Samuel Johnson in Perspective by Philip Smallwood

Samuel Johnson in Perspective by Philip Smallwood

This expert resource offers original and fascinating insight into the life and work of Samuel Johnson (1709–84). It examines the many ways in which Johnson may be enjoyed and explores the reasons why his writings retain their appeal to the ‘common reader’.

Samuel Johnson worked across a variety of genres—essays, poetry, fiction, criticism, biography, scholarly editing, lexicography, translation, sermons, and journalism. Featuring contributions from leading scholars, this volume offers expert insight into Johnson’s literary genres and the issues arising from his criticism. Part I addresses the range of Johnson’s poetry and its everyday consolations, and the background and affiliations of a selected range of poets examined by Johnson, their value today, and Johnson’s value as a poetical critic. In Part II, contributors consider Johnson’s philosophical, theological, and moral thoughts; aspects of travel writing and the life of the senses; definitions in the Dictionary; male and female friendship; biography and bibliography; domestic life; and cultural legacy.

Samuel Johnson in Perspective is an authoritative and ambitious collection, which will appeal to the extensive hinterland of general readers, students, and scholars of Johnson and of eighteenth‑century literature.

Philip Smallwood is Emeritus Professor of English at Birmingham City University and Honorary Senior Research Fellow at the University of Bristol, UK. His latest prize‑winning monograph, The Literary Criticism of Samuel Johnson, was published in 2023.