Goldsmith as Journalist

Book excerpt: "Indeed, the journalistic achievements of Oliver Goldsmith invite a reconsideration of the man doomed for so many years to play "Doctor Minor" to Johnson's "Doctor Major." Long before he established a reputation as the author of The Vicar of Wakefield, She Stoops to Conquer, and The Deserted Village, Goldsmith was establishing his unique journalistic voice - a voice incredibly diverse, if also frequently self-contradictory. There is no doubt that Goldsmith was something of a controversial figure - working for both of London's monthly book review journals while they were engaged in an ongoing, venomous, and well-publicized dispute. But it is important to remember that he was respected, too. He did serve, after all, as principal contributor to several of London's most successful newspapers and magazine miscellanies. In this capacity, his career intersected with the careers of Arthur Murphy, John Newbery, David Hume, Thomas Gray, Edmund Burke, and the most prominent booksellers, authors, and editors of the period." "As interest in eighteenth-century English journalism continues to accelerate, the critical reputation of Oliver Goldsmith which has been dwindling for years may receive an important boost. Scholars now have a wealth of primary and critical material from which to construct a contextual framework for understanding literary, social, and political developments in eighteenth-century England. Perhaps this wealth of information will lead them to reassess the man who not only exemplified, but also consistently commented on, the state of the press in "High Georgian" England."--BOOK JACKET.