Consider the end of the play, the lack of resolution in the Bonario - Celia relationship, the class based difference in the severity of Volpone and Mosca`s punishments, the situation in which Corbaccio, Voltore and Corvino are left. Do you find the ending just and in structure or are the unresolved situations disturbing?
In the epistle of the play Ben Jonson states “it being the office of a comic poet to imitate justice.” It can be said that this is shown in the ending and that it is just and in structure as all the characters are punished in some way for their avarice and the “innocent” characters Bonario and Celia who in a way provide a contrast to the immoral selfishness, are set free and Celia is given back with three times her dowry
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Volpone is sent to “Thou art to lie in prison, cramped with irons, till thou be`st sick and lame indeed.” As he is “By blood, and rank a gentleman.” And is sent to the Hospital of the Incurables. Mosca, “Being a fellow of no birth, or blood.” Is sentenced to “ first thou be whipped; Then live perpetual prisoner in our gallies.” This inequity can be seen as being based on the fact that Mosca is a parasite, in metaphorical terms a flesh fly who feeds of others: the lowest of the low. However, when one of the avocatore thought Mosca had inherited the money therefore moving up in status, as a clarissimo he had described Mosca as “A proper man! And were Volpone dead. A fit match for my daughter.” And is called a “gentleman.” This shows how differences in class make a difference for how the characters are treated in punishment. Mosca is told that he is the “chiefest minister, if not plotter, in all these lewd impostures.” As if it is implied because he “feeds” off others including his master, then he must be responsible for the scheming, also as he is not as rich as Volpone it would give him a motive for wanting to take money from the Corbaccio, Corvino and Voltore. His punishment can be looked upon as more horrific because he will be whipped and tortured but Volpone will be placed in a hospital. On the other hand, Volpone will suffer a long time for his crimes and Mosca did …show more content…
It seems a fitting punishment considering he did attempt to force Celia to sleep with a “dying” Volpone earlier in the play, not caring his wife was cheating because he knew it could advance his chances of inheritance. Corvino responds to the sentence by saying “and have mine eyes beat out with stinking fish bruised fruit and rotten eggs” and “I shall not see my shame yet.” This can be interpreted as unfair as he had cuckolded himself enough in his actions previously in the play and has already being through an adequate amount of shame. Conversely, his cruel treatment of Celia: threatening her, pimping her out and accusing her of cheating can merit his punishment of the public shame of having to wear ass`s ears so that the whole of Venice will know his shame because of the way he has tarnished Celia`s reputation and partly corrupted and innocent party in his need to gain Volpone`s fortune. A way in which the situation of all “the gulls” is in structure is because they were all willing to compromise anything and everything important to them and in the end they are left with nothing, which is what they were in a way left with when Volpone pretended to be dead and Mosca proclaimed that he was the sole heir to Volpone`s
In the fair city of Verona, two rival families, the Montagues and Capulets were involved in a nasty family feud that goes back years before any of the members were born. Even the townspeople were involved in the dispute, because the families were always fighting in the streets and causing disturbances. They disrupted the streets of Verona and even Prince Escalus tried to break up the fighting. They were given a warning, by him that another public fight would result in death. While this was occurring, Romeo, (a Montague) the main character, was getting over his last love, Rosaline, and was very upset. Juliet of the Capulet household had just been introduced to a wealthy young man, Paris, whom her parents wished her to marry. Yet she did not love him. Romeo goes to a party in an effort to forget about Rosaline. At this party he met Juliet, and immediately fell in love with her. He later finds out that she is a Capulet, the rival family of the Montagues. He decides that he loves her anyway and they confess their love for each other during the very famous "balcony scene" in which they agreed to secretly marry the next day. Friar Lawrence agreed to marry them in an effort to end the feuding between the families. Unfortunately, the fighting gets worse and Mercutio (Montague) a good friend of Romeo ends up in a fight with Tybalt (Capulet), Juliet's cousin. Tybalt killed Mercutio, which caused Romeo to kill Tybalt in an angry rage. For this, Romeo is banished from Verona. At the same time, the Capulet's were planning Juliet's marriage to Paris. Juliet didn't want to marry this man so she arranges with Friar Lawrence to fake her own death with a sleeping potion that would make everyone think that she was dead. Friar Lawrence promised to send word to Romeo to meet her when the potion wears off and to rescue her to Mantua, where Romeo was currently staying. There they would live happily ever after. Unfortunately, Romeo didn't receive the message on time and upon hearing of her "death" went to Juliet's tomb where he drinks poison and dies. When Juliet's potion wears off, she wakes to find her lover's dead corpse. She then proceeds to stab herself with Romeo's dagger. The two families find the bodies and with their shared sorrow, finally make peace with each other.
The play ended with four marriages, Lord Angelo married to Mariana, Lucio and the women who had his child, Claudio and Julietta, and Duke Vincentio who purposed to Isabella. No one is executed except for Barnardine because cutting off his head was apart of the duke's plan to expose Lord Angelo. The end of the play was the resolution was just clearing the problem up with marriages.
