-
Infant
'Mewling and puking in the Nurse's arms'
sleeping, drooling, crawling and playing -
Schoolboy
'Then the whining schoolboy, with his satchel
And shining morning face, creeping like snail
Unwillingly to school'
boasting, proud and enthusiastic -
Lover
"And then the lover,
Sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad
Made to his mistress' eyebrow"
sweet, gentle and loving -
Soldier
Then a soldier,
"Full of strange oaths and bearded like the pard,
Jealous in honor, sudden and quick in quarrel,
Seeking the bubble reputation
Even in the cannon's mouth"
strong, brave and honorable -
Man
"And then the justice,
In fair round belly with good capon lined,
With eyes severe and beard of formal cut,
Full of wise saws and modern instances"
happy, secure and smart -
Old Man
"The sixth age shifts
Into the lean and slippered pantaloon,
With spectacles on nose and pouch on side;
His youthful hose, well saved, a world too wide
For his shrunk shank, and his big manly voice,
Turning again toward childish treble, pipes
And whistles in his sound"
old, feeble and tired -
Second Childishness
"Last scene of all,
That ends this strange eventful history,
Is second childishness and mere oblivion,
Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything"
crazy, deaf and sickly
