...why we still play seven roles
More than four centuries after William Shakespeare wrote “All the world’s a stage, all the men and women merely players, they have their exits and entrances” in ‘As You Like It’, psychologists say the line endures because it describes a measurable pattern of human development.
The speech, delivered by the character Jaques in Act 2, Scene 7, outlines seven stages of man/women. Researchers say the framework anticipates modern lifespan psychology by nearly 400 years.
*The seven stages*
*1. Infancy:* Shakespeare’s “mewling infant, mewling and puking in the nurse’s arms.” Psychologists describe this as total dependency. Attachment theory, developed by John Bowlby in the 1950s, shows that how this stage is managed, determines emotional security for life.
*2. Childhood:* The “whining schoolboy, creeping like snail unwillingly to school.” Developmental psychology identifies this as socialisation. The child learns that life has an audience — teachers, parents, peers — and begins performing to meet expectations. Resistance is the first sign of autonomy.
*3. Adolescence:* The lover “sighing like a furnace, with a woeful ballad.” Studies link this to heightened emotional reactivity. Brain imaging shows the adolescent limbic system develops faster than the prefrontal cortex, explaining obsessive love, dramatic expression and risk-taking.
*4. Early adulthood:* The soldier “full of strange oaths, jealous in honour, seeking the bubble reputation even in the cannon’s mouth.” This aligns with what psychologists call identity consolidation and status seeking. In Nigerian context, researchers note this stage drives political ambition, activism and migration — the need to be seen.
*5. Middle adulthood:* The justice “in fair round belly, with eyes severe and beard of formal cut, full of wise saws and modern instances.” This aligns with Erik Erikson’s concept of generativity versus stagnation. Self-esteem becomes tied to perceived wisdom, authority and legacy. Failure to achieve it leads to what Erikson called stagnation — cynicism and emptiness.
*6. Late adulthood:* The “lean and slipper’d pantaloon, with spectacles on nose.” Research points to physical decline and role loss after retirement. A 2023 study in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology found life satisfaction often dips after 60 as social roles shrink and physical identity changes.
*7. Final stage:* “Second childishness and mere oblivion, sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.” Clinical psychology frames this as dependency returning. Gerontologists say acceptance of this final role reversal is crucial for mental health in old age.
*Why the metaphor persists*
Psychologists say the stage metaphor works because it externalises identity.
“The idea that we are ‘merely players’ reduces ego threat,” said a behavioural psychologist based in Lagos. “It allows people to see behaviour as situational and temporary, not fixed. That is a core principle in cognitive reframing and cognitive behavioural therapy.”
The concept also reflects role theory, developed by sociologist Erving Goffman in his 1959 book The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life. Goffman argued that social life is performance — people manage impressions like actors.
Social media has added what some psychologists now call an eighth age: the curated self. The audience is no longer local. It is global, permanent and measurable in likes.
*Relevance in Nigeria*
In Nigeria, where public life is highly performative — from politics to church to family meetings — the framework has particular resonance.
The same person can be a youth leader in the morning, a submissive junior staffer at noon, and a family patriarch at night. Each role requires different costume, language and script.
“Many Nigerians experience role strain — being forced to play conflicting roles simultaneously,” a psychologist said. “The soldier cannot show fear, the justice cannot show doubt. That suppression has mental health costs.”
Melaye’s critique of the National Assembly, which you documented earlier on Friday as; “Ex-lawmaker accuses Nigeria’s parliament of ceding oversight powers to the executive”, illustrates the point. Parliament is a literal stage with entrances and exits, costumes, and audiences. When politicians fail to transition from soldier to justice — from seeking reputation to dispensing wisdom — public trust erodes.
*What it means for coping*
Psychologists say understanding life as stages helps normalise change.
Instead of asking “Who am I?” — a question that causes anxiety — the Shakespearean model asks “What scene am I in?”
The answer changes. That is normal. The infant is not supposed to remain an infant. The lover is not supposed to remain a lover forever.
Shakespeare wrote the speech around 1599. He did not have longitudinal studies or brain scans. He had observation from the pit of the Globe Theatre.
The observation still holds: We enter, we perform, we exit. The skill is knowing when one act has ended and another has begun.