 "Venturia at the Feet of Coriolanus" by Gaspare Landi Photo courtesy of The VRoma Project. Coriolanus is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, based on the life of the legendary Roman leader, Caius Martius Coriolanus. Venturia at the Feet of Coriolanus by Gaspare Landi This photograph was provided by The VRoma Project (www. ...
Venturia at the Feet of Coriolanus by Gaspare Landi This photograph was provided by The VRoma Project (www. ...
In general usage a tragedy is a play, movie or sometimes a real world event with a sad outcome. ...
Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ...
Motto Senatus Populusque Romanus Roman provinces on the eve of the assassination of Julius Caesar, c. ...
Gaius Marcius Coriolanus was a 5th century BC Roman general. ...
Source
Coriolanus was largely based on the Life of Coriolanus as it was described in Plutarch's Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans and Livy's Ab Urbe condita. Gaius Marcius Coriolanus was a 5th century BC Roman general. ...
Mestrius Plutarchus (Greek: ΠλοÏταÏχος; 46 - 127), better known in English as Plutarch, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist. ...
Plutarchs Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans is a series of biographies of famous men, arranged in tandem to illuminate their common moral virtues or failings. ...
A portrait of Titus Livius made long after his death. ...
Penguin Classics 1976 edition of Livys Ab Urbe condita, books XXXI-XLV Ab Urbe condita (literally, from the city, having been founded) is a monumental history of Rome, from its founding (ab Urbe condita, dated to 753 BC by Varro and most modern scholars). ...
Date and text It was originally published in the First Folio of 1623. Details of the text, such as the uncommonly detailed stage directions, lead some Shakespeare scholars to believe the text was prepared from a theatrical prompt book. The title page of the First Folio with the famous engraved portrait of Shakespeare by Martin Droeshout The First Folio is the name given by modern scholars to the first published collection of William Shakespeares plays; its actual title is Mr. ...
The prompt book is a copy of the script for a play being produced that contains the information necessary to create the production from the ground up. ...
Performance history Like some of Shakespeare's other plays (All's Well That Ends Well; Timon of Athens), there is no recorded performance of Coriolanus prior to the Restoration. The first known performance involved Nahum Tate's bloody 1682 adaptation at Drury Lane. A later adaptation, John Dennis's The Invader of His Country, or The Fatal Resentment, was booed off the stage after three performances in 1719. David Garrick returned to Shakespeare's text in a 1754 Drury Lane production.[1] Alls Well That Ends Well is a comedy by William Shakespeare, and is often considered one of his problem plays, so-called because they cannot be easily classified as tragedy or comedy. ...
Timon of Athens is a play by William Shakespeare written around 1607. ...
King Charles II, the first monarch to rule after the English Restoration. ...
Nahum Tate (1652 – July 30, 1715) was an Anglo-Irish poet and lyricist. ...
The interior of the third and largest theatre to stand at Drury Lane, c. ...
John Dennis (1657 - January 6, 1734), English critic and dramatist, the son of a saddler, was born in London. ...
Portrait of David Garrick David Garrick (February 19, 1717 – January 20, 1779) was an English actor, dramatist, theatrical producer and theatrical manager, and a friend and pupil of Samuel Johnson. ...
The most famous Coriolanus in history is Laurence Olivier, who first played the part triumphantly at the Old Vic Theatre in 1937 and returned to it to even greater acclaim at the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre in 1955. In that production, he famously performed Coriolanus's death scene by dropping backwards from a high platform and being suspended upside-down, being reminiscent of Mussolini. Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM (22 May 1907–11 July 1989) was an Academy Award, Golden Globe, BAFTA and four-time Emmy winning English actor, director, and producer. ...
The Old Vic is a theatre in the Waterloo area of London. ...
1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ...
The Royal Shakespeare Theatre is a large theatre dedicated to British playwright William Shakespeare in his birthplace of Stratford-upon-Avon. ...
