The White Devil

A. General Notes

1. Is this what Webster in SIL would write?

a) tragedy

(1) spectacle of violence, suffering, cruelty, death, grandeur—how people die is central to tragedy; what they say as last words

b) To the reader

(1) Erudite and snobbish contempt of the audience

(2) Tribute to fellow authors including “Master Shakespeare” and Beaumont and Fletcher and Jonson—cf. Jonson’s tribute to Shakespeare—when we get to Jonson

2. Similarities and differences from Titus

a) Revenge tragedy

b) illicit, adulterous passion

c) Building to climax of violence and cruelty

d) Mixture of comedy and horror

e) Over the top effects

f) Woman as paradox at center—“White Devil”—like Aaron, a white black devil, and Tamburlaine—moral ambivalence

g) Use of dreams and pageants within play—

(1) Revenge, Taymore’s fantasies—dumb show…play within play

h) Disguise tricks, like in Titus, bring about fulfillment of revenge plot

i) Unsympathetic, foolish husband—forced on her=Camillo

j) Isabella is a self-sacrificing victim—like Lavinia, the opposite of Tamora and Vittoria

k) Vittoria, like Tamora, plays power politics and manipulates men, but is driven by her own lust

l) Her self defense at her trial—exposes gender bias of legal and social structure [cf. Exposing racism in Titus]

m) Act 4’s division between Bracciano and Vittoria emphasizes this further—conflict between Aaron and Tamora

n) Flamineo—criminally flawed and charismatic—again Aaron; play’s best poet—an underclass secretary excluded from power

(1) Acts mad and is slightly mad and murderous—killing his brother and involved in all other killings, as Aaron kills nurse, and like him a stage director—plotter

(2) Exponent of Senecan stoic sentiments

3. scenes and speeches to act out

a) Opening dialogue

b) Wear jewel lower—1.2.198-270

c) Vittoria’s arraignment—3.2. 182-302

d) Flamineo the Malcontent—3.3.20-52

e) Francisco the Malcontent—4.1.73-123

f) Flamineo and Bracciano and Vittoria, the letter—4.2.44-224

g) Death of Bracciano—5.3.1-42, 82-181—lingering and cruel death

h) Death of Vittoria—5.6.234-264—also lingering and cruel

4. strengths

a) Verbal battles

b) Passion of principals

c) Skullduggery

5. Plot

a) Overall curve

b) Structure of scenes

c) Buildup to finale

(1) Use of dumb show

6. Characters

a) Lodovico

(1) [Lodovico as a principal—see ending; the revenge is his painting, by which he hopes to be remembered; a work of art; a play]

7. Themes

a) Love

(1) Brac’s bitter romantic line: “I wish time would stand still/and never end this interview this hour/but all delight doth itself soons’t devour.” 1.2.203

(2) Lust and ruin—Cornelia, Monticelso—vs. the lovers

b) Jacobean pacifism—rescan Banqueting house pictures; relate to Tamburlaine and HV

(1) 4.1.5: “Shall I defy him, and impose a war/ Most burdensome on my poor subjects’ necks/ Which at my will I have not power to end?/ You know, for all the murders, rapes and thefts/committed in the horrid lust of war,/he that unjustly caused it first proceed/Shall find it in his grave and in his seed.” [cf. also Williams in HV]

c) “politic” intrigue

8. Setting

a) Italy—land of Machiavel and hot passion

9. Spectacle

a) Court, marriage and barriers

10. Language

a) Difficult allusions—footnotes

b) Sententious learned epigrams

B. Norton Introduction

1. First perf. 1612

2. Real life incident 30 years earlier; Webster used 3 accounts

C. Act 1.1 Lodovico’s banishment [setting]

1. *Lodovico’s cynical outburst against all aristocrats because he’s banished by court judgement

2. His friends tell him he deserves it for his own profligacy—cf. decadence of Saturninus’ court

3. He evades accusation of murders without denying it, and says others are equally bad—eg. Bracciano

4. Their sarcastic comforts, he calls them on them and speaks with threatening violence

5. They conclude with assurances they’ll help him

6. Tone throughout is ambiguous and shifting—good actor’s vehicle. Powerful gangsters—as in Titus, interesting bad guys [Sopranos? Itallian mafiosi] Brits and Italians, or foreigners—contrast to Henry V Englishmen

