18th century in literature Juvenal’s Third Satire, by Samuel Johnson is published. Like so many poets of the 18th century Johnson sought to breathe new life into his favorite classical author Juvenal. In 1740, Samuel Richardson's "Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded" is published and Marquis de Sade is born. 1744 1745 1748 1749 1751 1754 1755 1760–1767 Laurence Sterne wrote "Tristram Shandy". 1764 1766 1768 1770 April 7: William Wordsworth is born. 1773 Oliver Goldsmith's play "She Stoops to Conquer", a farce, was performed in London. 1776 The United States Declaration of Independence is created and ratified. 1777 the comedy play "The School for Scandal",
Paris in the 18th century when censorship was abolished. Serious publications, such as the "Journal des Débats" appeared, along with thousands of short pamphlets, addressing the current topics of the day, and often virulent in their language. The period of press freedom did not last for long; in 1792 Robespierre and the Jacobins restored censorship and closed opposition newspapers and printing houses. Strict censorship was retained by governments that followed. Freedom of the press was not restored until the second half of the 19th century. Several weekly and monthly magazines appeared in the early 18th century; the "Mercure de France", originally called the "Mercure Gallant",