Length6h 50m
About this audiobook
The Devil is an Ass by Ben Jonson is a razor-sharp Jacobean comedy that combines wicked humor, biting social satire, and a keen eye for human folly. The play begins in Hell, where the minor devil Pug begs Satan to allow him to go to London and tempt mortals. Eager to prove his worth, Pug believes that corrupting human souls will be an easy task. Yet when he arrives in the bustling city, he finds that people are already far more deceitful, greedy, and self-serving than any devil could hope to make them. His adventures lead him into the service of Fitzdottrel, a foolish and boastful gentleman obsessed with his reputation and desperate to appear clever and successful. Fitzdottrel's vanity and gullibility make him easy prey for a host of con artists, courtiers, and schemers who manipulate him at every turn—while Pug, the would-be tempter, finds himself helpless amid the already corrupted human world. Through its fast-paced intrigue, witty dialogue, and absurd misfortunes, Jonson's play exposes the moral decay of early seventeenth-century London. It is a vivid portrait of an age driven by greed, social ambition, and hypocrisy. Beneath the comedy, however, lies Jonson's deeper reflection on humanity's self-destructive impulses and the futility of trying to outwit one's own nature.
The Devil is an Ass remains one of Jonson's most enduring works, a masterpiece of satire whose insight into human weakness continues to resonate. Its influence can be seen in later social comedies and moral dramas that owe much to Jonson's brilliant blend of humor and critique.
This edited and annotated edition enriches the reading experience with a detailed history of the period, linguistic and textual analysis, and a thoughtful exploration of the play's cultural impact and lasting legacy.
Audiobook details
GenreLiterary Classics, Humor
Length6 hrs 50 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateNov 14, 2025
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1PREFACE
7II. THE SATIRICAL DRAMA
2INTRODUCTION
8III. Specific Objects of Satire
3A. EDITIONS OF THE TEXT
9IV. Personal Satire
4B. DATE AND PRESENTATION
10D. AFTER-INFLUENCE OF THE DEVIL IS AN ASS: APPENDIX Extracts from the Critics
5C. THE DEVIL IS AN ASS
11TEXT (pt. 1)
Show all chaptersShow less
6I. The Devil-Plot
12TEXT (pt. 2)
More from Ben Jonson
The PoetasterBen Jonson6h 36m$2 · $0.00
Epicoene; Or, The Silent WomanBen Jonson3h 36m$2 · $0.00
Sejanus: His FallBen Jonson4h 47m$2 · $0.00
Discoveries Made Upon Men and Matter and Some PoemsBen Jonson3h 31m$1 · $0.00
Volpone; Or, The FoxBen Jonson4h 6m$2 · $0.00
Every Man in His HumourBen Jonson3h 2m$1 · $0.00
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE Ultimate Collection: ALL 38 Plays & Complete PoetryWilliam Shakespeare152h 46m$2 · $0.00
C. S. LewisC. S. Lewis38h 55m$30
The Gulag Archipelago Volume 3Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn21h 56m$46 · $0.00
Charles Dickens: Complete WorksCharles Dickens814h 50m$2 · $0.00
Sherlock Holmes: The Ultimate CollectionArthur Conan Doyle59h 49m$5 · $0.00
The Complete Works of Fyodor Dostoyevsky: Novels, Short Stories and Autobiographical WritingsFyodor Dostoyevsky271h 27m$2 · $0.00
The Complete Works: Charlotte, Emily, Anne, Patrick & Branwell BrontëCharlotte Brontë, Anne Brontë, Emily Brontë138h 12m$1 · $0.00
L. M. Montgomery – Premium Collection: Novels, Short Stories, Poetry & MemoirsLucy Maud Montgomery155h 55m$2 · $0.00
