Ben Jonson

Ben Jonson

Benjamin "Ben" Jonson (c. 11 June 1572 – 6 August 1637) was an English Renaissance dramatist, poet and actor. A contemporary of William Shakespeare, he is best known for his satirical plays, particularly Volpone, The Alchemist, and Bartholomew Fair, which are considered his best, and his lyric poems. A man of vast reading and a seemingly insatiable appetite for controversy, Jonson had an unparalleled breadth of influence on Jacobean and Caroline playwrights and poets.

Read more about Ben Jonson:  Relationship With Shakespeare, Reception and Influence, Biographies of Ben Jonson

Famous quotes by ben jonson:

    “For I loved the man and do honour his memory, on this side of idolatry, as much as any.”
    —Ben Jonson (1573–1637)

    “Thou art not, Penshurst, built to envious show,
    Of touch or marble; nor canst boast a row
    Of polished pillars, or a roof of gold;
    Thou hast no lantern whereof tales are told,
    Or stair, or courts; but stand’st an ancient pile,”
    —Ben Jonson (1572–1637)

    “My title’s sealed. Those that for claps do write,
    Let pui’nies, porters’, players’ praise delight,
    And, till they burst, their backs like asses load:
    A man should seek great glory, and not broad.”
    —Ben Jonson (1572–1637)

    “Thou art a monument without a tomb,
    And art alive still while thy book doth live
    And we have wits to read and praise to give.”
    —Ben Jonson (1572–1637)

    “Donne, for not keeping of accent, deserved hanging ... Shakespeare wanted art ... Sharpham, Day, Dekker, were all rogues.”
    —Ben Jonson (c. 1572–1637)