SOURCE: Johnson, Robert. “Titus Andronicus: The First of the Roman Plays.” In Essays on Shakespeare in Honour of A. A. Ansari, edited by T. R. Sharma, pp. 80-7. Meerut, India: Shalabh Book House, 1986.

In the following essay, Johnson evaluates the ambivalent attitude toward classical Rome presented in Titus Andronicus, and considers affinities between the drama and Shakespeare's later Roman plays.

I do not wish to enter the discussion of authorship of Titus Andronicus¹ or necessarily to defend the play against its most virulent attackers, who include Dr Samuel Johnson.² To be sure, the play has most recently had its share of defenders and a number of critics have seen positive qualities in the play, especially in the opening act.³ Thomas P. Harrison has even argued for a continuity between Titus Andronicus and King Lear, concluding that a ‘study of the two plays bears witness to the orderly development...