as on the other hand, it must necessarily be bad, when it is grounded upon an Er∣rour.

It remains then only to treat of the* 1.7 real, manifest, and unbounded Jealou∣sie of Persons that are Married, name∣ly, such a Jealousie, the sad effects

whereof do always detect and make it manifest, whether its cause be known or not: for this kind is indeed of Two sorts. The one is that of such Persons as do visibly declare themselves Jealous, and let loose the Reins of their Actions to all the odi∣ous effects that so powerful a cause can produce. The other is of those that con∣ceal their Jealousie▪ or suppress the cen∣sure thereof, by hiding their Mallice deeper in their Minds, that are Jealous without confessing themselves to be so, because it is Scandalous, yet act every part with them that declare themselves most openly; they are always Dum∣pish and Moross, Exclaiming and Mur∣muring always, Thwarting and Con∣founding their Conversants, without giving a reason why. Now seeing this obscured and silent Jealousie is in it self more dangerous and insupportable than the other, though not so apparent, we shall endeavour, as a thing necessary, to create a dislike and horrour thereof, in shewing the deformity, as well of this as the other, against all its defenders: and to that end we shall oppose to their false Principles, not any specious Dis∣courses, but the Principles and Rules

of Nature, Reason and Christian Reli∣gion.

I say of Christian Religion, because* 1.8 that treating of a Humane Passion, such as is Love, or Jealousie, we cannot well shun the determining the Question by the Principles of Religion, being that that gives Perfection to all Humane Conclusions and Reasoning; for though it be true, that natural Philosophy may discover the Original, Nature and Ef∣fects of a Passion, yet it self alone is not capable of limitting or setting its just Bounds, without the help of Reli∣gion.

Notes

• * 1.1

  The com∣mon Er∣rour, in the nature of Jealousie.
• * 1.2

  Feigned Jealousies of Marri∣ed People.
• * 1.3

  Feigned Jealousies of Lovers.
• * 1.4

  That Cor∣rection from a Husband is no effect of Jea∣lousie.
• * 1.5

  Des Cart. Treatise of Pass.
• * 1.6

  Jealousie in it self is Innocent.
• * 1.7

  What real, or naughty Jealousie is.
• * 1.8

  That Chri∣stian Reli∣gion must be the rule of Passion.