1779 in literature
Encyclopedia
Events
- William BlakeWilliam BlakeWilliam Blake was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of both the poetry and visual arts of the Romantic Age...
enrols at the Royal AcademyRoyal AcademyThe Royal Academy of Arts is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly, London. The Royal Academy of Arts has a unique position in being an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects whose purpose is to promote the creation, enjoyment and... - April 6 - Premiėre of Iphigenie auf TaurisIphigenie auf TaurisIphigenia in Tauris is a reworking by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe of the ancient Greek tragedy Ἰφιγένεια ἐν Ταύροις, Iphigeneia en Taurois, by Euripides. Goethe's chosen Latinized title for his work, however, is a false analogy to the title of Euripides's tragedy, which really means "Iphigenia...
by Johann Wolfgang Goethe.
New books
- Richard GravesRichard GravesRichard Graves was an English minister, poet, and novelist.Born at Mickleton Manor, Mickleton, Gloucestershire, to Richard Graves, gentleman, and his wife, Elizabeth, Graves was a student at Abingdon School and Pembroke College, Oxford...
- Columella - Friedrich Heinrich JacobiFriedrich Heinrich JacobiFriedrich Heinrich Jacobi was an influential German philosopher, literary figure, socialite and the younger brother of poet Johann Georg Jacobi...
- Woldemar - Ignacy KrasickiIgnacy KrasickiIgnacy Krasicki , from 1766 Prince-Bishop of Warmia and from 1795 Archbishop of Gniezno , was Poland's leading Enlightenment poet , a critic of the clergy, Poland's La Fontaine, author of the first Polish novel, playwright, journalist, encyclopedist, and translator from French and...
- Fables and Parables (Bajki i przypowieści) - Nocturnal RevelsNocturnal RevelsNocturnal Revels is a 1779 two-volume book about prostitution in 18th-century London.The title page introduces the book as "the history of King's-Place and other modern nunneries", written by a "monk of the Order of St Francis"...
- Samuel Jackson PrattSamuel Jackson PrattSamuel Jackson Pratt was a prolific English poet, dramatist and novelist, writing under the pseudonym of "Courtney Melmoth" as well as under his own name...
as "Courtney Melmoth"- Shenstone-Green
- The Tutor of Truth
- The Sorrows of Werter (anonymous translation of the work by Johann Wolfgang von GoetheJohann Wolfgang von GoetheJohann Wolfgang von Goethe was a German writer, pictorial artist, biologist, theoretical physicist, and polymath. He is considered the supreme genius of modern German literature. His works span the fields of poetry, drama, prose, philosophy, and science. His Faust has been called the greatest long...
)
New drama
- Fanny BurneyFanny BurneyFrances Burney , also known as Fanny Burney and, after her marriage, as Madame d’Arblay, was an English novelist, diarist and playwright. She was born in Lynn Regis, now King’s Lynn, England, on 13 June 1752, to musical historian Dr Charles Burney and Mrs Esther Sleepe Burney...
- The Witlings - Hannah CowleyHannah CowleyHannah Cowley was an English dramatist and poet. Although Cowley’s plays and poetry did not enjoy wide popularity after the nineteenth century, critic Melinda Finberg rates Cowley as “one of the foremost playwrights of the late eighteenth century” whose “skill in writing fluid, sparkling dialogue...
- Albina, Countess Raimond
- Who's the Dupe
- Richard CumberlandRichard CumberlandRichard Cumberland may refer to:* Richard Cumberland , bishop, philosopher* Richard Cumberland , civil servant, dramatist...
- Calypso - Hugh DownmanHugh DownmanHugh Downman was an officer of the Royal Navy who saw service during the American War of Independence and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, eventually rising to the rank of Admiral....
- Lucius Junius Brutus - Jean-Pierre Claris de FlorianJean-Pierre Claris de FlorianJean-Pierre Claris de Florian was a French poet and romance writer.-Life:...