D. Act 1.2 The adulterous affair

1. Bracciano the passionate lover, Flamineo the pimp for his sister, flattering B. and egging him on. [Motive--he will have leverage in the situation by knowing secrets. Seduction scene like Iago and Roderigo]

2. Flamineo

a) trickster and fast talker;

(1) Iago-like cynicism and obscenity; this play follows Othello, RIII and other Shakespearean villain plays and Volpone—1606—Mosca

(2) Cynical, clever and funny love advice

(3) Puts down everybody to flatter his listener

b) Mocking Camillo, eliciting that he doesn’t sleep with his wife—obscene puns; stirring up his jealousy with his confusing advice and insinuations of V’s betrayal—secrets and sotto voce intriguing—three people now in his confidence. Repeated remarks about “women”--misogynist

c) Directing Camillo to be aloof and her to have contempt for him as he alternates loud and sotto voce—140—advises Camillo to refuse her tonight to get her more ardent—this all in presence of Brac. and Vittoria.

(1) Comic scene—Camillo the butt: “Your silkworm useth to fast every third day, and the next following spins the better. Tomorrow night I am for you” 180

3. *198-270 Brac’s bitter romantic line: “I wish time would stand still/and never end this interview this hour/but all delight doth itself soons’t devour.” 203

4. Flam. Cornelia and Zanche watch Brac. and Vit. embrace. Cornelia: Violent lust leaves nothing behind

5. She puts his jewel lower, then tells her Yew Tree dream

a) stage business?

b) Lust and terror; love and death; Cornelia watching

c) He is her rescuer

d) He responds with grandiose Tamburlaine-like promises

6. Cornelia like the women in RIII, is condemning chorus to Flamineo and Vitttoria, who kneels to her mother—moralistic pronouncements and then a curse.

7. Flamineo upbraids Cornelia for not having enough money to allow him to advance; predicts winding course of policy

E. Act 2.1 Weaving contrapuntal plots

1. Francisco, angry states knowledge that Vittoria and Bracciano are cheating. Isabella wants to avoid conflict and give pardon

2. Monticelso lectures B. about lust and ruin [like Cornelia and like Lodovico’s friends]

3. Isabella’s brother violently upbraids B. to protect his sister’s honor—great dialogue

4. Verbal sparring; Polarity of arms and lust, Mars and Venus—already alluded to by Giovanni’s chivalrous desires 6 and reentrance in armor 96—his wit brings about friendship between Francisco and Bracciano—mood shifts of aristocrats--performance

5. Alliance established against Lodowick turned pirate

6. Francisco warns B. to treat Isabella well

7. *Their encounter 151—her modesty and his abuse [Othello and Desdemona] She longs for him as Camillo does Vittoria—he loathes her; he reproaches her approaches, accuses her of infidelity, puts down her brother, and repudiates his marriage to her, and gives her back her ring [impulsive, love driven]; she will pray for him and take blame for their separation in hope he’ll repent. [pathos]

8. Isabella’s double speech—she fakes taking on the blame but also puts down Vittoria—saying that she’s jealous of her to provide an excuse for Bracciano—acts not like Isabella but like a furious wronged woman, sounding like a fury or medea. Dissembles breaking off the marriage with rash vow, just like what B. had said to her. B. plays along, alienating Francisco from his sister

9. Business of alliance against Lodovico proceeds

10. Bracciano and Flam. conspire with the doctor to murder Camillo and Isabella [a murderers scene, like RIII and Macbeth; pharmacist as in RJ] “Small mischiefs are by greater made secure”

11. Comic interlude when they make fun of foolish cuckold Camillo

12. Monticelso and Francisco plot to make Camillo leave to fight Lodovico in order to allow the affair of B and V to go further in order to disgrace him and perhaps thereby reform him. Monticelso is doing this to revenge Camillo’s honor since he cant do it himself. Lodovico is actually not a pirate and is coming to visit Isabella.

F. Act 2.2 Murders of Camillo and Isabella in dumb-show

1. B. enters with conjuror who will show how intended murders will proceed. [play within play; fantasy-magic spectacle; character like Mountebank in Volpone; combination mystical and charlatan]

2. In pantomime: Painting is coated with poison—laughing villains. Isabella kisses portrait and dies

3. Story retold by conjurer; then next dumb show introduced with emphasis on its theatricality. Camillo murdered at vault horse. Flamineo, Marcello arrested and Vittoria about to be. [Moves plot forward quickly to the trial scene and saves sensational murders on stage for the end]

4. Conjuror moralizes: great men do great good or else great harm

G. Act 3.1 Prelude to Vittoria’s trial

1. Monticelso admits they have only circumstantial evidence

2. exposition about trial; Flamineo and lawyer are joking about sex; Flamineo tells audience he jokes just as disguise.

