A Counterblaste to Tobacco is a
treatise written by
King James I of England in
1604, in which he expresses his distaste for
tobacco, particularly
tobacco smoking. As such, it is one of the earliest anti-tobacco publications.
Style and content
It is written in
Early Modern English and refers to medical theories of the time (e.g. the
four humours). In it, James blames the "
Indians" for bringing tobacco in Europe, complains about
passive smoking, warns of dangers to the
lungs, and decries tobacco's odor as "hatefull to the nose."
Effects and legacy
James's dislike of tobacco led him to authorize
Thomas Sackville, 1st Earl of Dorset to levy an
excise tax and
tariff of six
shillings and eight
pence per pound of tobacco
imported, a large sum of money for the time.
150 years later, British utilitarian philosopher Jeremy Bentham would cite A Counterblaste to Tobacco as an example of antipathy run wild.
Quotation
References
External links
