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    Seven Ages of Man

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    The document summarizes Shakespeare's "Seven Ages of Man" which compares the stages of human life to different roles in a play. It describes the seven stages as: (1) infancy, (2) childhood, (3) lover, (4) soldier, (5) judge during middle age, (6) old age, and (7) extreme old age. Most people progress through these seven stages from birth to death, taking on different roles, before exiting the world's stage.

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    Seven Ages of Man

    Uploaded by

    qs2m72z5cx
    19 views2 pages
    The document summarizes Shakespeare's "Seven Ages of Man" which compares the stages of human life to different roles in a play. It describes the seven stages as: (1) infancy, (2) childhood, (3) lover, (4) soldier, (5) judge during middle age, (6) old age, and (7) extreme old age. Most people progress through these seven stages from birth to death, taking on different roles, before exiting the world's stage.

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    The document summarizes Shakespeare's "Seven Ages of Man" which compares the stages of human life to different roles in a play. It describes the seven stages as: (1) infancy, (2) childhood, (3) lover, (4) soldier, (5) judge during middle age, (6) old age, and (7) extreme old age. Most people progress through these seven stages from birth to death, taking on different roles, before exiting the world's stage.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    19 views2 pages

    Seven Ages of Man

    Uploaded by

    qs2m72z5cx
    The document summarizes Shakespeare's "Seven Ages of Man" which compares the stages of human life to different roles in a play. It describes the seven stages as: (1) infancy, (2) childhood, (3) lover, (4) soldier, (5) judge during middle age, (6) old age, and (7) extreme old age. Most people progress through these seven stages from birth to death, taking on different roles, before exiting the world's stage.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
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    Seven Ages of Man

    The Seven Ages is an extract from Shakespeare’s play As You Like It. In this extract
    Shakespeare compares life to a drama in which a person plays different roles as he
    progresses through the various stages of life. He compares the world to a stage and
    human beings to players, who enact their roles from infancy to old age and then exit the
    world.

    Human beings are mortal. The world is timeless. Each person plays a role assigned to
    him or her in the same way as an actor or an actress does in a drama on a stage in a
    theater. We enter the world when we are born. We live in this world through various
    stages. We leave this stage when we retire from life i.e we die. Most of the people pass
    through these seven stages. However, only a few persons’ lives make any significant
    impact on the world.

    The poet compares the world to a stage in a theater and men and women to players.
    Each player has his/her exit and entrance. Similarly, men and women enter the world on
    birth and exit from it on death. They come to this stage, play their different roles and bid
    good-bye. These parts, acts or stages are normally seven.

    The birth of a child is the first act of the drama of human life. The human baby cries and
    vomits in the nurse’s arms. Soon he starts going to school. He has a shining face and
    carries a bag of books. He goes to school unwillingly, creeping like a snail. This is the
    second act of his life. The third role that he plays is of a lover. The young lover sighs like
    a furnace and sings some mournful songs praising the beauty of his beloved.

    The fourth stage is that of a soldier. He sports a beard like that of a leopard. He is quick-
    tempered in matters of honor. He seeks reputation even at the risk of his life. He is not
    afraid of death and danger while fighting for reputation. However, his reputation is
    short-lived. It is hollow like a bubble.

    Then comes the middle age. The fifth stage is that of a judge. He is fat with a round and
    fleshy stomach as a result of eating chickens. He has a beard of a formal cut. His eyes
    are now harsh-looking. He becomes strict in his behavior. He uses many sayings and
    modern instances to support his arguments of wisdom.
    The sixth age takes a person to old age. Man becomes weak in health and thin in body.
    He wears slippers, spectacles and clothes of his youth. These clothes are now too loose
    for his shrunk and thin legs. His voice becomes unmanly. He pipes and whistles. He
    lisps like a child as he is toothless.

    The last role is that of an extremely old person. This ‘act’ shows him as helpless as a
    baby. He is toothless, hard of hearing, weak in eyesight and forgetful. In fact he loses
    control over all his senses. He departs from this world after playing these roles of life.

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