Poetical Works of Johnson, Parnell, Gray, and Smollett

Samuel Johnson

1709–1784

A towering voice of 18th-century English literature, he is best known for his landmark Dictionary of the English Language and for the sharp wit, moral force, and common sense that run through his essays and criticism. His work still feels lively because it mixes learning with humor and a deep interest in how people really live.

Thomas Parnell

1679–1718

An Irish poet and clergyman from the Augustan age, he was admired by friends such as Alexander Pope and Jonathan Swift and is especially remembered for the reflective poem "A Night-Piece on Death." His verse helped carry polished eighteenth-century style into more meditative, quietly emotional territory.

T. (Tobias) Smollett

1721–1771

A sharp, energetic voice of 18th-century fiction, he brought comic chaos and restless travel to novels that still feel brisk and alive. Trained as a surgeon and drawn to satire, he wrote with the speed, bite, and eye for character that made him one of the great picaresque storytellers in English.