VolponeVolpone tells of a magnifico of Venice with no wife or children to whom to leave his fortune. The prospect of such wealth invites to his house an assortment of greedy hopefuls, ready to prostitute any ideals in the pursuit of money. Volpone's parasite, Mosca, assists him in milking these pretenders as they deserve. When Volpone and Mosca practice their schemes on innocent victims, however, the play turns in a more unpredictable direction and ends in a series of surprises. Subplot figures enrich the narrative of satirical exposure of greed, and the play is wildly comic in its depiction of plotting and counter-plotting. |
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ACT 5 SCENE advocate Androgyno audience Avocatore Ben Jonson blood Bonario CASTRONE Celia cheat chequins clarissimo comedy comic commandatore commedia commedia dell'arte Corbaccio Corvino court creature cuckold dead disguise Donald Wolfit doth ears English Enter Epilogue Exeunt Exit eyes faith fatherhoods fear feigning fool fortune Fox's gentleman gold Golden Age gorcrow grave fathers gull hath hear heart heaven heir hope humour Italian Jonson knave Lady Pol Lady Politic London madam means Merchant Mosca mountebank Nano Notario parasite patron Peregrine plate play's plot poet Pol's Politic Would-be possession pray Pythagoras R. B. Parker Renaissance Revels Plays Reynard Satire Scoto sexual Signor Corvino Sir Pol Sir Politic speak stage strange suggestion T. S. Eliot tell thee things thou Tis true tortoise trick unto Venetian Venice Volpone Volpone's Voltore Voltore's whore wife Wolfit Woman ΙΟ