Bosola: Good or Evil?

Posted on April 24, 2013 by thomash

The Duchess of Malfi by John Webster is an unpredictable tragedy that holds some very pure characters as well as some very wretched characters. Antonio is characterized as a loyal and loving husband who cares deeply for his wife, the Duchess, and their children. The Duchess, who is the heroine of the play, is of equally good character. She defies the wills of her brothers, Ferdinand and the Cardinal, to marry Antonio and attempt to live happily with her husband and children in secrecy.  She loves Antonio dearly, as we can see in act 3.2 when they playfully tease one another, and lives for her family as she begs to be killed when she believes that they have also been killed in act 4.1. However, the purity of these two characters is met with the rotten souls of Ferdinand and the Cardinal. Throughout the play these two men are guilty of conniving against others, holding their sister prisoner, and committing murder. There is one character that is initially perceived as a rotten character but may in fact have a soul in search of redemption. Bosola represents the struggle of good and evil in this play, and even though he commits vile acts, he shows flashes of repentance and regret for the deeds that he has committed, much like Dr. Faustus of The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus.

 This play opens with a conversation between the Cardinal and Bosola in which Bosola reveals that he has served a prison sentence in the galleys for a murder that he committed at the demand of the Cardinal. This initial meeting of Bosola gives the audience a mindset that labels Bosola as an immoral character. This immoral image is added to when Bosola assists in the strangling of the Duchess at the command of Ferdinand. Bosola also kills Antonio, but this was due to pure mistake and cannot be blamed on his will. Whenever anyone is rampantly murdering people, it is difficult to say that they may not necessarily be a completely rotten individual, but in this case it can be justified that Bosola may have a heart after all.

After strangling the Duchess and her children, Bosola speaks with Ferdinand about his payment. During this conversation Bosola questions why Ferdinand does not have pity for the children and criticizes the brother for having empty hearts, ending the statement with, “I am angry with myself, now that I wake” (4.2.328). It can be argued that Bosola only criticizes Ferdinand and the Cardinal because he never received his payment, but it seems that Bosola truly regrets what he has done and is determined to redeem himself. After the Cardinal tells Bosola to also kill Anotnio in order to gain his reward, Bosola agrees but after leaving reveals his true plans to protect Anotnio and help him avenge the death of the Duchess. Bosola eventually kills both Ferdinand and the Cardinal to attempt to right his wrongs, but also dies as well after Ferdinand stabs him.

Bosola was a conflicted character. He was influenced by others to carry out heinous deeds with promises of payment as motivation, but he shows that he does in fact feel sorrow for the things that he has done. This is why he felt that he had to protect Antonio and avenge the Duchess’ death. He also gave Antonio and the Duchess’ oldest son a life free of living in fear of his uncles.

Posted in Power struggles, Psychological detail, The Duchess of Malfi, Tragedy | Tagged , | 1 Comment

“The Duchess of Malfi” Scene Study

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Lyaman

“The Duchess of Malfi” Scene Study Act 3 Scene 2

As mentioned in class, we had a bit of an adventure while trying to film the scene. Initially, we had a study room reserved in order to film the scene, however the library messed up the reservations and we ended up not having time to film the scene properly. This past Tuesday we decided not to take a chance on the library and instead met outside of school to film the scene.

As for the filming process, the scene could have been improved by better staging. An example would be me (as the Duchess) not turning my back to the camera in order to face my scene partners.

Posted in The Duchess of Malfi | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Bosola; An Almost-Hero is realized?

Posted on April 23, 2013 by Sabrina Esclavon

During Monday’s class, we had a discussion about the terms ‘hero’ and ‘dramatic hero’.  We went on to question who the dramatic heroes are in The Duchess of Malfi.  After doing a bit of research, my better understanding of a tragic hero is that of someone who evokes a sense of pity in the audience, and is also made to endure undeserved misfortunes.  That being said, it is clear that The Duchess is this play’s foremost dramatic hero.  In Act 4, Scene 2, the Duchess is wrongfully fooled into believing that her husband and children have been murdered, thus taking with them her own will to live.  This was orchestrated by the Duchess’ brothers, and carried out by Bosola in an attempt to receive his fair due in the form of an advancement after continually doing the brother’s dirty work.

