The Rape of Lucrece

“The Rape of Lucrece,” written by William Shakespeare, was originally published in 1594 by Richard Field. This poem comes early in Shakespeare’s canon, with its original publication near the end of Queen Elizabeth I’s reign, shortly after Taming of the Shrew and around the time of A Midsummer Nights’ Dream. As a companion piece to “Venus and Adonis,” Shakespeare dedicates “The Rape of Lucrece” to the Earl of Southampton, Henry Wriothesley, his patron. It went through many reprintings, even in Shakespeare’s lifetime, which marks it as a popular poem in the English Renaissance.

“The Rape of Lucrece” is written in rhyme royal: a form with seven-line stanzas that use a rhyme scheme of ABABBCC. Like much of Shakespeare’s work, this poem is written in iambic pentameter. In the British literary tradition spearheaded by Chaucer, this form is used for tragic subjects. Themes of this work are the interconnectedness of public and private life; the choices that lead to sexual and political violence; and how the female body is imagined and used.

Poet Biography

William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, in 1564. Little is recorded about his early life, but it is likely he was educated at the King’s New School, a grammar school in Stratford-upon-Avon, where he would have learned Latin and studied classical texts, such as The Iliad and the works of Ovid.

At 18, in 1582, he married Anne Hathaway, with whom he had three children: Susanna, and twins Judith and Hammet, the latter of whom would not survive childhood.

After the birth of his children, Shakespeare devotes himself to the theater: In 1592, he appears in critical periodicals of the stage, and by 1594, his long poems and plays were in publication, often not bearing his name. In 1599, the members of his performance company built the Globe Theater on the Thames River in London, creating a permanent home for the playwright. A few years later, in 1603, the company was awarded a Royal Patent, the equivalent of a modern grant, by King James I, resulting in a level of financial security the writer had not previously experienced.

However, this period of stability was short-lived: The Black Plague resulted in the theater closing for years, followed by its immolation in 1613. Shakespeare himself continued to act, but his writing slowed until his death in 1616.

Poem Text

Shakespeare, William. “The Rape of Lucrece.” Reprint. 2006. Folger Shakespeare Library.

Summary

“The Rape of Lucrece” is Shakespeare’s psychological retelling of the Roman tale of Tarquinius (Tarquin) and Lucretia (Lucrece), recorded by Ovid and others. Shakespeare tells this tale in iambic pentameter, using seven-line stanzas and a consistent rhyme scheme; this form is called rhyme royal.

Shakespeare begins with “The Argument”: a short prose section that recaps the entire plot of the Roman tale. (The stanzas of poetry that follow only focus on a portion of the tale.) At a military encampment, Sextus Tarquinius, the son of Rome’s king, overhears Collatinus (Collantine) bragging about the incredible chastity of his wife, Lucretia. The men decide to ride home unexpectedly to see if she is in fact the most chaste of the men’s wives. As it turns out, she is home spinning thread while the other wives are out dancing. After this, Tarquinius asks to stay overnight at Collatinus’s home, and Lucrece welcomes him as her husband’s friend. Once she has retired for the evening, Tarquinius sneaks into her bedroom, violently rapes her, and leaves. Lucrece sends a messenger for her husband and father and makes them vow revenge before killing herself with a sword. Brutus leads Collatinus and Lucrece’s father in a rebellion against the king and the system of monarchy; Rome becomes a republic. This concludes the Argument.

In the stanzas that follow, Shakespeare begins in medias res with Tarquin approaching Collantine’s home while recalling the previous night when he learned about Lucrece’s virtue. Shakespeare’s retelling ends with Lucrece’s funeral processional and Tarquin’s banishment. The poem takes place in Ardea (the military encampment) and Collatium (Collantine’s home).

After briefly recalling Collantine’s comments about his wife at Ardea, Tarquin arrives at Collatium to meet Lucrece. They have dinner, talk, and head to bed. Then, there is a long scene in Tarquin’s bedroom where he debates going to Lucrece’s bedroom. Topics like honor and lust, as well as his friendship with Collantine, are covered. Eventually, he decides to walk to Lucrece’s room.

Once in Lucrece’s bedroom, he watches her sleep and debates further action. When he touches her, she awakes and asks what he’s doing. Tarquin blames her beauty for his actions, and threatens her with violence if she resists him. She tries to persuade him to stop, using a variety of rhetorical tactics, including invoking the bond between Collantine and Tarquin.

However, Tarquin is unmoved by her pleas, rapes her, and leaves. Lucrece cries, feels suicidal, and curses night, opportunity, time, and Tarquin. Throughout the rest of the night, she discusses her trauma and, when the sun rises, Lucrece decides to tell her husband and father what happened before she kills herself. She calls for one of her maids, they cry together, and Lucrece writes a letter while the maid finds a messenger to deliver it.

The maid returns with a messenger; he takes Lucrece’s letter, which asks the men to return to Collatium, to the encampment. While she waits, Lucrece looks at a painting of the Trojan War, which is discussed at length. For instance, Lucrece compares Tarquin to Sinon, the Greek who tricked the Trojans into accepting the wooden horse filled with their enemies. Collantine and his men, including Lucrece’s father, return. Lucrece reveals what happened, makes them swear revenge, and kills herself.

Her father, Lucretius, mourns her, and Collantine is speechless. The men cry over her body. Brutus rallies them to take her corpse through the streets of Rome and banish Tarquin.