3. He argues with noble brother Marcello, bitterly justifying criminality as source of income

4. Flamineo and lawyer comment on appearance of foreign ambassadors

H. Act 3.2 The trial: Vittoria (and Bracciano) vs. Cardinal

1. Courtesies between Bracciano and Monticelso

2. Lawyer speaks latin, V. insists on vernacular, lawyer made pedantic fool of by V. Lawyer dismissed.

3. Monticelso speaks to defame her, she impudently defends herself; puts down cardinals in general

4. *He calls her whore for hosting parties— “what are whores?” Misogyny from Proverbs; English ambassador: “the Cardinal’s too bitter”; she’s condemned for not mourning husband’s death

5. *she protests convincingly that the trial is not fair and expresses heroic scorn 135

6. Bracciano speaks up to admit he was with V. to protect her from the Cardinal’s cheating her of her legacy from Camillo—mocks the Cardinal and his office and exits with a Latin threat

7. Letter of assignation produced; she says temptation to lust proves not the act; denies she lusted after the Duke—he’s now absent

8. * She puts down the Cardinal, offering him a bribe; she shines in their war of words 182—300*

9. Bracciano brings word of Isabellas death to Francisco

10. Flamineo feigns madness to protect himself

11. Giovanni in mourning—his mother gave him suck—rare for nobility

I. Act 3.3 Lodovico returns, spars with Flamineo, joins revengers

1. *Flamineo ranting against greed and corruption—[like Lear on the injustice of society] and religion: “Religion—oh how it is commeddled with policy. The first bloodshed in the world happened about religion. Would I were a Jew! “20-52

2. Lodovico says he’ll try to figure out what’s he’s up to.

3. Flamineo is suspicious about Lodovico

4. Marcello says “mark this strange encounter” --NB

5. Flam. insults Lodovico, trying to draw him out, humors him; each trying to figure out the other [Hamlet], they become companionable—like Jacques in AYLI—agreeing to be melancholics. “What a strange creature is a laughing fool/as if man were created to no use/But only to show his teeth!

6. *Lodovico hears news of his pardon by the Pope and laughs, Flamineo insists he appear melancholy though inwardly happy…this is all part of Flamineo’s satirical rant about courtly hypocrisy.

7. Lodovico now laughing insults Flamineo’s sister. Flam. strikes him 123

8. Lodovico gets rattled by Flamineo’s insolence

J. Act 4.1 Francisco plots revenge for his sister’s death

1. Francisco and Monticelso, the Cardinal, discuss Isabella’s murder; F. says he wont seek revenge or make war. Utters an *irenic tirade [Jacobean pacifism]

2. Monticelso counselling revenge with use of dissimulation—imagery 12-20

3. Francisco insists he wouldn’t do anything like this and changes the subject [not clear whether Monticelso is simply drawing him out and he’s resisting]

4. F. says to audience he will take revenge but doesn’t trust M.

5. M’s black book [!]—“general catalogue of knaves” and knaveries. Interest in crime and evil—turning the pages—given to F.

6. * Francisco offers a satirical moralistic speech about the scheme in which Cardinal’s clerk collects this information about scoundrels and then rubs out names of those who bribe him, leaving the others open to punishment. “His man grows rich, the knaves are the knaves still.” “Divinity, wrested by some factious blood,/Draws swords, swells battles, and o’erthrows all good.”He will draw on the list for murderers

a) Sister’s ghost appears—“how strong/Imagination works”

b) Two voices in his speech; gets control of his imagination and to work on revenge—a lot of Hamlet here, especially inner struggle and dialogue; divided self in several ways

c) Goes from seeing ghost to making up plot and adding a comic element—that he loves Vittoria—praises his own cleverness and then observes that he flatters himself. And again does it

d) Plans boundless revenge against Bracciano, using Lodowick as tool.

e) [he dissimulates as does Flamineo; both are reflective and satirical villains—cf. Aaron

K. Act 4.2 Bracciano and Vittoria fight and make up

1. Flamineo convincing matron in the convent for penitent whores to let Bracciano visit Vittoria, servant carrying out Francisco’s scheme gives her a letter from him intercepted by Flam and Br.

