Coriolanus | Criticism

  • Overview

    In his critical introduction to Coriolanus, Frank Kermode surveys the principal areas of interest in the play. He examines Shakespeare's departure from the primary historical source of the drama, the writings of Plutarch.

  • Politics and Society

    In this essay, H.M. Richmond studies political themes in Coriolanus, specifically, the relationship of the play's protagonist to the Roman state.

  • Honor and Heroism

    In the first excerpt (originally published in 1962), Eugene M. Waith views the figure of Coriolanus as a hero in the tradition of Hercules. In the second excerpt, Matthew N. Proser examines Coriolanus's character and his relationship to the theme of honor, which the critic calls the "central paradox of the play."

  • Mother-Son Relationship

    In the first essay, Rufus Putney takes a psychoanalytic view of Coriolanus, emphasizing the mental drama of Coriolanus's relationship with his mother. In the second essay, Emmett Wilson, Jr. offers a psychoanalytic approach to Coriolanus, evaluating language and imagery that suggests Freudian conflicts within the play.

  • Coriolanus

    In the essay that follows, Michael Goldman analyzes the character of Coriolanus and, similarly, the nature of Shakespeare's method of characterization in the play.

  • Volumnia

    In this essay, Christina Luckyj remarks on the complexity of Volumnia's character, veiling her as a "dynamic, powerful" figure.

  • Virgilia

    In this excerpt, John Middleton Murry considers the frequently overlooked figure of Virgilia, observing that despite the fact that she speaks scarcely more than one hundred words in Coriolanus she figures prominently in representing the play's theme.

  • Aufidius

    In the following excerpted preface to Coriolanus, Harley Granville-Barker explores the character of Aufidius. Describing this "secondary hero," Granville-Barker acknowledges that Aufidius is for the most part effective as a counterpoint to Coriolanus.

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