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Lädt ... The Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides with Samuel Johnson (1786)von James Boswell
Lädt ...
Melde dich bei LibraryThing an um herauszufinden, ob du dieses Buch mögen würdest. Keine aktuelle Diskussion zu diesem Buch. When they engaged on their 1773 journey through Scotland together, James Boswell (1740-1795) was of Scottish descent and almost half the age of Dr. Samuel Johnson (1709-1784), who was not well travelled and critical of all things Scottish. Boswell is also the author of a complete biography of Johnson, heralded as one of the best biographies ever written. Much of his focus here is on Johnson rather than the tour. He was devoted to Johnson but also proud of his Scottish heritage, and he hoped this journey would be a happy meeting of the two. I'm not sure I've encountered so extreme an example before of reading something I initially thought detestable and then wound up shelving it among my favourites. Boswell's depiction of Samuel Johnson takes some initial getting used to, when Johnson comes across as full of hot air and voicing judgmental opinions that lack for evidence to back them up. It took me a while to realize Boswell worships the ground Johnson walks on and records virtually every insightful thing Johnson says, whatever the subject. I was trying to read the constant switches in topic as continuous conversation and getting frustrated, until I realized they aren't sewn together. After that I found some patience and was slowly won over. Johnson could quote erudite stuff like nobody's business and take any side of an argument for the sake of having one. It seems this was much admired in him. He didn't like to lose a debate, and would quickly switch to ridicule if he felt in danger. Boswell quotes their contemporary Oliver Goldsmith who said there's no use arguing with Johnson, since if he fails to shoot you with his pistol (metaphorically) he'll just knock you down with the butt end of it. Boswell indicates that Johnson read his journal entries as he wrote them, but still doesn't shy from stating where he thinks Johnson was wrong about something he said or did. Sometimes Johnson consequently adds further comments, which Boswell dutifully records. Sometimes Boswell praises Johnson for letting something pass. It's all so layered. There's occasional commentary by Boswell on Johnson's earlier account of their journey, offering backing or clarification. It's a reminder that records like these can only be interpreted within the limits of what the author chooses to tell, and shines a light on the value gained by having the two accounts to compare. Boswell earns credit for how well they complement one another, but read Johnson's account first to better appreciate this one. Not really a travelogue so much as a conversationalogue, with Johnson always beating his opponents in straight sets. He is probably the most quotable man on the planet, no wonder Boswell latched on to him. It would be fun to discover he was really a dull, tendentious old man, and Boswell created one of the greatest literary characters in history. keine Rezensionen | Rezension hinzufügen
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Title: The Journal of a Tour to the Herbrides, With Samuel Johnson, Ll.d.; Containing Some Poetical Pieces by Dr. Johnson, Relative to the Tour, and Never Before Published; a Series of His Conversation, Literary Anecdotes and Opinions of Men and Books; With an Authentic Account of the Distresses and Escapes of the Grandson of King James Ii. in the Year 1746 Publisher: London: Office of the National illustrated library Subjects: Johnson, Samuel, 1709-1784 Hebrides (Scotland) -- Description and travel Scotland -- Description and travel Notes: This is an OCR reprint. There may be numerous typos or missing text. There are no illustrations or indexes. When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million books for free. You can also preview the book there. Keine Bibliotheksbeschreibungen gefunden. |
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Google Books — Lädt ... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)914.117History and Geography Geography and Travel Geography of and travel in Europe British Isles, UK, Great Britain, Scotland, Ireland ScotlandKlassifikation der Library of Congress [LCC] (USA)BewertungDurchschnitt:
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So far I’ve only read Boswell’s account, and it’s true it mostly serves as a vehicle for describing Johnson’s conversation. There’s a whole lot of 18th-century name-dropping, most of which didn’t mean much to me. But I learned a few things, and found the occasional humorous passage. Check out my Kindle highlights for examples.
This was my second pick for Georgianuary 2020. ( )