However, after he has done so and reported back to Ferdinand, he is once again let down.  Now this isn’t meant to evoke any kind of pity in the audience for Bosola, as he seemingly has no moral compass in regards to what he is willing to do for his advancement.  This is also not the first time he has murdered someone, and it is not the first time he has not been given his promised reward.  Having said that, Bosola plays a very important role in the last few scenes in the play.  Although he has multiple motives (revenge, his sense of betrayal), Bosola does perhaps the most valiant action in the play.  He takes it upon himself to confront the Cardinal, bringing death to both him and Ferdinand, while in the process being mortally wounded.  When Antonio spoke of Bosola not reaching his full potential earlier in the play, this final act of boldness comes quite close to what I believe Bosola would have been had he not chosen a darker path.

Posted in Revenge, The Duchess of Malfi, Tragedy | 1 Comment

The Intensity of Ferdinand

Posted on April 22, 2013 by wendy c

In the previous act, Ferdinand and the Cardinal both were adamant about not wanting the Duchess to remarry.  However, Ferdinand’s refusal is especially evident during Act II scene v, after reading the letter that the Duchess had given birth. Although the Cardinal and Ferdinand are angry upon hearing the news about the Duchess’ birth, when juxtaposed together, their reactions reveal insight into both of these characters. Both characters uses blood in their speech, the Cardinal indicates that the blood in the family is now tainted (2.5.21-22). However, Ferdinand emphasizes that the Duchess deserves to die in which one should “purge infect blood” (2.5.26) Ferdinand continues this in line 49 when he refers to the Duchess’ as “whore’s blood.” Ferdinand extreme reaction is revealing of his character as only he believes that the Duchess should be killed for her (whorish) ways, whereas the Cardinal is almost calm in comparison to Ferdinand.

Ferdinand’s obsession and extreme nature is further revealed as the Cardinal even asks Ferdinand if he has gone “stark mad” (2.5.68). It is ironic that Ferdinand continuously wants to punish the Duchess for her act; however, once the Duchess has been “punished” for her act, Ferdinand shows signs of repent and subsequently does go mad as the play progresses. Therefore, the character of Ferdinand is intriguing because he is a character that likes to pushes actions to the extreme, both mentally and physically.

Posted in Psychological detail, The Duchess of Malfi | 1 Comment

Death and Its Release

Posted on April 22, 2013 by pw134848

Given the setting of the drama and the attitudes during the time it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that death was a release for the Duchess and the ones truly close to her. Instead of being bound by the rules and laws that are present she is able to escape all that. Death does not represent to her an end but rather a beginning. For in the next world she would be able to live freely and as she wishes (granted this would mean that there is a life after death but…this is not the time to argue on that matter). Granted at the time she thought that Antonio and her children were dead, so this furthered her belief that death would enable her to reunite with them. While we as the audience know that this is not the case at the moment, it allows her to face her impending execution with courage  and defiance.

Frankly I’m glad that the Duchess was killed. Had she remained alive it would’ve been for no other reason then for Ferdinand to gloat over the so-called power he has over her. With her execution Ferdinand kinda lost what he was trying so hard to keep in the first place. I could imagine the Duchess smiling down from whatever astral plane she is on and remarking on how she won in the end. True her death could have been avoided and maybe something could have happened that might have resulted in a happier ending, but given the circumstances it played out quite well.

 

 

 

Posted in Life vs. Death, Love relationships, Power struggles, The Duchess of Malfi, Tragedy | 3 Comments

A Strong Female Force

Posted on April 22, 2013 by bk145564

The Duchess of Malfi is a tragedy  that clearly depicts female social issues. Since this play illustrates the Duchess going against the male figures in her life, it is ironic to realize females were still not allowed to act on stage. When the Duchess chose to marry Antonio, she put her desire before what her brothers wanted. This showed her using power to make her own decisions.

