Very little is known of the early life of poet, essayist, and playwright Ben Jonson. He was born in 1572 in London, England. His father, a minister, died shortly before his birth and his mother remarried a bricklayer. Jonson was raised in Westminster and attended St. Martin's parish school and Westminster School, where he came under the influence of the classical scholar William Camden. He left the Westminster school in 1589, worked briefly in his stepfather's trade, and also served briefly in the army.

In 1594 Jonson married Anne Lewis and began to work as an actor and playwright. Jonson and Lewis had at least two children, but little else is known of their marriage. In 1598 he wrote what many consider his first great play, Every Man in His Humor. (In a 1616 production, William Shakespeare acted in one of the lead roles.) Shortly after the play opened, Jonson killed Gabriel Spencer in a duel and was tried for murder. His was released by pleading "benefit of clergy" (i.e., by proving he could read and write in Latin, he was allowed to face a more lenient court). He spent only a few weeks in prison, but shortly after his release he was again arrested for failing to pay an actor.

Under James I, Jonson received royal favor and patronage. Over the next fifteen years many of his most famous plays, including Volpone (1606) and The Alchemist (1610), were produced for the London stage. In 1616, he was appointed Poet Laureate and received a substantial pension. His circle of admirers and friends, who called themselves "the Tribe of Ben," met regularly at the Mermaid tavern and later at the Devil's Tavern. Among "the Tribe of Ben" were nobles such as the Duke and Duchess of Newcastle as well as writers including James Howell and Thomas Carew. Jonson was also friends with many of the writers of his day, and many of his most well-known poems include tributes to friends such as Shakespeare, John Donne, and Francis Bacon. Ben Jonson died in Westminster in 1637. A tremendous crowd of mourners attended his burial at Westminster Abbey. He is regarded as one of the major dramatists and poets of the seventeenth century.