Books · 1791
He has, indeed, done it very well; but it is a foolish thing well done.
— Samuel Johnson • Life of Johnson by James Boswell
Behind the line May contain spoilers.
Our reading
An editorial interpretation.
Johnson grants that the man did the task skillfully. But he's not impressed, because the task itself was pointless. It's a dry put-down, since in his view flawless execution can't rescue an effort that wasn't worth making in the first place.
Context reviewed