THE SEVEN AGES

BY:Geetanjali

IX B

‘The Seven Ages of Man’ is taken from William Shakespeare’s famous play, ‘As You Like It’ (Act-II, Scene-VII), describes the seven phases in a man’s life-from childhood to old age. The world is but a global stage and all men and women presented here are mere puppets in the hands of destiny. Just like the infrastructures of a stage, the world has its own entrances and exits. Every man in his full lifetime has many parts to play. His total number of acts in his lifetime is the seven ages.

INTRODUCTION

THE SEVEN AGES

All the world's a stage,And all the men and women merely players;They have their exits and their entrances,And one man in his time plays many parts,

His acts being seven ages. At first, the infant,Mewling and puking in the nurse's arms.

Then the whining schoolboy, with his satchelAnd shining morning face, creeping like snail

Unwillingly to school. And then the lover, Sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad

Made to his mistress' eyebrow. Then a soldier,Full of strange oaths and bearded like the pard,Jealous in honor, sudden and quick in quarrel,

Seeking the bubble reputation

Even in the cannon's mouth. And then the justice,

In fair round belly with good capon lined, With eyes severe and beard of formal cut,Full of wise saws and modern instances;

And so he plays his part. The sixth age shiftsInto the lean and slippered pantaloon,

With spectacles on nose and pouch on side;His youthful hose, well saved, a world too wideFor his shrunk shank, and his big manly voice,

Turning again toward childish treble, pipesAnd whistles in his sound. Last scene of all,

That ends this strange eventful history,Is second childishness and mere oblivion,Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans

everything.

STAGES IN THE POEMInfancySchool BoyLoverSoldierAdult Hood (Justice)Middle AgeOld Age

Infant

The infancy is the first stage. The child is

under the responsibility of the nurse. It cries

and vomits every time

School BoyAs in the common picture,

the boy of this age wants to enjoy freedom, and school

represents a kind of bondage. So the boy

displays reluctance to go to school.

LoverThe youth feigns the passion of love. He

addresses his composition to his

mistress, who might exist in his imagination.

SoldierJacques notes that a soldier

swears outlandish oaths, wears a rough and shaggy beard, sensitive in matters

of honour; and is apt to pick a quarrel and risk his life for the sake of fleeting fame.

Adult Hood (Justice)

It is a satire on the Elizabethan Justices of

the Peace. It was a custom to present the judges with capons, to

secure the goodwill and favour.

Middle ageThe old man is compared to the pantaloons on the Italian stage--a man who goes about in slippers, wearing glasses, and a pocket on his side. His

youthful breeches are too much wide for his withered

legs.

Old ageThis is the winter season of human life. The man is now

in his second childhood with lost teeth, vision and

taste-buds. He gets prepared for the world of

oblivion.

POETIC DEVICES USED IN THE POEM

Simile:A simile is a comparison between two unlike things that have something in common. A simile always uses the words like or as to make a comparison.E.g.: Creeping like snail.

Metaphor:A metaphor is a figure of speech comparing two unlike things that have something in common. In this, the comparison is made without the use of like or as.E.g.: Seeking the bubble reputation.

William Shakespeare

Born

Died

Occupation

Wife

Children

Baptised 26 April 1564 (birth date unknown)Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England

23 April 1616 (aged 52)Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England

Playwright, poet, actor

Annie Hathaway (1582-1616)

Susanna HallHamnet ShakespeareJudith Quiney