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Life of Johnson, Volume 1

by James Boswell (1740–1795)

  • Free to read
  • 17 hours to read
  • 36 chapters
  • Reading level: 8th & 9th grade

"Life of Johnson, Volume 1" by James Boswell is a biography published in 1791. This landmark work chronicles the final twenty-two years of English writer Samuel Johnson's life through detailed journal entries and meticulously recorded conversations. Drawing from Boswell's extensive daily journals, the book recreates Johnson's "life in scenes," capturing his wit, wisdom, and moral struggles. Praised from publication as a masterpiece, it revolutionized biographical writing and remains one of the most celebrated nonfiction works in English literature, offering both historical insight and enduring literary achievement.

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  • Johnson, Samuel, 1709-1784
  • Authors, English · 18th century · Biography
  • Lexicographers · Great Britain · Biography
  • Critics · Great Britain · Biography

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Appendices

A. JOHNSON'S DEBATES IN PARLIAMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . 501

B. JOHNSON'S LETTERS TO HIS MOTHER AND MISS PORTER
IN 1759 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 512

C. JOHNSON AT CAMBRIDGE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 517

D. JOHNSON'S LETTER TO DR. LELAND . . . . . . . . . . . . . 518

E. JOHNSON'S 'ENGAGING IN POLITICKS WITH H——N'. . . . . . 518

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Contents

Show all 36 chapters
  1. Appendices
  2. Preface
  3. Errata
  4. My Dear Sir
  5. Third Edition
  6. Of the
  7. Samuel Johnson, Ll.D
  8. Meliboeus
  9. Tityrus
  10. Meliboeus
  11. To Mr. Cave
  12. Demetrius
  13. Johnson
  14. Sir
  15. Sam. Johnson.'
  16. To the Same
  17. To the Same
  18. Sir
  19. Johnson's Debates in Parliament
  20. Appendix B
  21. Johnson at Cambridge
  22. Johnson's Letter to Dr. Leland
  23. Johnson's 'Engaging in Politicks with H — — N
  24. Appendix F
  25. Footnotes
  26. Johnson
  27. Boswell
  28. Boswell
  29. Boswell
  30. Boswell
  31. Boswell
  32. Boswell
  33. Francis
  34. Boswell
  35. Croker
  36. Wm. Whitehead

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About this edition

This free edition of Life of Johnson, Volume 1 by James Boswell comes from Project Gutenberg eBook #8918, released 2005-09-01. It is in the public domain in the United States, so you can read it here in full at no cost, on any phone, tablet or computer. Genre: Biographies, British Literature.

Summary provided by Project Gutenberg (automatically generated).

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