Introductory Note Introductory Note |
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Introductory NoteIntroductory Note
Introductory Note
Ben Jonson was born of poor parents at Westminster in 1573. Through the
influence of Camden, the antiquary, he got a good education at Westminster
School; but he does not seem to have gone to a University, though later both
Oxford and Cambridge gave him degrees. In his youth he practised for a time
his stepfather`s trade of bricklaying, and he served as a soldier in
Flanders.
It was probably about 1595 that he began to write for the stage, and
within a few years he was recognized as a distinguished playwright. His comedy
of "Every Man in His Humour" was not only a great immediate success, but
founded a school of satirical drama in England. "Sejanus" and "Catiline" were
less popular, but are impressive pictures of Roman life, less interesting but
more accurate than the Roman plays of Shakespeare.
For the court of James I, Jonson wrote a large number of masques, which
procured him substantial rewards in the form of pensions.
But it was between 1605 and 1614 that Jonson`s greatest work was done.
"Volpone," "Epicoene," "The Alchemist," and "Bartholomew Fair" belong to this
period, and are all masterpieces.
After the accession of Charles I, Jonson fell into adversity. His plays
were less successful and he had enemies at court; but he continued to hold his
position of leadership among his fellow authors.
Jonson died in 1637, and was celebrated in a volume of elegies to which
all the chief poets of the day contributed.
"The Alchemist" is perhaps the most perfect technically of Jonson`s
plays, and is an admirable satire on the quacks and humbugs of the day. It
contains, at the same time so much universal human nature, and is so excellent
in art, that it holds a place among the first of those Elizabethan works that
have held the interest of posterity.
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