1955 (MCMLV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Other famous performances of Coriolanus include Ian McKellen and Ralph Fiennes. Sir Ian Murray McKellen, CBE (born May 25, 1939) is a veteran English stage and screen actor, the recipient of a Tony Award and two Oscar nominations. ...
Ralph Fiennes, (IPA: ), born 22 December 1962 in Ipswich, Suffolk, England), is a Tony Award-winning, Academy Award-nominated and Genie Award-nominated English actor. ...
Characters - Caius Martius, later surnamed Coriolanus
- Menenius Agrippa, Senator of Rome
- Cominius, Titus Lartius, generals
- Volumnia, Coriolanus's mother
- Virgilia, Coriolanus's wife
- Young Martius, Coriolanus's son
- Valeria, a lady of Rome
- Sicinius Velutus, Junius Brutus, tribunes of Rome
- Citizens of Rome
- Soldiers in the Roman Army
- Tullus Aufidius, general of the Volscian army
- Aufidius's Lieutenant
- Audidius's Servingmen
- Conspirators with Aufidius
- Volscian Lords
- Volscian Citizens
- Soldiers in the Volscian army
- Adrian, a Volscian
- Nicanor, a Roman
- A Roman Herald
- Messengers
- Aediles
- A gentlewoman, an usher, Roman and Volscian senators and nobles, captains in the Roman army, officers, lictors
The Roman Senate (Latin: Senatus) was the main governing council of both the Roman Republic, which started in 509 BC, and the Roman Empire. ...
The Roman office of tribune of the people (tribunus plebis) was established in 494 BC, about 15 years after the foundation of the Roman Republic in 509. ...
Synopsis The play opens in Rome, shortly after the expulsion of the Tarquin kings. There are riots in progress, after stores of grain were withheld from ordinary citizens. The rioters are particularly angry at Caius Martius, a brilliant Roman general whom they blame for the grain being taken away. The rioters encounter a patrician named Menenius Agrippa, as well as Caius Martius himself. Menenius tries to calm the rioters, while Martius is openly contemptuous, and says that the plebeians were not worthy of the grain because of their lack of military service. Two of the tribunes of Rome, Brutus and Sicinius, privately denounce Martius. He leaves Rome after news arrives that a Volscian army is in the field. Nickname: Motto: SPQR: Senatus Populusque Romanus Location of the city of Rome (yellow) within the Province of Rome (red) and region of Lazio (grey) Coordinates: Region Lazio Province Province of Rome Founded 21 April 753 BC Government - Mayor Walter Veltroni Area - City 1,285 km² (580 sq mi) - Urban 5...
Tarquin may mean either of two kings of ancient Rome: Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, fifth king Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, Tarquin the Proud, seventh and last king This is a disambiguation page—a list of articles associated with the same title. ...
Gaius Marcius Coriolanus was a 5th century BC Roman general. ...
This article is about the social and political class in ancient Rome. ...
In Ancient Rome, the plebs was the general body of Roman citizens, distinct from the privileged class of the patricians. ...
The Roman office of tribune of the people (tribunus plebis) was established in 494 BC, about 15 years after the foundation of the Roman Republic in 509. ...
The Volsci were an ancient Italic people, well known in the history of the first century of the Roman Republic. ...
The commander of the Volscian army, Tullus Aufidius, has fought with Martius on several occasions, and considers him a blood enemy. The Roman army is commanded by Cominius, with Martius as his deputy. While Cominius takes his soldiers to meet Aufidius' army, Martius leads a sally against the Volscian city of Corioles. The siege of Corioles is initially unsuccessful, but Martius is able to force open the gates of the city, and the Romans conquer it. Even though he is exhausted from the fighting, Martius marches quickly to join Cominius and fight the other Volscian force. Martius and Aufidius meet in single combat, which only ends when Aufidius' own soldiers drag him away from the battle.
