The Alchemist
by Ben Jonson
The Alchemist is a comedy by English playwright Ben Jonson. First performed in 1610 by the King's Men, it is generally considered Jonson's best and most characteristic comedy; Samuel Taylor Coleridge considered it had one of the three most perfect plots in literature.
An outbreak of plague in London forces a gentleman, Lovewit, to flee temporarily to the country, leaving his house under the sole charge of his butler, Jeremy. Jeremy uses the opportunity given to him to use the house as the headquarters for fraudulent acts. He transforms himself into "Captain Face," and enlists the aid of Subtle, a fellow conman, and Dol Common, a prostitute.
The play opens with a violent argument between Subtle and Face concerning the division of the riches which they have, and will continue to gather. Face threatens to have an engraving made of Subtle with a face worse than that of the notorious highwayman Gamaliel Ratsey. Dol breaks the pair apart and reasons with them that they must work as a team if they are to succeed. Their first customer is Dapper, a lawyer's clerk who wishes Subtle to use his supposed necromantic skills to summon a "familiar" or spirit to help in his gambling ambitions.
Book Details
About This Edition
This PDFBooksWorld edition has been prepared for comfortable digital reading, with a clear layout and typography designed for modern screens. It can be read online and is available in supported digital formats.
Public Domain Information: The Alchemist is identified by us as a public-domain work in the United States based on its publication history and applicable copyright terms. Copyright status can differ between countries, so readers should consider the laws applicable to their location.
Read or Download
Read this edition online or choose a digital format for convenient reading on your preferred device. Registered users can download the available editions, while visitors can read the book online and log in to access the download options.
