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This book explores what remains an under-studied aspect of Samuel Johnson's profile as a person and writer – namely, his attitude to social improvement. The interpretive framework provided here is cross-disciplinary, and applies perspectives from social and cultural history, legal history, architectural history and, of course, English literature. This allows Johnson's writings to be read against the peculiarities of their historical milieu, and reveals Johnson in a new light – as an advocate of social improvement for human betterment.Considering the multiplicity of narrative modes that have been employed, the book points to the blurred boundaries and overlapping between history, testimony and fiction, and argues that a future biography of Samuel Johnson has to recognise that throughout his life he valued the utilitarian aspect of his manifesto as a writer to impart a more charitable attitude in the pursuit of a more caring society.

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9781443831819

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Stefka Ritchie received her BA in English Language and Literature from Birmingham City University, UK. On completion of her MPhil thesis ""Samuel Johnson in an Age of Science"" in 2002, she continued with further research on Dr Johnson, keen to explore what was still understudied, namely his interest in social improvement. This resulted in a PhD thesis, titled ""Samuel Johnson: a promoter of social improvement"", completed at the University of Birmingham (2014). She is currently Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Birmingham, where she is engaged in post-doctoral research in local history.

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