Oliver Goldsmith

His Life and Works
1. Auflage 2025
ISBN: 978-1-041-11996-8
Verlag: Taylor & Francis Ltd

Buch, Englisch, 424 Seiten, Format (B × H): 156 mm x 234 mm

Reihe: Routledge Revivals

In view of the author of Oliver Goldsmith (originally published in 1974), the many biographies which have appeared seem defective in several respects. They either omit information which is readily available, or ignore essential features of Goldsmith’s life and character, or fail to see the real problems which should be considered; they are too prone to pass over or make light of Goldsmith’s faults. Dr Lytton Sells decided, therefore, that he would have to go back to the sources and to think out his character afresh.

There are strange gaps in the records of Goldsmith’s life, and many questions that remain unanswered. Goldsmith kept no journal and few of his letters have survived. He was an inveterate liar, and we cannot often give credence to what he tells us about himself. This is what makes the biographer’s task a difficult one; nevertheless, Dr Lytton Sells has tackled it with great enthusiasm and insight and has given us a life that is both sound and readable and takes account of all the evidence available. And to this he has added a full-length study of the works which will be invaluable to any student of English literature.

Zielgruppe

Postgraduate

Autoren/Hrsg.

Sells, A. Lytton

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Literaturwissenschaft Literaturwissenschaft

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Preface Part One: The Life 1. An Irish Boyhood: 1728–45 2. Dublin and its Aftermath: 1745–52 3. Edinburgh and Leyden: 1752–54 4. The Grand Tour: 1755 5. England in 1756 6. Hard Times: 1756–61 7. Music, Drama and Politics: 1757–60 8. Great Expectations: 1761–62 9. Meeting the Right People: 1763–65 10. Novelist and Dramatist: 1766–68 11. The Professor of Ancient History: 1769 12. An Offer from Lord North: a Visit to Paris: 1770 13. Summers in the Country: Winters in Town: 1771–72 14. She Stoops to Conquer: 1773 15. Falling Shadows: 1773 16. The End: 1774 Conclusion Part Two: The Works 17. The Critic 18. The Journalist 19. The Biographer 20. The Citizen of the World 21. The Vicar of Wakefield (I) 22. The Vicar of Wakefield (II) 23. The Poet (I) 24. The Poet (II) 25. The Dramatist (I) 26. The Dramatist (II) 27. The Translator 28. The Compiler Conclusion Appendixes I The History of Francis Wills and the Mystery of Goldsmith’s Lost Novel II A Note on Goldsmith’s Influence on the French Stage III A Comparative Estimate of Money Values in Goldsmith’s Time and in Ours

Über Autor(innen)

A. Lytton Sells, a graduate of Cambridge and of the Sorbonne, had an extraordinarily long teaching career which began in 1923. He held various positions at the University of Padua, Indiana University and taught at University of Durham until his retirement.