The Complete Books of F. Scott Fitzgerald (all his 5 novels + all 4 short story collections published during his lifetime)F. Scott Fitzgerald87h 53m$2 · $0.00
MARK TWAIN: 12 Novels, 195 Short Stories, Autobiography, 10 Travel Books, 160+ Essays & Speeches (Illustrated)Mark Twain416h 24m$2 · $0.00
The Great Gatsby: Original 1925 Edition (An F. Scott Fitzgerald Classic NovelFrancis Scott Fitzgerald4h 45m$18 · $0.00
The Complete Novels of Jane Austen & Brontë SistersCharlotte Brontë, Anne Brontë, Emily Brontë, Jane Austen204h 24m$2 · $0.00
Louisa May Alcott: 16 Novels in One Volume (Illustrated Edition)Louisa May Alcott141h 35m$2 · $0.00
The Fire Next TimeJames Baldwin2h 25m$15
The Complete Works of Oscar WildeOscar Wilde80h 38m$1 · $0.00
The Count of Monte Cristo + The Three Musketeers + The Man in the Iron Mask (3 Unabridged Classics)Alexandre Dumas100h 13m$2 · $0.00
Betty Crocker picture cooky bookBetty Crocker, Inc. General Mills2h 13m$2 · $0.00
Braving the TruthRachel Held Evans11h 31m$29 · $0.00
Richard Wagamese SelectedRichard Wagamese3h 14m$15
Shōgun, Part OneJames Clavell24h 19m$35
The Jeeves & Wooster SeriesP. G. Wodehouse24h 38m$2 · $0.00
Birdie & HarlowTaylor Wolfe7h 50m$26 · $0.00
TimeReaping in DeadwoodAnn Charles13h 2m$23
Santa's HusbandDaniel Kibblesmith, A P. Quach5m$4 · $0.00
The Complete Works of George OrwellGeorge Orwell115h 6m$2 · $0.00
The Facts of MidlifeRobyn Peterman4h 49m$15
Chaos in a CoupeDivya Dugar9h 18m$18 · $0.00
The Life of DaiDai Henwood, Jaquie Brown8h 2m$26 · $0.00
Poems of ParentingLoryn Brantz42m$9 · $0.00
What If? 10th Anniversary EditionRandall Munroe7h 29m$23
Welcome to PawneeJim O'Heir6h 24m$24 · $0.00
Going PostalTerry Pratchett13h 36m$33 · $0.00
Mapp & Lucia: Complete SeriesE. F. Benson59h 54m$2 · $0.00
Woman UninterruptedBrodie Kane7h 1m$24 · $0.00
Hot Cowgirl Sh*tLacie Evans2h 15m$15
The Complete Novels of Mark Twain - 12 Books in One Volume (Illustrated Edition)Mark Twain155h 29m$2 · $0.00
You Will Get Through This NightDaniel Howell6h 56m$24 · $0.00
My Dear HamiltonStephanie Dray, Laura Kamoie23h 7m$46 · $0.00
The Night Before Christmas at Dunder MifflinBrian Baumgartner, Ben Silverman6m$4 · $0.00
Pride & PrejudiceJane Austen14h 52m$1 · $0.00
You may also like
Notes on DemocracyH. L. Mencken4h 50m$15
South African Anecdotes Collected From Various Sources, Oral And WrittenA. Ellman1h 47m$2.30
The Grip cartoonsJ. W. Bengough40m$1 · $0.00
Crainquebille, Putois, Riquet and Other Profitable TalesFrançois-Anatole Thibault5h 23m$2 · $0.00
The Visions of QuevedoFrancisco de Quevedo4h 50m$1 · $0.00
Black Beetles in AmberAmbrose Bierce4h 57m$2 · $0.00
Escape into SentienceOtto Handley5h 37m$20
Roman Society from Nero to Marcus AureliusSamuel Dill26h 3m$2 · $0.00
BureaucracyHonoré de Balzac7h 24m$2 · $0.00
Mr. Sludge, "The Medium"Robert Browning2h 33m$2 · $0.00
Plays Of Near And FarEdward John Moreton Drax Plunkett Baron Dunsany3h 13m$2.30
The Management MythMatthew Stewart11h 38m$21 · $0.00
The Emperor's New ClothesHans Christian Andersen12m$6 · $0.00
At Swim-Two-BirdsFlann O’Brien10h 21m$20
Queen LuciaEdward Frederic Benson9h 28m$1 · $0.00
Reginald in Russia, and Other SketchesSaki3h 18m$2 · $0.00
Making MoneyTerry Pratchett12h 52m$8 · $0.00
Fantastic FablesAmbrose Bierce3h 33m$2.30
More FablesGeorge Ade1h 5m$2 · $0.00
The Greatest Works of Thomas MoreWilliam Roper, Thomas More$2 · $0.00