Titus Andronicus Formal Essay Assignment
Titus Andronicus, by William Shakespeare, is a play that operates on many levels. Choose
one of the following essay topics, and write a formal, five paragraph literary essay which
addresses the topic. Discuss and support your points with specific evidence and
quotations. For this essay, your only source should be the play itself. MLA formatting is
required, and a Works Cited page must be submitted.
1) Rome is more than just a setting for the play. The city is also a symbolic landscape
that reflects the main characters’ states of mind and body. The characters in the
play all have different perspectives about Rome. How does Shakespeare represent
Rome in the play, and to what effect? Focus on three characters.
2) Discuss the treatment of women in Titus Andronicus. There are only three female
characters (Lavinia, Tamora, and the ill-fated nurse). How does Shakespeare want
us to perceive each character? Why would each character be portrayed in that
way?
3) Although Titus Andronicus is a revenge tragedy, its message is really ‘anti-revenge’.
Choose three characters and demonstrate how, for each, the consequences of
revenge prove to be very negative.
Let’s quickly review the proper way to quote from Shakespeare. Here’s an example:
When Titus first sees Lavinia after she has been raped and mutilated, he demonstrates
the extent of his grief and despair by saying to Marcus, “My grief was at the height
before thou cam’st,/And now like Nilus it disdaineth bounds” (III. i. 70-71).
‘III’ refers to the Act number, ‘i’ refers to the scene number, and ’70-71’ refers to the
line numbers. Show the break between one line and another with a slash (/).