A Study Of Imperial Consciousness In Samuel Johnson’s Works

In British literary history,Samuel Johnson is one whose name and literary achievement can be comparable to those of Shakespeare.His works involve virtually all genres,ranging from poetry,drama,fiction,prose,travelogue,to literary criticism.There has been a sustained academic interest in Johnson studies since eighteenth century.A survey of Johnson studies by scholars at home and abroad reveals that scanty attention has been paid to the imperial consciousness in his works.On the basis of Edward Said’s Orientalism,this dissertation attempts to explore the imperial consciousness reflected in Johnson’s works by investigating the social context in Johnson’s time.It is sincerely hoped that this study would expand to some extent the scope of Johnson studies and shed some light on the people’s perception of the process in which the British Empire is made.The dissertation falls into seven parts.The introductory part presents the life and works of Samuel Johnson.On the basis of a survey of Johnson studies at home and abroad,it points to the deficiency in the studies of imperial consciousness related to Johnson’s works.What ensues is an introduction to the methodology and theoretical framework of the dissertation.Chapter One bases itself on Johnson’s writings on language,especially his The Plan of a Dictionary of the English Language(1747)and his Preface(1775)to the Dictionary.With the aid of relevant scholars’ analysis of the relationship between language and empire and studies on the Dictionary itself,it attempts to explore Johnson’s latent imperial consciousness as embedded in his writings on language in relation to the specific social context.With an exploration of the relationship between language and empire,this part surveys the corruption of the English language and reveals Johnson’s concern about it,thus bringing his imperial consciousness into light.Through his writing on language in the Plan and Preface,primarily his arduous efforts in the compilation of the Dictionary,Johnson managed to win general acclaim from his contemporaries and contributed to the promotion of English to the status of an international language.Chapter Two,relating to the social background of Johnson’s time,especially the changes triggered by the fast development of science and technology,investigates Johnson’s moral essays and explores the impact of the values proposed by him upon the general public and society as a whole.Johnson’s moral essays cover a wide scope and were read extensively by the readers.Such values as national pride,industriousness,enterprising spirit and self-restraint they promoted not only helped to propel social and economic development of the empire,but also alleviated to some extent the social conflicts.Chapter Three focuses on Johnson’s political pamphlets on Britain’s tension with Spain,France,America and other rivals of it in an effort to reveal Johnson’s belligerent attitude towards them and his efforts in the protection of the interests of his own nation.On the one hand,Johnson launched fierce attacks on rivals of Britain;on the other hand,he spared no efforts in the justification of British interests overseas.Instead of despotic rule of the colonies,Johnson was more prone to the milder cultural imperialism,which anticipated his contemporaries.Chapter Four attempts to explore Johnson’s attitude towards the Scots as an example to reveal his conception of ethnic groups in Britain in general.Through a review of the tension between England and Scotland and an analysis of Johnson’s prejudice against the Scots,it probes into Johnson’ perception of Scotland as represented in his A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland,which in his eyes,is characterized by economic backwardness and cultural barrenness.Thus Scotland,rather than an integral part of Britain,is but an ethnic Other for Johnson.Languages are important carriers of culture,as far as Johnson was concerned,Scottish Gaelic,a language spoken by people in Scotland,is a symbol of an ethnic Other in British culture.Based on Johnson’s only novel,The History of Rasselas,Prince of Abbisinia,Chapter Five steps outside the territorial boundary of Britain to look at Johnson’s representation of outsiders of the empire,primarily,people from the east in an attempt to reveal his perception of other,to use Edward Said’s term.With reference to Oriental tales in eighteenth century England,this part dwells on Johnson’sconstruction of the image of other.For Johnson,the Orientals in Rasselas fall into four types,namely,prisoners of despot,vagrant drifters,insane lunatics and ignorant savages,who are dwarfed by European superiority in terms of knowledge,science,economy,and democracy.The dissertation concludes that Johnson’s writings touch upon a wide range of issues concerning the making of the British Empire.Living in a period of Britain’s transition from a feudal society to an imperialist power,Johnson himself was likely to be unaware of the term “imperial consciousness”.Nevertheless,in his interaction with social changes,this mentality was gradually penetrating into his mind,which is conspicuously reflected in his writings.While the latter,in reverse,contributes to the making of the British Empire.