
How did John Goldsmith die?
Moving Characterizations Offered After Death Goldsmith died at the Temple on April 4, 1774. His death, probably caused by a kidney infection resulting from a stone in the bladder, was hastened by his prescribing for himself, against medical advice, huge doses of Dr. James's Fever Powders. His death occasioned widespread grief.
Why is Oliver Goldsmith so famous?
Oliver Goldsmith was undoubtedly one of the greatest poets, dramatists, playwrights and novelist of his time. Even his contemporaries abided by the same, except but a small fact that they never could figure out the reason why! This probably explains the enigma and the aura that Goldsmith’s writing and his persona carried all through.
What did William Goldsmith attack in his writing?
Like Fielding, who heavily influenced his writing, Goldsmith strongly attacked perversions of the law that served selfish, powerful interests.
Is Goldsmith being ironic in this passage?
But Goldsmith is actually being ironic: there is little that’s good about this man. Goldsmith depicts the man’s journey to church of a Sunday as a ‘godly race’, which is faintly ridiculous, as is the notion that ‘The naked every day he clad, / When he put on his clothes.’ No: when he puts on his clothes he clothes himself, no one else.

Why is Oliver Goldsmith important?
Oliver Goldsmith was one of the most important writers of the Augustan Age, otherwise known as the neoclassical age or the Age of Reason. The most striking feature of Goldsmith's writing is his versatility; he wrote across genres, including the essay, the pseudoletter, the novel, poetry, history, and biography.
Where did Oliver Goldsmith live?
LongfordRoscommonOliver Goldsmith/Places lived
Where is Oliver Goldsmith from?
Early life. The son of an Anglo-Irish clergyman, Goldsmith was born in 1729 in Pallas, County Longford, Ireland, and grew up in Lissoy.
Where is Goldsmith buried?
Temple Church, London, United KingdomOliver Goldsmith / Place of burialThe Temple Church is a Royal peculiar church in the City of London located between Fleet Street and the River Thames, built by the Knights Templar as their English headquarters. It was consecrated on 10 February 1185 by Patriarch Heraclius of Jerusalem. Wikipedia
What did goldsmiths do?
A goldsmith is a metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Nowadays they mainly specialize in jewelry-making but historically, goldsmiths have also made silverware, platters, goblets, decorative and serviceable utensils, and ceremonial or religious items.
What type of poet is Oliver Goldsmith?
Oliver GoldsmithOccupationPlaywright, poet, busker, apothecary's assistantLanguageEnglishEducationTrinity College, Dublin (B.A., 1749) University of Edinburgh (M.D., 1755)Literary movementThe Club7 more rows
Where did Oliver Goldsmith go to school?
Leiden University1756Trinity College Dublin1750The University of EdinburghOliver Goldsmith/Education
Did Oliver Goldsmith have children?
The Rev. Oliver Jones was Curate of Elphin, and also had the Diocesan School of that town; lived where I now live, a little more than half a mile from the church. He had four daughters, and no son.
What is the first work of Oliver Goldsmith?
Oliver Goldsmith (10 November 1730 – 4 April 1774) was a writer, poet, and physician famous for his novel, The Vicar of Wakefield(1776). His first successful literary work was The Traveller (1764), a poem about British rule.
What caste is Goldsmith?
SunarSunar (alternately, Sonar or Swarnkar) is a Hindu caste in India referring to the community of people who work as goldsmiths. The community is primarily Hindu, and found usually in Northern India.
Who appreciated Oliver Goldsmith as a genius?
Dr. Johnson admired his literary genius and sense of humour. 11. Goldsmith was not patronized by any prince or nobleman.
What does when lovely woman stoops to folly mean?
In Goldsmith's society an exaggerated importance is given to a woman's chastity . In an act of promiscuity it is the woman who has to hide her shame whereas the man can walk away from the relationship without social disapproval. The woman “stoops” to folly, an act of bending from her moral uprightness.
Overview
- Oliver Goldsmithwas one of the most important writers of the Augustan Age, otherwise known as the neoclassical age or the Age of Reason. The most striking feature of Goldsmith's writing is his versatility; he wrote across genres, including the essay, the pseudoletter, the novel, poetry, history, and biography.
Works in Biographical and Historical Context
- Growing Up the Son of a Poor ClergymanGoldsmith was the fifth child born to the Reverend Charles Goldsmith and his wife. During his youth, his family was poor, but not in serious financial straits. His parents had planned for a university education for their son, but his older sister's marriage necessitated a large dowry and left no money for tuition. As a result, Goldsmith entere…
Works in Literary Context
- In a brief but intensely creative period of sixteen years, Goldsmith distinguished himself in a broad variety of literary forms, writing essays, biographies, histories, poems, plays, and a novel. In all he wrote he achieved a style of remarkable ease and charm. Goldsmith's most important literary works were in many respects inspired by his dislike of contemporary literary sensibilities. Indeed…
Works in Critical Context
- A First-Rank Historian In an assessment of his importance as a writer, one returns inevitably to the charm of his style and the sheer breadth of his work across genres. In 1773, Johnson said: “Whether, indeed, we take him as a poet—as a comick writer—or as an historian, he stands in the first rank.” He held strong moral convictions, and though tolerant of human weaknesses, he was …
Responses to Literature
- Goldsmith distinguished himself in a broad variety of literary forms. Make a list of other authors who have successfully written across genres. Then, choose one of those authors and read a short se...
- Commentators often disagree about whether Goldsmith's apparent sentimentality is meant to be taken seriously or is meant to be a satirical attack. With one of your classmates, discuss h…
- Goldsmith distinguished himself in a broad variety of literary forms. Make a list of other authors who have successfully written across genres. Then, choose one of those authors and read a short se...
- Commentators often disagree about whether Goldsmith's apparent sentimentality is meant to be taken seriously or is meant to be a satirical attack. With one of your classmates, discuss how both of t...
- In The Vicar of Wakefield, the reader is told no more than the vicar himself knows, which is much less than the entire story. Write an essay filling out what an omniscient, third-person narrator mi...
- Much of Goldsmith's writing was inspired by a dislike of the literary sensibilities of his day. M…
Bibliography
- Books
Dobson, Austin. Life of Oliver Goldsmith. London: Scott, 1888. Forster, John. The Life and Adventures of Oliver Goldsmith. London: Bradbury & Evans, Chapman & Hall, 1848; revised and enlarged, 2 volumes, 1854. Ginger, John. The Notable Man: The Life and Times of Oliver Goldsm…