 Besides, Pufendorf reassures, in marriages and states alike, sovereignty does not exclude the possibility of mutual affection, and spouses do not command each other in all respects but only those that serve the institution’s fundamental end. Thus, matters like the disposition of a wife’s dowry and other assets depend on the stipulations of the original marriage agreement (DJN VI.1.11), much like the preliminary constraints imposed upon limited civil sovereignty by a state’s fundamental laws. Pufendorf also extends his analysis into the controversial subject of polygamy – which he deemed rationally elusive and sometimes permissible (DJN VI.1.16–18; Vogel 1991) – and into the topic of divorce, where he qualifies Milton’s views on the subject (DJN VI.1.24; Palladini 2001). These and other discussions are historically and circumstantially embedded, which accounts for their considerable length and detail, especially when compared with shorter treatments in other early modern authors like Hobbes and Locke. Textual comparisons with these can be useful and enlightening (Sreedhar 2014), especially if historical and philosophical contexts are also kept in view (Doyé 2012, Hull 1996, Buchholz 1988, Rinkens 1971, Dufour 1972).