Ben Jonson's The Devil is an Ass (1616) is a scintillating city comedy in which Pug, a minor devil, descends on Jacobean London only to discover that human projectors, gallants, and gulls outstrip Hell in invention. The action circles the credulous Fitzdottrel, exploited by the patent-monger Meercraft and outmaneuvered by the witty Wittipol, who even cross-dresses as a Spanish lady to test virtue and vanity. Written for the King's Men at Blackfriars, the play blends Jonson's classical architectonics with bustling urban satire, targeting monopolies, fashion, and courtly imposture. A poet-scholar steeped in Camden's Westminster pedagogy, Jonson married learned design to sharp moral purpose. His service as court masque-maker for James I and his experience of London's entrepreneurial "projects," as well as brushes with censorship, inform the play's skepticism toward novelty and privilege. Contemporary with his 1616 folio, The Devil is an Ass displays a laureate claiming the city stage while anatomizing the economies-legal and infernal-of his age. Readers of early modern drama will relish its ingenious plotting, quicksilver prose, and topical bite. Whether approached for performance or study, this play rewards attention with comic exuberance and acute social diagnosis, showcasing Jonson at once urbane, erudite, and unsparingly exact.
Quickie Classics summarizes timeless works with precision, preserving the author's voice and keeping the prose clear, fast, and readable-distilled, never diluted. Enriched Edition extras: Introduction · Synopsis · Historical Context · Author Biography · Brief Analysis · 4 Reflection Q&As · Editorial Footnotes.
