The Seven Ages of Man

All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances;

And one man in his time plays many parts,

His acts being seven ages.

At first the infant,

Mewling and puking in the nurse’s arms;

Then the whining school-boy, with his satchel

And shining morning face, creeping like snail

Unwillingly to school. And then the lover,

Sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad

Made to his mistress’ eyebrow. Then a soldier,

Full of strange oaths, and bearded like the pard,

Jealous in honor, sudden and quick in quarrel,

Seeking the bubble reputation

Even in the cannon’s mouth. And then the justice,

In fair round belly with good capon lin’d,

With eyes severe and beard of formal cut,

Full of wise saws and modern instances;

And so he plays his part. The sixth age shifts

Into the lean and slipper’d pantaloon,

With spectacles on nose and pouch on side;

His youthful hose, well sav’d, a world too wide

For his shrunk shank; and his big manly voice,

Turning again toward childish treble, pipes

And whistles in his sound. Last scene of all,

That ends this strange eventful history,

Is second childishness and mere oblivion;

Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.

Glossary

mewling and pukingcrying and being sick (archaic)

satchelbag for carrying books or other articles

furnaceenclosed fireplace for heating metals

pardleopard

jealous in honorcareful to defend his reputation.

caponmale chicken fattened for eating

saws and modern instancesfamiliar old sayings and trite examples.

pantaloona stock character in Italian comedy, a foolish old man wearing pantaloons, or tight-fitting trousers

hosedose-fitting trousers like tights.

shrunk shankshrunken leg

treblehigh-pitched voice

oblivionforgetfulness

sanswithout (Frenchword)

woefulsad (poetic; modern spelling woeful)

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