SOURCE: "Rasselas and the Traditions of 'Menippean Satire'," in Samuel Johnson: New Critical Essays, edited by Isobel Grundy, Vision Press and Barnes & Noble, 1984, pp. 158-85.

In the following essay, Woodruff considers Rasselas within the context of classical satiric traditions, suggesting that such a view makes clearer Johnson's efforts to create a Christian philosophy founded on realism.

As Carey McIntosh has pointed out, Rasselas is 'the most problematic' of Johnson's narrative works.' Disagreement exists about its genre and about the effect of its style, moral, structure, plot and characterization. My aim is to suggest a context of discussion that I hope will contribute to the clarification of at least some of these controversies.

Most of the extensive and valuable discussion of the literary backgrounds of Rasselas has been in a biblical or relatively modem context. Occasionally Cicero and the Stoics are cited, but, as far as I am...