Soame Jenyns

Soame Jenyns

Soame Jenyns (1 January 1704 – 18 December 1787) was an English writer.

Biography

He was the son of Sir Roger Jenyns and his second wife Elizabeth Soame, daughter Sir Peter Soame. He was born in London, and was educated at St Johns College, Cambridge. In 1742 he was chosen M.P. for Cambridgeshire, in which his property lay, and he afterwards sat for the borough of Dunwich and the town of Cambridge. From 1755 to 1780 he was one of the commissioners of the board of trade.

For the measure of literary repute which he enjoyed during his life Jenyns was indebted as much to his wealth and social standing as to his accomplishments and talents, though both were considerable. His poetical works, the "Art of Dancing" (1727) and "Miscellanies" (1770), contain many passages graceful and lively though occasionally verging on licence.

The first of his prose works was his "Free Inquiry into the Nature and Origin of Evil" (1756). This essay was severely criticized on its appearance, especially by Samuel Johnson in the "Literary Magazine". Johnson condemned the book as a slight and shallow attempt to solve one of the most difficult of moral problems. Jenyns, a gentle and amiable man in the main, was extremely irritated by his review. He put forth a second edition of his work, prefaced by a vindication, and tried to take vengeance on Johnson after his death by a sarcastic epitaph.

In 1776 Jenyns published his "View of the Internal Evidence of the Christian Religion". Though at one period of his life he had affected a kind of deistic scepticism, he had now returned to orthodoxy, and there seems no reason to doubt his sincerity, questioned at the time, in defending Christianity on the ground of its total variance with the principles of human reason. The work was deservedly praised in its day for its literary merits, but is so plainly the production of an amateur in theology that as a scientific treatise it is valueless.

His heir was his uncle George Leonard Jenyns.

A collected edition of the works of Jenyns appeared in 1790, with a biography by Charles Nalson Cole. There are several references to him in James Boswell's "Johnson".

References

*1911

External links

*worldcat id|lccn-n85-49481


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Roger Jenyns — Sir Roger Jenyns (1663 1740) of Bottisham, was Sheriff of Cambridgeshire and was knighted.He was the son of Thomas Jenyns of Hayes (1609 1656) and his wife Sarah Latch (d 1703, daughter of Joseph Latch. He married Martha widow of John Mingay and… …   Wikipedia

  • George Leonard Jenyns — (19 June 1763–1848) was an English clergyman. He was vicar of Swaffham Prior, Cambridgeshire 1787–1848 and prebendary of Ely, 1802–1848. He inherited Bottisham Hall in Bottisham and a considerable fortune from his second cousin Soame Jenyns in… …   Wikipedia

  • George Leonard Jenyns — est un homme d’Église, né le 19 juin 1763 et mort en 1848. Il est vicaire de Swaffham Prior dans le Cambridgeshire de 1787 à 1848 puis chanoine d’Ely de 1802 à 1848. En 1787, il fait un considérable héritage de son cousin Soame Jenyns (1704 1787) …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Leonard Jenyns — Leonard Blomefield Leonard Jenyns plus connu sous le nom de Leonard Blomefield est un homme d Église et un naturaliste britannique, né le 25 mai 1800 et mort le 1er septembre 1893. Il est le fils de George Leonard Jenyns (1763 1848), homme… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Art chinois — Ai Weiwei, Bol de perles, 2006. Détail de l installation, bols de porcelaine de Jingdezhen et perles d eau douce, dites « perles de Chine », 100 x 43 cm chaque pièce. Exposition So Sorry, München 2010 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Leonard Blomefield — Leonard Jenyns, later known as Leonard Blomefield (25 May 1800 ndash;1 September 1893) was a clergyman naturalist.He was the youngest son of George Leonard Jenyns and his wife Mary (1763 1832) the daughter of Dr. William Heberden (1710… …   Wikipedia

  • Oracle bone — For Chinese characters found on bones, see Oracle bone script. A Shang Dynasty oracle bone from the Shanghai Museum Oracle bones (Chinese: 甲骨; pinyin: jiǎgǔ) are pieces of bone normally from ox scapula or turtle plastron (underside) which were… …   Wikipedia

  • Charles Cadogan, 1st Earl Cadogan — Charles Sloane Cadogan, 1st Earl Cadogan (29 September 1728 – 3 April 1807) was a British peer and Whig politician. Cadogan was the only son of the 2nd Baron Cadogan and his wife, Elizabeth, the second daughter of Sir Hans Sloane, Bart. From… …   Wikipedia

  • Leonard Blomefield — Leonard Jenyns plus connu sous le nom de Leonard Blomefield est un homme d Église et un naturaliste britannique, né le 25 mai 1800 et mort le 1er septembre 1893. Il est le fils de George Leonard Jenyns (1763 1848), homme d’Église, et de Mary …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Samuel Johnson's ethical views — Moralistic writings= Johnson regarded himself as a moralist during his career between 1748 and 1760. Although Johnson wrote a poem, many essays, and a short novel, all of these works are connected by a common intent and each relate to another.… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”