In an effort to educate myself, I am reading The Oxford Book of Essays, chosen and edited by John Gross. [copies for sale here] There’s 142 of the blighters, so it will take me all year. To make this “stick” I am going to blog each essay.
This essay is online
Who was the author:
Abraham Cowley (/ˈkuːli/;[1] 1618 – 28 July 1667) was an English poet and essayist born in the City of London late in 1618. He was one of the leading English poets of the 17th century, with 14 printings of his Works published between 1668 and 1721.[2]
What happened the year they were born (and the C02 ppm): 1618
The Big Events they were alive for: Civil War etc
What happened in the year they died (and the C02 ppm): 1667
My awareness of/appreciation of this author (if any): zero. Oops.
What’s the essay?
The essay is called “Of avarice.” It’s 1 pages long. For me, the key take-aways were… he lists two kinds (not a big fan of either)
Best line(s)
“There are two sorts of avarice; the one is but of a bastard kind; and that is, the rapacious appetite of gain, not for its own sake, but for the pleasure of refunding it immediately through all the channels of pride and luxury. The other is the true kind, and properly so called; which is a restless and unsatiable desire of riches, not for any further end of use, but only to hoard, and preserve, and perpetually increase them.”
“who, having all things, yet has nothing.”
Too much plenty impoverishes me as it does them
Stuff I had to look up
Excern (obsolete) excrete, discharge
Stuff worth thinking about.
Forms of greed… (and conceit, as per Romans)
Stuff to look up
xxx
Connects to (watch this space – if there are later essays that resonate with this one, I’ll come back and add a link to the post for that essay).
marchudson.net 
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