5 h 22 minAudiobook8 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What happens when everyone in a crowded city lets one foolish obsession take charge?
In Ben Jonson’s comedy Every Man in His Humor, old Knowell reads a letter never meant for him. He already fears that poetry will lead his son Edward into bad company. Edward wants freedom from that watchful eye, while the quick-witted servant Brainworm finds fresh scope for disguise and tricks.
Around them gather people determined to seem wiser, braver, or grander than they are. Captain Bobadill boasts of his swordsmanship. Matthew borrows other men’s verses. Meanwhile, the prosperous merchant Kitely fears his wife is unfaithful. Through fast talk, a quarrel, and mistaken judgments, Jonson shows how a fixed obsession can bend ordinary life out of shape.
What you’ll discover
- A letter in wrong hands Watch a father’s worry turn a misread letter into the starting point for comedy.
- A servant who steers events Follow Brainworm through disguises and tricks, driven by his restless pleasure in deception.
- Boasts and borrowed verses Meet Bobadill and Matthew, whose claims expose the gap between appearance and ability.
- Jealousy without a cause See how Kitely’s groundless suspicion unsettles a man who otherwise has much to enjoy.
- Folly brought into focus Discover Jonson’s comedy of fixed quirks, where lively speech makes familiar human weaknesses sharply visible.
Is it for you?
This is for readers who like sharp comedy, stage history, and portraits of types you still meet in life. It suits anyone curious about Shakespeare's London. If you want a gentle romance or a plain plot without dense old slang, it may feel crowded.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A father reads the wrong letter
- Three fools and their borrowed airs
- Kitely and the sickness of jealousy
- Brainworm, the servant who runs the plot
- What the play says about folly
- How Jonson builds a comedy of types
Who’s who
- Old KnowellA watchful gentleman who fears poetry will ruin his son, and who misreads a letter that was never meant for him.
- Edward KnowellHis son, a young man who loves poetry and good company, and who wants freedom from his father's watchful eye.
- BrainwormKnowell's quick and playful servant, who loves disguise and trickery and steers much of the action.
- KitelyA prosperous London merchant who is tormented by a groundless fear that his wife is unfaithful.
- Captain BobadillA boasting soldier who claims a secret skill with the sword and lodges with the water carrier Cob.
- MatthewA town gull who wants to be thought a poet and passes off other men's verses as his own.
- StephenEdward's country cousin, who wants to be taken for a gentleman and copies the manners he sees.
- WellbredA witty young man about town who enjoys teasing the fools around him and who writes the fateful letter.
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- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 8 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
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- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
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Ogni uomo nel suo umore
by Ben Jonson· 1601
Jealousy, boasting, and suspicion draw city dwellers into comic misunderstandings.
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Language: Italiano
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1 of 6
A father reads the wrong letter
The play opens at the house of old Knowell, a careful gentleman who has strong views on how a young man should be raised. His son, Edward Knowell, has a taste for poetry, and the father fears that verse will lead him to idleness and bad company. He has tried to guide the young man, and he believes he has done it kindly. But worry has made him quick to suspect the worst.
Then a letter arrives that is not meant for him. It is written by Wellbred, a lively young man about town, and addressed to Edward. It is carried by a servant, and old Knowell opens it. Inside he finds a jokey invitation to come and enjoy the pleasures of the city. Wellbred writes in the teasing tone of a close friend, and the father takes the jokes at face value.
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The author
Ben Jonson
1572–1637 · English playwright and poet
Ben Jonson (1572–1637) was an English playwright, poet, and actor who lived in London. He wrote Every Man in His Humour (1598), Volpone (1606), The Alchemist (1610), and The Devil Is an Ass (1616). A collection of his works appeared in 1616. He died in London in 1637.
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What is Every Man in His Humor about?
It is a comedy about a day of mistakes in a city. A father misreads a letter, a merchant fears his wife's unfaithfulness, and boasters and imitators make fools of themselves while a clever servant stirs the plot.
What does humor mean in Every Man in His Humor?
It refers to an old medical idea that bodily fluids, called humors, shaped temper. Jonson uses it for a ruling obsession, such as jealousy or boasting, that makes a person act in one fixed, comic way.
When was Every Man in His Humor written and first performed?
It was first staged in 1598 by the Lord Chamberlain's Men, and Shakespeare is recorded among the cast. The first version was set in Italy, and Jonson later revised it for a London setting.
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