Note: "[T]he pirated American edition of 1768 was the first to name Rasselas on its title page; but in fact the heading of the first page of text of every edition published in Johnson's lifetime reads: "The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia". For convenience and recognizability Johnson's tale is referred to elsewhere in this encyclopedia as simply Rasselas (1759)." --SFE3, biographical entry by John Clute and Peter Nicholls --SFE3 lists these full titles from early title pages: • The Prince of Abissinia: A Tale (1759) • The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia: An Asiatic Tale (1768) • The History of Rasselas, Prince of Abissinia: A Tale (1787)

Synopsis: Telling how Rasselas and his companions escape from the bland pleasures of their perfectly happy valley in Abissinia to Egypt to study how people live, the book is a parable and a pilgrimage in which all manner of subjects are discussed – flying machines, poetry, marriage, madness. Rasselas embodies Dr Johnson's most powerful and heart-warming qualities: his tragic sense of life, his justice, his wisdom which is never boring or solemn, and his miraculous ability to balance humour with sympathy in weighing up some of life's more mysterious problems – what is happiness and how can we find it?