Jonathan Swift's Word-Book: A Vocabulary Compiled for Esther Johnson and Copied in Her Own Hand

Author:   A. C. Elias ,  John Fischer ,  Panthea Reid
Publisher:   University of Delaware Press
ISBN:  

9781644530245


Pages:   266
Publication Date:   01 June 2017
Recommended Age:   From 16 to 99 years
Format:   Hardback
Availability:   Out of stock   Availability explained
The supplier is temporarily out of stock of this item. It will be ordered for you on backorder and shipped when it becomes available.

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Jonathan Swift's Word-Book: A Vocabulary Compiled for Esther Johnson and Copied in Her Own Hand


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Overview

This Word-Book is presumably the only work of Jonathan Swift’s not in print, until now. Since the 1690s, Swift had been formulating a list of words and definitions for his protégé Esther Johnson, beginning with terms from the Book of Common Prayer. His was apparently an ongoing list, kept rather haphazardly, with open spaces for adding new words. About 1710, when Swift was in London, Johnson, in Dublin, set out to formalize the dictionary, copying out Swift’s words and definitions to make an orderly and careful book with no blank spaces. Probably in 1713, when Swift returned to Ireland, Johnson presented her Word-Book to him, but his school-masterly corrections of her work may have offended her. After Johnson’s death in 1728, Swift gave the Word-Book to their mutual friend, Elizabeth Sican. It was passed down over generations, until in 1976, the young American Swiftian A. C. Elias, Jr., bought it, intending to edit it in his old age. Before his early death in 2008, Elias asked John Fischer to assume the challenge of bringing the book into print. Fischer took on the task until 2015, when he too passed away, after which his wife Panthea Reid completed the task. This volume includes illustrations from the original book, a transcript of it with schematic indications of Swift’s corrections, as well as essays and appendices by Fischer and Elias tracing provenance, exploring the social and psychological milieu in which the book was written, and tracking Swift’s work as a lexicographer. Published by University of Delaware Press. Distributed worldwide by Rutgers University Press.  

Full Product Details

Author:   A. C. Elias ,  John Fischer ,  Panthea Reid
Publisher:   University of Delaware Press
Imprint:   University of Delaware Press
Weight:   0.454kg
ISBN:  

9781644530245


ISBN 10:   1644530244
Pages:   266
Publication Date:   01 June 2017
Recommended Age:   From 16 to 99 years
Audience:   College/higher education ,  College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  Tertiary & Higher Education ,  Tertiary & Higher Education
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Out of stock   Availability explained
The supplier is temporarily out of stock of this item. It will be ordered for you on backorder and shipped when it becomes available.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments Abbreviations Background Elias and Me Preface A Note on This Text Introduction: Part I Introduction: Part II Introduction: Part III Introduction: Part IV The Word-Book Appendix A Appendix B Appendix C Appendix D Appendix E Appendix F Selected Bibliography About the Editors

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Author Information

The late A.C. Elias Jr. was an independent scholar based in Philadelphia. The late John Irwin Fischer taught at Louisiana State University Baton-Rouge. Panthea Reid is Professor of English Emerita at Louisiana State University.

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