Scene III explained

What happens

Themes in this chapter

• Political Manipulation

  Nicanor and Adrian discuss exploiting Rome's internal divisions to launch a Volscian attack, showing how political turmoil is leveraged for military advantage.

• Exile and Identity

  Coriolanus's banishment is central to the conversation, as his absence shifts the balance of power and alters the political landscape of Rome.

Characters to notice

• Adrian

  A Volscian who meets Nicanor on the highway and learns of Rome's internal strife.

• Nicanor

  A Roman who provides intelligence to the Volscians about the unrest in Rome after Coriolanus's banishment.

• Caius Marcius Coriolanus

  Mentioned as the banished Roman hero whose absence weakens Rome and emboldens the Volscians.

• Tullus Aufidius

  Mentioned as the Volscian noble who will lead the war against Rome now that Coriolanus is banished.

Key passages

• “There hath been in Rome strange insurrections; the people against the senators, patricians, and nobles.”

  Rome has experienced unusual uprisings, with the common people rebelling against the ruling classes.

  Nicanor reports the civil unrest in Rome to Adrian.

• “The main blaze of it is past, but a small thing would make it flame again: for the nobles receive so to heart the banishment of that worthy Coriolanus, that they are in a ripe aptness to take all power from the people and to pluck from them their tribunes for ever.”

  The worst of the uprising is over, but it could easily reignite because the nobles are so angered by Coriolanus's banishment that they are ready to strip the people of their tribunes and seize all power.

  Nicanor explains the fragile state of peace in Rome and the nobles' resentment.