Dr. Johnson

This year is the 300th anniversary of the birth of Samuel Johnson, often known as Dr. Johnson. Test your knowledge of the man with this brainteaser. Even if you think you don't know much about him, give the brainteaser a try, as we provide multiple choices for several questions.

1. Whose biography of Samuel Johnson, published in 1791, remains by common consent the greatest biography in the language?
   James Boswell.
2. Was Johnson the son of a bookseller, a butcher or a parson?
   Bookseller.
3. Which writer did Johnson describe as "a poet who holds up to his readers a faithful mirror of manners and of life"?
   Shakespeare.
4. What is the missing word in this quotation from Johnson: "When a man is tired of..., he is tired of life"? Is it eating, talking or London?
   London.
5. In 1759, Johnson wrote "Rasselas" in a week to pay for the funeral of which relative: his father, mother or daughter?
   His mother.
6. In his "Dictionary of the English Language", which word did Johnson define as "A grain, which in England is generally given to horses, but in Scotland supports the people"?
   Oats.
7. Is Johnson buried in St Paul's Cathedral, Westminster Abbey or Lichfield Cathedral?
   Westminster Abbey.
8. Is Johnson's "The Vanity of Human Wishes" an essay or a poem?
   Poem.
9. In his "Dictionary of the English Language", which word was defined by Johnson as "Commonly a wretch who supports with insolence, and is paid with flattery"?
   Patron.
10. What was the title of the only play that Johnson wrote, produced by Garrick in 1749?
    Irene.

Questions set by Tony Augarde, author of "The Oxford Guide to Word Games"

How did you do?

0 - 1    Mmmm, not exactly brilliant.
2 - 5    A reasonable stab.
6 - 8    A good showing. But there's still room for improvement!
9 - 10  You really know your stuff. Well done!