the seven ages
Post on 29-Jul-2015
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TRANSCRIPT
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
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