Characterization. Characterization is the use of literary techniques to create a character. Writers use three major techniques to create characters: direct description, portrayal of characters’ behavior, and representations of characters’ internal states. Notice how in his biography Boswell employed characterization to create the character of Johnson for the reader.
Anecdote. An anecdote is a brief story, usually with a specific point or moral. Boswell uses anecdotes to illuminate aspects of Johnson’s character.
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Soon after befriending Johnson, Boswell conceived a plan to write a new type of biography, one that told less about dates and observable events and more about the subject’s thoughts and personality. The Life of Samuel Johnson, LL. D. (1791) shows Boswell’s genius for drawing out Johnson and for recognizing and selecting quotations and anecdotes that depict his subject intimately. Boswell’s willingness to reveal his own foibles made the work a surpassing novelty when it appeared.
As you read, keep a chart that identifies anecdotes and what they show about Johnson.
If you were writing a biography about your best friend, what would you want people to know about him or her?
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