Its the birthday of Samuel Johnson , born in Litchfield, England (1709). Charles Brady mentioned this in his daily tidbit post, but there were things that I thought should be added. Johnson was a sickly boy, and had been since the day he was born — almost dead, he said. He contracted the lymphatic form of tuberculosis, called scrofula, when he was two, and because it was popularly believed that the touch of royalty could cure scrofula, he was taken to the queen. She touched him and gave him a gold medallion, which he kept for the rest of his life. Her touch didnt cure him, and neither did various disfiguring treatments that left him scarred. But he grew up strong and tall, and enjoyed walking, swimming, and riding. He was also very intelligent, proud, and somewhat lazy. In 1735, he married a widow who was 20 years his senior. He set out to find an intelligent wife, since he was convinced that his parents marriage had been unhappy because of his mothers lack of education. Around this time, he also started writing. He published some essays early in the 1730s, and began a play, the historical tragedy Irene. In 1738, he became associated with the first modern magazine — called The Gentlemans Magazine — and contributed poems and prose. The 1750s were his most productive period. Not only did he write more than 200 essays for the twice-weekly newspaper The Rambler, but he was also at work on a monumental undertaking: a dictionary of the English language. The dictionary took him nine years to write, and he wrote The Rambler essays because they gave him a steady income; even though money was his chief incentive, he was still quite proud of those essays. He said, My other works are wine and water; but my Rambler is pure wine. The dictionary was finally published in two volumes in 1755. Johnsons patron, the Earl of Chesterfield, had pretty much ignored Johnson and his project for several years; as a result, the dictionary entry for patron reads: one who countenances, supports, and protects. Commonly a wretch who supports with insolence and is paid with flattery. We know so much about Johnson because of James Boswell. In 1763, Johnson met young James Boswell, who was 22. They didnt get along well at first, but they grew to be friends. Boswell kept remarkably detailed diaries, and he later wrote a comprehensive biography, The Life of Samuel Johnson, LL.D. (1791). Boswells scrupulous descriptions of Johnsons mannerisms led to a posthumous diagnosis of Tourette syndrome; his transcriptions of Johnsons many aphorisms made Johnson one of the most-quoted authors in the English language. Johnson said, as quoted by Boswell: Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel. And, When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford. And, A decent provision for the poor is the true test of civilization. --thanks to The Writers Almanac Every good writer should have a Boswell!
Posted on: Thu, 18 Sep 2014 18:15:24 +0000
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