Empires
have historically thrown a smokescreen of innocence over forms of
censorship that's purpose is to disingenuously control a population.
One of the earliest manifestations of censorship comes from England
around 1530 & continues until the 1660's. The lack of a public
forums during this time translated into information that was easy for
the Monarch to control; whenever a public forum gained to much
popularity (usually through theater and the arts) England was quick
to assign a Master of Revels, a group that pre-censors all content
not from the crown . While laws are altered after the English
Revolution the most substantial change had its catalyst with the
publication of John Milton's Areopagitica in 1664. In this
appeal, which originally circulated as an illegally printed pamphlet,
is a challenge to the states position on censorship and an attempt by
Milton to redefine an English citizens silent presuppositions to
knowledge.
Silent
presupposition is that which “teaches us what we have to know
without knowing it in order to function” (Zizek).
At the time of Areopagitica's publication the state was
censoring the press for the the apparent good of the people for so
many generations it had changed the instinctual responses citizens
had to censorship. The public was told there was no right for a place
of philosophical discourse. This is an early example of shock
doctrine; by creating a situation of increasingly reduced agency
parliament would justify it's actions as being better than the
alternative when it's actions would only diminish the source. The
real reason for the early days of censorship of the press was to create a form
of control for state benefit at the cost of the unknowing people.
By
radically rearranging the qualities of what defines knowledge Milton
uses the emerging state tools of nationalism to change parliament's
opinion to the side of the public. He starts his theory by analyzing
the human condition through a biblical lens when he writes that those
“who imagine to remove sin by removing the matter of sin” are
hopeless. Even if one were to “banish all objects of lust, shut up
all youth into the severest discipline that can be exercised in any
hermitage, ye cannot make them chaste that come thither...”
(Longman p1719), Milton argued that sin is a constant temptation for
humankind and always present, removing it would be like trying to
remove every grain of sand from the ocean. Furthermore to do so would
go against the design of temptation & choice in nature (or god's
design). To those that would feel reading itself goes against the
human condition or that knowledge is “evil” Milton argues that
“though some part of it (sin) may for a time be withdrawn from some
persons, it cannot from all, in such a universal thing as books are;
and when this is done, yet the sin remain entire“ (Longman
p1719). To put it in
other words if a form of press has sinful information on its pages
its still up to interpretation by the individual and that
interpretation would be impossible without both good and evil
existing. This gives agency back to the public and away from groups
like the Master of Revels by putting control of source material in
the hands of everyone.
Parliament would cite one reason of censorship is to prevent
dangerous ideas and schisms from developing. Milton argues that if
“the men be erroneous who appear to be leading the schismatics”
the way to correct this is by debating with “distrust in the right
cause”, if “not for their sakes, yet for our own” (Longman
p1723)? Milton further defends his theory by describing public
debate as a positive thing for the country: “opinion in good men is
but knowledge in the making” & argues that major characters in
biblical history were educated like Moses and David. Even more
spectacular is how Milton defends the value of flawed opinions when
he writes that “the knowledge of good is so involved and interwoven
with the knowledge of evil” Even wrong opinions are important for
Milton when he writes that good & evil, in its “many cunning
resemblances hardly to be discerned”, are necessary because “that
is to say of knowing good by evil” (Longman p1717), There is no way
to have good without evil & god has given every person the
ability to reason since Adam.
Milton brings agency back to the people by carefully placing power
in their hands. Instead of asking the commoner to conform to the laws
of parliament, Milton argues that the English should “be more
considerate builders, more wise in spiritual architecture, when great
reformation is expected.” (Longman, p1724) This line turns every
reader into an active creator of their national identity.
Milton uses a more recognizable form of nationalism when he
personifies the nation: “Methinks I see in my mind a noble and
puissant nation, rousing herself like a strong man after sleep, and
shaking her invincible locks” (Longman 1724). While in modern times
this reads like zealous patriotism or that Milton is making a
compliment, it's also a prophecy of the outcome to his theory and
further proof that that no one should “suppress all this flowery
crop of knowledge” from “springing daily” (Longman 1724).
