Every Man in His Humour

Ben Jonson

mar 2017 · The Floating Press

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In the late sixteenth century, English playwright Ben Jonson revitalized an ancient style of comedic theater known as "comedy of humours." Drawing on the theory that each person has a particular trait -- or "humour" -- that defines their personality and perspective, Every Man in His Humour explores what happens when people with diametrically opposed humours are forced to interact with each other.

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Born in 1572, Ben Jonson rejected his father's bricklaying trade and ran away from his apprenticeship to join the army. He returned to England in 1592, working as an actor and playwright. In 1598, he was tried for murder after killing another actor in a duel, and was briefly imprisoned. One of his first plays, Every Man Out of His Humor (1599) had fellow playwright William Shakespeare as a cast member. His success grew with such works as Volpone (1605) and The Alchemist (1610) and he was popular at court, frequently writing the Christmas masque. He is considered a very fine Elizabethan poet. In some anti-Stratfordian circles he is proposed as the true author of Shakespeare's plays, though this view is not widely accepted. Jonson was appointed London historian in 1628, but that same year, his life took a downward turn. He suffered a paralyzing stroke and lost favor at court after an argument with architect Inigo Jones and the death of King James I. Ben Jonson died on August 6, 1637.