Coriolanus
Coriolanus,a play by Shakespeare first printed in the folio ( 1623 ), in which, before the late insertion of Troilus and Cressida , it seems to have been placed first of the tragedies. In order of composition, however, it was probably Shakespeare's last tragedy, written about 1608 . Its source is North 's version of Plutarch 's ‘Life of Caius Martius Coriolanus’. The play has never been a very popular one, but in the 20th cent. its political and military themes have stimulated some interest; see for instance the two poems by T. S. Eliot yoked by the title Coriolan. The opening scene, in which Menenius Agrippa tells the citizens of Rome a fable of the body's members rebelling against itself, was a popular Renaissance allegory of the state.
Caius Marcius , a proud Roman general, performs wonders of valour in a war against the Volscians, and captures the town Corioli, receiving in consequence...
[The entire page is 335 words long]
Join eNotes
Over 3,500 study guides, question and answer forums, literature criticism, reference content, and much more!
Oxford University Press Titles
