The Trial of Henry Hetherington, on an Indictment for Blasphemy

Hetherington, H. (Henry), 1792-1849Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 3.2
Word count
124K words
Chapters
13

Tags

English Originals World HistoryLaw Blasphemy TrialPress FreedomLegal CasePolitical AllegoryCivic AwarenessSocial CritiqueFreedom of SpeechIntellectual CommentaryCourtroom Account19th Century

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The Trial of Henry Hetherington, on an Indictment for Blasphemy by H. HetheringtonAuthor: Hetherington, H. (Henry), 1792-1849,Language: English, Class: KD: Law in general, Comparative and uniform law, Jurisprudence: United Kingdom and Ireland, Release Date: Mar 5, 2012

Editor's review

This trial record centers on the prosecution of Henry Hetherington on an indictment for blasphemy and stands as a primary document in the history of English law and freedom of the press. Its value lies not in narrative but in preserving the original wording of courtroom argument, the grounds of prosecution, and the defendant's rebuttal, allowing readers to observe how nineteenth-century England drew the boundary between speech and publication. As a public-domain electronic text from Project Gutenberg, it is easy to search and cite, suitable as supplementary material for courses in legal history and the history of journalism and publishing, and suited to close reading by those studying conflicts between religion and speech. It should be read as a historical source rather than popular narrative, with attention to the argumentative structure of prosecution and defense and the legal context of the time, and without expecting a full account of historical background.

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Reading tips

  1. First gain a basic background in nineteenth-century English blasphemy law and publishing regulation, then approach the trial text.
  2. While reading, mark the core arguments of prosecution and defense and trace the logic of the indictment and the defense strategy.
  3. Read alongside a textbook on English legal or publishing history to fill in background information.
  4. If used for writing, note page or paragraph locations when excerpting the original text for later verification.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

Contents

  1. 1
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FAQ

Is this book a complete case record or an excerpt? Judging from the title and the material, it is the text of the trial record for Hetherington's prosecution on a blasphemy indictment, released by Project Gutenberg as a public-domain e-book. The material does not state whether it is an excerpt; readers should rely on the length and structure of the actual electronic text and should not assume it covers every stage of the case.
Can I understand it without a background in English law? You can read it, but you will encounter obstacles. The trial text relies on the legal terminology and religious context of the time, and without background knowledge it is easy to see only scattered questions and answers. It is advisable to consult basic introductions to blasphemy law, publishing licensing, and the jury system before reading the original, which will make comprehension much smoother.
Is it suitable as assigned course reading? It is suitable as supplementary historical material for courses on legal history, publishing history, or freedom of speech, but it should not be the sole textbook. Instructors would do best to supplement it with materials on the case background, legal provisions, and historical context to help students understand the trial record within its historical setting.

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About the author

Hetherington, H. (Henry), 1792-1849 Author · British · 1792–1849

Henry Hetherington (Hetherington, H. (Henry), 1792–1849) was a British radical publisher known for his struggle for freedom of the press. He founded the Poor Man's Guardian, using it to spread radical ideas and give voice to the lower classes, leaving his mark on nineteenth-century British publishing and campaigns for free expression. His representative work, The Trial of Henry Hetherington, on an Indictment for Blasphemy, records the trial he faced on a charge of blasphemy, directly reflecting the legal predicament of publishers punished for their words at the time and showing his stance of opposing censorship and defending the right to expression through publishing. Public information on his early life, education, and specific experiences is limited; existing accounts center on his publishing career, the newspaper he founded, and this trial, with his work focusing on political resistance and freedom of speech.