- Les Deux BilletsLes Deux BilletsLes Deux Billets is a one act comedy by Jean-Pierre Claris de Florian. It was first performed by the Comédie Italienne in 1779. Les Deux Billets is the first of a trilogy of plays called "The Arlequinades" that tell the story of Arlequin, his wife Argentine, and later, their children... - Robert JephsonRobert JephsonRobert Jephson was an Irish dramatist and politician.He was born in Ireland. After serving for some years in the British army, he retired with the rank of captain, and lived in England where he was the friend of David Garrick, Joshua Reynolds, Oliver Goldsmith, Samuel Johnson, Edmund Burke,...
- The Law of Lombardy - Gotthold Ephraim LessingGotthold Ephraim LessingGotthold Ephraim Lessing was a German writer, philosopher, dramatist, publicist, and art critic, and one of the most outstanding representatives of the Enlightenment era. His plays and theoretical writings substantially influenced the development of German literature...
- Nathan der WeiseNathan der WeiseNathan the Wise is a play by Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, published in 1779. It is a fervent plea for religious tolerance... - Richard Brinsley SheridanRichard Brinsley SheridanRichard Brinsley Butler Sheridan was an Irish-born playwright and poet and long-term owner of the London Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. For thirty-two years he was also a Whig Member of the British House of Commons for Stafford , Westminster and Ilchester...
- The CriticThe Critic (play)The Critic: or, a Tragedy Rehearsed is a satire by Richard Brinsley Sheridan. It was first staged at Drury Lane Theatre in 1779. It is a burlesque on stage acting and play production conventions, and Sheridan considered the first act to be his finest piece of writing...
New poetry
- William CowperWilliam CowperWilliam Cowper was an English poet and hymnodist. One of the most popular poets of his time, Cowper changed the direction of 18th century nature poetry by writing of everyday life and scenes of the English countryside. In many ways, he was one of the forerunners of Romantic poetry...
and John NewtonJohn NewtonJohn Henry Newton was a British sailor and Anglican clergyman. Starting his career on the sea at a young age, he became involved with the slave trade for a few years. After experiencing a religious conversion, he became a minister, hymn-writer, and later a prominent supporter of the abolition of...
- Olney Hymns - Robert Furgusson - Poems
- William HayleyWilliam HayleyWilliam Hayley was an English writer, best known as the friend and biographer of William Cowper.-Biography:...
- Epistle to Admiral Keppel - Ann Murry - Poems
Non-fiction
- Anna Barbauld - Lessons for ChildrenLessons for ChildrenLessons for Children is a series of four age-adapted reading primers written by the prominent 18th-century British poet and essayist Anna Laetitia Barbauld. Published in 1778 and 1779, the books initiated a revolution in children's literature in the Anglo-American world...
- James Burnett - Antient Metaphysics
- Edward CapellEdward CapellEdward Capell , English Shakespearian critic, was born at Troston Hall in Suffolk.-Biography:Through the influence of the Duke of Grafton he was appointed to the office of deputy-inspector of plays in 1737, with a salary of £200 per annum, and in 1745 he was made groom of the privy chamber through...
- Notes and Various Readings to Shakespeare - George ChalmersGeorge ChalmersGeorge Chalmers was a Scottish antiquarian and political writer.-Biography:Chalmers was born at Fochabers, Moray, in 1742. His father, James Chalmers, was a grandson of George Chalmers of Pittensear, a small estate in the parish of Lhanbryde, now St Andrews-Lhanbryde, in Moray, owned by the family...
- Political Annals of the Present United Colonies - Edward GibbonEdward GibbonEdward Gibbon was an English historian and Member of Parliament...
- A Vindication of Some Passages in the History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire - David HumeDavid HumeDavid Hume was a Scottish philosopher, historian, economist, and essayist, known especially for his philosophical empiricism and skepticism. He was one of the most important figures in the history of Western philosophy and the Scottish Enlightenment...
