TITUS ANDRONICUS. “ Acted January 23, 1593-94 by the Earl of Sussex's company. "Acted subsequently by Shakespeare's company in 1600, and entered on the 'Stationers' Register' to John Danter on February 6, 1594. Langbaine claims to have seen an edition of this date, but none earlier than that of 1600 is now known. "Edward Ravenscroft, 1678, wrote: I have been told by some anciently conversant with the stage that it was not originally his (Shakespeare's), but brought by a private author to be acted, and he only gave some master-touches to one or two of the principal parts or characters.' Ravenscroft's assertion deserves acceptance." -Sidney Lee, Life, pp. 65, 66. Act I. i. 55-Bassianus. "Commit my cause in balance to be weigh'd." Remote Scripture parallel— Job xxxi. 6-"Let God weigh me in a just balance, and He shall know mine uprightnes." Dan. v. 27-" Thou art weyed in the balance and art found too light." Act I. i. 97 Titus. "In peace and honour rest you here, my sonnes; Rome's readiest champions, repose you heere in rest, Secure from worldly chaunces and mishaps: Heere lurks no Treason, heere no envie swells, Heere grow no damned grudges, heere are no stormes, Remote Scripture parallel Job iii. 17-" The wicked have there ceased from their tyranny, and there they that laboured valiantly are at rest.” Eccles. ix. 6-" Also their love and their hatred, and their envy is now perished, and they have no more portion for ever in all that is done unto the sunne." Act I. i. 326-"He lives in fame that died in virtue's cause." Remote Scripture parallel Prov. x. 7-" The memoriall of the just shall be blessed." Act I. i. 363-"Rome and the righteous heavens be my judge." Acts xvii. 31-" He will judge the world in righteousnesse." Act II. v. 15" That I may slumber in eternal sleep." Act III. i. 20— "O earth... So thou refuse to drink my dear son's blood." ་ Gen. iv. 10-"The earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood at thine hand." Heb. vi. 7-" For the earth which drinketh in the rain.” Act III. i. 206 "O! here I lift this one hand up to heaven, And bow this feeble ruin to the earth: If any power pities wretched tears, To that I call.-(To Lavinia) What! wilt thou kneel with me? Doe then dear heart, for heaven will heare our prayers." Remote Scripture parallel Ps. ix. 12-"For when hee maketh inquisition for blood, he remembreth it and forgetteth not the complaint of the poore." Act III. i. 243 "To weepe with them that weepe, doth ease some deale, Scriptural phrase Rom. xii. 15—" Rejoyce with them that rejoyce, and weepe with them that weepe." Act III. i. 263-" Now is a time to storm; why art thou still." Reference to the words in Ecclesiastes Eccles. iii. "To all things there is an appointed time, and a time to every purpose under the sun." Act III. i. 273 "Till all these mischiefs be returned again Even in their throats that have committed them." Ps. vii. 16" His mischiefe shall returne upon his owne head, and his cruelty shall fall upon his owne pate." Act III. ii. 21— "Fie, brother, fie, teach her not thus to lay Such violent hands upon her tender life." Exod. xx. 13-"Thou shalt not kill." Act III. ii. 37-"She says she drinks no other drink but tears." Remote Scripture parallel Ps. lxxx. 5-"Thou hast fedde them with the bread of teares, and given them teares to drink with great measure." Act IV. i. 35 "And so beguile thy sorrow, till the heavens Reveal the damn'd contriver of this deed." Rom. xii. 19-"It is written, Vengeance is Mine: I will repay, sayth the Lord." Isa, xxvi. 21-" For lo, the Lord commeth out of His place, to visite the iniquitie of the inhabitants of the earth upon them; and the earth shall disclose her blood and shal no more hide her slaine." Act IV. i. 97 "But if you hunt these bear-whelps, then beware: The dam will wake, and if she wind you once." For parallel in Scripture see Hos. xiii. 8-"I will meete them as a beare that is robbed of her whelpes." 2 Sam. xvii. 18-" Chafed in minde as a beare robbed of her whelpes." Act IV. i. 125— "O heavens! can you hear a good man groan And not relent, or not compassion him." Remote Scripture parallel Ps. ix. 12-" For when hee maketh inquisition for blood, he remembreth it and forgetteth not the complaint of the poore." Act IV. ii. 31 "And now, young lords, was't not a happy star Led us to Rome." Reference to the leading of the Wise Men Matt. ii. 9-" And lo, the starre which they saw in the East, went before them." Act V. i. 71 Lucius. "Who should I swear by? thou believ'st no God: Yet for I know thou art Religious And hast a thing within thee, called conscience, And keepes the oath which by that God he sweares." Matt. v. 33-" Againe, ye have heard that it was said to them of olde time, Thou shalt not forsweare thyselfe, but shalt perfourme thine othe to God." Acts iv. 13-" Men without knowledge." Genevan Note-" The word used here is Idiot." Act V. iii. 198 "No funeral rite, nor man in mournful weeds, No mournful bell shall ring her burial; But throw her forth to beasts and birds of prey: Her life was beast-like and devoid of pity." The death of Jezebel is a remote parallel— 2 Kings ix. 36—"In the field of Izreel shall the dogs eate the flesh of Jezebel." There is but one direct Biblical reference in "Titus An dronicus," and the phraseology is not Scriptural. THE LIFE AND DEATH OF KING JOHN. "To 1594 must also be assigned King John.' The piece, which was not printed till 1623, was directly adapted from a worthless play called 'The Troublesome Raigne of King John' (1591), which was fraudulently reissued in 1611 as 'written by W. Sh.' and in 1622 as by W. Shakespeare."-Sidney Lee, Life, p. 69. Act I. i. 19-"Here have we war for war and blood for blood." Exod. xxi. 23-" Life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth." Num. xxxv. 33-"The land cannot be cleansed of the blood that is shed therein, but by the blood of him that shed it." Gen. ix. 6-"Whoso sheadeth man's blood, by man shall his blood bee shead." Act I. i. 256-"Heaven lay not my transgression to my charge." Isa. xliv. 22-"I have put away thy transgression like a cloude, and thy sinnes as a mist: turne unto me, for I have redeemed thee." tr Acts vii. 60-" Lay not this sinne to their charge.' Cran., Tyn., Gen., Author.-" to their charge." Act II. i. 35 "The peace of Heaven is theirs that lift their swords Compare Matt. x. 34- "6 Thinke not that I am come to sende peace into the earth. I came not to send peace but the sword."-39 "And he that loseth his life for My sake shall save it." Act II. i. 86 "Whiles we, God's wrathful agent, do correct Their proud contempt that beat his peace to heaven." Jer. li. 20-"Thou art mine hammer and weapons of warre: for with thee will I breake the nations, and with thee will I destroy kingdomes." |