Poems
Johnson's English verse: London, The Vanity of Human Wishes, his theater prologues, the lines on the death of Dr. Robert Levet, and his shorter poems.
Measured across the book
Across its 1,572 lines, 97% of stressed syllables fall on the beat (95% interval 96% to 97%). Alliteration runs at 1.07 times what shuffling the words would give (0.34 observed against 0.32 expected). 7% of the lines have a feminine ending.
Baselines and intervals are described in the methods.
Contents
London: A Poemiambic pentameter · 263 linesThe Vanity of Human Wishesiambic pentameter · AABB · 368 linesPrologue Spoken by Mr. Garrick at the Opening of the Theatre-Royal, Drury Lane, 1747iambic pentameter · AABB · 62 linesPrologue to the Tragedy of Ireneiambic pentameter · AABB · 34 linesPrologue Spoken by Mr. Garrick before the Masque of Comus, 1750iambic pentameter · AABB · 38 linesPrologue to the Comedy of The Good-Natur'd Man, 1769iambic pentameter · AABB · 30 linesPrologue to the Comedy of A Word to the Wise, Spoken by Mr. Hulliambic pentameter · AABB · 24 linesSpring: An Odeiambic tetrameter · 40 linesMidsummer: An Odeiambic tetrameter · 28 linesAutumn: An Odeiambic tetrameter · 44 linesWinter: An Odeiambic tetrameter · 36 linesThe Winter's Walkiambic tetrameter · ABABCDCDEFEFGHGHIJIJ · 20 linesTo Miss ****, on Her Giving the Author a Gold and Silk Network Purse of Her Own Weavingiambic tetrameter · AABBCC · 12 linesTo Miss ****, on Her Playing upon the Harpsichord, in a Room Hung with Flower-Pieces of Her Own Paintingiambic tetrameter · AABB · 36 linesEvening: An Ode, to Stellatrochaic tetrameter · AABB · 22 linesTo the Sametrochaic tetrameter · AABB · 28 linesTo a Friendiambic tetrameter · AABB · 28 linesStella in Mourningiambic tetrameter · AABB · 16 linesTo Stellaiambic tetrameter · AABBCC · 18 linesVerses Written at the Request of a Gentleman, to Whom a Lady Had Given a Sprig of Myrtleiambic pentameter · AABB · 14 linesTo Lady Firebrace at Bury Assizesiambic pentameter · AABB · 6 linesTo Lyce, an Elderly Ladycommon measure · ABAB · 24 linesOn the Death of Mr. Robert Levet, a Practiser in Physickiambic tetrameter · ABAB · 36 linesEpitaph on Claude Phillips, an Itinerant Musicianiambic pentameter · AABB · 6 linesParaphrase of the Above Epitaph, by Dr. Johnsoniambic pentameter · AABB · 44 linesTo Miss Hickman, Playing on the Spinetiambic pentameter · AABB · 20 linesParaphrase of Proverbs, Chap. VI. Verses 6 to 11iambic pentameter · AABB · 16 linesHorace, Book IV, Ode VII, Translatediambic tetrameter · AABB · 28 linesAnacreon, Ode IXtrochaic tetrameter · AABB · 44 linesLines Written in Ridicule of Certain Poems Published in 1777trochaic tetrameter · AABB · 8 linesParody of a Translation from the Medea of Euripidesiambic pentameter · ABAB · 20 linesTranslation from the Medea of Euripidesiambic tetrameter · AABB · 20 linesTranslation of the First Two Stanzas of the Song "Rio Verde, Rio Verde"iambic pentameter · ABAB · 4 linesImitation of the Style of ****trochaic tetrameter · ABAB · 8 linesBurlesque of Lines of Lopez de Vegaiambic pentameter · AABB · 4 linesTranslation of Lines at the End of Baretti's Easy Phraseologytrochaic tetrameter · 6 linesImproviso Translation of a Distich on the Duke of Modena's Running Away from the Cometiambic pentameter · 2 linesImproviso Translation of Lines of Benserade on His Bediambic pentameter · AABB · 4 linesEpitaph for Mr. Hogarthiambic pentameter · ABAB · 4 linesTranslation of Lines Written under a Print Representing Persons Skatingiambic pentameter · ABAB · 4 linesImpromptu Translation of the Sameiambic pentameter · ABAB · 4 linesTo Mrs. Thrale, on Her Completing Her Thirty-Fifth Yeartrochaic tetrameter · AABB · 18 linesImpromptu Translation of an Air in the Clemenza di Tito of Metastasiotrochaic tetrameter · AABB · 6 linesTranslation of a Speech of Aquileio, in the Adriano of Metastasioiambic hexameter · 13 linesBurlesque of the Modern Versifications of Ancient Legendary Talesiambic pentameter · 4 linesFriendship: An Odeiambic tetrameter · ABAB · 24 linesOn Seeing a Bust of Mrs. Montagueiambic pentameter · AABB · 6 linesImproviso on a Young Heir's Coming of Agetrochaic tetrameter · ABAB · 28 lines
About this text
Public domain. Text from Dr. Johnson's Works: Life, Poems, and Tales, Volume 1 (The Works of Samuel Johnson in Nine Volumes, 1825), Project Gutenberg ebook #10835. Free to read, print, copy and reuse.