Life of samuel johnson summary
•
The Life of Samuel Johnson
by James Boswell
THE LITERARY WORK
A biography set in eighteenth-century England and Scotland; first published in London in
SYNOPSIS
The poor son of a bookseller, Samuel Johnson becomes the leading literary figure of his generation. He wins renown for his witty conversation and vigorous, combative intellect—traits that his younger friend James Boswell depicts in vivid, dramatic, often humorous detail.
Events in History at the Time of the Biography
The Biography in Focus
For More Information
James Boswell () was a young, fun-loving, aristocratic, would-be man-about-town when he came to London from his native Scotland in He soon became a compulsive writer, beginning a detailed journal in which he recorded virtually every significant event or conversation of his daily life. Among the many London celebrities the year-old Boswell sought out was the 5 3-year-old literary giant Samuel Johnson (), whom he met in May The two then began a friendship t
•
Samuel Johnson
English writer and lexicographer (–)
This article is about the writer. For other people with the same name, see Samuel Johnson (disambiguation).
Samuel Johnson (18 September&#;[O.S. 7 September]&#; – 13 December ), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, literary critic, sermonist, biographer, editor, and lexicographer. The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography calls him "arguably the most distinguished man of letters in English history".[1]
Born in Lichfield, Staffordshire, he attended Pembroke College, Oxford, until lack of medel forced him to leave. After working as a teacher, he moved to London and began writing for The Gentleman's Magazine. Early works include Life of Mr Richard Savage, the poems London and The Vanity of Human Wishes and the play Irene. After nine years of effort, Johnson's A Dictionary of the English Language appeared in ,
•
Life of Samuel Johnson
This article is about the book written by James Boswell. For the work written by John Hawkins, see Life of Samuel Johnson (Hawkins book).
Biography of Samuel Johnson by James Boswell
The Life of Samuel Johnson, LL.D. () by James Boswell is a biography of English writer and literary critic Samuel Johnson. The work was from the beginning a universal critical and popular success, and represents a landmark in the development of the modern genre of biography. Many have called it the greatest biography written in English,[1] one of the greatest biographies ever written,[2] and among the greatest nonfiction books of all time.[3] The book is valued as both an important source of information on Johnson and his times, as well as an important and enduring work of literature.
Background
[edit]On 16 May , as a year-old Scot visiting London, Boswell first met Johnson in the book shop of Johnson's friend Tom Davies.[4]