[Born at Lichfield, 1709. Died in London, 1784. Aged 75.]
The son of a bookseller in Lichfield. Educated at Oxford, but compelled
to leave the University without a degree, in consequence of the
misfortunes of his father. Then an usher,--and then, marrying,--the
proprietor of a private academy in his native city. He had only three
pupils, but one of them was David Garrick. Master and pupil went up
together to London in search of fortune. Both found what they
sought--the pupil suddenly and brilliantly; the master, after trial,
privation, and suffering. In 1738, Johnson published his first poem,
“London.” Twelve years later, he came forth as an essayist in the
“Rambler.” In 1755, appeared his “Dictionary of the English Language,” a
seven years’ labour; and in 1781, “The Lives of the Poets.” In 1762, a
pension of £300 a-year was settled upon him by King George III. The
tradition of Johnson in society is of a literary and moral dictator--a
character which, as far as he was concerned, implied much rather the
depth of conviction with which he championed great interests, than the
pride of self-conscious intellect, the taste for conflict, or the thirst
of rule; and which the listeners conceded yet more in reverence for the
personal worth of the man, than in submission to his intellectual
superiority. He is one of the manliest and most robust minds in our
letters. From moral sense and religion, from deep natural concern, his
giant will was devoted to the great interests of mankind. He felt in
himself a vocation to sustain these interests, and he was the sturdiest
of combatants in the prosecution of his moral crusade. His style is
stately, nervous, Latin, original, singularly suited to his mind, which
gave a direction to contemporary minds, and largely fashioned the
literature of his time. The prime characteristic of his writings is
unquestionably strong, solid sense, mixed it may be with onesidedness,
but bright with acute reflection. Johnson’s exterior was unwieldy, his
manners were not polished, but a tenderer heart never beat than his own.
He could utter a withering epigram. He never committed a deliberately
unkind act. His house was a hospital for the sick and distressed; he
could not walk the streets without emptying his pockets into the hands
of beggars, and his great heart melted under a tale of sorrow and
injustice. He had strong prejudices, and although sincerely pious, was
superstitious. He loved to speak in aphorisms, and we still quote his
sayings, as attributing to him something of the dignity and weight of an
oracle. His life influenced his age. After his death he still exercises
his influence, for he has given occasion to the most perfect and amusing
biography in the language.
425A. SAMUEL JOHNSON. _Writer and Moralist._
[This statue, by J. Bacon, R.A., is at the South End of the Nave, on
the East Side; for account of which, see Handbook to Modern
Sculpture.]