Evidence: | 'JOHNSON. "He's [Pennant] a [italics] Whig [end italics], Sir; a [italics]sad dog [end italics]. (smiling at his own violent expressions, merely for [italics] political [end italics] difference of opinion.) But he's the best traveller I ever read; he observes more things than any one else does".
I could not help thinking that this was too high praise of a writer who had traversed a wide extent of country in such haste, that he could put together only curt frittered fragments of his own, and afterwards procured supplemental intelligence from parochial ministers, and others not the best qualified or most impartial narrators, whose ungenerous prejudice against the house of Stuart glares in misrepresentation; a writer, who at best treats merely of superficial objects, and shews no philosophical investigation of character and manners, such as Johnson has exhibited in his masterly Journey, over part of the same ground; and who it should seem from a desire of ingratiating himself with the Scotch, has flattered the people of North-Britain so inordinately and with so little discrimination, that the judicious and candid amongst them must be disgusted, while they value more the plain, just, yet kindly report of Johnson.'
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Century: | 1700-1799 | ||||||||||
Date: | Until: 12 Apr 1778 | ||||||||||
Country: | n/a | ||||||||||
Time: | n/a | ||||||||||
Place: | n/a | ||||||||||
Type of Experience (Reader): |
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Type of Experience (Listener): |
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Reader: | Samuel Johnson |
Age | Adult (18-100+) |
Gender | Male |
Date of Birth | 18 Sep 1709 |
Socio-economic group: | Professional / academic / merchant / farmer |
Occupation: | writer |
Religion: | Anglican |
Country of origin: | England |
Country of experience: | n/a |
Listeners present if any: (e.g. family, servants,
friends, workmates) |
n/a |
Additional comments: | n/a |
Author: | Thomas Pennant |
Title: | Tour in Scotland in 1769 |
Genre: | Geography / Travel |
Form of Text: | Print: Book |
Publication details: | n/a |
Provenance: | unknown |
Record ID: | 21805 | |
Source - | ||
Author: | James Boswell | |
Editor: | R.W. Chapman | |
Title: | Life of Johnson | |
Place of Publication: | Oxford | |
Date of Publication: | 1980 | |
Vol: | n/a | |
Page: | 933 | |
Additional comments: | n/a |
Citation: | James Boswell, R.W. Chapman (ed.), Life of Johnson (Oxford, 1980), p. 933, http://can-red-lec.library.dal.ca/Arts/reading/recorddetails2.php?id=21805, accessed: 25 April 2024 |
Originally published 1791. This is probably the text in question. |
Reading Experience Database version 2.0. Page updated: 27th Apr 2016 3:15pm (GMT)