GREED AND CORRUPTION IN NIGERIA

A MORPHO-SYNTACTIC ANALYSIS THROUGH THE LENS OF VOLPONE BY BEN JONSON

Abstract

Greed and corruption have consistently undermined societal growth and development, particularly in Nigeria, where weak institutional frameworks and moral decadence have entrenched these vices in socio-political, religious, and economic systems. Drawing on Ben Jonson’s play, titled Volpone, a satirical masterpiece that critiques avarice and moral decay in Renaissance Venice, the research examines the morpho-syntactic features employed to reflect deceit, manipulation, and power dynamics. The theoretical framework is anchored on Chomsky’s Syntactic Theory, 1965, as a theoretical lens to explore how language is structured to convey the themes of greed and corruption. Chomsky’s syntactic framework facilitates an exploration of deep and surface structures in the language of Volpone, it focuses on how transformational processes such as embedding, deletion, and substitution reveal the characters’ greed-driven motivations and deceptive practices. These syntactic patterns are juxtaposed with linguistic features in Nigerian political, religious, and socio-cultural discourse, uncovering the parallels between Jonson’s satirical depiction of moral corruption and the contemporary Nigerian context. The research underscores how morpho-syntactic elements are strategically used as tools for persuasion, manipulation, and ideological reinforcement. It argues that the portrayal of greed and corruption in Volpone is not merely a Renaissance concern but a timeless critique of human nature that resonates with Nigeria’s present realities. Therefore, the study contributes to the growing interdisciplinary dialogue between linguistics and literary studies by demonstrating the applicability of Chomsky’s theory beyond pure linguistics. It offers a nuanced understanding of how language reflects and shapes societal issues, providing a framework for addressing contemporary challenges of greed and corruption. Ultimately, this research illuminates the role of linguistic structures in exposing and interrogating societal ills, affirming the relevance of literary texts like Volpone as tools for social critique and moral reflection.