Q1 Identity the stages of a person’s life as Shakespeare has done.
A1 Stage Characteristics feature
Infancy crying, bring sick, vomiting
Student complaining, smartly dressed, unwilling to go school
Lover happy, moody
Solider swearing, quick tempered
Justice wise, responsible, serious
Pantaloon thin, declining in hell, less influential
Q2 Explain The meaning of these lines
1) …all the men and women merely players:
They have their exits and their entrances…
Meaning- All the men and women are like actors on the stage of the world. They come on this stage and play different roles in their lives and go away. It means none of us is not permanent or real.
2) And then the lover,
Sighing like furnace…
Meaning- These lines describe the 3rd stage of a man’s life which is that of the lover. In this stage, man plays the role of a lover. He heaves deep sighs for his beloved. The poet compares his heart to a burning furnace.
3) a soldier,
… Seeking the bubble reputation
Even in the cannon’s mouth.
Meaning- These lines describes the 4th stage of a man’s life which is that of a soldier. He is very ambitions and fearless. He is always temperial reputation which is temporary like a bubble of water for the sake of reputation. He is ready to go into the jaws of death.
Q3 Think of some other comparison for life.
A3 Life can be compared with the seasons in nature. The seasons come and go. No season is permanent. The same is true of men and women. Secondly, the seasons the nature move like a cycle. So do the joys and sorrows in life. Thirdly, the serial order of the season is fixed. Summer is followed by rainy season and winter by spring. Similarly, man is his lifetime passes through fixed stages. At first he his born as a child then he grows into a young man and at last he grows old.
JIS Notes 