The Poetaster

Ben JonsonProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.7

Word count: 244K words
Chapters: 25

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The Poetaster by Ben JonsonAuthor: Jonson, Ben, 1573?-1637,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Feb 1, 2004

Editor's review

The Poetaster is a comedy by Ben Jonson and a representative late Elizabethan satirical play. Set in ancient Rome, it explores literary creation, criticism, and vanity through clashes between poets and critics. Jonson uses witty dialogue and stock characters to satirize the literary climate of his day, giving readers a sense of early seventeenth-century English theatrical language and satirical tradition. As a public-domain ebook, this edition is easy to search and quote, making it suitable supplementary reading for courses on English literary history and Renaissance drama. Readers are advised to familiarize themselves with the background of the Roman poets referenced before appreciating Jonson's use of the past to satirize the present.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Literature students studying English Renaissance drama
Theater enthusiasts interested in Elizabethan satirical comedy
University instructors needing public-domain English play texts for teaching
Readers of English literature seeking to understand Jonson's style

Not a good fit for

General readers expecting a modern Chinese translation or light entertainment
Beginners with little patience for the ancient Roman setting and classical allusions
Introductory readers needing detailed notes and scholarly introductions

Reading tips

Read the plot summary and character list first to clarify the relationships among the poet characters.
Consult a textbook on English Renaissance literature to understand the context of Jonson's disputes with contemporary playwrights.
Read key scenes of dialogue first, then review the whole play to appreciate the layers of satirical language.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book the original English or a Chinese translation?

This is a public-domain English ebook from Project Gutenberg, containing the original English text, not a Chinese translation. Readers need some English proficiency and should be comfortable with early modern English expression.

What background knowledge is helpful before reading?

It helps to know the basics about Roman poets such as Horace and Virgil, as well as the context of literary disputes in Renaissance England. This knowledge aids understanding of the targets of satire and Jonson's intentions.

Does this edition include notes and an introduction?

This is a Project Gutenberg electronic text that mainly provides the work itself; whether it includes notes depends on that ebook's specific arrangement. Readers wanting detailed annotations should consult scholarly editions or literary history textbooks.

Comments

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About the author

Ben Jonson Author · English · 1573–1637

Ben Jonson (1573?–1637) was an English playwright, poet, and actor of the Renaissance, born in London. In 1616 he published a collected edition of his plays on his own initiative, and in 1619 he was named Poet Laureate. He is best known for his satirical comedies, including Volpone Or, The Fox, The Alchemist, Epicoene Or, The Silent Woman, Bartholomew Fair: A Comedy, The Devil is an Ass, and Every Man in His Humour, as well as Discoveries Made Upon Men and Matter and Some Poems. Drawing largely on urban life, these works are marked by a cool, witty tone and sharp commentary on human weakness and social manners, and they exerted a lasting influence on seventeenth-century English drama. Twelve of his works are held in this collection; further biographical details are limited in publicly available sources.