Jonson, Ben

Jonson, Ben
(1572-1637)
   Benjamin Jonson is generally regarded as the second most important English dramatist, after William Shakespeare, during the reign of James I. His brickJordan layer stepfather managed to send Ben to Westminster School for a time, after which he followed his stepfather's trade. He fought with the English forces in the Netherlands before becoming a strolling player and by 1597 he was writing plays for Philip Henslowe, the leading impresario for the public theatre. Although he wrote tragedies and masques, he is better know for his comedies; the best known are: Every Man in His Humor (1598), Volpone (1606), The Alchemist (1610), and Bartholomew Fair (1614). He was made poet laureate in 1619. Never careful with money and, in spite of gifts from the king, he died in great poverty in a house between Westminster Abbey and St. Margaret's church. He is buried in the nave and commemorated in Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey. Some of his poems: "Author ad Librum," "Ben Jonson's Grace before King James," "Ben Jonson's Sociable Rules for the Apollo," "Charles Cavendish to His Posterity," "Come, My Celia," "The Witches' Song," "To True Soldiers."
   Sources: Dictionary of National Biography. Electronic Edition 1.1. Oxford University Press, 1997. Encyclopædia Britannica Ultimate Reference Suite DVD, 2006. English Poetry: Author Search. Chadwyck-Healey Ltd., 1995 (http://www.lib.utexas.edu:8080/search/epoetry/author.html). The National Portrait Gallery (www.npg.org.uk). Selected Poems of Ben Jonson. Ian Donaldson, ed. Oxford University Press, 1995. The Columbia Granger's Index to Poetry. 11th ed. The Columbia Granger's World of Poetry, Columbia University Press, 2005 (http://www.columbia grangers.org). The Complete Poems of Ben Jonson. George Parfitt, ed. Penguin Books, 1988. The Oxford Companion to English Literature. 6th edition. Margaret Drabble, ed. Oxford University Press, 2000. Westminster Abbey Official Guide (no date).

British and Irish poets. A biographical dictionary. . 2015.

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  • Jonson, Ben — ▪ English writer Introduction byname of  Benjamin Jonson   born June 11?, 1572, London, Eng. died Aug. 6, 1637, London       English Stuart dramatist, lyric poet, and literary critic. He is generally regarded as the second most important English… …   Universalium

  • JONSON, Ben — (1572/73 1637) Although Ben Jonson began his literary career as a playwright, he successfully marketed himself as England s first professional poet. He produced plays and poems sufficient to fill eleven volumes in the Oxford edition. Although he… …   Renaissance and Reformation 1500-1620: A Biographical Dictionary

  • JONSON, BEN —    dramatist, born at Westminster, posthumous son of a clergyman of Scottish descent; was in his youth first a bricklayer, afterwards a soldier in the Netherlands, whence he returned about 1592; married a shrew, and became connected with the… …   The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

  • Jonson, Ben — (1572 1637)    English dramatist. Born in Westminster and educated at Westminster School, after a period of soldiering in Flanders he became an actor and playwright in 1597. Imprisoned for killng another actor in a duel, he was converted to Roman …   Historical Dictionary of Renaissance

  • Jonson, Ben or Benjamin — (1573 1637)    Poet and dramatist, was probably b. in Westminster. His f., who d. before Ben was four, seems to have come from Carlisle, and the family to have originally belonged to Annandale. He was sent to Westminster School, for which he… …   Short biographical dictionary of English literature

  • Jonson, Ben(jamin) — born June 11?, 1572, London, Eng. died Aug. 6, 1637, London British playwright, poet, and critic. After learning stagecraft as a strolling player, he wrote plays for Philip Henslowe s theatres. In 1598 his comedy Every Man in His Humour… …   Universalium

  • Jonson, Ben — ► (1573 1637) Dramaturgo y poeta inglés. Empezó a trabajar y participar en la vida teatral londinense como actor y escritor mercenario. Consiguió su primer éxito en 1598 con la comedia Cada hombre en su humor. El valor de su obra reside en las… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Jonson, Ben —  (1572–1637) Not John . English dramatist and poet …   Bryson’s dictionary for writers and editors

  • Jonson, Ben —    not Johnson, for the English dramatist and poet …   Dictionary of troublesome word

  • Jonson, Ben(jamin) — (¿11? jun. 1572, Londres, Inglaterra–6 ago. 1637, Londres). Dramaturgo, crítico y poeta británico. Aprendió el oficio teatral como actor ambulante, y tiempo después escribió obras que se representaron en los teatros de Philip Henslowe. En 1598 se …   Enciclopedia Universal

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