in Octavia (Seneca's Ninth Tragedy) — Nuce, Thomas, trans.; Pseudo-Seneca
Metadata
Play
Octavia (Seneca's Ninth Tragedy)
Author
Nuce, Thomas, trans.; Pseudo-Seneca
Year (catalogued)
1566
First performance
1566
Decade
1560s
Genre
Tragedy
Play type
Closet Translation
Speech prefix(es)
Nunt.
Words
195
Characters
1076
Typicality
0.47 (cosine to cluster centroid)
TCP id
A11917
BritDrama no.
425
Cluster
Cluster 15 — Devils, vices & grotesques
Important excerpts
No keyword-matching excerpt could be extracted (the cluster label doesn't share vocabulary with this character's speech).
Full speech
The garrisons great with fury astonde again, And stirred up for Queen Octavia's sake With monstrous mischief vile, their rage to slake, They rumbling rush into the Palace far. Advance their Empress old, subvert the new: And grant his, brother's beds, as is his endue. Yea that unbridled rage in breast vprold, Sets them agog, and makes them wondrous wood. What ever image graven in marble stood, If Poppies badge it bore, or if in sighed, It tended for to show his beauty bright, Though it on heavenly altares brave did stand, They break, or pull it down, with sword or hand. Some parts with ropes sure tied, they trail the ̄ forth, Which spurned w to dirty f eat, as though nought worth With filthy stinking mire, they it all beray. And with their deeds their talk does jump agree, Which mine amazed mind, thinks true to be. For fiery flames they threat for to prepare, Wherewith to waste, the princes Palace fair, Unless, unto their furious mood he give His second wife, and with Octavia live, But he by me shall know in what hard stay The City stands: the rulers I'll obey.
Plot summary
Plot — Octavia (Seneca's Ninth Tragedy)
PLOT With her mother executed, her father murdered, and her brother poisoned, Octavia is in a perilous state. Her husband, the Emperor Nero, has had his mother Agrippina murdered; after she survived an orchestrated shipwreck, a soldier was sent to kill her more directly. Now he has got Poppaea. Octavia is timid, pregnant and wants a divorce in order to marry Poppaea and legitimate her bastard. Octavia wants to take revenge on him for her brother’s death, but her nurse advises her to become pregnant herself and produce an heir who will restore the dynasty. Recalled from exile to serve at court, Seneca laments the fortune which has put him in harm’s way. He tries to encourage Nero to rule virtuously, but Nero finds his advice tiresome and plans to expedite his marriage to Poppaea. Agrippina’s ghost curses the nuptial and predicts Nero’s death. Poppaea’s wedding night is disturbed by a nightmare in which the ghost showed her a vision of her first husband’s death at Nero’s hands. The Roman people revolt in support of Octavia, invade the palace, and destroy images of Poppaea. After putting down the rebellion, Nero orders Octavia into exile, and makes arrangements for her to be murdered on arrival. Octavia leaves Rome, knowing she is going to her death.