Coriolanus (act two, scene one)

Résumé du document

Shakespeare's play Coriolanus is a political tragedy, which exposes the events that took place in Rome in the early days of the Republic. This play is set up around 490 BC, at a time when the city was divided by a conflict between the Patricians and the Plebeians because of shortage of grain. The rebellion initiated in act one is interrupted by a revolt enthused by the Volscians under the leadership of Tullus Aufidius. Caius Martius goes to war with his soldiers and manages, despite a general loss of heart, to capture the city by his own bravery.

Extraits

[...] However, what is even more surprising, knowing what has just happened before this passage, is to note that the tribunes who are present do not intervene: indeed, it is written in the stage direction “Brutus and Sicinius [ ] stand aside”. They do not even answer the gibes of Menenius save your worships. Martius is coming home. He has more cause to be proud” (140-2). This is essential to remark since it means that the tribunes cannot contradict Martius' good actions for the city; as a result, the conflict between the Patricians and the Plebeians slips into the background. Witnessing their enemy's moment of glory, they are forced to stop their stream of criticisms. [...]

[...] This accuracy agrees with this manipulative side of her temperament. She knows exactly what she wants, knows how to have it, and remains precise, sure, as if she had no passion. She is perceived as the kind of person devoid of feelings, who keeps reasoning to reach their objectives: in that case, political power. She is also authoritarian as can be viewed line 98 when she orders Menenius to go although she has hardly spoken to him. It is easy to observe in her speech verbs of action and imperatives: “let's 130), (105). [...]

[...] The contrast highlights the fact that he seems to be above other people. Even his name is symbolical since Martius derives from Mars, the God of war. But what is really at stake in this extract is the fact that Caius Martius' identity is redefined. In fact, Volumnia states: Senate has letters from the general, wherein he gives my son the whole name of the (130-2). It is this verse that gives the explanation of the play's title The Tragedy of Coriolanus. [...]

[...] Yes, yes, yes [ (130). This repetition of the word ‘yes' reveals her agitation and exhilaration; she is in a hurry and does not take much time to formulate a real sentence; words are almost jammed together. Furthermore, their frequent references to Gods (verses and 137) indicate that they are thankful to them but also that they think themselves protected by them. What is also essential to remark is that all of them speak in prose which they normally do not do since they belong to the nobility. [...]

[...] Besides, it is not Coriolanus that kills but his arm. This synecdoche is also fundamental because one more time he is not identified as an individual, but as a part of it. Qualified and acclaimed as a hero, people seem to notice Caius Martius Coriolanus' superhuman capacities, actions rather that moral or psychological qualities. He is defined through violence and never perceived as a real entity. But, what is patent is that he is the product of a powerful woman who did everything from his birth to make him become a warrior; therefore we shall consider the character of Volumnia and how this excerpt reveals her ambitions. [...]