Coriolanus

The first Act of Coriolanus introduces the theme of The Dangers of Internal Political Conflict that will eventually transform the protagonist from a hero of Rome into its greatest enemy. Shakespeare opens the play with a scene depicting a riot, in which citizens protest against the senate’s decision not to distribute grain imported during a famine. The citizens interpret this withholding as an act of aggression and hatred towards them, with one person proclaiming, “The leanness that afflicts us, the object of our / misery, is as an inventory to particularize their [the patricians’] / abundance; our sufferance is a gain to them” (1.1.19-21). This dialogue indicates the extreme distrust between different social classes in Rome, with plebeians assuming that their own suffering must be desirable to the aristocratic ruling class. Shakespeare creates a tone of dread and anxiety in this opening scene, showing how unstable and divided Rome is during this period in history (See: Background).

While the riot over the grain suggests division, the character of Menenius in this scene plays a pivotal role by reminding the people of how they are all united as Romans. Menenius’s parable centers upon the human body and hunger, which introduces the play’s motif of eating and appetite (See: Symbols & Motifs). Notably, Menenius personifies the belly, comparing it to the Roman patricians in order to explain that the withholding of the grain store is not due to animosity, but rather prudence:

MENENIUS. ‘True is it, my incorporate friends,’ quoth he [the stomach],

‘That I receive the general food at first

Which you do live upon; and fit it is,

Because I am the storehouse and the shop

Of the whole body’ (1.1.137-141).

Menenius’s words do help to calm the populace, establishing him as a mediating figure between the upper and lower classes. His rhetorical prowess and ability to make peace here will form an important contrast with the social unrest of later Acts, when even Menenius is unable to soothe the conflict between Coriolanus and the plebeians and, eventually, between Coriolanus and all of Rome. These opening riots thus foreshadow the growing danger of the Roman state being divided and at war with itself, suggesting that civil unrest is a form of self-destruction rather than legitimate or justified revolution.

Another major focus of Act I is on the temperament and personality of the main character, Coriolanus, which introduces the play’s interest in The Role of Personality in Individual Behavior. Coriolanus, who is introduced as Caius Martius before he receives his agnomen, is a complex character from his first moments on stage. While his reaction to the plebeians’ rioting seems cold and unsympathetic, Menenius reassures the people that this is merely due to his deep devotion to Rome. Martius’s contempt for the plebians foreshadows the conflict he will face in trying to win their support for his desired consulship later in the play.

During the battle at the end of the Act, Caius Martius’s deeds are simultaneously exemplary and excessive. His bravery is admirable, but his threat to cut down his own troops should they try to run suggests that he is also prone to the use of excessive force. As he prepares to go out and fight against Aufidius, his speech to recruit soldiers to follow him indicates that his extreme devotion to Rome is both his greatest virtue and his greatest flaw:

MARTIUS. If any such be here—

As it were sin to doubt—that love this painting

Wherein you see me smeared; if any fear

Lesser his person than an ill report;

If any think brave death outweighs bad life,

And that his country’s dearer than himself;

Let him alone, or so many so minded,

Wave thus to express his disposition

And follow Martius (1.6.86-94).

This speech indicates the destructive side of Coriolanus’s highly noble nature. While Coriolanus is entirely selfless, proclaiming that he would rather die for Rome than live a “bad life,” he also acknowledges that he is giving the speech covered in blood and wounds. Shakespeare indicates the frightening aspect of his appearance when no soldier joins him after this speech, conveying that his extreme military excellence is intimidating rather than inspiring. While commanders praise Coriolanus for his actions, the regular troops appear alienated by his total disregard for his own safety and his complete commitment to inflicting violence upon anyone he sees as an enemy of Rome.

Coriolanus’s fearlessness and valor are thus presented as both winning him glory and as a potentially destabilizing force for the Romans, raising the issue of The Problem of Masculine Violence that will be explored more deeply throughout the rest of the play.