Samuel JohnsonHarvard University Press, 1998 - 372 pages He was a servant to the public, a writer for hire. He was a hero, an author adding to the glory of his nation. But can a writer be both hack and hero? The career of Samuel Johnson, recounted here by Lawrence Lipking, proves that the two can be one. And it further proves, in its enduring interest for readers, that academic fashions today may be a bit hasty in pronouncing the "death of the author." |
From inside the book
Results 1-3 of 71
... tion was different . He would raise the standards higher by being sat- isfied with nothing less than perfection and by bringing life itself to the test of truth . He would of course fail . Such high ambitions guarantee frustra- tion ...
... tion to think of poetry as a kind of learning , he shrinks from writers whose lucubrations on love can take the place of knowing what love is.59 Such poets disregard " that uniformity of sentiment , which en- ables us to conceive and to ...
... tion to think of poetry as a kind of learning , he shrinks from writers whose lucubrations on love can take the place of knowing what love is.59 Such poets disregard " that uniformity of sentiment , which en- ables us to conceive and to ...
Contents
the Western Islands of Scotland | 234 |
The Lives of the English Poets | 259 |
Johnsons Endings | 295 |
Copyright | |
2 other sections not shown