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JOHNSON. 



Johnson, 

 baniucl. 



the formality of antithesis, with latinisms, with too 

 much abstraction of terms, with a rotundity of words 

 that is often more sonorous than instructive, and with 

 a pomp of metaphor that is frequently applied to tri- 

 vial ideas. Mill there is a breadth and magnificence 

 in his style, considered as the drapery of his thoughts, 

 thai makes the richness of its tissue atone for the stiff- 

 ness of its folds. And if his colours of language be 

 gorgeous, his ideas are for the most part sufficiently vi- 

 gorous to stand exposure in the strongest light. 



As a critic, where his political or accidental preju- 

 dices did not happen to interfere, he could seize more vi- 

 goroiiily, than almost any other mind, upon the main 

 outlines -of merits and defects in poetry, and illustrate 

 them with a force and felicity entirely his own. But 

 we believe it will be generally granted, that though he 

 fully possessed the great outlines of critical discern- 

 ment, he had not that finer tact of sensibility which di- 

 rects to the more latent and exquisite beauties of poe- 

 try. Garrick complained, and we believe justly, that 

 he was wholly dead to the finest impressions of trage- 

 dy j yet no one could give, in general terms, a more 

 just description of the merits which tragedy should 

 possess. His critical sensibility was sagacious, not sen- 

 sitive. Those who blame him for not going deeper 

 among our ancient poets, in his edition of them, forget 

 that the study of our elder poets was but then begun. 

 Of the poets whom he criticised, he made, upon the 

 whole, a pretty fair estimate. It is the rage of modern 

 taste to exaggerate the merits of all oar old minor poets ; 

 Johnson's work will probably serve, in a future age, to 

 counteract this overweening opinion. Indeed, at this 

 moment there is no critical authority to which we 

 should resort more willingly, than to his, against the 

 tasteless depreciation of Pope, which has of late been 

 so ominously current. The history of his life cannot 

 be perused without many recollections of personal es- 

 teem. The traits of his charity and benevolence to the 

 unfortunate are very numerous He was a dutiful son 

 and a kind master ; and the spectacle of his early ca- 

 reer, that of a friendless scholar, supporting himself by 

 the toils of literature, bursting forth upon the world as 

 a man of genius, through the clouds of poverty, de- 

 pression, and hypochondria, and maintaining all along a 

 virtuous pride and independence of character ; this is 

 an object of interesting and even of elevated contempla- 

 tion. It mdy soften our animadversion, though it can- 

 not wholly blind us to his faults as a philosopher and a 

 man. In neither of these views, whether we consider 

 him as an individual member of society, or a teacher 

 of the truths that publicly interest society, can he be 

 held up as an object altogether entitled to be loved, or 

 fit to imitated. He seems neither to have felt nor 

 practised one of the first duties of a member of society 

 that of social and civilized deportment. The history 

 of his conversations, as related by Mr. Boswell, gives us 

 the picture of a strong and amusing, but of a coarse 

 and insolent mind. Whatever praise may be due to 

 his strictly private and domestic virtues, he often 

 brought no better feelings into promiscuous society, 

 than those of spleen, egotism, and domineering pride. 

 We are told by his biographers only of his victories in 

 the warfare of conversation ; but private tradition has 

 preserved many anecdotes of his insolence being pro- 

 perly chastised, and often in the most humiliating man- 

 ner, by individuals who were his inferiors in general 

 knowledge. It would have been well if these had been 

 recorded with equal assiduity as his triumphs ; for his 

 example was calculated to injure the tone of general 

 manners ; and it is certain that there were at one time 



many apes of his manner in conversation, as well as in 

 writing. But, happily, thg prevailing manners of po- 

 lite life are now such, that the dogmatic manner of a 

 Johnson would not at this moment be tolerated. 



He was an advocate of arbitrary power in politics, 

 though it is but justice to mention with what particu- 

 lar qualifications. He abhorred the existence of abso- 

 lute slavery, and used to express his detestation of that 

 remaining blot upon our nation;ir*character, the slavery 

 of negroes in our colonies. He wished well to Roman 

 Catholic emancipation ; and even after the alarm of the 

 memorable riots in London, rejoiced that the acquittal 

 of Lord George Gordon had not sanctioned the doctrine 

 of executing a man for ccnsl motive treason.^ So far his 

 sense of rectitude prevailed, in particular cases, over his 

 general tendency to bigotted and despotic sentiments. 

 But the main current of his opinions ran in the latter 

 channel. We need-not trouble the reader with quota- 

 tions ; for the most who have perused his life, must 

 remember many traits of his superstition and intoler- 

 ance. He bowed to a bishop as to a being of a superior 

 nature. He abused, in the most rancorous terms, a 

 young woman who had been guilty of quitting the 

 established church, and joining the society of Quakers, 

 declaring that she had no right to think for herself on 

 the subject. He spoke of Rousseau as one whom he 

 would have rejoiced to punish as a felon. We are not 

 disciples of Rousseau ; but we have no hesitation in de- 

 claring our opinion, that some of Dr. Johnson's tenets 

 were not less noxious than those of the philosopher of 

 Geneva. In point of immediate and obvious evil ten 

 dency, nothing that Rousseau ever wrote was so per- 

 nicious as our author's pamphlet on the subject of our 

 dispute with America. It may not be easy to ascertain 

 how much influence that production exercised in bias- 

 ing the public mind towards hostilities ; but he lent 

 his influence, such as it was, to sanction unjust pre- 

 tensions, and to promote the exasperation and suffer- 

 ings of millions of his species. 



The tendency of his abstract sentiments in favour of 

 arbitrary power, was, perhaps, not very mischievous. 

 It is chiefly in confined and particular 'questions that 

 the sophistry of an illiberal writer can do much harm. 

 Taken in a general view, an animated author counter- 

 acts all the evil impressions which he can make against 

 the cause of liberty, by the spirit of discussion which 

 he awakens, and by the attention and contradiction 

 which he provokes. Johnson defended principles with 

 his pen, which, in the long run, can never be support- 

 ed but by the sword. 



Nevertheless, when we assign to departed individuals 

 their respective rank in the scale of benefactors to their 

 species, we cannot forget the question, whether they 

 have lent the strength of their talents to promote the 

 progress of moral civilization, or to retard the emanci- 

 pation of the human mind from big'otry and servility. 

 Had the leading spirits of our literature been -all like 

 Dr. Johnson, we might have been at this day burning 

 witches, and believing in the second sight. With what 

 contrasted feelings do we rise from perusing the life 

 and writings of that Milton, whom our author has 

 pourtrayed with the heavy hand of malignant hatred. 

 Milton left his contemporaries behind him, in his high 

 moral and political views, and bequeathed texts for suc- 

 ceeding times to comment upon, and to put in practice. 

 Johnson straggled behind his own age, among the pre- 

 judices of the nursery ; and, with all his eloquence and 

 manly powers, came from the most enlightened capital 

 in the world, to find the reveries of barbarism in the 

 island of Sky congenial with his own opinions. (>i) 



