Philosophical Reflection of Life in William Shakespeare’s “All the World’s a Stage”

Abstract

Life is not a bed of roses. It has its ups and downs. A man has to move through different phases during his life time. Shakespeare compared the entire world to a stage in his poem, “All the world’s a stage.”. We all are mere players in this stage of life. Shakespeare presents a philosophical reflection of life in “All the world’s a stage.” He exhibits each stage undergone by a man, during his course of a life time. The seven stages of encompass infancy, childhood, boyhood, adulthood, middle age, old age, second childhood. All the materialistic happiness and reputations are secondary as death will capture everyone in the end; death is the great conqueror.