Ben Johnson's "Volpone"

Paper Summary:

This paper presents a literary analysis of the character of "Volpone" in Ben Jonson's comedy "Volpone". It reviews Ben Jonson's message by discussing Volpone's marital relationship, acquisition of wealth and the corruption of society as reflected in this literary work.

From the Paper:

"Volpone's unique form of writing throughout his own comedy sees him donning many different disguises as a means of othering himself. He takes great pleasure in fooling his fellow citizens with this gag, this disruptionary tactic that manages to deceive so many. In the notorious Mountebank episodes, Volpone poses as an outsider - affecting the disguise of a traveling peddler of a miracle drug - in order to gain the attention of Corvino's attractive wife Celia. When Corvino witnesses the scene, he castigates his wife, feeling that she has participated in the "death of mine honor" (39). There is no doubt that Corvino's reaction is absurd, an overreaction to what was effectively a non-event; Celia heard a ruckus below her window, so she merely responded as any person would - through turning her gaze towards the disruptionary presence that interfered with her day to day life."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Attridge, Derek. "Introduction: Derrida and the Questioning of Literature." Acts of Literature. Ed. Derek Attridge. New York: Routledge. 1-32.
• Baum, Helena Watts. The Satiric and Didactic in Ben Jonson's Comedies. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press, 1947.
• Derrida, Jacques. Of Grammatology. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1974.
• Dessen, Alan C. Jonson's Moral Comedy. Chicago: Northwestern University Press, 1971.
• Empson, William. "Volpone." Ben Jonson's Volpone, or The Fox. Ed. Harold Bloom. New York, Chelsea House, 1988.

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