Milton has carefully maneuvered himself, by analyzing the morality of
free opinion through a biblical lens, into position where he feels he
can attack censorship directly with public support. Milton goes even
further with relating to his religious audience when he makes opinion
holy. In a clever fashion Milton writes that “For who knows not
that truth is strong, next to the almighty.” (Longman 1725) Milton
uses language that suggest truth being godly is common sense,
re-defining a part of English silent presuppositions in medias res.
Areopagitica
is a radical text at a time when text itself is a radical possession
but still manages to promote some form of censorship. At one hand
Milton argues that books are useful and that licensing is “a
dishonor and derogation to the author, to the book, to the privilege
of dignity or Learning” and that if “we think to regulate
printing” then “we must regulate all recreations and pastimes...”
(Longman 1719). The author attacks licensing laws directly when he
argues that regulations claims its role is to prevent the “infection”
of bad ideas but that this is inefficient because to licensing can
never stop social corruption. Milton goes further when he points that
censorship could slow down divine plans which would cause more
corruption.
On
the other hand Milton shows he would censor, even pull from the root,
certain text: “I mean not tolerated popery and open superstition,
which, as it extirpates all religions and civil supremacies, so
itself should be extirpate, provided first that all charitable and
compassionate means be used to win the weak and misled...”
(Longman 1726). Milton still has elements of control in his
definition of English silent presuppositions; while it is just, good
and holy not to censor any author or idea it is equally unjust, evil
and pagan to “interrupt the unity of spirit”. Essentially Milton
is setting up a fail safe against heretical ideas based on his
writing in Areopagitica.
If anyone disagrees with his theory Milton can easily point them out
as an interrupter of unity & have their work destroyed, an active
form of censorship and seemingly unnecessary when Milton himself
argues the usefulness of bad ideas and sinful books. It's also a
direct contradiction considering Milton's opinion that “he who
destroys a good book kills reason itself, kills the image of God, as
it were in the eye” (HumanitiesWeb).
Miltons
greatest success in his theory on censorship is found in the prose
itself. The writer masterfully appeals to every sensibility of every
major demographic with sentiment triumphing over sentimentality while
carefully selecting which aspects of government to critique &
only after blows have been softened. Milton will typically begin with
a brief defense of an idea and then finish with a furious volley of
opinion. Consider that the beginning of Areopagitica
is a defense of Areopagitica
itself, with Milton calling up the ancestral images of Spenser before
stating “the knowledge and survey of vice is in this world so
necessary to the constitution of human virtue, and the scanning of
error to the confirmation of truth (Longman 1717).” Milton easily
defines knowledge as a positive human virtue by playing on the idea
of silent presupposition; the author defines knowledge as good
because it is, one should just know it. According to Milton, every
human should have an instinctual response that public knowledge is a
virtue because knowledge can help identify good and evil. Milton
compares this identification to the story of Adam and the apple when
he writes that Adam was “knowing of good by evil” (Longman 1717),
as being a necessity. In two paragraphs, under the filter of
academic and papal nostalgia, Milton has laid a logical foundation
for the justification of his illegal printing to both the scientist
and the priest.
Nationalism
is still the same idea since its not-so-long-ago inception; turning
the abstract idea of a nation into a real power. Writers of today
should still be looking to Milton's Areopagitica,
which shows the successful passive/aggressive style that Milton
camouflages in his writing with nostalgia, history and invoking
virtues onto ideas through presupposition. Eventually these
presuppositions become silent in the reverse; instead of citizens of
the 17th
century instinctively assuming that knowledge is evil because the
state told them so for many generations, they instinctively &
accurately assume censorship removes agency because of the work of
people like John Milton staying relevant through generations.
________________
Works Cited
Zizek,
Slavoj. "We Need Thinking." Lavan.
N.p.. Web. 10 May 2013.
<http://www.lacan.com/thesymptom/?page_id=2709>.
"Areopagitica
by John Milton." HumanitiesWeb.
N.p.. Web. 10 May 2013.
<http://www.humanitiesweb.org/human.php?s=l&p=c&a=p&ID=27750>.
The Longman Anthology
