 |
 |
|
Biography of Thomas Dekker
Name: Thomas Dekker
Birth Date: c. 1572
Death Date: c. 1632
Place of Birth: N/A
Nationality: English
Gender: Male
Occupations: writer, playwright
Thomas Dekker
The English playwright and pamphleteer Thomas Dekker (ca. 1572-ca. 1632) is noted for his vivid portrayals of London life and his genial sympathy for the lower classes.Nothing is known of Thomas Dekker's parentage or education. Throughout his life he remained closely identified with London, where he was probably born about 1572. He acquired some knowledge of Latin, French, and Dutch, and he may have seen military service in his early years.The first evidence of Dekker's association with the stage appears in the records of Philip Henslowe, the theatrical manager whose diary provides much valuable information about the more practical side of Elizabethan drama. Henslowe also reveals that Dekker was imprisoned for debt--a not uncommon fate for dramatists of the period.Early in his career Dekker produced his most popular play, The Shoemaker's Holiday (1599). This engaging mixture of sentimental romance and homely urban realism shows Dekker's modest talents to best …showed first 150 words…
You are viewing only a small portion of the biography.
Please login or register to access the full copy.
|
|
…showed last 150 words…The Roaring Girl (ca. 1610, written with Thomas Middleton) are among the six or seven plays from this period of Dekker's career. From 1613 to 1619 he evidently wrote nothing; these years may have been spent in prison, but the evidence on this point is not conclusive. In 1620 he reappears as a pamphleteer and playwright. His later dramatic works (done in collaboration with such playwrights as Philip Massinger, William Rowley, and John Ford) reveal his abiding interest in London life, with his earlier sunny realism occasionally qualified by a note of bitterness.Dekker composed the annual lord mayor's pageant in 1628 and 1629. He died shortly afterward, probably in 1632, heavily in debt. Further Reading The basic biography is M. L. Hunt, Thomas Dekker (1911; repr. 1964). Critical studies include K. L. Gregg, Thomas Dekker: A Study in Economic and Social Backgrounds (1924); J. H. Conover, Thomas Dekker: An Analysis of Dramatic Structure (1969); and G. R. Price, Thomas Dekker (1969).
Need a custom written paper?
|
|
 |
|
