Samuel johnson please help?

Question

Samuel Johnson – how does he represent the developments of English intellectual life?

Answer 1

Johnson’s genius provided a stimulus to intellectual life in 18th century England that resonates to this day. His use of the essay form, intelligent criticism, and biography (especially of English poets) were major contributions to the evolution of English literature. His Dictionary of the English Language was wildly popular, thanks much to his personal and sometimes eccentric touch found in the monumental work. Interest in his own life of letters, exposed by Boswell and others, also helped to spread interest in the grand possibilities of the English language.