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Samuel Johnson (1709-1784)
Poet, essayist, dramatist and
lexicographer, Samuel Johnson was the author of
the Dictionary of the English Language and
Lives of the Poets.
He edited and was a commentator on Shakespeare's plays
and was one
of England's leading literary figures in the eighteenth century.
Samuel Johnson was born the son of Michael and
Sarah Johnson in Lichfield, a small town in the midlands about 16 miles north of
Birmingham on the 18th September (7th September Old Style) 1709. His father was
a bookseller whose circumstances fluctuated. The family
 was never financially
secure for any long period of time. By the time of his death in 1784,
however, Johnson was acknowledged as
a leading figure in English letters to such an extent that the years from
approximately 1755
to 1784 are often referred to as the Age of Johnson.
Early Life
Up to March 2nd 1737 Johnson himself experienced many difficulties. His
father's business was not successful and the family's financial circumstances were not
secure. As a child he had
scrofula ('the King's evil). This affected his eyesight and his complexion. It
is possible that it caused other physical conditions that manifested themselves throughout his life in convulsive
twitches and obsessive behaviours. Johnson was often afflicted by bouts of
melancholy which, in correspondence, he and his friends referred to as 'Black Dog'.
He applied for but did not get several posts
as a schoolmaster. On a happier note he married Elizabeth ('Tetty') Porter in 1735.
But in 1737 his attempt to start his own school at Edial near
Lichfield failed and so, along with a former pupil, one David Garrick,
he set off for London.
London 1737 -1762
Here Johnson worked with publisher Edward Cave and wrote articles for The
Gentleman's Magazine. Other work included the poem London (1738), works
of political satire, reports of parliamentary debates and, in 1744, the Life of Savage. In
1746 he signed the contract for the Dictionary. The poem The Vanity of
Human Wishes appeared in 1749. The famous Rambler essays followed in
1750. Johnson sustained these for two years. His wife died in 1752 and he was much
affected. He still needed to work hard and even though the Dictionary was
published successfully in two volumes in 1755 he continued to experience financial
difficulties. He was briefly arrested for debt in 1758. Indeed it is said that he wrote Rasselas
in a short time in order to defray his mother's funeral expenses. However in
1762 he was awarded a pension of some £300 per annum by the King. For the first
time in his life he was financially secure.
The Celebrity Years 1762 -1785
Johnson had been awarded the degree of MA in Oxford University in
1755. Subsequently many other awards came his way. His fame was based not only
on his reputation as a writer but also his
abilities as a conversationalist and wit. Johnson's style was, however, considerably more robust than the sort of charmers and compliment spinners to
whom the epithet 'wit' is often applied. His reputation as a conversationalist
derived from his activities in various clubs and social groups. He met and
conversed with leading figures of the age such as Joshua Reynolds, Edmund Burke, Oliver
Goldsmith and David Garrick. The time he spent at the various homes of Henry and Hester Thrale
probably had a significant effect in this regard as many of his observations
were recorded by Boswell, Mrs. Thrale and others. Entry to the Thrales' gatherings usually
ensured instant access to the great man.
Most important of course was the meeting of
Johnson and James Boswell in 1763. The Johnson most of us know is the Johnson revealed
in Boswell's Life of Johnson. The revelation of a man of remarkable
talents and common human weaknesses by the prince of biographers is
irresistible. Johnson died on 13th December 1784 at 7.15pm. Boswell's Life of
Johnson was published in 1791 and is widely regarded as the greatest
literary biography in the English language.
     
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