David Hall discusses the challenges of writing and publishing in colonial America, when authors sent documents to England for publication, only to see them altered dramatically by far-away editors and printers. Hall is professor of New England

Sam and Jamie: ‘No Theory Please, We’re British’

May 6th, 2010 47m 3s

The famous relationship between lexicographer Samuel Johnson and his friend and biographer, James Boswell, is discussed in a lecture by Paul Ruxin. A noted expert on this literary pair, Ruxin is the owner of one of the largest collections of Jo

Johnson Agonistes: Portraying Samuel Johnson

May 6th, 2010 53m 36s

By the time James Boswell published his monumental biography of his friend Samuel Johnson in 1791, the latter’s life had been more fully documented than virtually any other figure in Western history. But Johnson, the famed lexicographer and ma

Samuel Johnson and His Famous Dictionary

May 6th, 2010 53m 43s

Loren Rothschild, a noted collector of the works of Samuel Johnson, talks about the life and work of the great 18th-century man of letters who compiled the first comprehensive dictionary of the English language.

What is a Book? (Zamorano Lecture)

May 6th, 2010 35m 25s

How significant are books for the circulation of written texts? The question has become more urgent in the age of digital media, and yet historically books have often been rivaled by other textual forms. Peter Stallybrass, Annenberg Professor

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