Changes

In May 1738 his first major work, the poem '' London (1738 poem)‎|London '', was published anonymously.<ref name="Lynch p. 5">{{Harvnb|Lynch|2003|p= 5}}</ref> Based on Juvenal's Satires of Juvenal#Satire III: There is no Room in Roma for a Roman|Satire III, it describes the character Thales leaving for Wales to escape the problems of London,<ref>{{Harvnb|Bate|1977|p=172}}</ref> which it portrays as a place of crime, corruption, and neglect of the poor. Johnson could not bring himself to regard the poem as earning him any merit as a poet.<ref>{{Harvnb|Bate|1955|p=18}}</ref> Alexander Pope claimed that the author "will soon be déterré" (brought to light, become well known), but this would not happen until 15 years later.<ref name="Lynch p. 5"/>

In May 1738 his first major work, the poem '' London (1738 poem)‎|London '', was published anonymously.<ref name="Lynch p. 5">{{Harvnb|Lynch|2003|p= 5}}</ref> Based on Juvenal's Satires of Juvenal#Satire III: There is no Room in Roma for a Roman|Satire III, it describes the character Thales leaving for Wales to escape the problems of London,<ref>{{Harvnb|Bate|1977|p=172}}</ref> which it portrays as a place of crime, corruption, and neglect of the poor. Johnson could not bring himself to regard the poem as earning him any merit as a poet.<ref>{{Harvnb|Bate|1955|p=18}}</ref> Alexander Pope claimed that the author "will soon be déterré" (brought to light, become well known), but this would not happen until 15 years later.<ref name="Lynch p. 5"/>

In August, Johnson's lack of an MA degree from Oxford or Cambridge led to his being denied a position as master of the Appleby Grammar School. In an effort to end such rejections, Pope asked Lord Gower to use his influence to have a degree awarded to Johnson.<ref name="Watkins p.25">{{Harvnb|Watkins|1960|p=25}}</ref> Gower petitioned Oxford for an honorary degree to be awarded to Johnson, but was told that it was "too much to be asked".<ref name="Bate p. 182">{{Harvnb|Bate|1977|p=182}}</ref> Gower then asked a friend of Jonathan Swift to plead with Swift to use his influence at the University of Dublin to have a Masters degree awarded to Johnson, in the hope that this could then be used to justify an MA from Oxford,<ref name="Bate p. 182"/> but Swift refused to act on Johnson's behalf.<ref>{{Harvnb|Watkins|1960|pp=25–26}}</ref>

In August, Johnson's lack of an MA degree from Oxford or Cambridge led to his being denied a position as master of the Appleby Grammar School. In an effort to end such rejections, Pope asked Lord Gower to use his influence to have a degree awarded to Johnson.<ref name="Watkins p.25">{{Harvnb|Watkins|1960|p=25}}</ref> Gower petitioned Oxford for an honorary degree to be awarded to Johnson, but was told that it was "too much to be asked".<ref name="Bate p. 182">{{Harvnb|Bate|1977|p=182}}</ref> Gower then asked a friend of Jonathan Swift to plead with Swift to use his influence at the University of Dublin to have a master's degree awarded to Johnson, in the hope that this could then be used to justify an MA from Oxford,<ref name="Bate p. 182"/> but Swift refused to act on Johnson's behalf.<ref>{{Harvnb|Watkins|1960|pp=25–26}}</ref>

Between 1737 and 1739, Johnson befriended Richard Savage .<ref>{{Harvnb|Watkins|1960|p=51}}</ref> Feeling guilty about living on Tetty's money, Johnson stopped living with her and spent his time with Savage. They were poor and would stay in taverns or sleep in "night-cellars" except for nights that they would roam the streets because they lacked the necessary funds.<ref>{{Harvnb|Bate|1977|pp=178–179}}</ref> Savage's friends tried to help him by attempting to persuade him to move to Wales, but Savage ended up in Bristol and again fell into debt. He was committed to debtors' prison and died in 1743. A year later, Johnson wrote '' Life of Mr Richard Savage '' (1744), a "moving" work which, in the words of the biographer and critic Walter Jackson Bate, "remains one of the innovative works in the history of biography".<ref>{{Harvnb|Bate|1977|pp=180–181}}</ref>

Between 1737 and 1739, Johnson befriended Richard Savage .<ref>{{Harvnb|Watkins|1960|p=51}}</ref> Feeling guilty about living on Tetty's money, Johnson stopped living with her and spent his time with Savage. They were poor and would stay in taverns or sleep in "night-cellars" except for nights that they would roam the streets because they lacked the necessary funds.<ref>{{Harvnb|Bate|1977|pp=178–179}}</ref> Savage's friends tried to help him by attempting to persuade him to move to Wales, but Savage ended up in Bristol and again fell into debt. He was committed to debtors' prison and died in 1743. A year later, Johnson wrote '' Life of Mr Richard Savage '' (1744), a "moving" work which, in the words of the biographer and critic Walter Jackson Bate, "remains one of the innovative works in the history of biography".<ref>{{Harvnb|Bate|1977|pp=180–181}}</ref>