Fate or choice? Choice or fate? How does one separate these ideals? Can one? Shakespeare could not. Nor can we. Fate and choice are so intertwined that our choices determine our fate, and our fate determines our choices. William Shakespeare trusts the audience to scrutinize whether it is fate or choice that rules our human life. Shakespeare aptly conveys this oxymoron (with which people have been dealing for ages) through the evidence and structure of his play, Romeo and Juliet.
The Friar is answerable for the deaths of Romeo and Juliet, but only to some degree.
Rosalyn who is going to become a nun. Romeo is upset by this and his
Throughout the entirety of Romeo & Juliet, Shakespeare is hinting at the “star crossed” deadly fate of the lovers spoken of by the chorus in the prologue. Romeo and Juliet are also constantly mentioning their uneasy feelings and how they can sense that something bad will happen, which confirm the aforementioned conclusion. This foreshadowing not only tells us this tragedy planned, but there must be pawns of fate that have to drive Romeo and Juliet together, while at the same time leading them to their death. In Romeo and Juliet, their deadly destiny was written by the universe and characters along the way, such as Capulet, Montague, Nurse, Friar Lawrence, Friar John, and Mercutio.
of a fight "let us take the law of our side let them begin" Sampson
Overall, I enjoyed this play. Even with the dull ending, I found it to be entertaining and a good use of my time. The cast was great and they made good use of a decent
Volpone (the fox) is a wealthy man who fakes a grave illness in order to accumulate further treasures that will make him wealthier. His servant, Mosca (the fly), informs some of Volpone's rich associates that he is nearing his end and considering his will; each can boost his or her prospects of becoming sole beneficiary after his death by presently bestowing upon him plentiful gifts.
Imagine yourself, dear reader, transported to Shakespearian Verona, a bustling, peaceful city (aside from the occasional death or two), with its obligatory social classes going about agreeably (aside from the occasional brawl or two), and all people happy and successful (aside from the occasional poor wretch or two). The Verona in which Shakespeare’s tragedy Romeo and Juliet takes place in is made sinister by the deadly consequences than ensue from its strict, unbending society. Romeo and Juliet paints a tale about two young lovers, Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet, whose attempts to be together are cruelly thwarted by society. Society’s fixation on honor and disgrace, poverty-creating laws, and austere social roles all have crucial functions in causing the deaths of Romeo and Juliet.
Some male characters in this book have values that do not draw parallels with their stature in life. For example, Schedoni is a monk, supposedly a loving and caring individual who spreads the word of God. In reality, he conspires with the Marchesa (in a church) to commit a mortal sin, by telling her, "...this girl is put out of the way of committing more mischief..." (173). This action shows his true color, usually green, and through his large ego, this jealous nature reveals itself. If he is secure as a person, these petty grievances against Vivaldi would be just that, petty. Bonarmo's personality does not correspond to his stature either. He is a servant whose loyalty to his master deserts him. He is too independent and too intelligent to be in servitude to a master whom he does not believe superior to himself. These characters possess too much pride and ego to live in a world where they are not always in co...
Throughout the years, William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet has been celebrated as one of the great tragedies of all time. William Shakespeare is an English playwright born in Stratford upon Avon during the 1500’s. Two innocent young hearts are caught in the middle of an everlasting conflict. How is the most romantic love story of all time also the most tragic? Is it the burning passion that the two lovers share? Or is it the pure hatred that their families have for each other? A force more powerful than love is expressed in this timeless tale. That force is chaos.
...goal of the Antitheatrical movement in the Renaissance, was both supported and denounced by Jonson in various ways. However, the general perception is that Jonson (unlike Shakespeare) fueled the fires of degradation- implicating women with the weakness, lack of intelligence, and reason they were believed to exude. In the annals of theatrical history, Jonson's metadrama could be said to perpetuate this social stereotype. Nevertheless, Jonson's crossing of the gender line and sexual scenes like Volpone's "flashing" of Celia were enough to have religious, moral, and social commentators screaming blood murder. Two issues demand prominence in the play. While outwardly a play driven by blatant genderless controversy, the inward thematic, character-driven nature of Volpone suggests a conformity and adherence to the intellectual and theological moralism of the time.
This question is the central dilemma of revenge tragedy; whether it is better to brave what fate can throw at you and remain passive and inactive, or to 'take arms' against them and to actively end them. It is the process of finding the answer to this question that drives the malcontent mad, then to becoming an avenger. The fact that the malcontent is a renaissance figure is also important. This means that they are in possession of a renaissance mind, a mind constantly seeking for knowl...
Volpone is all about morals, greed and the depths people will sink to get what they want, despite its consequences on themselves and others. The Jacobean audiences were familiar with its setting in Venice and they thought Italy 'was the land of sensational evil-doing. Among Italian cities Venice ... stood in the front rank for this sinister repute.' (Barish, 1972: 65) So the choice of setting was deliberate, he wanted t...