His influence upon the drama was in large part that of a critic and a reformer. He began his important work at a time when, through the efforts of Shakespeare, Marlowe, Lyly and others, the popular drama had already attained eminence as a form of literature; and Jonson was ardent to advance and secure this eminence. In the preceding drama he saw much that was crude and absurd, and from the start he urged an abandonment of the incongruities of the chronicle plays and the romantic comedies, and the adoption of fixed rules and more regular models. In the reliance of the dramatists upon the applause of unlettered audiences, he saw a menace to the highest development of the drama; hence he constantly advocated the ap peal to the taste of the more judicious through an elevated purpose and a conscientious art. Recognizing that the English drama had already attained greatness under conditions .so different from those of antiquity that they forbade the rigid application of the precedents of the classic drama, he nevertheless believed that improve ment could be secured by intelligent adoption of classic rules and models. He insisted there fore upon the discrimination between tragedy and comedy and the recognition of the pur pose and function of each species according to the precepts of Aristotle, protesting pedantically enough, not only against the incongruities of the old histories but also against such combinations of comedy and mask as Shakespeare's 'Tem pest.' A more coherent construction and the application of the unities of time and place, so far as the English stage would permit, were other articles of his theory which he supported by precept and practice. Still farther, he con tended that characterization should not depend on an impossible plot or a hap-hazard colloca tion of heroism, sentiment and nonsense, but upon a careful representation of certain types as illustrative of human motive, such as the tyrant or the conspirator in tragedy, or the braggart soldier, the gull or the cheat in com edy. In opposition to the extravagant roman ticism that had prevailed up to 1600, Jonson stood for a comedy that should attempt the realistic portrayal of manners. In dramatic criticism and practice Jonson was consequently at most points on the other side from Shake speare, though he bore splendid testimony to his appreciation of Shakespeare's friendship and genius.
His masks and entertainments, so famous in their day, have little interest now, except as they illustrate the curious literary fashion, or as they exhibit Jonson's charming lyrics. Of. the 34 complete, some of the most notable are, 'Hymen.TO 'The Mask of Queens,' 'The Penates,> and 'The Metamorphosed Gypsies.' His two tragedies, and are thoroughgoing attempts to present a scholarly and accurate view of history, a pene trating study of historical characters, and to retain as much as possible of classical decorum while conforming in the main to the form of tragedy established by his great Elizabethan predecessors. But his genius found its best field
in comedies. Though modeled on the comedies of Plautus and Terence, they fulfil his promise to show an image of his own times, its fads and follies, or "humours"; and though their plots are constructed overelaborately, their ar tificiality is redeemed by an abundance of humor. The 'Alchemist> with its extraor dinarily skilful structure, and 'Bartholomew Fair' with its broad and lively presentation of the London of the day are perhaps the greatest English masterpieces of the strict comedy of manners. Jonson's example turned comedy for a while from romantic to realistic, and satir ical themes and treatment; and the influence was potent at least into the 18th century. In humor and the delineation of . character, Jonson ranks first of English dramatists after Shakespeare.
His plays, excluding masks, are 'Every Man in His Humour,' 'Every Man Out of His Humour,"Cynthia's Revels,' The Poetaster,' 'Sejanus,' Wolpone,) Epicane,' 'Tice Al chemist,' 'Catiline,> 'Bartholomew Fair,' 'The Devil Is An Ass,' 'The Staple of News,' 'The New Inn,' 'The Magnetic Lady,' 'A Tale of a Tub,' 'The Case is Altered' (unavowed by Jonson and perhaps an early play), 'The Sad Shepherd' (incomplete), 'The Fall of Morti mer' (a fragment). See ALCHEMIST, THE; VOLOPONE ; DRAMA ; ENGLISH LITERATURE ELIZABETHAN DRAMA.
Bibliography.— Jonson edited a folio of his works which appeared in 1616; a second folio in 1640. The standard edition is that of Gif ford, 1816 (9 vols., frequently reprinted). The separate plays have often •been reprinted, and recently with extended introductions and notes in 'Yale Studies in English.' For criticism consult Baskerville, C. R., 'English Elements in Jonson's Early Comedy' (University of Texas Bulletin, Humanistic Series No. 178, Austin, Tex., 1911) ; Birck, Paul, 'Literarische Anspie lungen in den Werken Ben Jonson's) (Strass burg 1908). with bibliography; Dryden, John, 'Essay on Dramatic Poesy' (London 1668) ; Fleag, 'A Biographical Chronicle of the English Drama' (ib. 1891) ; Gifford, W., 'Memoirs of Ben Jonson,' in his 'Works' (Vol. I, London 1872) ; Kerr, Mina, 'Influence of Ben Jonson on English Comedy, 1598-1642' (Philadelphia 1912) ; Koeppel, 'quellen-Studien zit den Dramen Ben Jonsons> (Leipzig 1895) ; Laing, (ed.), 'Jonson's Conversations with Drummond' (London 1842) ; Schelling, F. E., 'BM Jonson and the Classical School' (New York 1898) ; Soergel, englischcn Maskenspiele' (Halle 1882) ; Swinburne, A. C., 'Study of Jonson) (London 1889) ; Symonds, J. A., 'Life of Jon son' (ib. 1886) ; Thorndike, A. H., "Ben Jon son" (in 'Cambridge History of English Litera ture,' Vol. VI, Cambridge 1907-10) ; Ward, 'History of English Dramatic Literature' (London 1899) ; Woodbridge, 'Studies in Jon son's Comedy.'