In recognition of his incredible bravery, Cominius gives Martius the honorific surname of "Coriolanus". When they return to Rome, Coriolanus' mother Volumnia encourages her son to run for consul. Coriolanus is hesitant to do this, but he bows to his mother's wishes. He effortlessly wins the support of the Roman Senate, and seems at first to have won over the commoners as well. However, Brutus and Sicinius scheme to undo Coriolanus, and whip up another riot in opposition to him becoming consul. Faced with this opposition, Coriolanus flies into a rage, and rails against the concept of popular rule. He compares allowing plebeians to have power over the patricians to allowing "crows to peck the eagles". The two tribunes condemn Coriolanus as a traitor for his words, and order him to be banished. An honorific is a word or expression that conveys esteem or respect and is used in addressing or referring to a person. ...
Consul (abbrev. ...
The Roman Senate (Latin: Senatus) was the main governing council of both the Roman Republic, which started in 509 BC, and the Roman Empire. ...
Democracy describes a series of related forms of government. ...
After being exiled from Rome, Coriolanus seeks out Aufidius in the Volscian capital, and tells them that he will lead their army to victory against Rome. Aufidius and his superiors embrace Coriolanus, and allow him to lead a new assault on the city.
Rome, in its panic, tries desperately to persuade Coriolanus to halt his crusade for vengeance, but both Cominius and Menenius fail. Finally, Volumnia is sent to meet with her son, along with Coriolanus' wife and child, and another lady. Volumnia succeeds in dissuading her son from destroying Rome, and Coriolanus instead concludes a peace treaty between the Volscians and the Romans. When Coriolanus returns to the Volscian capital, conspirators organised by Aufidius kill him for his betrayal.
Critical appraisal This section may contain original research or unverified claims.
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A.C. Bradley described this play as "built on the grand scale," [2], like King Lear and Macbeth, but it differs from those two masterpieces in an important way. The warrior Coriolanus is perhaps the most opaque of Shakespeare's tragic heroes, rarely pausing to soliloquize or reveal the motives behind his prideful isolation from Roman society. In this way, he is less like effervescent, reflective Shakespearean heroes/heroines such as Macbeth, Hamlet, Lear and Cleopatra and more like figures from ancient classical literature such as Achilles, Odysseus, and Aeneas -- or, to turn to literary creations from Shakespeare's time, the Marlovian conqueror Tamburlaine, whose militaristic pride finds a descendant in Coriolanus. Readers and playgoers have often found him an unsympathetic character, although his caustic pride is strangely, almost delicately balanced at times by a reluctance to be praised by his compatriots and an unwillingness to exploit and slander for political gain. The play is less frequently produced than the other tragedies of the later period, and is not so universally regarded as "great." (Bradley, for instance, declined to number it among his famous four in the landmark critical work Shakespearean Tragedy.) Image File history File links Circle-question-red. ...
Andrew Cecil Bradley (1851 - 1935) was an English literary scholar. ...
Soliloquy is an audible oratory or conversation with oneself. ...
Macbeth and Banquo meeting the witches on the heath by Théodore Chassériau. ...
Hamlet and Horatio in the cemetery by Eugène Delacroix For other uses, see Hamlet (disambiguation). ...
King Lear and the Fool in the Storm by William Dyce (1806-1864) King Lear is generally regarded as one of William Shakespeares greatest tragedies. ...
This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ...
The Wrath of Achilles, by François-Léon Benouville (1821–1859) (Musée Fabre) In Greek mythology, Achilles (also Akhilleus or Achilleus) (Ancient Greek: ) was a hero of the Trojan War, the central character and greatest warrior of Homers Iliad, which takes for its theme, not the War...
Head of Odysseus from a Greek 2nd century BC marble group representing Odysseus blinding Polyphemus, found at the villa of Tiberius at Sperlonga Odysseus or Ulysses (Greek Odysseys; Latin: Ulixes or, less commonly, Ulysses), pronounced , is the main hero in Homers epic poem, the Odyssey, and plays a key...
Aeneas flees burning Troy, Federico Barocci, 1598. ...
