The Bloody BanquetSamuel Schoenbaum, ed., The Bloody Banquet, Malone Society Reprints, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1961, 1962. is an early 17th-century play, a revenge tragedy of uncertain date and authorship, attributed on its title page only to "T.D." It has attracted a substantial body of critical and scholarly commentary, chiefly for the challenging authorship problem it presents. It has been attributed to a collaboration between Thomas Dekker and Thomas Middleton.
Publication The Bloody Banquet was never entered into the Register of the Stationers Company, but an order from the Lord Chamberlain (then Philip Herbert, 4th Earl of Pembroke), dated 19 August 1639, lists it among forty plays that are the property of William Beeston and can be performed only by his company, Beeston's Boys. It was first published in quarto in the same year, 1639, by Thomas Cotes, with the attribution to "T. D." on its title page.
Sources The play draws its plot from Pan His Syrinx (1584, 1597) by William Warner.Wallace A. Bacon, ed., William Warner's "Syrinx, or a Sevenfold History", Evanston, Illinois, Northwestern University Press, 1950; reprinted New York, AMS Press, 1970. The playwright(s) took elements from four of the seven stories in Warner's volume, to create a revenge tale in which a Tyrant serves up a cannibal banquet, only to be assassinated at the dining table, yielding the "bloody banquet" of the title. The sole extant text of the play is only about 1900 lines in length, roughly 500 lines shorter than the average for plays of its era; discontinuities in the text suggest that it was edited before publication.Introduction to the Malone Society reprint, pp. vii–viii. The drama's date is uncertain, although its general style and tone place it sometime after 1600.
Authorship Some seventeenth-century sources point to Thomas Dekker as the "T. D." of the title page. Nineteenth-century critic F. G. Fleay identified T. D. as Thomas Drue on the strength of the common initials – but since virtually nothing is known about Drue (the author of only one acknowledged play, The Duchess of Suffolk), the attribution offered little enlightenment, and left the field open for other candidates. Robert Davenport was also suggested as a possibility.David J. Lake, The Canon of Thomas Middleton's Plays, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1975; p. 232-4.James G. McManaway, "Latin Title Page Mottoes as a Clue to Dramatic Authorship", The Library, Vol. 26 (1946), pp. 28–36.
In 1925, E. H. C. Oliphant first linked the name of Thomas Middleton with the play; he argued that The Bloody Banquet was a Dekker/Middleton collaboration.E. H. C. Oliphant, "The Bloodie Banquet, A Dekker-Middleton Play", Times Literary Supplement, 17 December 1925, p. 882. Further research and the use of stylistic analysis has brought about a consensus that the authors were Dekker and Middleton. David Lake, in his 1975 analysis of attribution problems in the Middleton canon, suggested that "The play is a much-revised one, written originally by Middleton with some help from Dekker about 1600–02"Lake, p. 241. — though he acknowledged this as only one possibility. Macdonald Jackson strengthened the case for Middleton two decades later.Macdonald Jackson, "Editing, Attribution Studies, and 'Literature Online': A New Resource for Research in Renaissance Drama", Research Opportunitites in Renaissance Drama, Vol. 37 (1998), pp. 1–15. More recently, Gary Taylor has included it Middleton's Collected Works (2007), and has argued that the play was originally written by Middleton and Dekker in 1608–09, and then adapted in the 1620s.Julia Gasper, in Gary Taylor and John Lavagnino, general editors, Thomas Middleton and Early Modern Textual Culture, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2007; pp. 364–5. A 21st-century adaptation is available.
Characters The King of Lydia (the Old King) Tymethes, the King of Lydia's son Lapyrus, the King of Lydia's nephew The King of Lycia Zantippus, the King of Lycia's son Eurymone, the King of Lycia's daughter Armatrites, King of Cilicia (the Tyrant) Zenarchus, the King of Cilicia's son Amphridote, the King of Cilicia's daughter Thetis, the King of Cilicia's queen (the Young Queen) Thetis' maid Mazeres, the King of Cilicia's adviser Roxano, Thetis' helper Fidelo & Amorpho, the Lydian King's faithful servants Sertorio & Lodovico, the Lydian King's unfaithful servants The Old Queen of Lydia The Old Queen of Lydia's two little children Chorus The Clown Two Shepherds Four Servants Soldiers
Synopsis Induction
The play's back story is acted out in pantomime and narrated by the Chorus: After seven long, bloody battles, the King of Lydia and the King of Lycia agreed to a peace treaty. As a pledge of faith, the treaty was sealed by an exchange of hostages. The King of Lydia traded his nephew, Lapyrus, for the King of Lycia's son, Zantippus. Shortly after the exchange, the King of Lycia offered Lapyrus the hand of his beautiful daughter Eurymone if Lapyrus would turn traitor against his uncle. Lapyrus agreed to the deal, married Eurymone, and led an army to attack Lydia. As Lapyrus' army attacked, the King of Lydia sent his son, Tymethes, to enlist the aid of The King of Cilicia. Meanwhile, The Queen of Lydia took her two infant sons and fled to a forest, certain the kingdom would soon come to ruin. Shortly thereafter, the King of Cilicia arrived in Lydia, forced Lapyrus' army to withdraw, and saved the King. However, as the plot unfolds, it turns out that the King of Cilicia had treacherous notions of his own.
