Thomas Middleton facts for kids
Thomas Middleton (born 1580 – died 1627) was a famous English writer. He lived during the Jacobean era, a time when James I ruled England. Middleton was a playwright, meaning he wrote plays for the theatre. He was also a poet.
He was one of the most successful writers of his time, alongside John Fletcher and Ben Jonson. Middleton was special because he wrote both funny plays (comedies) and serious plays (tragedies) very well. He also wrote many masques (special court shows with music and dance) and pageants (public celebrations).
Contents
Early Life and Career
Middleton was born in London and was baptised on April 18, 1580. His father was a bricklayer who became a gentleman and owned land near the Curtain Theatre. When Thomas was five, his father died. His mother remarried, which led to a 15-year legal fight over his inheritance. This long legal battle taught him a lot about the law and made him often make fun of lawyers in his plays.
Middleton went to The Queen's College, Oxford in 1598 but did not finish his degree. Before leaving Oxford around 1600 or 1601, he wrote and published three long poems. These poems were not very popular. One of his books of satires (writings that make fun of things) was even burned because the Church of England banned verse satire. Despite this, his writing career had begun.
In the early 1600s, Middleton wrote many pamphlets about current events. One of these, Penniless Parliament of Threadbare Poets, was reprinted many times. It even caused a government inquiry! At the same time, he started writing plays for a theatre group called the Admiral's Men. Unlike Shakespeare, Middleton worked as a freelancer. This meant he could write for any theatre company that wanted him.
His early plays sometimes caused arguments. He was friends with Thomas Dekker, which led to disagreements with Ben Jonson and George Chapman during a time known as the "War of the Theatres." This rivalry with Jonson continued for many years.
Major Works and Success
In 1603, Middleton got married. That same year, a terrible outbreak of the bubonic plague forced London theatres to close. Also, King James I became the new king. These events marked the start of Middleton's most successful period as a playwright.
During the plague, he wrote prose pamphlets. When the theatres reopened, he wrote many plays for different companies. He wrote many city comedies, which were funny plays about London life. He also wrote revenge tragedies, which were serious plays about people seeking revenge. He often worked with Thomas Dekker. Together, they wrote The Roaring Girl, a play about a real-life thief named Mary Frith.
In the 1610s, Middleton began working with the actor William Rowley. They wrote plays like Wit at Several Weapons and A Fair Quarrel. In 1613, working alone, Middleton wrote a very funny play called A Chaste Maid in Cheapside.
Middleton also became more involved in writing for public events. In 1620, he was officially named the chronologist (history writer) for the City of London. He held this job until he died in 1627. After his death, Ben Jonson took over the role.
His official duties did not stop him from writing plays. In the 1620s, he and Rowley wrote the famous tragedy The Changeling. He also wrote several tragicomedies (plays that mix serious and funny parts).
A Controversial Play
In 1624, Middleton became very well-known for his play A Game at Chess. This play was performed by the King's Men, Shakespeare's old company. The play used the idea of a chess game to make fun of recent political events. It was about the attempts to arrange a marriage between Prince Charles (King James I's son) and a Spanish princess.
Even though Middleton's play was very patriotic, the Privy Council (the king's advisors) stopped it after only nine performances. This happened because the Spanish Ambassador complained. Middleton likely faced a serious punishment. No plays by him are recorded after A Game at Chess. Some people think he was banned from writing for the stage.
Later Life and Death
Middleton died at his home in Newington Butts in Southwark in 1627. He was buried on July 4 in St Mary's churchyard. The original St Mary's church was torn down in 1876 for road construction. Its replacement was destroyed in World War II but rebuilt in 1958. The old churchyard where Middleton was buried is now a public park in Elephant and Castle.
His Legacy
Many literary experts, like Algernon Charles Swinburne and T. S. Eliot, have praised Middleton's work. T. S. Eliot even thought Middleton was the second-best English playwright, after only Shakespeare.
Middleton's plays have been performed often throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. More and more of his plays are being staged. Even some of his less famous works, like A Fair Quarrel and The Old Law, have been performed by major theatre companies. His tragedy The Changeling has been made into a film several times. Another popular play is Women Beware Women.
What He Wrote About
Middleton wrote in many different styles. These included tragedies, historical plays, and city comedies. His most famous plays are the tragedies The Changeling (written with William Rowley) and Women Beware Women. Another well-known play is the city comedy A Chaste Maid in Cheapside, which makes fun of people in a clever way.
For a long time, people thought another writer, Cyril Tourneur, wrote The Revenger's Tragedy. However, studies of writing style now show that Middleton most likely wrote it. Experts also believe Middleton worked with Shakespeare on Timon of Athens. Some even think he helped revise Shakespeare's Macbeth and Measure for Measure, and possibly All's Well That Ends Well. However, not all scholars agree on these last few ideas.
Middleton's plays are known for their funny but often cynical view of people. He rarely showed true heroes. Instead, most of his characters are selfish, greedy, and only care about themselves. A Chaste Maid in Cheapside shows a London full of people who are not perfect, and he makes fun of everyone, no matter their social class. In his tragedies Women Beware Women and The Revenger's Tragedy, bad Italian nobles constantly plot against each other, leading to a lot of death. When Middleton does show good people, they usually have small roles and are shown as perfect.
Some people believe Middleton was a strong follower of Calvinism, a type of Christian belief. This is because of a religious pamphlet that is thought to be written by him.
Selected Works
Plays
- The Phoenix (1603–1604)
- Michaelmas Term (1604)
- A Trick to Catch the Old One (1605)
- A Mad World, My Masters (1605)
- A Yorkshire Tragedy (1605); sometimes thought to be by Shakespeare.
- The Puritan (1606)
- The Bloody Banquet (1608–1609); with Dekker.
- The Roaring Girl (1611); with Dekker.
- No Wit, No Help Like a Woman's (1611)
- The Second Maiden's Tragedy (1611); believed to be by Middleton.
- A Chaste Maid in Cheapside (1613)
- Wit at Several Weapons (1613); revised by Middleton and Rowley.
- More Dissemblers Besides Women (1614)
- The Widow (1615–1616)
- The Witch (1616)
- A Fair Quarrel (1616); with Rowley.
- The Old Law (1618–1619); with Rowley.
- Hengist, King of Kent, or The Mayor of Quinborough (1620)
- Women Beware Women (1621)
- Anything for a Quiet Life (1621); with John Webster.
- The Changeling (1622); with Rowley.
- The Nice Valour (1622); revised by Middleton.
- The Spanish Gypsy (1623); believed to be by Middleton and Rowley, revised by others.
- A Game at Chess (1624); a political satire.
Other Stage Works
- The Whole Royal and Magnificent Entertainment Given to King James Through the City of London (1603–1604); with Dekker and Jonson.
- The Triumphs of Truth (1613)
- The Masque of Heroes, or, The Inner Temple Masque (1619)
- The World Tossed at Tennis (1620); with William Rowley.
- The Sun in Aries (1621)
Poetry
- The Wisdom of Solomon Paraphrased (1597)
- Microcynicon: Six Snarling Satires (1599)
- The Ghost of Lucrece (1600)
Prose
- The Penniless Parliament of Threadbare Poets (1601)
- News from Gravesend (1603); with Dekker.
- The Black Book (1604)
- The Owl's Almanac (1618)
See also
In Spanish: Thomas Middleton para niños
