stage
Shakespeare's persona describes the seven ages of man in "As You Like It" as a progression from infancy to old age, with each age characterized by certain traits and experiences. The persona suggests that life is like a play, with each person playing seven different roles as they mature and grow older.
The seven ages of man are not described by "the persona of Shakespeare", but rather by Jaques, a character in Shakespeare's play As You Like It. Jaques was what was then called a "humourous man" which did not mean that he was funny but rather that he had certain persistent personality traits. In Jaques's case, he was perennially depressed, cynical and pessimistic. There is no reason to think that Jaques might have been a Shakespearean self-portrait; indeed, Shakespeare was so reticient about himself that it is highly unlikely that he would ever create a character which was a self-portrait.
Here is Jaques's take on why nobody is any better off than anyone else; this is how he describes 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.
And 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 honour, 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 lined,
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 saved, 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.
OK, first off: it's not a poem. It's a speech made by a morose and grumpy guy in a play called As You Like It.
Next: There are not specific ages for the various stages. They are vignettes, intended to illuminate stages in life: babyhood, childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, middle age, old age and senility. These stages do not happen at the same time to all people. Is a forty-year old a soldier or a justice? When he reaches sixty is he still a justice or is he a lean and slippered pantaloon already? It depends on the individual.
William Shakespeare
"Shrunk shank" is the best.
In William Shakespeare's "Seven Ages of Man" monologue from As You Like It, the roles of man progress from infancy to old age, each with its own set of characteristics and responsibilities. The roles change from being dependent and carefree as a child to being focused on ambition and achievement during adulthood, and eventually leading to reflection and wisdom in old age. Each stage represents a different aspect of life and human experience.
No, Shakespeare was born after the Middle Ages ended.
The infant is mewling and puking in his nurse's arms.
It is pretty hard to describe them better than Shakespeare already did.
In the first place the idea of the seven ages of man was not found by Shakespeare. This idea had been around for a long time, and finds its origin in a Latin phrase. Shakespeare was only the man to voice the idea, and in that he succeeded very well. The number seven is probably derived from the seven sins. The number seven can be found several times throughout the bible and can be seen as some sort of symbol. If you would like to know more about the origin of this famous quote, I refer you to the Wikipedia page on the 'all the world's a stage'.
The alliteration words in the "Seven Ages of Man" speech by William Shakespeare include "mewling and puking" and "whining schoolboy." These are examples of alliteration, which is the repetition of initial consonant sounds in neighboring words.
The assonance in the "Seven Ages of Man" poem by William Shakespeare can be found in lines such as "the mewling and puking" and "the last scene of all." Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds within nearby words.
William Shakespeare lived during the Renaissance, after the Middle Ages were over.
In the "Seven Ages of Man" by William Shakespeare, the alliteration examples include "whining schoolboy" and "sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything." These alliterations help create rhythm and emphasize certain stages of life.
The fifth stage in Shakespeare's "Seven Ages of Man" speech is the justice, or soldier, stage. It represents a period of life focused on duty, honor, and responsibility, where the individual plays roles such as protecting and defending others.