===''A Dictionary of the English Language''===

===''A Dictionary of the English Language''===

In 1746, a group of publishers approached Johnson about creating an authoritative dictionary of the English language;<ref name="Lynch p. 5"/> a contract with William Strahan and associates, worth 1,500 guineas, was signed on the morning of 18 June 1746.<ref name="Hitchings">{{Harvnb|Hitchings|2005|p=54}}</ref> Johnson claimed that he could finish the project in three years. In comparison, the Académie Française had forty scholars spending forty years to complete its dictionary, which prompted Johnson to claim, "This is the proportion. Let me see; forty times forty is sixteen hundred. As three to sixteen hundred, so is the proportion of an Englishman to a Frenchman".<ref name="Lynch p. 5"/> Although he did not succeed in completing the work in three years, he did manage to finish it in nine, justifying his boast.<ref name="Lynch p. 5"/> According to Bate, the ''Dictionary'' "easily ranks as one of the greatest single achievements of scholarship, and probably the greatest ever performed by one individual who laboured under anything like the disadvantages in a comparable length of time".<ref name="Bate240"/> However, others, such as Thomas Babington Macaulay who described Johnson as "a wretched etymologist," have criticised Johnson's dictionary.<ref>Winchester 2003, p.33</ref>

In 1746, a group of publishers approached Johnson about creating an authoritative dictionary of the English language;<ref name="Lynch p. 5"/> a contract with William Strahan and associates, worth 1,500 guineas, was signed on the morning of 18 June 1746.<ref name="Hitchings">{{Harvnb|Hitchings|2005|p=54}}</ref> Johnson claimed that he could finish the project in three years. In comparison, the Académie française had forty scholars spending forty years to complete its dictionary, which prompted Johnson to claim, "This is the proportion. Let me see; forty times forty is sixteen hundred. As three to sixteen hundred, so is the proportion of an Englishman to a Frenchman".<ref name="Lynch p. 5"/> Although he did not succeed in completing the work in three years, he did manage to finish it in nine, justifying his boast.<ref name="Lynch p. 5"/> According to Bate, the ''Dictionary'' "easily ranks as one of the greatest single achievements of scholarship, and probably the greatest ever performed by one individual who laboured under anything like the disadvantages in a comparable length of time".<ref name="Bate240"/> However, others, such as Thomas Babington Macaulay who described Johnson as "a wretched etymologist," have criticised Johnson's dictionary.<ref>Winchester 2003, p.33</ref>

Johnson's dictionary was not the first, nor was it unique. It was, however, the most commonly used and imitated for the 150 years between its first publication and the completion of the '' Oxford English Dictionary '' in 1928. Other dictionaries, such as Nathan Bailey 's ''Dictionarium Britannicum'', included more words,<ref name="Lynch p. 1"/> and in the 150 years preceding Johnson's dictionary about twenty other general-purpose monolingual "English" dictionaries had been produced.<ref name="Lynch p. 2">{{Harvnb|Lynch|2003|p=2}}</ref> However, there was open dissatisfaction with the dictionaries of the period. In 1741, David Hume claimed: "The Elegance and Propriety of Stile have been very much neglected among us. We have no Dictionary of our Language, and scarce a tolerable Grammar".<ref name="Lynch p. 4">{{Harvnb|Lynch|2003|p=4}}</ref> Johnson's ''Dictionary'' offers insights into the 18th century and "a faithful record of the language people used".<ref name="Lynch p. 1"/> It is more than a reference book; it is a work of literature.<ref name="Lynch p. 2"/>

Johnson's dictionary was not the first, nor was it unique. It was, however, the most commonly used and imitated for the 150 years between its first publication and the completion of the '' Oxford English Dictionary '' in 1928. Other dictionaries, such as Nathan Bailey 's ''Dictionarium Britannicum'', included more words,<ref name="Lynch p. 1"/> and in the 150 years preceding Johnson's dictionary about twenty other general-purpose monolingual "English" dictionaries had been produced.<ref name="Lynch p. 2">{{Harvnb|Lynch|2003|p=2}}</ref> However, there was open dissatisfaction with the dictionaries of the period. In 1741, David Hume claimed: "The Elegance and Propriety of Stile have been very much neglected among us. We have no Dictionary of our Language, and scarce a tolerable Grammar".<ref name="Lynch p. 4">{{Harvnb|Lynch|2003|p=4}}</ref> Johnson's ''Dictionary'' offers insights into the 18th century and "a faithful record of the language people used".<ref name="Lynch p. 1"/> It is more than a reference book; it is a work of literature.<ref name="Lynch p. 2"/>