Volpone Study Guide

1. How does Jonson refer to Cambridge and Oxford in the Epistle?

• "most Equal Brothers"
• "Friends"
• "Venerable Universities"
• "most Equal Sisters"

2. What, according to Jonson, must you be in order to be a good poet?

• a good man
• a scholar
• a good friend
• an honest man

3. What ancient poet does Jonson quote in the Epistle?

• Horace
• Aristotle
• Erasmus
• Homer

4. What, according to Jonson, is "the principal end of poesie

• "to inform men in the best reason of living"
• "to promote the greater good"
• "to display the best in human nature"
• "to instruct and to entertain"

5. What does Volpone's name mean in Italian?

• fox
• turtle
• dove
• raven

6. What does Mosca's name mean in Italian?

• ant
• beetle
• fly
• tick

7. What does Voltore's name mean in Italian?

• osprey
• vulture
• eagle
• camel

8. What does Corbaccio's name mean in Italian?

• albatross
• dove
• seagull
• raven

9. What does Corvino's name mean in Italian?

• maggot
• crow
• eagle
• raven

10. What do the names of Voltore, Corbaccio, and Corvino all have in common?

• they refer to birds of prey
• they refer to Shakespearean characters
• they refer to actors
• they refer to animals