Switch to English Switch to French

The Open University  |   Study at the OU  |   About the OU  |   Research at the OU  |   Search the OU

Listen to this page  |   Accessibility

the experience of reading in Britain, from 1450 to 1945...

Reading Experience Database UK Historical image of readers
 
 
 
 

Record Number: 21115


Reading Experience:

Evidence:

'We talked of his two political pamphlets, "The False Alarm," and "Thoughts concerning Falkland's Islands." Johnson. "Well, sir, which of them did you think the best?" Boswell. "I liked the second best." Johnson. "Why, sir, I liked the first best; and Beattie liked the first best. Sir, there is a subtlety of disquisition in the first that is worth all the fire of the second".'

Century:

1700-1799

Date:

Until: 21 Mar 1772

Country:

n/a

Time

n/a

Place:

n/a

Type of Experience
(Reader):
 

silent aloud unknown
solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown

Type of Experience
(Listener):
 

solitary in company unknown
single serial unknown


Reader / Listener / Reading Group:

Reader:

James Boswell

Age:

Adult (18-100+)

Gender:

Male

Date of Birth:

29 Oct 1740

Socio-Economic Group:

Professional / academic / merchant / farmer

Occupation:

writer and lawyer

Religion:

n/a

Country of Origin:

Scotland

Country of Experience:

n/a

Listeners present if any:
e.g family, servants, friends

n/a


Additional Comments:

n/a



Text Being Read:

Author:

Samuel Johnson

Title:

False Alarm, The

Genre:

Politics

Form of Text:

Print: Pamphlet

Publication Details

n/a

Provenance

unknown


Source Information:

Record ID:

21115

Source:

Print

Author:

James Boswell

Editor:

R.W. Chapman

Title:

Life of Johnson

Place of Publication:

Oxford

Date of Publication:

1980

Vol:

n/a

Page:

459

Additional Comments:

n/a

Citation:

James Boswell, R.W. Chapman (ed.), Life of Johnson, (Oxford, 1980), p. 459, http://www.open.ac.uk/Arts/reading/UK/record_details.php?id=21115, accessed: 29 March 2024


Additional Comments:

Originally published 1791.

   
   
Green Turtle Web Design