19 - The Coriolanus Effect (feat. Josh Sawyer)
The lads and special guest Josh Sawyer (Fallout: New Vegas, Pillars of Eternity) go beard to beard with the mob as they face down one of Shakespeare’s most brutal and overlooked tragedies: Coriolanus. They discuss Ralph Fiennes’ excellent 2011 film adaptation, the dehumanizing weaponization of soldiers in an ever-expanding empire, and the uncanny horror of Chekhovian Slendermen. Was Zizek right to say that this movie is "like God's eyes in an Orthodox icon?" You'll just have to listen to find out.
Josh Sawyer
Twitter: @jesawyer
Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/WorstOfAll
Theme by Brendan Dalton
www.brendan-dalton.com
https://brendandalton.bandcamp.com
Comments (2)
The portrayal of "The Mob" of Plebians as being unruly and easily swayed is a long-running propaganda tactic used by the Patrician historians of Rome who wanted to justify their elitist rule by making the masses seem incapable of being rational. This tactic is then reused by Shakespeare, himself a monarchist anti-democratic elitist, to retell the same message. But this is of course completely ahistorical. You have a great example of the Plebians being very intelligent and well organized when they went on mass strike to demand the Patricians give them rights and representation. Those are not the actions of an unruly mob, but a class conscious and organized group of workers.
Some context for Volumnia; in the deeply patriarchal society of ancient Rome, one of the only ways a woman could gain power or glory was by having successful sons who could bring glory to the family. Coriolanus is the only way for her to rise in society. Even if he dies, he will die gloriously and serving the Roman state, which is still very valuable social clout. So of course she's going to have a weird, possessive, controlling relationship with him.