Titus Andronicus

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This article is about the play by William Shakespeare. For the band, see Titus Andronicus (band). For the 17th century ballad, see Titus Andronicus (ballad).
First page of The Lamentable Tragedy of Titus Andronicus from the First Folio, published in 1623

Titus Andronicus is a tragedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written between 1588 and 1593, probably in collaboration with George Peele. It is thought to be Shakespeare's first tragedy and is often seen as his attempt to emulate the violent and bloody revenge plays of his contemporaries, which were extremely popular with audiences throughout the 16th century.[1]

Titus, a general in the Roman army, presents Tamora, Queen of the Goths, as a slave to the new Roman emperor, Saturninus. Saturninus takes her as his wife. From this position Tamora vows revenge against Titus for killing her son. Titus and his family retaliate.

Titus Andronicus was initially very popular, but by the later 17th century it was not well esteemed. The Victorian era disapproved of it largely because of its graphic violence. Its reputation began to improve around the middle of the 20th century,[2] but it is still one of Shakespeare's least respected plays.

Characters[edit]

  • Titus Andronicus – renowned Roman general
  • Lucius – Titus's eldest living son
  • Quintus – Titus's son
  • Martius – Titus's son
  • Mutius – Titus's son
  • Young Lucius – Lucius's son and Titus's grandson
  • Lavinia – Titus's daughter
  • Marcus Andronicus – Titus's brother and tribune to the people of Rome
  • Publius – Marcus's son
  • Saturninus – Son of the late Emperor of Rome; afterwards declared Emperor
  • Bassianus – Saturninus's brother; in love with Lavinia
  • Sempronius, Caius and Valentine – Titus's kinsmen
  • Æmilius – Roman noble
  • Tamora – Queen of the Goths; afterwards Empress of Rome
  • Demetrius – Tamora's son
  • Chiron – Tamora's son
  • Alarbus – Tamora's son (non-speaking role)
  • Aaron – a Moor; involved in a romantic relationship with Tamora[3]
  • Nurse
  • Clown
  • Messenger
  • Roman Captain
  • First Goth
  • Second Goth
  • Senators, Tribunes, Soldiers, Plebeians, Goths etc.

Synopsis[edit]

Gravelot illustration of Aaron cutting off Titus's hand in Act 3, Scene 1; engraved by Gerard Van der Gucht (1740)

The play begins shortly after the death of the Roman emperor, with his two sons, Saturninus and Bassianus, quarrelling over who will succeed him. Their conflict seems set to boil over into violence until a tribune, Marcus Andronicus, announces that the people's choice for the new emperor is Marcus's brother, Titus, who will shortly return to Rome from a victorious ten-year campaign against the Goths. Titus subsequently arrives to much fanfare, bearing with him as prisoners Tamora, Queen of the Goths, her three sons Alarbus, Chiron, and Demetrius, and Aaron the Moor who is her secret lover. Despite Tamora's desperate pleas, Titus sacrifices her eldest son, Alarbus, to avenge the deaths of his own sons during the war. Distraught, Tamora and her two surviving sons vow to obtain revenge on Titus and his family.

Meanwhile, Titus refuses the offer of the throne, arguing that he is not fit to rule and instead supporting the claim of Saturninus, who then is duly elected. Saturninus tells Titus that for his first act as emperor, he will marry Titus's daughter Lavinia. Titus agrees, although Lavinia is already betrothed to Saturninus's brother, Bassianus, who refuses to give her up. Titus's sons tell Titus that Bassianus is in the right under Roman law, but Titus refuses to listen, accusing them all of treason. A scuffle breaks out, during which Titus kills his own son, Mutius. Saturninus then denounces the Andronici family for their effrontery and shocks Titus by marrying Tamora. Putting into motion her plan for revenge, Tamora advises Saturninus to pardon Bassianus and the Andronici family, which he reluctantly does.

During a royal hunt the following day, Aaron persuades Demetrius and Chiron to kill Bassianus, so they may rape Lavinia. They do so, throwing Bassianus's body into a pit and dragging Lavinia deep into the forest before violently raping her. To keep her from revealing what has happened, they cut out her tongue and cut off her hands. Meanwhile, Aaron writes a forged letter, which frames Titus's sons Martius and Quintus for the murder of Bassianus. Horrified at the death of his brother, Saturninus arrests Martius and Quintus, and sentences them to death.

Some time later, Marcus discovers the mutilated Lavinia and takes her to her father, who is still shocked at the accusations levelled at his sons, and upon seeing Lavinia, he is overcome with grief. Aaron then visits Titus and falsely tells him that Saturninus will spare Martius and Quintus if either Titus, Marcus, or Titus' remaining son, Lucius, cuts off one of their hands and sends it to him. Titus has his own left hand cut off by Aaron and sends it to the emperor but, in return, a messenger brings Titus Martius and Quintus' severed heads, along with Titus' own severed hand. Desperate for revenge, Titus orders Lucius to flee Rome and raise an army among their former enemy, the Goths.

Later, Lavinia writes the names of her attackers in the dirt, using a stick held with her mouth and between her mutilated arms. Meanwhile, Tamora secretly gives birth to a mixed-race child, fathered by Aaron. Aaron kills the nurse to keep the child's race a secret and flees with the baby to save it from Saturninus' inevitable wrath. Thereafter, Lucius, marching on Rome with an army, captures Aaron and threatens to hang the infant. In order to save the baby, Aaron reveals the entire revenge plot to Lucius.

Illustration of the death of Chiron and Demetrius from Act 5, Scene 2; from The Works of Mr. William Shakespeare (1709), edited by Nicholas Rowe

Back in Rome, Titus's behaviour suggests he might be deranged. Convinced of the madness of Titus, Tamora, Chiron, and Demetrius (dressed as the spirits of Revenge, Murder, and Rape) approach Titus in order to persuade him to get Lucius to remove his troops from Rome. Tamora (as Revenge) tells Titus that she will grant him revenge on all of his enemies if he can convince Lucius to postpone the imminent attack on Rome. Titus agrees and sends Marcus to invite Lucius to a reconciliatory feast. Revenge then offers to invite the Emperor and Tamora as well, and is about to leave when Titus insists that Rape and Murder (Chiron and Demetrius, respectively) stay with him. When Tamora is gone, Titus has them restrained, cuts their throats and drains their blood into a basin held by Lavinia. Titus morbidly tells Lavinia to "play the cook", grind the bones of Demetrius and Chiron into powder, and bake their heads.

The next day, during the feast at his house, Titus asks Saturninus if a father should kill his daughter when she has been raped. When Saturninus answers that he should, Titus kills Lavinia and tells Saturninus of the rape. When the Emperor calls for Chiron and Demetrius, Titus reveals that Lavinia had baked them in the pie Tamora has just been eating. Titus then kills Tamora and is immediately killed by Saturninus, who is subsequently killed by Lucius to avenge his father's death. Lucius is then proclaimed Emperor. He orders that Titus and Lavinia be laid in their family tomb, that Saturninus be given a state burial, that Tamora's body be thrown to the wild beasts outside the city, and that Aaron be hanged. Aaron, however, is unrepentant to the end, regretting only that he had not done more evil in his life, Lucius deciding he deserves to be buried chest-deep and left to die of thirst and starvation.