Step 1: Use the date clue:
The name Areopagitica sounds Greek, but a defence of the press makes sense only after the printing press. So the author cannot be Aristotle or Plato, who lived in ancient times.
Step 2: Place it in the English civil war era:
In 1643 the English Parliament required prior licensing of books. In 1644 a poet answered with a speech-style pamphlet to Parliament, calling for unlicensed printing.
Step 3: Name the author:
That poet was John Milton, who also wrote Paradise Lost. So option 1 matches.
Step 4: Check Kant:
Kant belonged to the 18th century German Enlightenment. His essays are on reason and freedom to publish, but he did not write Areopagitica. Option 4 is out.
Final Answer:
The author is John Milton, the English poet of the 1644 pamphlet, which is option 1.
\[ \boxed{\text{Option 1}} \]