Act I
Scene 1: The presence chamber of the King of Lydia
The King of Cilicia (hereafter referred to as "the Tyrant") enters the presence chamber of the King of Lydia, sits on the throne, and proclaims himself king. The Old King of Lydia protests, but his objections are quickly swept away by the Tyrant, who insists that he will now sit as ruler of Lydia while his son Zenarchus takes over as ruler of Cilicia. Zenarchus kneels and begs his father to act honourably and show pity on the Old King of Lydia, but this petition is quickly countered by objections from the Tyrant's shrewd advisor, Mazeres. Resigning himself to his fate, the Old King of Lydia retires from the court accompanied by two faithful servants, Fidelo and Amorpho. Two other servants, Sertorio and Lodovico, decide to forsake the Old King and enter into the Tyrant's service. Zenarchus begs his father to allow his friend, Tymethes, the Old King's son, to remain at court. He argues that Tymethes has a gentle nature, and would not pose any threat. Mazeres notes that a gesture of kindness toward the Old King's son would be politically astute because it would make the Tyrant look good. The Tyrant agrees to let Tymethes remain at court. Everyone exits except Zenarchus and Tymethes. Zenarchus bemoans the influence Mazeres holds over his father. Tymethes lies down on the ground, certain that he must be dreaming. Zenarchus assures him that he is not. Tymethes says that (despite the loss of the kingdom, his mother's uncertain whereabouts, and his father's banishment) his primary concern is that Zenarchus' sister Amphridote will not dare love him any longer for fear of her father's disapproval. Zenarchus reassures Tymethes that Amphridote's love will certainly remain constant. Amphridote enters. Tymethes asks her if she will still love him now that he is a beggar. Amphridote says she will. Zenarchus praises his sister and vows to return the kingdom to Tymethes after the Tyrant's death. Mazeres enters, unnoticed, and observes the conversation. Tymethes and Amphridote kiss. Mazeres is shocked to see the princess kiss a "beggar." Everyone exits except Mazeres, who soliloquises about his love for Amphridote and his determination to get rid of Tymethes.
Scene 2: A forest
Disguised as a beggar, the Old Queen of Lydia bemoans her fate and wonders aloud what will become of her two infant sons.
Scene 3: Another part of the forest
Lapyrus enters, disguised with a false beard. He curses himself for betraying his king and country. As he prepares to commit suicide, the Old Queen enters pursued by a pair of soldiers intent on raping her. Lapyrus chases the soldiers away. The Old Queen thanks him and tells him her story. He complains bitterly about her nephew, the "traitorous villain" Lapyrus. Lapyrus is tormented to see the Old Queen (his aunt) in such miserable straits. Keeping his identity secret, he tells her that he has recently seen Lapyrus in the forest. Assuring the Old Queen that Lapyrus is truly penitent, he asks her what she would do if she should happen to cross paths with her traitorous nephew. The Old Queen says she would kill him. Lapyrus gives the Old Queen his sword, kneels, removes his false beard, and encourages her to take his life. The Old Queen decides to pardon Lapyrus, but only on the condition that he provide for her and her children. Lapyrus agrees to become the Old Queen's provider.
Scene 4: Outside the Young Queen's rooms
Tymethes is quite moody because of his love for Amphridote. To cheer him up, Zenarchus arranges to meet his stepmother, the Queen, a beautiful young woman whom the Tyrant keeps imprisoned under strict supervision. Tymethes is immediately struck by the Young Queen's beauty. The Young Queen, in turn, falls in love with Tymethes at first sight. Tymethes flirts with the Young Queen by raising a toast in her honour. She refrains from returning the gesture for fear of revealing her true feelings. Tymethes toasts her again, and once again, the Young Queen declines to respond in kind. Erroneously assuming that he has been snubbed because of his lower social status, Tymethes storms off without a word. Zenarchus follows. Left alone, the Young Queen soliloquises about her love for Tymethes. She cautions herself to proceed carefully, but notes that she does not have to worry too much about the attendants who watch over her because they can be bribed with ease. The Tyrant enters, angry to find that his wife is not being watched by her attendants. After noting the importance of keeping women under strict observance, he greets his wife warmly and anticipates the sexual pleasure they will share that night. The Young Queen's attendant, Roxano, enters. The Tyrant and the Young Queen kiss and exit together. In a soliloquy brimming with sexual innuendo, Roxano says that he can tell from the Young Queen's face that she intends to deceive her husband. Noting that women desire sex above all else, he says that he would happily provide her with "service" if the chance should arise. The Young Queen enters. In an aside, she notes that her desire for Tymethes has become uncontrollable. Roxano asks the cause of her dissatisfaction. The Young Queen tells him about her infatuation. Roxano agrees to help the Young Queen arrange a rendezvous with Tymethes. The Young Queen insists that Tymethes must lie with her without knowing her true identity, a measure necessary to guard against the Tyrant's obsessive jealousy. After worrying about what might happen if her deception should be discovered, the Young Queen swoons. Roxano catches her in his arms. When she awakens, Roxano tells her that he will make all of the arrangements right away: The Young Queen will sleep with Tymethes, but Tymethes will not know her in the morning. The Young Queen thanks Roxano and gives him some gold.
Act II
Scene 1: Outside a sheepcote; a fruit tree beside a pit
In this short comic interlude, a Clown and two Shepherds lie boughs over an open pit to trap wolves. In a series of witty exchanges, the Clown says there are four types of wolves 1) court wolves (the elites), 2) country wolves (farmers), 3) city wolves (urbanites), and 4) sea wolves (sailors).
Scene 2: Outside a sheepcote; a fruit tree beside a pit