Dr.

Samuel Johnson’s preface to The Plays of William Shakespeare has long

been considered a classic document of English literary criticism. In it Johnson
sets forth his editorial principles and gives an appreciative analysis of the
“excellences” and “defects” of the works of Shakespeare. Many of his points
have become fundamental tenets of modern criticism; others give greater
insight into Johnson’s prejudices than into Shakespeare’s genius. The resonant
prose of the preface adds authority to the views of its author.Johnson is a true
classicist in his concern with the universal rather than with the particular; the
highest praise he bestows upon Shakespeare is to say that his plays are “just
representations of general nature.” The dramatist has relied upon his
knowledge of human nature, rather than on bizarre effects, for his success.
“The pleasures of sudden wonder are soon exhausted, and the mind can only
repose on the stability of truth,” Johnson concludes. It is for this reason that
Shakespeare has outlived his century and reached the point at which his works
can be judged solely on their own merits, without the interference of personal

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interests and prejudices that make criticism of one’s contemporaries difficult