Date: 1703

"Wickedness and vice is the bondage of the will, which is the proper seat of liberty: and therefore there is no such slave in the world, as a man that is subject to his lusts; that is under the tyranny of strong and unruly passions, of vicious inclinations and habits."

— Tillotson, John (1630-1694)

Date: 1703

"The Son of God hath done that which is sufficient on his part to vindicate mankind from the slavery of their Lusts and Passions: and if we will vigorously set about the work, and put forth our endeavours, we may rescue our selves from this bondage."

— Tillotson, John (1630-1694)

Date: 1706

"Who is there almost whose mind, at some time or other, love or anger, fear or grief, has not so fastened to some clog, that it could not turn itself to any other object? I call it a clog, for it hangs upon the mind so as to hinder its vigour and activity in the pursuit of other contemplations, a...

— Locke, John (1632-1704)

Date: From Thursd. Aug. 25. to Saturd. Aug. 27. 1709

"Forgive me, Madam, it is not that my Heart is weary of its Chain, but—This incoherent Stuff was answer'd by a tender Sigh, Why do you put your Wit to a week Woman?"

— Steele, Sir Richard, and Joseph Addison

Date: Wednesday, April 30, 1712

"Oh! Love has Fetters stronger far: / By Bolts of Steel are Limbs confined, / But cruel Love enchains the Mind."

— Philips, Ambrose (1674-1749)

Date: March 30, 1716

"As it is a laudable freedom of thought which unshackles their minds from the poor and narrow prejudices of education, and opens their eyes to a more extensive view of the publick good; the same freedom of thought disposes several of them to the embracing of particular schemes and maxims, and to ...

— Addison, Joseph (1672-1719)

Date: 1745

"'I am too noble, and of too high a birth,' saith that excellent moralist, 'to be a slave to my body; which I look upon only as a chain thrown upon the liberty of my soul.'"

— Mason, John (1706-1763)

Date: Tuesday, May 22, 1750

"He saw that, instead of conquering their fears, the endeavour of his gay friends was only to escape them; but his philosophy chained his mind to its object, and rather loaded him with shackles than furnished him with arms."

— Johnson, Samuel (1709-1784)

Date: Tuesday, August 28, 1750

"An habitual sadness seizes upon the soul, and the faculties are chained to a single object, which can never be contemplated but with hopeless uneasiness."

— Johnson, Samuel (1709-1784)

Date: Saturday, 13 October 1750

"Those parallel circumstances, and kindred images, to which we readily conform our minds, are, above all other writings, to be found in narratives of the lives of particular persons; and therefore no species of writing seems more worthy of cultivation than biography, since none can be more deligh...

— Johnson, Samuel (1709-1784)