Oliver Goldsmith

Oliver Goldsmith was born in 1728 in County Longford, Ireland, and educated at Trinity College, Dublin, and later in medicine at Edinburgh. After a desultory early career, he settled in London, where he became a central figure in the literary circle of Samuel Johnson. His novel "The Vicar of Wakefield" (1766), a sentimental tale of a clergyman's misfortunes, won lasting popularity for its warmth and moral charm. His greatest theatrical success, "She Stoops to Conquer" (1773), revived the comedy of manners with its farcical plot and lively characters. Goldsmith also wrote the celebrated poem "The Deserted Village" (1770), a nostalgic critique of rural depopulation. Though he struggled with debt throughout his life, his works are noted for their genial wit, graceful prose, and keen eye for human foibles. Goldsmith died in 1774 and is buried in Westminster Abbey, his legacy secured as a master of eighteenth-century English literature.