The Rape of Lucrece Summary
William Shakespeare

Biography Essay"He was not of an age, but for all time." So wrote Ben Jonson in his dedicatory verses to the memory of William Shakespeare in 1623, and so we continue to affirm today. No other writer,... Read more

Considered by critics, scholars, and the theater-going public the most important dramatist in the history of English literature, William Shakespeare occupies a unique position in the pantheon of great... Read more

William Shakespeare's reputation is based primarily on his plays. With the partial exception of the Sonnets (1609), quarried since the early nineteenth century for autobiographical secrets allegedly ... Read more

In the essay that follows, Truax discusses the painting that Lucrece describes immediately before her suicidea painting that depicts the Trojan war, launched in order to revenge the rape of Helen. ... Read more

In the following essay, Roe discusses the internal conflicts that precede Lucrece 's suicide, and claims they are drawn from the paradoxical nature of the ideal of chastity and link her to the ... Read more

In the essay that follows, Fineman examines the imagery and rhetorical movements of The Rape of Lucrece and in particular considers the significance of time in the poem. There is a great differenc... Read more

In the following essay, Bowers argues that Shakespeare demonstrates Lucrece's virtue by employing rhetorical techniques and an omniscient narrator which emphasizes "the violence of rape ... Read more

In the following essay, Muir briefly describes the structure of The Rape of Lucrece, connects the poem to such later Shakespearean plays as Measure for Measure, and reviews the scholarly responses to ... Read more

In the following essay, Berry asserts that Lucrece is not simply a victim of patriarchal power, but that she more importantly functions as a strong voice for action and political change. Recent fem... Read more

In the following essay, Stimpson demonstrates that Shakespeare's portrayals of rape in works such as The Rape of Lucrece indicate his sympathy towards women; nevertheless, Stimpson concludes th... Read more

In the following essay, Carter argues that once Tarquin has defined Lucrece in traditional, patriarchal terms by raping her, she redefines herself by placing her consciousness within the painting of T... Read more

In the following essay, Washington contends that Tarquin, understood to be the poem's villain, serves to emphasize a complex pattern of meaning at work in The Rape of Lucrece. Through both Lucr... Read more

In the following essay, Montgomery studies Shakespeare's abundant use of formal, patterned rhetoric in The Rape of Lucrece, maintaining that through this extravagant rhetoric Shakespeare shifte... Read more

In the following excerpt, Camino studies the lengthy soliloquy that follows Lucrece's rape, demonstrating the ways in which Lucrece uses language to successfully dismiss Tarquin's argume... Read more

In the essay below, Belsey studies the treatment of the issues of marriage and rape in The Rape of Lucrece, and demonstrates the ways in which the poem's treatment of these subjects reflects Re... Read more

In the following essay, Kietzman analyzes the character of Lucrece and her role as a female complainant—a poetic trope that originated in classical verse. The critic argues that Lucrece uses he... Read more

In the following excerpt, Soellner examines the similarities between The Rape of Lucrece and several works written or inspired by French writer Robert Garnier. The critic emphasizes the manner in whic... Read more

In the following essay, Woodbridge examines the subject of bodily violation as a symbol for military invasion and conquest in The Rape of Lucrece, Titus Andronicus and Cymbeline. Woodbridge asserts th... Read more

In the following excerpt, Camino draws parallels between The Rape of Lucrece, Renaissance practices of mapmaking, and colonial conquest. The critic contends that the poem can be viewed as an expressio... Read more