Which vice of the human heart has been highlighted in Ben Jonson’s ‘Volpone’ ? [British Drama (2018-19) Assignment 1]

In Ben Jonson's play 'Volpone', the vice of greed or avarice has been highlighted. The play portrays the character of Volpone, a wealthy Venetian who feigns a serious illness to attract legacy hunters, who aspire to be his heir and inherit his fortune. Through the characters of Volpone and Mosca, his cunning servant, Jonson exposes the greed and corruption of people who are willing to do anything for wealth and material gain.

The play can be seen as a satire on the greed and corruption of Jacobean society. Volpone's willingness to go to any length to accumulate wealth, and the legacy hunters' eagerness to please him and acquire his wealth, are depicted as morally reprehensible. The play serves as a commentary on the vanity of human desires, the corrupting influence of wealth, and the lengths to which people will go to acquire it.