The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia

The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia by Samuel Johnson is known as an apologue. Like a fable or parable, an apologue seeks to impart a moral. It differs from a fable in that the moral supersedes the narrative in terms of importance. Unlike the parable, the apologue utilizes metaphorical truth. Apologues use allegory to make observations and state truths about real people, places, or events. One famous example of an allegorical work is Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift. Swift was a contemporary of Johnson, and, like many other writers of their day, relied on allegory to make statements about the world around them through literature.

Samuel Johnson is known for his contributions to English literature. He was not only an author of prose, but also a poet, literary critic, biographer, and essayist. Johnson was a lexicographer, and published A Dictionary of the English Language in 1755. Other known works of his include his magazine The Rambler, his poem The Vanity of Human Wishes, Preface to the Plays of William Shakespeare, and Lives of the Poets. His effect on English literature as well as on English society was documented in James Boswell’s The Life of Samuel Johnson. Johnson influenced a great many writers, including Jane Austen.

The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia was supposedly written in order for Johnson to finance his mother’s funeral. He wrote it in only one week’s time, and earned between 75 and 100 pounds when he published it in 1759. Johnson was perhaps influenced by The Voyage to Abyssinia by Jerónimo Lobo, which he translated in 1735. The main point of Rasselas is to question whether or not humanity is capable of finding happiness.



Johnson’s The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia begins with Prince Rasselas in a remote Ethiopian valley, awaiting orders to return to Abissinia and take the throne. Rasselas and his companions quickly become bored despite the valley’s beauty. His companions include his sister, Nekayah, her own attendant Pekuah, and his friend, a poet named Imlac. The four decide to escape the valley and see the world. However, their search for freedom and happiness ends in Egypt, where their adventures cause them to feel their search for happiness is futile, especially after Pekuah and some of her maids are taken by Arab marauders. Though they recover her seven months later, and though her captor showed her kindness, the foursome realize their dreams of life outside the valley and Abissinia are not realistic, and decide to return.

The valley to which Rasselas is sent until he is needed by Abissinia can be compared to the Garden of Eden. With his every need met, Rasselas soon grows bored. He is without troubles or responsibilities, and yet is unhappy. He flees the valley, much in the way Adam and Eve decide to taste fruit from the Tree of Knowledge and are subsequently evicted from Eden. As Johnson was influenced by Milton’s Paradise Lost, this similarity is not surprising, though Johnson handles it differently. Adam and Eve eat from the tree not knowing that their actions will lead to their expulsion from the garden. In contrast, Rasselas is already aware that he is unhappy and wants to leave the valley.

Their return to the valley shows their acceptance that life on earth is not meant to be happy. If the valley represents paradise, then Johnson suggests that acceptance of this truth revealed in The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia is the path to God. By focusing on one’s immortal soul, one might hope for eternal happiness. However, Johnson doesn’t believe that searching for happiness is futile—only the expectation of earthly happiness. Rather, he believes the search itself to be a vital part of the human experience, as evidenced by every character sharing that motivation.



Another important theme in the book is the cons of solitude. After Pekuah is abducted, Nekayah tells Rasselas and Imlac that she just wants to hide away for the rest of her life. Imlac relates to her the story of an astronomer who went mad due to living a life of solitude. This story is also used to warn Rasselas of the dangers of becoming a solitary scholar.

Originally titled The Choice of Life, The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia is Johnson’s only published, novel-length work of fictional prose. Most notable—and perhaps leading to the book’s immediate acclaim—was the setting. Johnson was writing a time when “Orientalism” was popular. During this time, Western society and art sought to mimic elements of Eastern cultures. Despite the fascination Westerners held for Middle Eastern and Asian cultures, this practice fed into stereotypes that ultimately perpetuated fear of the Other. For this reason, books like The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia, continue to be important works to study from a standpoint of trying to understand the Western cultures’ misrepresentation of Eastern cultures.