Volpone (Cyclopedia of Literary Characters)
At a glance:
- Author: Ben Jonson
- First Published: 1607
- Type of Work: Play
- Type of Plot: Social satire
- Time of Work: Sixteenth century
- Setting: Venice
- Genres: Satire, Drama
- Subjects: Mistaken or secret identity, Greed, Truthfulness and falsehood, Corruption, Servants, Sixteenth century, Italy or Italians, Wealth, Impostors or imposture
- Locales: Venice, Italy
Characters Discussed
Volpone (vohl-POH-nay), the Fox, a Venetian magnifico. Delighting in foxlike trickery, Volpone scorns the easy gain of cheating widows and orphans and the hard gain of labor. He chooses for his victims Venice’s leading crooked advocate, its most greedy and dishonest merchant, and its most hardened miser. The joy of the chase of gold and jewels belonging to others is keener to him than the possession. He also delights in acting, both onstage and off. To fool others with disguises, makeup, and changes of voice is a passion with him. His three weaknesses are...
[The entire page is 954 words long]
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