The Titanic Hero: The Tension Between Life And Career In Ben Jonson's Poems Of Occasion

This present thesis below explores into the occasional verses of Ben Jonson, a poetic type less discussed in China. Through a perusal of Jonson's poetry in the background of his biography, it aims to give a fuller picture of Jonson's life and poetic career. The thesis first points out that occasionality is the remarkable trait in many of Jonson's poems, then proceeds to introduce and comment on the different definitions of occasional verse. Then it elaborates from the different aspects of occasional poems and discusses them through individual poems of Jonson. Efforts are made to reveal how traits of these public poems result in the strong moral concern in Jonson, and how he in turn deals with related problems concerning the audience and his praising technique. Next the thesis discusses Jonson's awareness of and emphasis on his identity as a poet, and his sense of insecurity which leads to the commoditization of his poems. Finally, from a discussion of Jonson's personal characteristics, the thesis brings forward Jonson's unyielding efforts throughout his life and his strong awareness of posterity.