Christopher (Kit) Marlowe (baptised 26 February 1564 – 30 May 1593?) was an English dramatist, poet, and translator of the Elizabethan era. ...
For the chess engine Tamerlane, see Tamerlane. ...
The political overtones in Coriolanus are rich and nuanced. The drama especially and thoroughly examines the divide between plebeian democracy (favored in the play by the villains Brutus and Sicinius) and the proponents of autocracy (represented by the Coriolanus and the consulship itself). Forms of government Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box: An autocracy is a form of government in which the political power is held by everybody The term autocrat is derived from the Greek word autokratôr (lit. ...
As in Hamlet, an important relationship of the play is between a mother and her son, but in Coriolanus, this relationship is both less fractured and devoid of the sexual tension that exists between Gertrude and the Danish prince. Indeed, the most intriguing tension resides, not in the hero's relationship with any woman, but in that which he maintains with his nemesis (and eventual ally) Aufidius. Marital and romantic concerns, so prominent in Antony and Cleopatra, are almost wholly absent. The play maintains a serious tone throughout, without any of the familiar comic scenes, fools, or other stock devices commonly used by Shakespeare to lighten his tragedies. What comedy there is in the play may reside in Shakespeare's tart portrayal of the hypocrisy, cowardice, and fickleness of the plebeians. In Ancient Rome, the plebs was the general body of Roman citizens, distinct from the privileged class of the patricians. ...
T.S. Eliot famously proclaimed Coriolanus' superior to Hamlet in his The Sacred Wood: Essays on Poetry and Criticism, in which he calls the former play, along with Antony and Cleopatra, the Bard's greatest tragic achievement. Eliot alludes to Coriolanus in a passage from his own The Waste Land. Thomas Stearns Eliot (September 26, 1888 - January 4, 1965), was a major Modernist Anglo-American poet, dramatist, and literary critic. ...
Antony and Cleopatra is a historical tragedy by William Shakespeare, originally printed in the First Folio of 1623. ...
The Waste Land (1922), sometimes mistakenly written as The Wasteland, is a highly influential 434-line modernist poem by T. S. Eliot. ...
Bertolt Brecht also adapted Shakespeare's play in 1952–5, as Coriolan, to make it a tragedy of the workers, not the individual, and introduce the alienation effect, but he had second thoughts over it and in the end preferred Shakespeare's original, feeling that it had these elements already. Bertolt Brecht Brecht redirects here. ...
The alienation effect (from the German Verfremdungseffekt) is a theatrical and cinematic device which prevents the audience from losing itself passively and completely in the character created by the actor, and which consequently leads the audience to be a consciously critical observer. ...
Coriolanus has the distinction of being among the few Shakespeare plays banned in a democracy in modern times.[3] It was briefly suppressed in France in the late 1930s because of its use by the fascist element.[4]
References - ^ F. E. Halliday, A Shakespeare Companion 1564-1964, Baltimore, Penguin, 1964; p. 116.
- ^ Bradley, Shakespearean Tragedy
- ^ Maurois, Andre. The Miracle of France. Henri Lorin Binsse, trans. New York: Harpers, 1948: 432
- ^ Parker 123
André Maurois, or Emile Salomon Wilhelm Herzog, (July 26, 1885 – October 9, 1967) was a French author and man of letters. ...
External links Wikisource has original text related to this article: The Tragedy of Coriolanus - Text of the play by Shakespeare:
- Plutarch's Life of Coriolanus :
Image File history File links Wikisource-logo. ...
The original Wikisource logo. ...
Project Gutenberg, abbreviated as PG, is a volunteer effort to digitize, archive, and distribute cultural works. ...
John Dryden John Dryden (August 19 {August 9 O.S.}, 1631 - May 12 {May 1 O.S.}, 1700) was an influential English poet, literary critic, translator and playwright, who dominated the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the period came to be known in literary circles...
Further reading - Clark Lunberry. “In the Name of Coriolanus: The Prompter (Prompted).” Comparative Literature 54: 3 (Summer 2002): 229-241.
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