Jonson, Ben

Ben Jonson

byname of  Benjamin Jonson  

Ben Jonson, color illustration after a miniature in the Royal Library at Windsor Castle

Corbis-Bettmann

English Stuart dramatist, lyric poet, and literary critic. He is generally regarded as the second most important English dramatist, after William Shakespeare, during the reign of James I. Among his major plays are the comedies Every Man in His Humour (1598), Volpone (1605), Epicoene; or, The Silent Woman (1609), The Alchemist (1610), and Bartholomew Fair (1614).

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  Introduction
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  Theatrical career
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  His masques at court
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  His prime and later life
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  His plays and achievement
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  Additional Reading