The Life of Samuel Johnson - James Boswell [712]
1741 Contributes conclusion of the Lives of Drake and Barretier 86 Writes Proposals for Dr James’s Medicinal Dictionary 92
1742 Publishes Proposals for printing Bibliotheca Harleiana 88, 89 Writes ‘Life of Sydenham’ 88
1743 Writes dedication and some of the articles for James’s Medicinal Dictionary 11, 92
Takes upon himself a debt of his mother’s 93
1744 Publishes The Life of Savage 93
Life of Barretier published as a pamphlet 93
Contributes the introduction to The Harleian Miscellany 100
1745 Publishes Miscellaneous Observations on the Tragedy of Macbeth 100 Boulter’s Monument, in which Johnson ‘blotted a great many lines’, published 171
1747 Writes prologue on the opening of Drury Lane Theatre 103 Publishes Plan of a Dictionary 104
1748 Contributes ‘Life of Roscommon’ to the Gentleman’s Magazine 108 Contributes the preface and ‘The Vision of Theodore the Hermit’ to The Preceptor 108
1749 Publishes The Vanity of Human Wishes 108
Irene produced and published 110, 111
Forms the Ivy Lane Club 107
1750 Begins The Rambler 113
Writes prologue for Comus 126
Writes preface and postscript for Lauder’s Essay on Milton’s Use… of the Moderns 127, 128
1751 Dictates to Lauder a letter acknowledging his fraud 127
Contributes ‘Life of Cheynel’ to The Student 127
1752 Concludes The Rambler (14 March) 113
Death of his wife (17 March) 129
Composes sermon for her 132
Miss Williams begins to reside with him 276
Writes dedication to Mrs Lennox’s Female Quixote 196
Gets to know Reynolds 133, 134
1753 Begins the second volume of the Dictionary 139
Contributes to The Adventurer 137
Writes dedication to Mrs Lennox’s Shakespeare Illustrated 139
1754 Continues to contribute to The Adventurer 139
Contributes ‘The Life of Cave’ to the Gentleman’s Magazine 139
Visits Oxford 146
Gets to know Murphy 190
Chesterfield recommends the Dictionary in The World 190–91
1755 Writes letter to Chesterfield 142
Becomes an MA of Oxford 153
Publishes the Dictionary 159
Writes for Zachariah Williams ‘An Account of an Attempt to ascertain the Longitude’ 163
Subscribes to Mrs Masters’s Familiar Letters and Poems on Several Occasions,
which he is said to have revised 898
Projects a Bibliothèque 155
1756 Publishes an abridged edition of the Dictionary 165
Contributes to the Universal Visiter 165
Superintends and contributes freely to the Literary Magazine 166
Contributes ‘Memoirs of the King of Prussia’ and other essays to the Literary Magazine 166
Publishes an edition of Sir Thomas Browne’s Christian Morals, with his Life prefixed 166
Writes the introduction to The London Chronicle 171
Contributes dedication and preface to Payne’s Introduction to the Game of Draughts 171
Contributes preface to Rolt’s Dictionary of Trade and Commerce 191
Issues proposals for an edition of Shakespeare 171–2
Introduced to Percy 31
1757 Writes for the Literary Magazine 172
Editing Shakespeare 260
Dictates a speech on an Address to the Throne 172
Writes the first two paragraphs of the preface toChambers’sDesigns of Chinese Buildings 867
1758 Begins The Idler 177
Introduced to Burney 176
1759 Editing Shakespeare 185
Writes advertisement for the proprietors of The Idler 185
Death of his mother 181
Publishes Rasselas 182
Visits Oxford 185
Gets acquainted with Beauclerk 135
Writes three letters to the Gazeteer 188
1760 Probably editing Shakespeare 189
Concludes The Idler 177
Writes ‘An Address of the Painters to Geo. III on his Accession to the Throne’ 188
Writes dedication of Baretti’s Dictionary of the English and Italian Languages 188
Writes introduction to the Proceedings of the Committee for Cloathing French Prisoners 188
1761 Writes dedication to and edits Ascham’s English Works for Bennet 245 Visits Lichfield in the winter (of 1761–2) 198
1762 Editing Shakespeare 260
Pensioned 199
Writes an account of the Cock-Lane Ghost imposture 216
Writes preface to A Catalogue of the Pictures, Sculpture, &c., exhibited by the Society of Artists 196
Writes dedication to and concluding paragraph of Kennedy’s