Charles Lamb

Charles Lamb was an English essayist, poet, critic, and antiquarian born in London on February 10, 1775, and he is best remembered for the lively, personal pieces collected as Essays of Elia. He was educated at Christ's Hospital, where he knew Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and later worked for many years as a clerk at the East India House.

His life was marked by deep family loyalty and hardship. He collaborated closely with his sister, Mary Lamb, and together they wrote Tales from Shakespeare, a book that introduced Shakespeare to generations of younger readers. Lamb's essays are still admired for their humor, tenderness, and conversational voice, which helped shape the familiar essay in English.

He died on December 27, 1834, in Edmonton, Middlesex. Though he lived during the Romantic period, his writing often feels intimate and modern, with a gift for finding charm, melancholy, and comedy in ordinary life.