Ben Jonson
Jonson's Other Works
End of Life & Death
Early Life & Schooling
Time as a Playwright
- Jonson wrote multiple epigrams including "To Penshurst, " "Inviting a Friend to Supper" and "To Celia."
- Wrote The Workes of Beniamin Jonson (1616), the first folio publication that included stage plays
- Jonson suffered a stroke in 1629 that left him partially paralyzed.
- He continued to write plays from his home up until his death.
- He died in Westminster on August 8, 1637
- He is buried at Westminster Abbey
- Born on June 11, 1572 in London, England
- His father, a minister, died shortly before his birth
- His mother later remarried a bricklayer
- Attended Westminster School
- He came under the influence of the classical scholar William Camden
- He left the Westminster school in 1589
- In 1597, Johnson was imprisoned for writing The Isle of Dogs.
- In 1598, Jonson wrote Every Man in His Humor.
- In 1605, he organized the Twelve Night entertainment.
- Shortly after the play opened, Jonson killed Gabriel Spencer in a duel and was tried for murder.
- He wrote other popular plays such as, Volpone (1606) and The Alchemist (1610).
Work Cited
Conflict with the Anglican Church
Popularity
Occupations & Family Life
- His comedies Volpone (1606) and The Alchemist (1610) were among the most popular and esteemed plays of the time.
- Had a group of admiring young men known as "The Sons of Ben".
- He wrote the majority of the plays for the wealthy and members of the court
"Ben Jonson." The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Ed. Stephen
Greenblatt. 9th ed. Vol. 1. New York City: Norton, 2012. 1441-444. Print.
"Ben Jonson." Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, n.d. Web. 02 Nov. 2014.
<http://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poet/ben-jonson>.
Leech, Clifford. "Ben Jonson (English Writer)." Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 02 Nov. 2014. <http://
www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/306058/Ben-Jonson>.
- Worked briefly as a bricklayer
- Served in the military at Flanders
- Working as an actor and playwright for Philip Henslowe’s theater company.
- In 1594 it is believed that Jonson married Anne Lewis
- They had at least two children
- Converted to Catholicism when he was imprisoned in 1597.
- In 1605 he fell under suspicion as a Catholic following the exposure of the Gunpowder Plot.
- To show his loyalty he became a spy for the Privy Council.
- In 1606 Jonson and his wife were brought before the consistory court in London to explain their lack of participation in the Anglican church.
Wings
by Anthony West
If I had wings to fly
I'd breathe in deep
and spread them wide
as I leap from the cliff
into the wind
where the gulls glide.
Crossing this wide sea
I glide above cruel waves
that reach up to drown my flight
in their cold
deep
blue-green graves.
And as your day grows slowly light
I'd arrive on worn-out wings
to hold you
in your waking dreams
and feel you soft
and gently warm
in my embrace at last.
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