Preface to Shakespeare

Dr. Samuel Johnson is an authoritative figure in the history of English Literature. As a critic and as an editor of Shakespeare’s plays, his influence on later critics was deep and enduring. The Preface he wrote to his edition of Shakespeare’s plays is of lasting value, being, as it is, a repository of Johnson’s best powers–a happy boldness of phrase, a broad and intimate humanity, a well-reasoned argumentation and an unerring skill in indicating essentials.