Titus Andronicus: Act I

[Virgil]

Finished Act I and I continued to find references to the sacred or religious. Here:

LAVINIA
...
O, bless me here with thy victorious hand,
Whose fortunes Rome's best citizens applaud!

TITUS ANDRONICUS
...And here in sight of Rome to Saturnine,
King and commander of our commonweal,
The wide world's emperor, do I consecrate
My sword, my chariot and my prisoners;

SATURNINUS
And therefore, lovely Tamora, queen of Goths,
That like the stately Phoebe 'mongst her nymphs
Dost overshine the gallant'st dames of Rome,
If thou be pleased with this my sudden choice,
Behold, I choose thee, Tamora, for my bride,
And will create thee empress of Rome,
Speak, Queen of Goths, dost thou applaud my choice?
And here I swear by all the Roman gods,
Sith priest and holy water are so near
And tapers burn so bright and every thing
In readiness for Hymenaeus stand,
I will not re-salute the streets of Rome,
Or climb my palace, till from forth this place
I lead espoused my bride along with me.

And interweaved in this victory celebration is a human sacrifice, two marriages, and funerals.

[papayahed]

I just reread what I wrote in the other Titus thread - "not sure I could finish"
and then "glad I finished"

We could have avoided this whole mess if titus would have just taken the crown for himself, doesn't that seem odd to anyone else that he refuses???

[xman]

We could have avoided this whole mess if titus would have just taken the crown for himself, doesn't that seem odd to anyone else that he refuses???

Shakespeare's tragic heroes always condemn themselves by virtue of their 'tragic flaw'. I wonder if this is it with Titus. Like Lear, it is his duty as the chosen leader to rule. He doesn't want to enflame the nobility of Saturninus and have to deal with all that politices. He's a soldier. He want s to remain a soldier. He shirks the will of the people. Could this be part of his tragic flaw?

X

[Virgil]

I just reread what I wrote in the other Titus thread - "not sure I could finish"
and then "glad I finished"

We could have avoided this whole mess if titus would have just taken the crown for himself, doesn't that seem odd to anyone else that he refuses???

Good point, Papaya. What I find lacking in Titus is an understanding of how people relate to each other in a social context. He apparantly has been a warrior for his whole life that when he comes home from war he doesn't seem to understand personal relations. He should take the crown. The people want him to, but I guess he feels that Saturnius would cause trouble and he doesn't know how to pacify him. Or he doesn't know how to relate with Tamora other than by a war sacrifice of her son. Or even his own son who he kills.

[aswelch]

Titus is a man who demonstrates belief in tradition and law. He will not take the throne because it rightfully belongs to the eldest son of the dead king. He will sacrafice Tamora's eldest son because Tradition, indeed religion, calls for it. He will give Lavinia to Saturninus because he commands it, and in Rome, the King is respected, honored, and obeyed. He will kill Mutius for dishonoring him in front of Rome and the new King as well as for disobeying him as Rome is a Patriarchial culture. He is to decide who has Lavinia, not her and not her suitors. Titus has proved himself thus a man of tradition and law. The rest of the play is about the repercussions of his actions and a chain of vengence. It is also about the falling apart of a great nation due to these actions. For this reason the play is very bloody and violent, but I stand firm in the fact that it is no more bloody, violent, or potentially offensive than Hamlet. If you have delicate sesibilities be prepared to have them offended when reading Shakespeare.

[Virgil]

Titus is a man who demonstrates belief in tradition and law. He will not take the throne because it rightfully belongs to the eldest son of the dead king. He will sacrafice Tamora's eldest son because Tradition, indeed religion, calls for it. He will give Lavinia to Saturninus because he commands it, and in Rome, the King is respected, honored, and obeyed. He will kill Mutius for dishonoring him in front of Rome and the new King as well as for disobeying him as Rome is a Patriarchial culture. He is to decide who has Lavinia, not her and not her suitors. Titus has proved himself thus a man of tradition and law. The rest of the play is about the repercussions of his actions and a chain of vengence. It is also about the falling apart of a great nation due to these actions. For this reason the play is very bloody and violent, but I stand firm in the fact that it is no more bloody, violent, or potentially offensive than Hamlet. If you have delicate sesibilities be prepared to have them offended when reading Shakespeare.

Very insightful point aswelch. Thanks for your conribution.