Do you think Shakespeare’s conception of human life acceptable ? Give your views on Shakespeare’s perception.
William Shakespeare is the most famous dramatist in the world. The poem ” The Seven Ages of Man “ is an extract taken from his play ” As You Like It “. This poem describes about human life. In this poem , Shakespeare has compared the world to a stage. And all men and women to actors and actresses on that stage. And he compares birth as the the entrance to the stage and death as the exit from the stage. He tells that people are born at different times and die at different times. He also says that one man plays seven characters within his lifetime.
The first stage is infant. Infant is the little baby. He is mewling and puking on his nurse’s arms. He can’t do anything of his own. In Shakespeare’s opinion he has some what pessimistic idea about the infant. But in my way , infants make people happy. They are pretty and joyful. So he is not just a little crying thing.
The second stage is school boy. The school boy is a playful character. He does not like to go to school. He can do his works of his own but yet he can’t get any responsibilities. Shakespeare sees him as whinning. But I think he is an active character. And he is learning about the world from his adults.
The third stage is lover. The lover is thinking about his mistress.
” Sighing like furnace , with a woeful ballad ”
He has failed in his love and repenting. He sings sad songs to reduce his sadness. Shakespeare shows the lover as a failed one. But in my opinion every lover does not fail. Some of them have won their love and spending their most splendid time with their lover.
The fourth stage is soldier. Soldier means the man is doing a job to earn money. He is very brave but somewhat foolish because he is chasing after the reputation which will vanish soon.
” Jealous in honour , sudden and quick in quarrel
Seeking the bubble reputation ”
Shakespeare sees him also as a negative character. But the soldiers are always not like that. There are other professions that people can earn money easily.
The fifth stage is justice. Justice is the middle aged man. He has so many responsibilities. And also he is wise as he is updated with modern news. And he is a wealthy person. But he still tries to earn money in wrong ways. And he shows himself as a good , reputed person to the world. Shakespeare describes justice as the climax of the human life. But in my opinion justice is not that much a bad person. He is wise and serves people. And also he is doing his duty to the world. However he may be corrupted.
The sixth stage is the Pantaloon. Pantaloon means clown. But he is not a clown. He is an old man. But he wears baggy dresses and spectacles and his voice has turned in to a childish one. These make him see as a a clown . Now the man hasn’t got much responsibilities. Shakespeare sees him as a person who has lost many things. But most people are spending their old age happily with their children as they got nothing to do. So old age is not completely awful.
The seventh and the last stage is second childishness. Now the man is very old. He can’t remember or feel anything. He can’t do things of his own. He is just like the Infant. According to Shakespeare he has lost everything.
” Sans teeth , sans eyes , sans taste , sans everything ”
But he really hasn’t lost everything. This is somewhat exaggerative. But anyway the man has reached to his exit from the stage.
Likewise , Shakespeare divides the life into seven stages. I can agree with his conception but not in everything. According to Shakespeare the life is made with sadness. In every stage , he conveys and shows the reader about the negative side of life. That is somewhat acceptable. Because the life is impermanent. But I think the life is also filled with smiles as well as tears. We should not be always pessimistic. So I think I can mostly accept and agree with the Shakespeare’s conception about life.