Best known for his tragic plays and his refined and polished blank verse, Christopher Marlowe (1564–1593) was born in the same year as fellow writer William Shakespeare. Marlowe's career was cut short by a tavern brawl, in which he died under circumstances as mysterious and violent as any of his dramas. This complete collection of Marlowe's poetry includes his translations of Ovid's "Elegies" and the First Book from Lucan's "Civil Hero." The celebrated "Hero and Leander," left unfinished at Marlowe's death, is also featured (the poem was later completed by George Chapman; only Marlowe's work appears here), as is the poet's most famous creation, "The Passionate Shepherd to His Love."
