Every Man in His HumourBen Jonson coined the term poetmaster, which he defined as an inferior poet with pretensions to artistic value. Ben Jonson was an English Renaissance dramatist, poet and actor. He is known for his satirical plays such as Volpone, The Alchemist, and Bartholomew Fair. Jonson was a great reader and lover of controversy. He had an unparalleled breadth of influence on Jacobean and Caroline playwrights and poets. In 1616 he received an annual pension of 100 marks making him the first Poet Laureate of England. "Every Man in His Humour¿ was Jonson¿s first dramatic success produced in 1598. The comic play tells the story of an intercepted letter, which enabled a father to follow his supposedly studious son to London, and there observe his life with the gallants of the day. |