Christina Hagan ‘05
Life starts upon the exit from the mother’s womb. From that moment, time marches on until the inevitable death occurs to take one once again from the world of the living. Life and death fascinated various playwrights and authors of the Renaissance. Shakespeare made his interest in aging known in many of his plays and sonnets. He approaches this continuing theme from many angles. In many of his sonnets he talks about aging and how the image changes as one ages and gets older and less attractive. The most interesting of Shakespeare’s plays involving a theme of aging is As You Like It. This is one of Shakespeare’s latter comedies and asks the viewer to choose which romance he or she would like. The characters themselves can be placed into one of seven ages. These stages have changed in their significance over time (Mabillard).
In As You Like It, Jacques recites the famous quote “All the world’s a stage. And all the men and women merely players.” What most people do not know is the following lines
“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 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 slippered 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” As You Like It, 2. 7. Norton 1622.
This speech clearly shows the Victorian views on aging.
Since the average lifespan was so much shorter during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, many people tended to get married and have children much earlier than today. Although it is commonly believed that the young love of >Romeo and Juliet was commonplace in England at this time, marriage registries show that many did not marry until their mid twenties (Best). This would mean a more mature man in the role of husband. As You Like It is a play to please everybody. So while there is happiness, there is sadness, while young there is old (Gardner 65).
During this time, England was a highly Patriarcherial society. With the exception of Queen Elizabeth I, the head of the house was a man, the overlord was a man, and even the estates were inherited by the firstborn son. It did not matter if there were three or four girls before a male birth; that male would inherit (Smith 65). Therefore an aristocratic boy would be educated in Latin and reading; a peasant would become an apprentice at the age of twelve or so and serve for seven years before he would take on the job of journeyman and begin to earn his own money. A female, on the other hand, would be educated in household duties. A noblewoman would learn how to take care of the house and make sure the books and servants were kept under control. A peasant would learn the same things only on a more hands-on level (Chamberlin 86). This relationship is clearly demonstrated between Duke Frederick and his niece Rosalind. Even though she is not his daughter, every aspect of her life is decided and controlled by Duke Frederick in the absence of her father. Rosalind and Celia dressing up as men would have appeared funny and humorous to Renaissance viewers. Imagine a young boy dressing up as a young girl who is pretending to be a young boy! Twelfth Night also uses this form of comedy. It shows the young “girl” be a stereotypical female at the time: silly, cunning, and animal like. Women at that time were thought to be little more than animals that needed taming, as demonstrated in The Taming of the Shrew.
A young man past his school age would be expected to swoon and admire women. He would be looked upon favorably if he wrote poetry or professed undying love to a young lady who caught his fancy. The four sets of lovers in As You Like It would fall under this category. They each have a different kind of love ranging from “love at first sight” to infatuation. These kinds of love are only for young people. Old people can no longer understand that kind of love as Silvius says to Corin in Act two scene four of As You Like It:
“No, Corin, being old thou canst not guess,
Though in thy youth thou wast as true a lover
As ever sighed upon a midnight pillow.
But if thy love were ever like to mine-
As sure I think did never man love so-
How many actions most ridiculous
Hast thou been drawn to by thy fantasy?”
“You don’t know what I’m going through!” is the common theme expressed in this passage. Young lovers in this time period were often overly dramatic as is demonstrated in Act One scene one of Twelfth Night, when Orsino is very melodramatic about how much love hurts. This is what was expected of these young men.
Next is the soldier, who must go off to fight for what he believes in. This stage in aging is vital to success, and can also be applied to the newly forming middle class. These people had some money and even managed to somewhat school their children, allowing them to get a little farther in the newly changing world (Ergang 54). In As You Like It, there is no character who fulfills the young soldier stereotype. Oliver may have served the king as a knight; this is not known but can be assumed. By this time, chivalry is not the same as it was in medieval times. A knight would not rescue a lady in distress, so one cannot think of Oliver as a fair man, which the reader knows he is not. Refusing to honor the father’s will in regard to the younger brothers would not make a man easily trusted. He will not even give his own brother’s what they were promised after their father’s death. Orlando is kept from the normal activities he should be enjoying and not allowed to return to the school he was attending. For a young man this would be hard to bear. The audience is therefore made to pity Orlando and hate Oliver.
The next age is when one gets “justice” in life and becomes a mature person. One can relax with whatever they have acquired and settle down with his wife and children. This state comes after winning wars and receiving wealth from the king for good service. Peasants, on the other hand, do not have what they cannot earn by hard labor (Chamberlin 86). The work does not stop. One works for another person and does not get commended for doing the job.
Old age begins to set in next. One’s pants begin to fall and need glasses to see. This generally presents a picture of a stately old gentleman. Age is something people then and now look at with contempt. Although face lifts and tummy tucks did not exist in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, men and women still wanted to be young in looks and spirits. The Fountain of Youth was something many sought but nobody found (Chamberlin 173). Adam, Orlando’s servant, is a good view of this age. He is old and yet he continually follows Orlando.
“Master, go on, and I will follow thee
To the last gasp with truth and loyalty.
From seventeen years till now almost fourscore
Here lived I, but now live here no more.
At seventeen years, many there fortions seek,
But at fourscore, it is too late a week.
Yet fortune cannot recompense me better
Than to die well, and not my masters debtor”
As You Like It 2.4 70.
He would rather die serving his master and know that he was a faithful servant then to abandon his master during his time of need.
The last age is the approach of death. One reverts back to a more childish demeanor. The mind begins to deteriorate and death occurs. At the time this was thought to be caused by humors in the body. These humors were believed to make a person become ill if they were out of balance (Mabillard). Most people fear death. However, death is a necessary end. Without death rebirth cannot happen. Shakespeare sums up how people should look at death in Julius Caesar act two scene two:
“Cowards die many times before there deaths;
The valiant never taste of death but once.
Of all the wonders that I yet have heard,
It seems to me most strange that men should fear,
Seeing that death, a necessary end,
Will come when it will come.”
This sums up most Renaissance people’s views on death and dying: it is inevitable, so why fear it? Some people today could do well to embrace this view. The ending of the life of Shakespeare was a day that a great playwright was lost. Death is the final act and scene of any person’s life.
Plays were a popular form of entertainment during the Renaissance and any entertainment needs to hold the attention of the audience. Shakespeare used popular views and prejudices of the Renaissance period to hold the interest of his audience. Therefore Shakespearian plays were based on Renaissance views and may be used to further understand Renaissance culture.
Works Cited
Best, Michel. The age of marriage. 1998. http://web.uvic.ca/shakespeare/Library/SLTnoframes/society/marriage.html (15/10/2002)
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Chamberlin, E. R. Everyday Life in Renaissance Times. London: B. T. Batsford, G. P. Putnam, 1965.
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Ergang, Robert. The Renaissance. Canada: D, Van Nostrand Company, 1967
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Mabillard, Amanda. Shakespeare of Stratford. Shakespeare Online. 2000. http://www.shakespeare-online.com (15/10/2002).
Shakespeare, William. As You Like It. The Norton Shakespeare. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt. New York: W.W. Norton Company, 1997. 1600-1656.
Smith, Lacey Baldwin. The Horizon Book of the Elizabethan World. Ed Norman Kotker. New York: American Heritage Publishing Co., 1967.