- Dialogues Concerning Natural ReligionDialogues Concerning Natural ReligionDialogues Concerning Natural Religion is a philosophical work written by the Scottish philosopher David Hume. Through dialogue, three fictional characters named Demea, Philo, and Cleanthes debate the nature of God's existence... - Samuel JohnsonSamuel JohnsonSamuel Johnson , often referred to as Dr. Johnson, was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer...
- Prefaces, Biographical and Critical, to the Works of the English Poets - Vicessimus Knox - Essays
- John MooreJohn Moore (Scottish physician)John Moore was a Scottish physician and writer.He was born at Stirling, the son of a clergyman. After taking his medical degree at Glasgow, he served with the army in Flanders during the Seven Years' War, then proceeded to London to continue his studies, and eventually to Paris, where he was...
- A View of Society and Manners in France, Switzerland, and Germany - Horace Walpole - A Letter to the Editor of the Miscellanies of Thomas ChattertonThomas ChattertonThomas Chatterton was an English poet and forger of pseudo-medieval poetry. He died of arsenic poisoning, either from a suicide attempt or self-medication for a venereal disease.-Childhood:...
Births
- January 18 - Peter Mark Roget, lexicographer (died 1869)
- March 1 - Gottfried WeberGottfried WeberJacob Gottfried Weber , was a prominent German writer on music , composer, and jurist....
, writer on music (died 1839) - May 28 - Thomas MooreThomas MooreThomas Moore was an Irish poet, singer, songwriter, and entertainer, now best remembered for the lyrics of The Minstrel Boy and The Last Rose of Summer. He was responsible, with John Murray, for burning Lord Byron's memoirs after his death...
, poet and songwriter (died 1852) - August 1 - Francis Scott KeyFrancis Scott KeyFrancis Scott Key was an American lawyer, author, and amateur poet, from Georgetown, who wrote the lyrics to the United States' national anthem, "The Star-Spangled Banner".-Life:...
, poet (died 1843) - December 22 - Thomas GaisfordThomas GaisfordThomas Gaisford was an English classical scholar.He was born at Iford Manor, Wiltshire, and entered the University of Oxford in 1797, becoming successively student and tutor of Christ Church. In 1811, he was appointed Regius Professor of Greek in the University...
, classical scholar (died 1855)
Deaths
- January 20 - David GarrickDavid GarrickDavid Garrick was an English actor, playwright, theatre manager and producer who influenced nearly all aspects of theatrical practice throughout the 18th century and was a pupil and friend of Dr Samuel Johnson...
, actor and theatre impresario (born 1717) - March 4 - Heinrich Leopold WagnerHeinrich Leopold WagnerHeinrich Leopold Wagner , born in Strasbourg, was a German dramatist, known for his 1776 tragedy Die Kindermörderin.-Works:* Prometheus, Deukalion und seine Rezensenten, 1775* Der wohltätige Unbekannte, 1775...
, dramatist (born 1747) - June 7 - William WarburtonWilliam WarburtonWilliam Warburton was an English critic and churchman, Bishop of Gloucester from 1759.-Life:He was born at Newark, where his father, who belonged to an old Cheshire family, was town clerk. William was educated at Oakham and Newark grammar schools, and in 1714 he was articled to Mr Kirke, an...
, theologian and literary critic (born 1698) - June 10 - William KenrickWilliam Kenrick (writer)William Kenrick was an English novelist, playwright, translator and satirist, who spent much of his career libelling and lampooning his fellow writers.- Life and career :Kenrick was born at Watford, Hertfordshire, son of a stay-maker...
, novelist, playwright, translator and satirist (born c.1725) - December 22 - István KüzmicsIstván KüzmicsIstván Küzmics also known in Slovenian as Štefan or Števan Küzmič was the most important Lutheran writer of the Slovenes in Hungary....
, Slovenian Lutheran writer (born c.1723) - date unknown - Jane GomeldonJane GomeldonJane Gomeldon was an English writer, poet and adventurer. Her writing has gained her posthumous recognition as an early feminist.-Biography:...
, poet and adventurer