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 to expose the greed and corruption in London, but also wanted to distance his audience and not alienate them. They could recognise what they saw and where it was happening which enhanced the plays understanding to its audience.
The play’s theme of avarice, greed not just for wealth but any object of human desire. We see the results of this obsession unfolding throughout the play. From the beginning we see where Volpone’s heart lies. It is with his wealth. His gold has become his god and consuming obsession. His opening words show this clearly ‘Open the shrine, that I may see my saint. ...With adoration, thee, and every relic of sacred treasure in this blessed room. ‘ (Norton, 2000. 1306) Yet it is the gaining of more wealth by cunning and deceit that drives him on to acquire more ‘Yet I glory more in the cunning purchase of my wealth than in the glad possession gain.’
In order to gain yet more wealth in this way, Volpone pretends to be dying in order to obtain presents from his relatives, they like him are avaricious, birds of prey waiting to swoop on the corpse. (Peck and Coyle, 1995. 185)
This is not the normal way things run in a family, there is no love only self-interest and greed from all the family members, including Volpone.
The play portrays the terrible effect a lust for wealth can have in corrupting people and making them behave in immoral ways. Voltore the lawyer, uses his profession to cheat people, Mosca makes this clear when he says ‘Give forked counsel, take provoking gold. On either hand, and put it up.’ He also gives false witness against Celia and Bonario, with all the other heirs at the Scrutineo. He regrets this when he sees Mosca has inherited Volpone’s wealth but when Volpone whispers that he might still gain his inheritance, he feigns demon possession. This statement reveals his true colours and his greed.
