First published: 1825, as The Diary of Samuel Pepys; enlarged editions, 1848-1849, 1875-1879, 1893-1899, 1970-1983
Type of work: Diary
The Work:
The Diary of Samuel Pepys is a unique document in the annals of English literature, perhaps of all literature. There are other fascinating day-to-day accounts of interesting and momentous times, and some of these were written by people of genius, but there is only one other autobiographical collection—the recently discovered journals of James Boswell—that combines fascinating subject matter and genius of composition with the intriguing story that is associated with the Diary of Pepys.
There is an important difference between Boswell and Pepys. Boswell, as his editors admit, was writing for posterity; Pepys was not. Pepys’s Diary was written for himself only, apparently for the sole purpose of allowing its author to savor once more, at the end of each day, the experiences of the preceding twenty-four hours. There is no evidence of revision of any kind, and the book was written in a shorthand that protected it from posterity for more than a hundred years after its author’s failing eyesight forced him to give up keeping his diary.
Pepys’s method of composition gives the Diary an immediacy that makes Boswell’s Journals appear sedulously organized. The coded shorthand allows for admissions of personal animosities and revelations of scandalous behavior that otherwise would not be found in the writings of a responsible public official. That Pepys was a responsible, high-ranking public official is the last factor that contributes to the importance of his work. Boswell was the scion of an important Scottish family and a member of the Scottish bar, but (aside from his Corsican experience) the only history in which he was involved was literary history. Pepys was involved with the history of a nation at a very important time.
The Diary is important in a number of ways. First, it is of great value as a document of the Restoration period. No writer of a historical novel based on the history of the time could possibly create a character familiar with as many important events as was the opportunistic busybody, Pepys. One of the most influential figures in bringing about the return of the Stuarts in 1660 was the former Cromwellian, Sir Edward Montague, who was assisted by his able cousin and protégé, Pepys. It was Sir Edward who commanded the fleet that sailed from Holland and returned triumphantly with the king. On board the flagship, kissing the king’s hand, firing a cannon to salute the new monarch (and burning an eye in the process), commenting on the plainness of the queen, taking charge of the king’s dog in the landing at Dover was, again, Pepys.
Later, made Clerk of the Acts of the Navy Board because of his assistance to the Stuarts (Sir Edward was made Earl of Sandwich), he remained at his post in London and wrote down his observations of the terrible plague from which most members of his class fled in panic. It was Pepys, again, who did his best to keep the English Navy afloat during the Dutch Wars, and Pepys who defended the Navy in a brilliant speech before Parliament in the investigation that followed (1668). Earlier (September 2, 1666), when the great fire of London broke out, it was Pepys who rushed to the king to inform him of the catastrophe and to suggest the blowing up of houses to prevent the spread of the fire. Pepys, who had a part in all these events, tells of them in a straightforward, unself-conscious account unvarnished by fear of what his contemporaries would think or of what posterity would think.
Along with vivid pictures of the major events of Restoration history are day-to-day accounts of the less earthshaking but equally revealing activities in the life of the London that Pepys shared, accounts that make the Diary a document of social, cultural, and artistic history as well. Here Pepys’s concern with—his actual delight in—detail brings a particular world of the past to life. Readers see the crowded, unsanitary, and often impassable London streets. At times, during trips to Pepys’s father’s house in Brampton or during excursions to the country, the reader catches glimpses of rural existence in the days of Charles II. Readers see life in the houses of the well-to-do and the noble and, occasionally, at court. On a more mundane scale, there is Pepys’s concern with clothes (his father was a tailor and he reflects a professional knowledge) and his greater concern with managing his own household. Unfortunately for revelations on this score, Pepys had no children, but his problems in household management included his handling of the affairs of his rather shiftless parents, brothers, and sister, the maintenance of a staff of servants that grew as his own wealth increased, and domestic supervision of his beautiful but erratic—sometimes docile, sometimes temperamental—young wife. In regard to the arts, there is a wealth of material on the theater and on music. Pepys was an inveterate playgoer. Though his frequent attendance bothered his basically Puritan conscience and though he made intermittent vows to refrain, it is seldom that many entries go by in which some play that he saw is not commented on. These comments are so frequent that, in fact, the Diary is an invaluable source of information to the student of Restoration drama. It is equally valuable to the specialist in the history of music: Pepys was not only an accomplished musician but also a composer, and the delight in music that he expresses gives insight into a particularly musical age.
Artistic beauty was not the only kind that captivated the practical and mercenary Pepys. Since he was equally attracted to beauty in its carnal manifestations, his pursuit of beauty in feminine form and his diligent (but finally unsuccessful) attempts to hide these pursuits from his wife provide insight into the mores of the Restoration period. These accounts of the diarist’s philanderings—honest, but hidden by the elaborate code—are a part of the personal revelation that the work provides.
In spite of its importance as a historical and a social document, the Diary is, on its most intriguing level, the self-portrait of a man, drawn in strong and certain lines with no detail, however uncomplimentary, however compromising, omitted. That it is the portrait of a man active in the affairs of his day adds to its interest; but the main value comes from its unstinting wealth of circumstantial detail. However, the detail and the man cannot be separated: The love of detail and the love of life that inspired the keeper of the Diary make up the essence of the man himself. The Diary is a celebration of the things of this world and a portrait of the man who praised them.
Bibliography
Coote, Stephen. Samuel Pepys: A Life. New York: Palgrave, 2001. Sympathetic and colorful account of Pepys’s life, including the ten years Pepys chronicled in his own diary. Portrays Pepys as a convivial, ambitious, and curious individual.
Morshead, O. F. Introduction to The Diary of Samuel Pepys: Selections, edited by O. F. Morshead. New York: Harper & Row, 1960. Offers a brief biography of Pepys and his family, a publishing history of the diaries, and commentary on the diaries’ content. Notes Pepys’s energy, his artless style, and his surprising frankness.
Sutherland, James. English Literature of the Late Seventeenth Century. New York: Oxford University Press, 1969. Examines the subjects of Pepys’s diary and notes his self-analysis and his remarkable honesty.
Taylor, Ivan E. Samuel Pepys. New York: Twayne, 1967. This general introduction to Pepys and his diaries organizes its chapters around the themes of Pepys’s work, including his politics, family life, theatergoing, and womanizing.
Tomalin, Claire. Samuel Pepys: The Unequalled Self. New York: Vintage Books, 2003. Biographer Tomalin reconstructs Pepys’s life based on his own diary, as well as numerous other resources, creating a portrait of the famed diarist as intelligent, energetic, and a savvy politician.
Willy, Margaret. English Diarists: Evelyn and Pepys. London: Published for the British Council and the National Book League by Longmans, Green, 1963. Includes a brief sketch of Pepys’s life and a discussion of the scope of his diaries with reference both to what they reveal about his personality and to the historical events they record.
