All the World's a Stage 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 pu ing in the nurse's arms. Then the whining schoolboy, with his satchel And shining morning face, creeping li e snail !nwillingly to school. And then the lover, "ighing li e furnace, with a woeful ballad Made to his mistress' eyebrow. Then a soldier, #ull of strange oaths and bearded li e the pard, $ealous in honor, sudden and %uic in %uarrel, "ee ing the bubble reputation &ven in the cannon's mouth. And then the 'ustice, (n fair round belly with good capon lined, )ith eyes severe and beard of formal cut, #ull of wise saws and modern instances; And so he plays his part. The sixth age shifts (nto the lean and slippered pantaloon, )ith spectacles on nose and pouch on side; His youthful hose, well saved, a world too wide #or his shrun shan , and his big manly voice, Turning again toward childish treble, pipes And whistles in his sound. *ast scene of all, That ends this strange eventful history, (s second childishness and mere oblivion, "ans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything. + )illiam "ha espeare

,All the world's a stage, is the phrase that begins a monologue from )illiam "ha espeare's As You Like It, spo en by the melancholy $a%ues in Act (( "cene -((. The speech compares the world to a stage and life to a play, and catalogues the seven stages of a man's life, sometimes referred to as the seven ages of man./01 infant, schoolboy, lover, soldier, 'ustice, pantaloon, and old age, facing imminent death. (t is one of "ha espeare's most fre%uently+%uoted passages, and is mista enly believed by some to be "ha espeare's last speech.

The man in the poem goes through these stages. 0. (nfancy. (n this stage he is a helpless baby and nows little. 2. whining schoolboy. (t is in that stage of life that he begins to go to school. He is unwilling to leave the protected environment of his home as he is still not confident enough to exercise his own discretion. 3. The lover. (n this stage he is always remorseful due to some reason or other, especially the loss of love. He tries to express feelings through song or some other cultural activity. 4. The soldier. (t is in this age that he thin s less of himself and begins to thin more of others. He is very easily aroused and is hot headed. He is always wor ing towards ma ing a reputation for himself and gaining recognition, however short+lived it may be, even at the cost of his own life. 5. The 'ustice. (n this stage he has ac%uired wisdom through the many experiences he has had in life. He has reached a stage where he has gained prosperity and social status. He becomes very attentive of his loo s and begins to en'oy the finer things of life.

6. 6ld Age. He begins to lose his charm 7

both physical and mental. He begins to become the butt of others' 'o es. He loses his firmness and assertiveness, and shrin s in stature and personality. 8. second childishness. He loses his status and he becomes a non+entity. He becomes dependent on others. The comparison of the world to a stage and people to actors long predated "ha espeare. )hen it was founded in 0599 "ha espeare's own theatre, The :lobe may have used the motto Totus mundus agit histrionem ;All the world plays the actor<, the *atin text of which is derived from a 02th+ century treatise./21 !ltimately the words derive from quod fere totus mundus exerceat histrionem ;because almost the whole world are actors< attributed to =etronius, a phrase which had wide circulation in &ngland at the time. (n his own earlier wor , The Merchant of -enice, "ha espeare also had one of his main characters, Antonio, comparing the world to a stage. ,( hold the world but as the world, :ratiano; A stage where every man must play a part, And mine a sad one., ;The Merchant of -enice, Act (, "cene (< The first role>age is that of an infant. He cries and whines and vomits in the hands of his nurse. (n the second stage of life, man plays the role of a little child. He carries a small schoolbag with him and has a shiny face, wal ing as slowly as possible because of his disli e of school. (n the third stage of life, man plays the role of a lover. He falls in love passionately and sings a sad ballad about love, praising the beauty of his lover?s eyebrows. (n the fourth stage of life, man plays the role of a soldier. He is full of strange oaths, bearded, and strives for honour, recognition and reputation, even faced with a cannon. (n the fifth stage of life, man plays the role of a 'ustice. He is well fed and has a fat belly. He is full of wise sayings. He uses his experience, wisdom and nowledge in the dispensation of 'ustice. (n the sixth stage of life, man becomes wea and fragile. Man?s last stage is that of extreme old age. This stage is compared to second childhood. He loses control over his senses and becomes dependent on others 'ust li e a child. He is enveloped by forgetfulness and loses his teeth, eyesight, hearing, etc. and then, he passes away.