The Tragedy of Coriolanus (Shakespeare Project Lecture)

'You common cry of curs! whose breath I hate as reek o' the rotten fens, whose loves I prize as the dead carcasses of unburied men that do corrupt my air - I banish you!'

Our journey through the works of William Shakespeare continues with the tragic masterpiece that is Coriolanus.

We’re discussing pride as tragic flaw, the voice of the people, contemporary commentaries, biographical readings, the four humours, leadership vs service, the warrior spirit, and much more.

Timestamps:

0:00 Coriolanus as tragic masterpiece

2:00 T. S. Eliot’s thoughts on Coriolanus

4:00 contemporary social comments

6:00 Midlands Riots in Jacobean England

8:00 comparing the bard’s Roman plays

10:00 is Coriolanus hero or villain?

12:00 appreciating the play’s opening

14:00 ‘get you home, you fragments’

16:00 ‘who deserves greatness…’

18:00 Martius on the burden of power

20:00 Coriolanus personality analysis

22:00 discovering Shakespeare in this play

25:00 Coriolanus’ relationship with Aufidius

29:00 the conspiracy of Brutus & Sicinius

31:00 stock types vs Shakespeare’s humans

34:00 mother Volumnia vs wife Virgilia

37:00 the victorious siege at Corioli

39:00 Coriolanus ‘was a thing of blood…’

41:00 on the pride/hubris of Coriolanus

43:00 Caius Martius becomes Coriolanus

45:00 voicing contempt for the populace

46:00 thinking of leadership as service

48:00 consulship in the Roman Republic

50:00 hearing one’s nothings monstered

51:00 further biographical readings

53:00 ‘it is a part I shall blush in acting’

55:00 the Ralph Fiennes film adaptation

58:00 Coriolanus in a gown of humility

1:02:00 four humours in Renaissance era

1:04:00 Coriolanus banished for treason

1:07:00 the warrior spirit of Volumnia

1:09:00 weakness of unswerving integrity

1:10:00 ‘you common cry of curs…’

1:12:00 revenge of Coriolanus & Aufidius

1:15:00 the ending & death of Coriolanus

1:17:00 advice for approaching our next work

1:18:00 what did you make of Coriolanus?

Recommended Resources:

• Film Adaptation: I highly recommend the 2011 directorial debut from Ralph Fiennes, who stars as Coriolanus, alongside Gerard Butler as Aufidius here. You can appreciate the opening here. What do you make of the modernisation? And modern adaptations in general?

• Arden Edition: The Arden edition of this play is excellent. Peter Holland has done a tremendous job with the critical introduction and annotations. If you would like a slimmer volume, then the Pelican editions are also a fabulous choice.

• Plutarch's Lives: Will certainly got a lot of mileage out of his trusty copy of Plutarch's Lives. He would have been working from the Sir Thomas North translation, though the John Dryden makes for an excellent choice too. For a modern translation, the Ian Scott-Kilvert in the Penguin paperback The Makers of Rome is very good.

• Theatre Adaptation: The great Tom Hiddleston, who we have seen as Hal/Henry V in the Hollow Crown series, played Coriolanus in an extraordinary production at the National Theatre, which you can stream at their site. Watch the trailer and tell me if that entices you.

• Our Journey Thus Far: If you want to jump into any specific play, you can check out the works we've enjoyed thus far as part of our read-through here.

Questions for You:

1) Should Coriolanus be discussed in the same breath as Shakespeare's other great tragedies?

2) Do you sympathise with the character of Coriolanus?

3) What line, passage, idea, or character most resonated with you? And what is your personal grading for Coriolanus?

Happy reading, Bardolators!