Both Ferdinand and the Cardinal tried to control the Duchess. They prove to have no boundaries and even go to the extent of murdering at an attempt to regain their power. The brothers keep Bosola under their control until he realizes once again payment isn’t guaranteed. At the end, the character they used to destroy others (Bosola) ends up destroying them. Furthermore, the more they tried to control the Duchess the more everything spun out of control.

Even though it may seem the play ended on a bitter note for the Duchess and female empowerment, there was still hope. The eldest son of Antonio and the Duchess shows their actions were not all in vein. The Duchess still maintained control of her estate by having it left to her child from the husband she chose. This play depicts women to have a great deal of power by showing the danger of trying to trap in a strong, independent, female character.

Posted in Power struggles, Psychological detail, The Duchess of Malfi, Tragedy | 1 Comment

Fed Fortune

Posted on April 17, 2013 by Melissa Salamat

As I was reading through Volpone and witnessing Mosca’s intelligence and position, I wondered why wasn’t Mosca’s already rich himself? From the start of the play I could tell Mosca held the reins of the whole scheme; all Volpone had to do was think of a plot and lie in bed. Mosca had to be the one on his feet, thinking of minute details in a short amount of time while Volpone acted like a blubbering mess. So why was Mosca still under Volpone’s roof or control for so long if it is clear Mosca’s aware of how a con-artist works? Sure, it could have been because Volpone already had an insurance of wealth that he could live well on for the rest of his life, but if he was so driven to act out Volpone’s antics, it could not have been all too difficult to start his own act? Well then, maybe it was loyalty? However, as the play progressed I could tell Mosca did not want to be under Volpone’s wing forever.

I feel Mosca would never have turned on Volpone if the course of events did not happen in this play. It is partly Volpone’s fault for giving Mosca the opportunity to turn against him, providing Mosca with such a large foothold on his treasures with the will. I believe as Volpone’s tricks started to lose their traction,  Mosca started thinking of a way out. The way Jonson planned out the timeline of Volpone, it all worked out perfectly where the bad guys get their punishment and the good remain free. With such a clean ending, I wonder what would have transpired if Mosca could have gotten away with Volpone’s riches and how far the immoral could succeed.

Posted in Power struggles, Revenge, Volpone | 1 Comment

When a “Volpone” emerges on Long Island

Posted on April 17, 2013 by Yevgeniy Kharonov

I mentioned this article in class:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/10/brittany-ozarowski-cancer-heroin-lie-hoax-long-island-new-york_n_3054786.html, and felt I should provide the reference. There is a striking overlap between the actions taken by Brittany Ozarowski, a young heroin addict that gulled her family and her community into giving her money for cancer treatments, and those of Volpone who gulled his acquaintances intro giving him gifts. I assume that such guile is standard human practice. It seems like a brilliant plan at first; to look sick and fool others into pitying you. But what then, does the charade go on indefinitely? Volpone figured that it must end eventually. Indeed his sham was exposed through the court and his coconspirator Mosca. In Brittany’s case, it was revealed when donors decided to pay her doctors directly and offered to take her to her visits. In some sense Volpone, while morally ambiguous, only targeted other despicable men, who were blinded by greed and self interest. Brittany’s donors were kind hearted people that legitimately felt bad for her and had nothing to gain from helping her. In this sense Long Island’s Volpone is a different breed than Venice’s Volpone.

Posted in Psychological detail, Volpone | 1 Comment

Almost perfect criminals

Posted on April 16, 2013 by zr126166

There is no such thing as perfect crime because no one is perfect. Volpone and Mosca are the ultimate con artists.  When they work together they can pull off any trick and can deceive anyone, anytime. But both men have their faults and this is what causes their fall. Neither of them recognizes that they achieved everything together and can continue only if they are co-operating. Volpone doesn’t appreciate Mosca and Mosca thinks that he can go on alone without Volpone.

