About
Charles Lamb was an English writer, best known for his essays under the pseudonym Elia. Born in London, he worked as a clerk at the East India Company for 33 years. With his sister Mary, he wrote 'Tales from Shakespeare', a children's classic. His life was marked by Mary's mental illness, who killed their mother in 1796; Lamb cared for her throughout his life. He moved in Romantic circles, counting Coleridge, Wordsworth, and Keats among his friends.
* 1775-02-10 — † 1834-12-27
Major works
- Tales from Shakespeare (1807)children's prose
- Specimens of English Dramatic Poets Who Lived About the Time of Shakespeare (1808)literary criticism
- Essays of Elia (1823)essays
- The Last Essays of Elia (1833)essays
Key milestones
- 1796His sister Mary kills their mother during a fit of madness; Charles becomes her legal guardian.
- 1825Retires from the East India Company with a pension.
- 1834Dies in Edmonton of a bacterial infection following a fall.
Themes
Memory and nostalgiaUrban and everyday lifeFamily and responsibilityMadness and mental healthElizabethan literature
Sources: britishlibrary.cn · britannica.com · poetryfoundation.org