Ben Jonson

Benjamin Jonson (June 11, 1572 - August 6, 1637) was an English dramatist, actor and poet. He is best known for his plays Volpone and The Alchemist and his lyric poems as well. A good friend of William Shakespeare.His works had influenced many poets and writers such Jacobean and Caroline.

The Alchemist

Widely performed and studied, The Alchemist is one of the world’s great comedies. It was first performed in 1610, and its success kept it in the repertory until the closing of the theatres. After the Restoration, it was one of the first plays to be revived and it has been produced with increasing frequency ever since. This edition is based on a reconsideration of the early texts, but the spelling and punctuation are modernised. The comprehensive introduction details Jonson’s life and the play’s stage history, discusses the text in detail, and has a section of special interest on alchemy. This is a must for scholars and theatre-goers alike.

Vicky  Nuñez 

Ben Jonson is a great writer who's only mistake must be to have been born at the same time as the great Shakespeare. Full of satire and sexual innuendos, The Alchemist narrates the tale of two rogues, one the alchemist who promises people to turn all their items to gold and the other his helper. Matched with a prostitute who fools around with them it makes a comic tale of lust and greed.

The Alchemist is a sublimely accomplished satirical farce about dreams of self-refinement: people want to transform themselves into something nobler, richer, more powerful, and more virile just as base metal was touted to be transformed into gold in the alchemical process. First performed in 1610 and set in the same contemporary London time period, the plot revolves around scheming con artists during their master’s absence from the house. Face, Subtle and Doll Common dupe a series of ‘customers’ whose desire for aggrandizement leads them to believe in the existence of the fabled “Philosopher’s Stone”. As their equipment boils over and blows up in the offstage kitchen, so their plot heats up and is exploded by the skeptical Surly and the arrival of their master who quietly pockets their proceeds and marries the rich widow to boot. The play is generally considered Ben Jonson's best comedy, deftly exposing human foible and foolishness to mockery and has continued to thrive in stage productions.

The Alchemist

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