Dr. JohnsonAn Introduction

Literary Criticism2nd March 201110:30- 11:25

Dr. Johnson

Samuel Johnson

Johnson a Multi-faceted Personality

Poet Essayist Critic Biographer Conversationalist Lexicographer

Life of Johnson Birth Education Career Family Death

Birth Son of a bookseller Born at Litchfield Born on 18th September,1709 Born to Michael Johnson and Sarah Ford Poverty marred his childhood As his father grew huge debt ILL health affected his childhood

Education As a child displayed great intelligence His education began at his age of three At four he was sent to nearby school Age of six sent to a shoemaker At seven attended Litchfield Grammar

School Went to Pembroke College, Oxford

Career 1 Worked as a teacher at the Grammar

School in Market Bosworth Published his first essays in the

Birmingham Journal Started a school at Edial but a failure Johnson worked with Edward Cave, the

founder of The Gentleman’s Magazine In 1747 began Dictionary Project

Career 2 The Vanity of Human Wishes appeared in 1749 It was his longest poem Irene, his tragedy appeared in the same year The Dictionary of The English Dictionary was

finally published in 1755 Published Essays Wrote number of political articles The Lives of the Poets was published in 1781

Family Married Mrs.Elisabeth Porter in 1735 She was a widow 20 years older than

Johnson Hester Thrale came close to him after his

wife’s death

Death On 13th December 1784 death visited him In the form of pneumonia Was Buried in Westminster Abbey Before death Johnson threw letters,

manuscripts and personal writings in to fire

Works of Johnson 1 LONDON, 1738 MARMOR NORFOLCIENSE, 1739 THE COMPLEANT VINDICATION OF THE

LICENSERS OF THE STAGE, 1739 AN ACCOUNT OF THE LIFE OF MR. RICHARD

SAVAGE, 1744 THE VANITY OF HUMAN WISHES, 1749 THE RAMBLER, 1750-1752 (208 nos., in 6 vols.

1752)

Works of Johnson 2 THE ADVENTURER , 1752-1759 (with others,

140 nos., 2 vols. in 1753-54) DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE,

1755 THE PRINCE OF ABISSINIA / RASSELAS, 1759 THE PLAYS OF William Shakespeare, 1765, (ed.

8 vols.) THE FALSE ALARM, 1770 THOUGHTS ON FALKLAND'S ISLANDS, 1771

Works of Johnson 3 AN ACCOUNT OF THE LIFE OF MR. RICHARD SAVAGE,

1774 A JOURNEY TO THE WESTERN ISLANDS OF SCOTLAND,

1775 TAXATION NO TYRANNY, 1775 THE LIVES OF THE MOST EMINENT ENGLISH POETS,

1777-81 PREFACES, BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL, TO THE

WORKS OF THE ENGLISH POETS, 1779-81 (10 vols., as The Lives of the English Poets, 1781, rev. ed. 1783, 1905, 1972, ed. by J.P. Hardy)

Works of Johnson 4 PRAYERS AND MEDITATIONS, 1785 THE WORKS, 1787

Relax for a while

Back to Johnson

Johnson as a Critic Did not produce any great singular work on

criticism Exerted a great influence on English

criticism never before The last of neo-classicists Practical criticism Literature is governed by the writer’s age

and environment

Johnson’s Works as a Critic A dozen papers in Rambler Remarks on poetry in Rasselas Preface to the Plays of Shakespeare Lives of the Poets

Johnson’s Criticism 1 Conformity to nature and reason is the

basic test of literary excellence Not for rigidity in rules Historical estimate is an important factor in

the real estimation of author Poetry affords pleasure Poetry imitates truth or life

Johnson’s Criticism 2 Poetry is an imitation of life through

particular they present universal Imitation should be of general nature That is, what people of most ages do Pleases many and pleases long Morality and truth are the two requirements

of poetry

Johnson’s Criticism 3 Considered epic superior to all other forms

of verse Among the unities Johnson found only the

unity of action is justified by reason Johnson was the first critic to attempt

practical criticism in a systematic way.

To Be Continued