Ben Jonson

One of the aspects of the 17th Century which Jonson satirizes is greed. His play Volpone is obviously a satire on avarice in all of its various forms. This is plain from the story line distilled even to its most basic elements: Volpone’s compulsive acquisitiveness which drives him to plot to possess the wealth of his peers and the wife of Corvino, and the desire of the legacy hunters (and ultimately Mosca as well) to possess Volpone’s wealth. In the play, the goals of all the main characters are corrupt and self-serving, and pursuing them ultimately leads to dishonor and destruction. Jonson attempts to show that these men who “possess wealth, as sick men possess fevers.”

At the start of the play, Volpone is the instrument of Jonson’s satire. Early on, he himself states Jonson’s thesis: “What a rare punishment Is avarice to itself.” Through the actions of Volpone, Jonson shows how true this statement is. Avarice has led Voltore, Corbaccio, and Corvino to mindlessly flatter him and make poor decisions that will harm them in the long run. Ironically, their greed not only strips them of dignity, but also loses them the one thing they most coveted: Volpone’s fortune (which, of course, has been acquired through dishonest means as well, simply to satisfy Volpone’s insatiable, perverse greed). Later, however, Volpone becomes victim to his greed, and in turn is ridiculed by Jonson. Unsatisfied with the material gains he has gotten from Voltore, Corbaccio, and Corvino, he wishes to sleep with Celia and plots his own death just to play a prank on the three legacy hunters. However, these actions have dire consequences for Volpone. He so entangles himself in a web of lies that his lies emerge into the public sphere as a reality distorted by greed, with the result that he ultimately loses his fortune and honor just as he stripped fortune and honor from Voltore, Corbaccio, and Corvino.

It seems that Jonson saw a lack of a sense of social responsibility in the society around him, and saw his role as providing insight into the social problems that plagued society of the 17th century. To do this, he tried to approach these problems through literature, putting the complexities of life in such a way that they could be understood by general society. The play Volpone explores the impact unrestrained self-interest, abuse of privilege, and pursuit of wealth have on society: it crumbles, and ultimately those who personify such abhorrent vices much be punished.

We can see Jonson’s viewpoint through innocent characters such Celia and Bonario. Bonario rescues Celia from the advances of Volpone, and represents virtues that most of the other characters lack such as integrity and bravery. In Act III, Celia exclaims “Oh, God and his good angels! Whither, whither Is shame fled human breasts? That with such ease, Men dare put off your honours and their own? Is that, which ever was a cause of life, Now placed beneath the basest circumstance? And modesty an exile made, for money?” What Celia is effectively saying that even love, which creates life, is now valued less than money and material gain. Through Celia, Jonson censures such actions, as well as the society which has made such greed a primary concern.

Sources:

http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2003/06/volp-j24.html