Volpone is brilliant in deceiving people, and also, he is enjoying every moment of his tricks. But like a gambler (that he is) doesn’t know where to stop. He is doing his cons for the act itself, not because of greed. He does love his treasure very much; in a blasphemous way he even replaces God with it at the beginning of the play. But what he really likes is to deceive people, to play with them, to control them and then take away whatever valuable they have. This is above all the treasures that he already has. In fact he is giving away everything to Mosca in his will just to pull his new prank on the greedy “carrion birds” and the “she-wolf.” He has his ultimate trust in Mosca and he would never expect Mosca (or furthermore, anyone) to deceive him. He admires his servant’s brilliance in pulling tricks but he fails to recognize his ambition to be more than his sidekick. Mosca for him is just a device (just like his disguise costumes) that helps him to perfectly pull his tricks.

On the other hand Mosca wants to be recognized as (at least) equal to Volpone. He wants to be a true partner in their business venture of crimes. He is not as obsessed by the act itself as Volpone is. He knows that he is good as a con artist and values himself even above of his master. We can see that he is a real pro when he is covering up after Volpone’s failure with Celia, but his true brilliance comes when he is finally in charge. While he is making the inventory of all the valuables he shows who the real boss is now. He kicks out all of those who thought that they have any chance to inherit anything. (Volpone enjoys the show so much and he fails to recognize what is really going on.) Mosca ultimately fails in the courtroom because of his over-confidence. He thinks that he is in total control now. He got what he wanted; he showed what he is capable of, and finally his master also recognizes that they are equal; he wants half of everything and Volpone willing to give it. Together they would get away this time too, but now Mosca is not cooperating and this leads to their ultimate fall.

Posted in Power struggles, Psychological detail, Revenge, Volpone | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Volpone vs. Mosca

Posted on April 16, 2013 by Lyaman

In class we discussed the differences between Volpone and Mosca, and Carol A. Carr’s article, “Volpone and Mosca: the two styles of roguery”  argues that although there are similarities between the two, Volpone is the more intriguing, charismatic and less typical rogue/ villain.

While that may be true, I still find myself preferring Mosca to Volpone. One of the reasons for that is for all their seemingly innate roguishness / villainny there is still one essential difference between them: Volpone is the ‘gentleman’ and Mosca is his servant, his ‘parasite.’  That means that Mosca is dependent on Volpone for his livelihood and for his very survival. However weird their relationship seems in the beginning of the play, however untypical for the usual master / servant relationships, at the end of the day they all, from the vultures: Castrone, Voltore, Carbaccio, to the rest of the world, including Volpone, still view Mosca as someone below them, there to do their bidding.  Despite the hints of admiration Volpone shows for Mosca’s ability to turn cons, there is still no admiration or respect for Mosca’s skill, as Volpone says in act 5.7.1-3, “Outstripped thus by a parasite? A slave/Would run on errands, and make legs for crumbs? …”  ( And even further proved by the severity of Mosca’s punishment compared to the Volpone’s sentence.)

The article talks about how both Volpone and Mosca are intelligent and creative in their cons, and how although they are both detached from the money, they are detatched for difference reasons.  But the issue with that is that while the cons are primarily entertainment (not profit) for Volpone, they are part of Mosca’s job and his way of life in order to survive.

Mosca is much more pragmatic and realistic because that is the reality of his station in life. The article mentions that while Volpone has static disguises he takes on,  Mosca’s disguise is constant but at the same time fluid, as he adapts his manner to the person with whom he is interacting.  But despite that fact, there is much less pretense to Mosca, no rose- colored cover or pretty words to present the type of person that he is or his motivation in a better light.

In class we also spoke about loyalty and how it seems that Mosca betrays Volpone. But Volpone’s loyalty is to the con, not to Mosca or his bastard children – so why did Mosca have to show him more loyalty than was shown to him?! Mosca says, “ I’ll bury him or gain by him. I am his heir / And so will keep me till he share at least” (5.5.13-15).  Mosca wants part of the profit; he wants financial security and independence, which can be understandable because Volpone has no care or caution about anyone beside himself.  In a play where every character (except two) is rotten to the core, at least Mosca doesn’t pretend to be better than he is, but the same cannot be said for the others.

Posted in Power struggles, Uncategorized, Volpone | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment