The Alchemist (Masterplots, Revised Second Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Ben Jonson
- First Published: 1612
- Type of Work: Drama
- Type of Plot: Comedy of manners
- Time of Work: Early seventeenth century
- Setting: London
- Principal Characters: Face, Subtle, Dol Common, Lovewit, Sir Epicure Mammon, Dame Pliant
- Genres: Drama, Comedy
- Subjects: Crime or criminals, Gambling, Prostitution or prostitutes, England or English people, Seventeenth century, London, Fraud, Plague, Treasure, Quest, Alchemy
- Locales: London, England
The Story:
Master Lovewit had left the city because of plague. His butler, Jeremy, known as Face to his friends of the underworld, invited Subtle, a swindler posing as an alchemist, and Dol Common, a prostitute, to join him in using the house as a base of operations for their rascally activities. Matters fared well for the three until a dispute arose between Face and Subtle over authority. Dol, seeing their moneymaking projects doomed if this strife continued, rebuked the two men and cajoled them back to their senses.
No sooner had Face and Subtle become reconciled than...
[The entire page is 2769 words long]
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