Young Sam Johnson

The Vanity of Human Wishes is regarded as Johnson's greatest poem. It is also the first of his works to bear his name on the title page, a clear sign of Johnson's increasing status in the literary world. As the receipt records, Johnson sold the poem to publisher Robert Dodsley (1703-1764) for fifteen guineas, a 50 percent increase over his payment for London. Like London, The Vanity of Human Wishes is an imitation of a satire by the Roman poet Juvenal and contrasts the emptiness of seeking after fame or riches with the fulfillment of religious faith.