Autobiography, Letters and Literary Remains of Mrs. Piozzi (2

Piozzi, Hester Lynch, 1741-1821Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 4.0
Word count
567K words
Chapters
57

Tags

English Originals General Biography Historical ReappraisalLiterary AnecdoteSocialiteGroup BiographyLetters and MemoirFamous FiguresSelf-Reflection18th Century EnglandModern BritainFemale Perspective

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Autobiography, Letters and Literary Remains of Mrs. Piozzi (Thrale) (2nd ed.) (2Author: Piozzi, Hester Lynch, 1741-1821,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Feb 14, 2005

Editor's review

This collection of autobiography, letters and literary remains left by Hester Lynch Piozzi (née Thrale) is first-hand material for understanding eighteenth-century English literary circles. Piozzi is remembered for her close association with Dr. Johnson; her letters and self-accounts offer a unique perspective on Johnson's later life, conversational habits and social circle, and also show how an educated, strong-charactered woman who remarried late in life and bore public criticism presented herself. This is an English original in the public domain, read more like browsing archives than a continuous biography: letters, fragmentary recollections and literary miscellany interweave, information-dense but loosely structured. Its value lies not in plot progression but in the texture of historical sources and the atmosphere of the era—eighteenth-century letter etiquette, social networks, literary controversies and women's circumstances emerge between the lines. Suitable for slow, reference-oriented reading by readers interested in English literary history, Johnson studies or eighteenth-century social culture, and as a sample for understanding the epistolary style.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Not a good fit for

Reading tips

  1. Read the editor's notes and biographical section first to clarify relationships and timeline, then proceed to the letters.
  2. Keep paper or electronic notes to record recurring names and events for cross-reference.
  3. Skim by theme, such as Johnson-related passages, marriage and public controversy, and literary criticism fragments.
  4. Read alongside Johnson biographies or background on eighteenth-century English history for fuller understanding.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

Contents

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16
  17. 17
  18. 18
  19. 19
  20. 20
  21. 21
  22. 22
  23. 23
  24. 24
  25. 25
  26. 26
  27. 27
  28. 28
  29. 29
  30. 30
  31. 31
  32. 32
  33. 33
  34. 34
  35. 35
  36. 36
  37. 37
  38. 38
  39. 39
  40. 40
  41. 41
  42. 42
  43. 43
  44. 44
  45. 45
  46. 46
  47. 47
  48. 48
  49. 49
  50. 50
  51. 51
  52. 52
  53. 53
  54. 54
  55. 55
  56. 56
  57. 57

FAQ

Is this book a complete, continuous autobiography? No. It is a compilation of autobiographical material, letters and literary remains; the narrative is fragmentary, requiring readers to connect the timeline and relationships themselves—more like archival documents than a systematic biography.
Can I read it without knowing Dr. Johnson? You can, but understanding will suffer. Much of the book revolves around Johnson and his circle; prior knowledge of Johnson and the eighteenth-century English literary scene will make reading much smoother.
What language proficiency is needed to read this book? This is an English original, and the epistolary style includes eighteenth-century usage and allusions; good English reading ability is recommended, with a dictionary and background notes as needed.

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Piozzi, Hester Lynch, 1741-1821 Author

Hester Lynch Piozzi (1741-1821), commonly known as Mrs. Piozzi, was an eighteenth-century English literary figure best known for her association with Samuel Johnson and for her records of him. Her representative work, Anecdotes of the Late Samuel Johnson, LL.D., presents Johnson's conversation and character from firsthand experience and remains an important primary source for Johnson studies. The collection also includes her autobiography, letters and literary remains, travel observations from a journey through France, and humorous pieces such as Anecdotes of the Learned Pig, spanning memoir, correspondence, travel writing and essays. Her writing is notable for its sense of scene and personal perspective, lively in tone and marked by keen observation and humour, offering vivid material for understanding eighteenth-century English literary and social life. Public information is limited, and details of her life and the influence of her works await further study.