2. *Letter is rhymed and emphasizes Francisco’s age in courting Vittoria, and ends equating gods and princes. Flamineo says “Lets have no more atheists, for God’s sake”

3. *Bracciano’s enraged; threatens Flamineo who stands up to him [terrific dialogue 44-72]

4. Violent exchange between Bracciano and Vittoria—repeated reference in both dialogues to “politic” enemy, “politic” ignorance—machiavellian deception

5. B’s bitterness and his epigrams: “Woman to man/Is either a god or a wolf. [cf. hamlet raging at Ophelia or Othello at Desdemona] He recants killing his duchess; she asks that death be revenged; Flamineo: “Now for two whirlwinds”109

6. Her equally violent reply rejecting him and blaming her ruin—imprisoned in house for penitent whores—on him [contrast Isabella or Desdemona]—and throws herself on bed weeping

7. Bracciano reverses himself—wonderful moment—130

8. She wont relent to both of them—Flamineo acting as cynical coach to both of them to bring them back together

9. Br. at his behest kisses her and more; “ tide’s turned, vessel’s come about”; then men plan the escape and V. remains silent the rest of the scene, following Flam’s advice: “A quiet woman/Is a still water under a great bridge: A man may shoot her safely”Brac. promises to make her duchess 224

10. Flamineo’s story of the bird cleaning the crocodile’s teeth—directed to his sister but taken by Bracciano too as a warning against ingratitude

11. Aside explaining his antic disposition to audience [lame]

L. Act 4.3 Monticelso, Francisco and Lodovico ally to further revenge

1. Death of the Pope; election of a new one; Lodovico in charge outside the chamber, explains the roles of the ambassadors, inspects the food for forbidden messages, turns the food back when told the election is underway. Monticelso’s elevation is announced

2. Escape of Vittoria is announced. Francisco appears dismayed but is pleased his plot proceeds. Confers with Monticelso before his first public words as Pope, who excommunicates and banishes them both

3. Francisco and Lodovico plan pursuit

4. Monticelso elicits Lodovico’s confession that he will avenge Isabella’s death, then strongly urges him not to do it; Lodovico says he’ll change his mind, since he thought Monticelso would support the revenge.

5. Francisco sends Lodovico a large bribe saying its from Pope Monticelso

6. Lodovico assumes the Pope was just testing him but dissimulating real intent of encouragement. [deception about deception]

M. Act 5.1 Wedding of Bracciano and Vittoria; the plotters disguised; Zanche’s intrigues; Cornelia

1. Zanche and Flamineo watch procession; discussion of noble Moor come to court and his two friends who offered service in coming war between Padua and Florence—these are Francisco, Lodovico and Gasparo in disguise as Moor and Capuchin monks

2. Bracciano receives them generously; they embrace in secret

3. Lodovico says he wanted to carry out an ingenius plot to be long remembered—cf. Machiavelli—or to have defeated him in battle

4. Zanche the moor follows Flamineo—he’s had her in bed

5. They treat the Moor like Othello, asking him for tales of his exploits

6. *Discussion about the virtues of war and the vices of peace—they seem to be trading sententious arguments to feel each other out. Flamineo complains about poor treatment of soldiers with yet another simile about the rack or torture chamber. 140

7. Zanche and Flamineo like Cassio and Bianca(?); cynical conversation of courtiers

8. His cynicism again: *“Lovers oaths are like mariners prayers, uttered in extremity; but when the tempest is oer, and that the vessel leaves tumbling, they fall from protesting to drinking.” This is a form of banter

9. Cornelia threatens Flam and Zanche, both mock her; Marcello kicks Z. He and Flam get into most violent verbal fighting about his promise to marry Z. [cf. Titus]

10. Zanche approaches the false moor with lovesick proposal of marriage and gifts

N. Act 5.2 Onstage murders begin: Flamineo kills his brother

1. Flamineo runs his brother Marcello through and Cornelia tries to save him or find his breath with a glass—cf. Lear

2. *Bracciano enters and asks what happens; Cornelia lies and says that Marcello started the fight, in order to save her still living son, after first trying to attack Flamineo with a knife. [cf. Isabella’s lie]

