All the World's a Stage
William Shakespeare
Glossary
- Infant: child during the first few years of life
William Shakespeare (1564-1616) - Mewing: a week crying sound
- Puking: vomiting
- Whining: an unpleasant sound
- Satchel: school bag
- Creeping: to move slowly
- Unwillingly: not wanting to so something
- Sighing: to take and then let out a long deep breath
- Woeful: very bad or serious/sorrowful
- Mistress: a woman
- Pard: a leopard
- Cannon: artillery/gun
- Capon: a male chicken that has been castrated (neutered)
- Severe (su’veer): serious/intense
- Slippered: shod with slippers
- Pantaloon: trousers worn in former times
- Hose: tights, thin trousers that men word in Shakespeare’s time
- Shank: the part of the human leg
- Treble: child’s high voice/high-pitched
- Oblivion: forgetfulness/a state of nothingness
- Sans: without/lacking
- There are two major literary devices used in this poem namely, metaphor and simile.
- Simile examples: “creeping like a snail”, “soldier … bearded like the pard”, etc.
- Metaphor examples: The entire poem itself is more like symbolism; men and women are portrayed as players whereas life is portrayed as the stage.
- The poet has used narrative form to express his innermost emotions about how he thinks that the world is a stage and all the people living in it are mere players and characters. These characters go through seven different phases in their lives.
William Shakespeare (1564-1616) was an English poet, dramatist and actor of the Renaissance era (The Renaissance was a fervent (passionate) period of European cultural, artistic, political and economic “rebirth” following the Middle Ages. Generally described as taking place from the 14th century to the 17th century, the Renaissance promoted the rediscovery of classical philosophy, literature and art). He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in English language and the world's greatest dramatist. His most famous works include Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Romeo and Julietand Macbeth. His poem, All The World’s A Stage, gained immense popularity, right when it was written and introduced to the readers of his time. This poem is taken from William Shakespeare's comedy drama As You Like It. With these words “all the world’s a stage” begins the monologue by the character Melancholy Jaques in Act II Scene VI of the play. The poem's theme is that man is the ultimate loser in the game of life.
All the people have different routes to enter this stage and also have different exists to go out. They enter this stage when they are born and leave this stage when they die. Every person, during his life time plays many parts. These parts are called seven ages. These ages are actually like acts of a play.
The first stage is that of an infant when he is a helpless child in his mother's arms. Naturally and expectedly, the first age of a man's life is infancy. As a baby, a man acquires no accomplishments. In fact, he does little more than "mewl (cry)" and "puke (vomit)" in the arms of a nurse.
In the second role, he is a child who goes "creeping (crawling) like a snail unwillingly to school". It is the time when he complains all the time. The boy possesses a shiny face, scrubbed clean by his nurse, of course—or mother if he happens to be lower-class. The boy creeps toward the school "like a snail," no doubt hating every step, wishing he were going anywhere else.
In the third stage he is now a grown-up person and assumes the form of a lover. It is the time when he loves his beloved ardently (enthusiastically/passionately). In the youthful age when man is full of energy and might, he may do everything to please his beloved. He writes a song in praise of his beloved’s eyebrow. Even this shift of life, filled with merry making and joyous songs, passes so quickly as well.
Soldier, the fourth stage arrives quickly; here man seeks fame though it is temporary and short lived. He endangers his life for it. But it is nothing more than a bubble. He becomes a soldier and takes strange oaths. He has a beard like a tiger or leopard. He is fierce like these animals. During this stage of life, man is jealous of honour of other. He is very quick-tempered and owns quarrels. Since he is warm-blooded, he looks for temporary reputation and fame. To achieve this temporary fame, he is even ready to go into the mouth of a gun. He does not bother for dangers.
Fifth role is of a middle-aged and mature man like a judge. He has round belly full of the meat of chickens. He cites modern instances. In this stage he is firm, serious and grim. His conversation is full of many different proverbs of the world of the past and is also full of examples from the modern age.
In sixth age, man becomes very weak. He keeps pouch (bag) with him. He wears warm hoses. His shank has shrunk. "His big manly voice is turning again towards childish treble". His voice is not clear due to loss of teeth. At this stage he forgets almost everything. His memory becomes very weak. He loses teeth, eye-sight and taste. He is without everything
In the last stage, the condition of man becomes very miserable. Now he
Shakespeare wishes to make us realize that the short life we spend in this world is not worth it if we have a close observation of it. Life is nothing more than a shadow. So, spend it bravely and eagerly.
SOURCES:
https://poemanalysis.com/william-shakespeare/all-the-worlds-a-stage/
https://www.history.com/topics/renaissance/renaissance
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