Line-by-Line Paraphrase: Aaron’s Speech from Titus Andronicus (Act 2, Scene 1)

Original: For shame, be friends, and join for that you jar:
Modern: Stop fighting and work together toward the goal you’re arguing about.

Original: ‘Tis policy and stratagem must do
Modern: You need cunning plans and clever schemes to accomplish

Original: That you affect; and so must you resolve,
Modern: what you desire; and so you must accept

Original: That what you cannot as you would achieve,
Modern: that what you can’t get the way you’d prefer,

Original: You must perforce accomplish as you may.
Modern: you must get by whatever means necessary.

Original: Take this of me: Lucrece was not more chaste
Modern: Hear me on this: the legendary Lucrece was not more virtuous

Original: Than this Lavinia, Bassianus’ love.
Modern: than this Lavinia, who loves Bassianus.

Original: A speedier course than lingering languishment
Modern: A quicker method than slow, drawn-out desire

Original: Must we pursue, and I have found the path.
Modern: is what we need to follow, and I’ve found the way.

Original: My lords, a solemn hunting is in hand;
Modern: Gentlemen, a formal hunt is about to take place;

Original: There will the lovely Roman ladies troop:
Modern: the beautiful Roman women will gather there:

Original: The forest walks are wide and spacious;
Modern: The forest paths are broad and open;

Original: And many unfrequented plots there are
Modern: and there are many isolated spots

Original: Fitted by kind for rape and villany:
Modern: naturally suited for violent assault and evil deeds:

Original: Single you thither then this dainty doe,
Modern: Separate this delicate prey from the others and lead her there,

Original: And strike her home by force, if not by words:
Modern: and attack her violently if persuasion doesn’t work:

Original: This way, or not at all, stand you in hope.
Modern: This is your only chance—it’s this method or nothing.

Original: Come, come, our empress, with her sacred wit
Modern: Come on, our empress, with her brilliant mind

Original: To villany and vengeance consecrate,
Modern: dedicated to evil and revenge,

Original: Will we acquaint with all that we intend;
Modern: we’ll inform her of everything we plan;

Original: And she shall file our engines with advice,
Modern: and she’ll sharpen our schemes with her counsel,

Original: That will not suffer you to square yourselves,
Modern: which won’t allow you to fight with each other,

Original: But to your wishes’ height advance you both.
Modern: but will help you both reach the full height of your desires.

Original: The emperor’s court is like the house of Fame,
Modern: The emperor’s palace is like a place of gossip and rumor,

Original: The palace full of tongues, of eyes, and ears:
Modern: the court is filled with people talking, watching, and listening:

Original: The woods are ruthless, dreadful, deaf, and dull;
Modern: but the woods are merciless, frightening, unhearing, and silent;

Original: There speak, and strike, brave boys, and take your turns;
Modern: there you can talk and attack, bold lads, each taking your turn;

Original: There serve your lusts, shadow’d from heaven’s eye,
Modern: there satisfy your desires, hidden from God’s sight,

Original: And revel in Lavinia’s treasury.
Modern: and take pleasure in violating Lavinia’s body.

In Act II, Scene 1 of “Titus Andronicus,” Aaron the Moor delivers a soliloquy expressing his satisfaction at the recent turn of events. He revels in the marriage between the newly crowned Emperor Saturninus and Tamora, Queen of the Goths, which has elevated Tamora to Empress of Rome. Aaron, who is Tamora’s secret lover, gloats over how fortune has smiled upon them and how he now has access to power and influence through his relationship with the Empress. He contemplates the opportunities this new position affords him to advance his own ambitious and malicious schemes.

Tamora’s sons, Demetrius and Chiron, enter quarreling violently over their lustful desire for Lavinia, who has just married Bassianus. The two brothers draw their swords on each other, each claiming he should have Lavinia for himself. Aaron intervenes to stop their fighting, mocking their foolishness and warning them that their public dispute could expose their mother’s secrets and ruin her newfound position. He then proposes a cunning plan: during the royal hunt scheduled for the following day, they can seize Lavinia in the forest and both satisfy their desires by force. The brothers enthusiastically agree to Aaron’s scheme, and the three conspirators exit to prepare for their dark plot.

Titus Andronicus opens with the Roman general Titus returning victorious from war against the Goths, bringing with him prisoners including Tamora, Queen of the Goths, and her three sons. Despite Tamora’s pleas, Titus sacrifices her eldest son Alarbus in revenge for his own sons killed in battle. The Emperor Saturninus chooses Tamora as his bride, and she secretly plots revenge against Titus. Meanwhile, Titus’s daughter Lavinia is betrothed to Bassianus, the Emperor’s brother, though Saturninus had wanted to marry her himself.

Tamora’s sons Demetrius and Chiron, aided by the villainous Aaron the Moor, murder Bassianus and brutally assault Lavinia, cutting off her hands and tongue to prevent her from identifying them. Aaron tricks two of Titus’s sons, Quintus and Martius, into falling into the pit where Bassianus’s body lies, and they are arrested for his murder. Aaron then deceives Titus into believing that if he cuts off his own hand and sends it to the Emperor, his sons will be spared. Titus complies, but receives back his severed hand along with the heads of his executed sons.

Lavinia manages to reveal her attackers’ identities by writing in the dirt with a stick held in her mouth. Titus feigns madness while plotting revenge and sends weapons with threatening messages to Tamora’s sons. When Tamora gives birth to Aaron’s child, Aaron flees with the baby but is eventually captured. In the final act, Titus kills Tamora’s sons and serves them to her baked in a pie at a banquet. He then kills Lavinia to end her suffering, murders Tamora, and is immediately killed by Saturninus. Titus’s surviving son Lucius kills Saturninus and is proclaimed the new Emperor, ordering Aaron to be buried alive and vowing to restore order to Rome.