Tea in Lit: Samuel Johnson

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#whatsinmycup, authors, books, food, samuel-johnson, tea, tea addict, tea in literature, tea lover, tea time

…a hardened and shameless tea-drinker, who has, for twenty years, diluted his meals with only the infusion of this fascinating plant; whose kettle has scarcely time to cool; who with tea amuses the evening, with tea solaces the midnight, and, with tea, welcomes the morning.”

Sounds like my kind of guy!

Samuel Johnson (1709-1784) was an English critic, biographer, essayist, poet, lexicographer…and tea drinker!

One of his most noted accomplishments was “A Dictionary of the English Language”, which was published in two volumes in 1755. It was completed six years later than planned but was remarkably quick for such an extensive tome. Earlier English dictionaries existed before this time, but not on this scale as Johnson’s dictionary included etymologies, definitions and quotations from exiting writing to illustrate word usage. Some of those written quotes came from his own writing.

He was pleased that he completed his dictionary in 9 years, whereas the illustrious French Academy took 40 years and numerous writers. Some earlier dictionaries may have had more words overall, but Johnson’s definitions were a great improvement over his predecessors, and his illustrations from writers formed an anthology and established a canon. He insisted on using sources on morality and piety, thus hoping to encourage readers to seek out those authors for their own morality.

Samuel Johnson took his eating and drinking habits seriously, and ate robustly, refusing to acknowledge anyone until he was full. Tea was another vice. According to his first and most noted biographer, James Boswell, “Johnson was known to drink up to 25 cups of tea in one sitting“.

I have never consumed 25 cups of tea in one day, let alone one sitting. How about you?