Reprint of the original, first published in 1875. The publishing house Anatiposi publishes historical books as reprints. Due to their age, these books may have missing pages or inferior quality. Our aim is to preserve these books and make them available to the public so that they do not get lost.

Book 1: Step into the world of comedic satire with “Every Man in His Humor by Ben Jonson.” Ben Jonson's play takes a humorous look at human folly and the quirks of individual personalities, offering a delightful exploration of the comedic potential inherent in the diversity of human behavior. Book 2: Indulge in the clever machinations and deceitful plots of “Volpone; Or, The Fox by Ben Jonson.” Jonson's comedy unfolds with wit and cunning as the sly Volpone feigns illness to trick his greedy acquaintances, providing a humorous commentary on human greed and moral ambiguity. Book 3: Enter the world of alchemical antics and clever schemes in “The Alchemist by Ben Jonson.” Jonson's comedic masterpiece follows the exploits of a trio of con artists who exploit the gullibility of their victims. The play is a satirical exploration of greed, deception, and the pursuit of wealth through dubious means.

Ben Jonson's contemporaries admired him above all other playwrights and poets of the English Renaissance. He was the “great refiner” who alchemized the bleakest aspects of everyday life into brilliant images of folly and deceit. He was also a celebrated reprobate and an ambitious entrepreneur. David Riggs illuminates every facet of this extraordinary career, giving us the first major biography of Jonson in over sixty years. The story of Jonson's life provides a broad view of the literary procession in early modern England and the milieu in which Elizabethan drama was produced. Beginning as a journeyman actor, Jonson was soon a novice playwright; his first important play was staged in 1598, with Shakespeare in the cast. He was by turns the self-styled leader of a literary elite, a writer of court masques, the first dramatist to publish his own Works, a royal pensioner, and a genteel poet. As Jonson transformed himself from an artisan into a gentleman, his need to transcend his class origins led him to murder, to his notorious quarrels with Thomas Dekker, John Marston, and Inigo Jones, and to his lifelong rivalry with Shakespeare. Riggs traces the roots of Jonson's aggressiveness back to the turmoil of his childhood and adolescence. He offers new and convincing accounts of Jonson's latent hostility toward his bricklayer stepfather, his reckless marriage to Anne Lewis, and his conflicted relationships with his children. This vivid portrait synthesizes six decades of scholarship and new historical evidence. Sixty halftones beautifully illustrate the story and capture the spirit of the age. With Riggs' original interpretations of Jonson's masterpieces and lesser known works, Ben Jonson: A Life will prove the standard account of this complex man's life and works for many years to come.