Samuel Johnson
Ian Lawson
Anton Nelson
Hima Tammineedi
David Melvin
The Life
● Born 1709
● Lichfield, England
● Unhealthy child
○ Scrofula
○ Loss of hearing, blind in one eye
● Father was a bookseller
○ Spent time in the shop reading
○ Started learning early on
● Went to Oxford
○ Dropped out due to finances
The Life cont.
● Married Elizabeth Porter (21 years older than him)
● Moved to London
○ Wrote book reviews, biographies, other periodicals
● Wrote a few poems in 1730s-40s
● Literary works became more popular in 1750s
○ Dictionary
○ Rambler essays
○ Idler essays
● Received government pension in 1762
○ Fixed many financial problems
The Life cont.
● James Boswell wrote biography of Johnson
○ “The Life of Samuel Johnson”
● Continued writing towards close to his final years
● Became depressed as many of his friends left him
● Stroke in 1783
● Died 1784
Video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IpVP8ezoVlM&t=1066
Literary Terms
● Denotation and connotation
○ Denotation: Basic meaning or reference of an expression,
excluding its emotional associations
○ Connotation: The emotional associations or implications of
the word
● Thesis and argument
○ Thesis: Main idea that is supported in a work of nonfiction
prose
○ Argument: Presents reasons for accepting or rejecting a thesis
Literary Works
● A Dictionary of the English Language
● A Brief to Free a Slave
● An Account of the Life of Mr Richard Savage
● The Rambler
A Dictionary of the English Language
● Used examples (aka “illustrations”)
to highlight English language in use
● Used connotative and denotative
definitions
● Used witty humor to define words
● Made English language copious with
order
● Each definition serves as a short
narrative of a slice of the language
Some Entries of the Dictionary...
Lexicographer: A writer of dictionaries; a harmless drudge that
busies himself in tracing the original, and detailing the
signification of words.
Dull: Not exhilaterating (sic); not delightful; as, to make
dictionaries is dull work.
Oats: A grain which in England is generally given to horses, but
in Scotland supports the people
Purpose of A Dictionary
● Printing press caused an explosion of literacy
● Printing consortium wished to establish a dictionary, but
could not afford to
● Dictionaries printed before Johnson’s were of poor
quality, gave no examples
● Johnson created his dictionary with six assistants from
the consortium
● First dictionary to give sense of English language as it is
used
Critical Response
● Most feedback of the time was positive, applauding the scope of
the work
● Adam Smith applauded work in a 30 page anonymous review
○ Did request foreign words be expunged from future editions
● Humor and use of examples were criticized
● Gentleman’s Magazine: “Any schoolmaster might have done what
Johnson did”
● Modern lexicographer’s call use of examples it’s strongest point
Fun Facts about A Dictionary
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Four volumes (21 lbs of book)
Definition of “take” covered five pages
Illustrated and comprehensive
First modern dictionary
Activity Time
● Define these words using Johnson’s style:
◦Student
◦Teacher
◦Physics
◦Failure
◦College
◦Sleep
A Brief to Free a Slave
● Joseph Knight was a slave who wanted freedom from his
Scottish master
● Johnson wrote the brief in order to advocate for Knight’s
release because he detested slavery
● Boswell actually countered Johnson’s arguments by saying
that abolishing slavery would ruin the order of everything and
would cause chaos
Excerpt from book
Pg. 623
Analysis of A Brief to Free A Slave
Thesis: “No man is by nature the property of another”
Arguments:
● If someone were to be jailed, that does not mean that his descendants should be jailed; the
same can be applied to slavery
○ “An individual may, indeed, forgeit his liberty by a crime; but he cannot by that crime
forfeit the liberty of his children.”
● There are no natural laws that dictate that Knight should be enslaved
○ “He is certainly subject by no law, but that of violence, to his present master, who
pretends no claim to his obedience, but that he bought him from a merchant of slaves,
who right to sell him never was examined.”
● Knight has not given permission to forfeit his rights
○ “if no proof of such forfeiture can be given, we doubt not but the justice of the court
will declare him free.”
Activity Time
● Write a paragraph about something you feel strongly about
● Then give it to a partner who must then write the thesis for your paragraph