3. Bracciano gives Flamineo only provisional pardon—recalling Flam’s earlier rudeness to him

4. Lodovico sprinkles poison on Bracciano’s beaver

O. Act 5.3 The murder of Bracciano

1. B. is poisoned and frantic—has armorer sent to torture [again torture—imagery of lear]; powerful last words: O thou strong heart/there’s such a covenant tween the world and it, they’re loath to break…Had I infinite worlds/they were to little for thee

2. Politic hangman…horror waits on princes…let no man name death to me. It is a word infinitely terrible

3. Flam. moralizes: “what solitariness is about dying princes.” And says to Francisco he hated Brac. and would have stolen from him if he could have…”he was a kind of stateman that would sooner have reckoned how many cannon bullets he had discharged against a town, to count his expense that way, than how many of his valiant and deserving subjects he lost before it.”

4. We hear that B. is very ill and has bestowed dukedom on Vittoria till giovanni comes of age

5. B. comes on in bed, madly raving—like Lear. He makes judgements of all the people there, laughing madly; dying slowly, then eyes on the crucifix held by Lodovico and Gasparo disguised as monks. They convince everyone to leave and then curse Bracciano. He calls Vittoria, she and others enter, the monks get them to leave and strangle him on stage

6. Flam. curses that he will inherit nothing and denigrates his sister’s tears. Speaks of Machiavellian tricks and intrigues

7. Francisco in disguise wants to give credit to himself for this and asks also that Lodovico tell him how they tormented him at the end.

8. Zanche is all over Francisco [disguised as Moor] with her dream of him coming to her bed; then she tells him Flamineo killed Camillo and Bracciano killed Isabella; says she plans to rob Vittoria “urged with contrition”and provide him with jewels.

9. This reveals the unknown circumstances of the earlier murders

10. “The fame shall crown the enterprise and quit the shame.”

P. Act 5.4 Flamineo’s agony and madness

1. Flamineo acting antic and insulting toward Giovanni

2. Obscene comments to courtier who tells him he’s banished from court

3. Cornelia and Zanche mourning for Marcello; Flamineo discovers them. Cornelia, mad, acts just like Ophelia, sings songs and passes out herbs

4. Flamineo is struck by conscience; says that courtier’s flipness disguised the tortures of conscience…123

5. Bracciano’s ghost appears; he questions it about where its from, what religion’s best for a man to die in, how long he will live

6. Then he sums up and comments: he is overwhelmed by B’s disgrace, killing his brother, his mother’s dotage and vision of ghost. So now he will be good if Vittoria gives him money or kill her.

Q. Act 5.5 Lodovico plans murder of Vittoria

1. Lodovico convinces Francisco to leave so he can proceed with his plan; Francisco promises to memorialize it; Hortensio overhears

R. Act 5.6 Flamineo vs. Vittoria—the mock suicides; Lodovico’s murder of Vittoria, Flamineo and Zanche; Giovanni’s restoration of order

1. Vittoria is reading book; interrupted by flamineo who wants her to write him a conveyance which she does with typical aplomb—deeding him Cain’s reward

2. not clear if Flamineo’s “melancholy and despair” has made him mad or not; Zanche and Vittoria think so

3. He says he pledged to kill her and himself to Bracciano

4. Great suicide speech: “My life hath done service to other men;/My death shall serrve mine own turn.” He means to die “With as much pleasure/As e’er my father gat me”

5. She tries to use religion to dissuade him, but he speaks impiety

6. Zanche tries to get her to trick him by “teaching the way to death”

7. Comic interlude—they swear to commit suicide right after killing him; he leads them all; Zanche dissimulates loving him

8. He gives a death speech: “violent death is best/for from ourselves it steals ourselves so fast,/the pain once apprehended is quite past”

9. They shoot him and glory in catching him in a trap, which he plays along with

10. He makes believe he’s headed toward hell

11. Then gets up and delivers lecture on the treachery of women and is about to shoot them with new pistols

12. In come Lodovico and Gasparo and remove their disguises; tie up Flamineo who’s desperate, but keeps making jokes to mock them 170

13. Vittoria begs mercy, then bravely bares her breast to take death before her maid—her speeches here are great

14. All three are struck at once and give great defiant speeches: Oh my greatest sin lay in my blood/now my blood pays for it…o happy they that never saw a court/nor ever knew great men but by report [national enquirer] 234-264

15. Giovanni enters and has Lodovico sent to prison and torture—Lodovico takes pride in having created this “night piece”5.6.298 --see Iago’s final pride and victory