Text Analysis

Text Analysis by Austin Gibbs
LIBERTY OF THE PRESS

The author of this letter is a John Peter Zenger.
The audience is the Colonial Government of New York, and all Governments who are Monarchies who don’t allow “freedom of Speech”
John Zenger represents everyone who has been criticized or slandered for trying to spread the truth via writing [aka the press and fellow journalists], who happens to be every man “who loves his country” who has an opinion about what’s going on [usually about a wicked minister, Zenger doesn’t count the writing of praise and glory because that’s all writers are allowed to write about at that time period]
What is being argued and requested in this letter is that everyone should have to freedom to write what they think, whether it is praise or criticism.
How Zenger is arguing this point is that freedom of the press is a necessity. That it has to happen because “the liberty of the press can never be maintained,” and “it is rather incorporated and interwoven with our very constitution.”
The proof used to legitimize his argument is this, “No nation ancient or modern ever lost the liberty of freely speaking, writing, or publishing their sentiments but forthwith lost their liberty in general and became slaves. LIBERTY and SLAVERY! How amiable is one! How odious and abominable the other! Liberty is universal redemption, joy, and happiness; but servitude is absolute reprobation and everlasting perdition in politics.” He is saying that no nation has ever been destroyed for the writings of a few people. He is also saying that liberty is required for living a happy, joyful life, but if there is no freedom of the press it’s a joyless bleak world.