James Boswell’s Life of Johnson: An Edition of the Original Manuscript, Volume 2: 1766-1776

This is the second volume of the annotated transcription of James Boswell’s manuscript of The Life of Johnson, with its numerous complex revisions and wide array of supplementary materials. The transcription covers the period from 1766, when Boswell returned to Scotland after his eventful Grand Tour and then renewed his friendship with Johnson in London, to 1776, when the two traveled together to Oxford and the English Midlands, visiting scenes of Johnson’s youth. In this decade the personal bonds of friendship between Boswell and Johnson grew stronger, as did their biographical partnership.
The volume records all substantive changes Boswell made in the process of composition, restores lost or deleted material, and identifies compositor’s and other errors. It documents Boswell’s compositional selections and processes at every stage, showing how his compelling–and still controversial–view of Johnson emerged.