Virgilia is the wife of Coriolanus in

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's play ''

Coriolanus ''Coriolanus'' ( or ) is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1605 and 1608. The play is based on the life of the legendary Roman leader Caius Marcius Coriolanus. Shakespeare worked on it during the same yea ...

'' (1607–1610), in which same play

Volumnia Volumnia is a character in William Shakespeare's play ''Coriolanus ''Coriolanus'' ( or ) is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1605 and 1608. The play is based on the life of the legendary Roman lead ...

is his mother.

Origins

The life of the legendary figure Caius Marcius Coriolanus has been recorded more than once. In the very influential account most familiar to Shakespeare,

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for hi ...

's ''

Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans Plutarch's ''Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans'', commonly called ''Parallel Lives'' or ''Plutarch's Lives'', is a series of 48 biographies of famous men, arranged in pairs to illuminate their common moral virtues or failings, probably writt ...

'', Coriolanus' wife's name is ''Virgilia'', or in

John Dryden '' John Dryden (; – ) was an English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who in 1668 was appointed England's first Poet Laureate. He is seen as dominating the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the per ...

's translation, ''Vergilia''. However, some accounts (Brewer, 1898) say that his wife's name was actually ''Volumnia'', probably following the Roman historian

Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in ...

, wherein the wife is called Volumnia and the mother Veturia.

Role in the play

Virgilia is Coriolanus' wife and the mother of his son. She goes with her mother-in-law and son to the Volsce' camp to sue to Coriolanus not to make war against Rome. She, like Volumnia, is honored for making this peace. It is also through Virgilia that audiences see a new side of the warrior. Critic Unhae Langis argued that "Virgilia's erotic presence evokes in her husband aspects of him rarely disclosed publicly—gentleness, respect, and passion towards her" (19–20).

Critical reception

Virgilia is described by

John Ruskin John Ruskin (8 February 1819 20 January 1900) was an English writer, philosopher, art critic and polymath of the Victorian era. He wrote on subjects as varied as geology, architecture, myth, ornithology, literature, education, botany and pol ...

as "perhaps loveliest" of Shakespeare's female characters. 19th-century critic Anna Jameson described Virgilia as possessing "modest sweetness,"conjugal tenderness, " and "fond solicitude," in contrast to what she saw as the "haughty temper," "admiration of the valour and high hearing of her son," and "proud but unselfish love for" Coriolanus of Volumnia.

Performance history

In the 2011 film ''

'' directed by

Ralph Fiennes Ralph Nathaniel Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes ( ; born 22 December 1962) is an English actor, film producer, and director. A Shakespeare interpreter, he excelled onstage at the Royal National Theatre before having further success at the Royal Shak ...

, Virgilia is played by Jessica Chastain. In 2018, Alexis Gordon played Virgilia at the Stratford Festival. In that production, Virgilia was played as pregnant.

References

* Brewer, Ebenezer Cobham (1898), "Virgilia", in ''Brewer's Reader's Handbook''
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*

(trans.), "Coriolanus"
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*

: '' Sesame and Lilies: Lecture II'' {{Authority control Female Shakespearean characters