The chief claim of Sir Joshua Reynolds to immortality lies in his magnificent achievement as a portrait painter, and his secondary claim would probably rest on his role as the first president of the Royal Academy, from 1768 to his death in 1792. Nevertheless, he aspired to the condition of an author, and according to Hester Thrale--who knew him well--he was more pleased about the praise he received for his Discourses than the reputation he enjoyed as a painter. Many contemporary references describe him as successfully courting the sister arts of literature and painting. One fulsome tribute in 1777 asserted that he had "of two Arts attain'd the lawrel'd Heights; / Paints with a Pen, and with a Pencil Writes!" Today this readiness to see his activity in the two spheres as one of absolute equality seems exaggerated. However, we must not minimize the scale of his contribution to literature. Not only...