To summarize a rather long situation, I was tricked into reading Shakespeare's Coriolanus. It was an interesting and enjoyable read. The story surrounds a rather decorated and successful general for the Roman Republic, who is eventually banished, and seeks to exact revenge on the spiteful populace of Rome.
The main theme, from what I could gather, is anger, or more specifically, anger management. If the title character could control his anger in public, he wouldn't have been in the situations he was in. Mother always said, think before you speak. However, this is not what caught my eye as I read the play.
What I thought was most compelling was the subtle manipulations that went on that ended up inciting Coriolanus to anger. Not to put too fine a point on it, but the manipulations present in Shakespeare's 17th century play are eerily similar to the manipulations that are occurring presently within the American political landscape, particularly with the Democratic Party.
The plebians' opinion on the Senate in general and Caius Marcius in specific are essentially the result of careful seeds planted and nursed by their supposed voices in the Senate: Junius Brutus and Sicinius Velutus. Their seeds include class-envy and class warfare, inciting the crowds to jealous outrage against the wealthy Senators and their motives. Had not Rome been threatened by an attack by their enemies the Volscians, it is highly likely a violent outburst would have occurred, quietly encouraged by the supposed "voice of the people". Such actions only increase the influence and authority of the two tribunes.
Within the American political landscape, we see the same thing taking place with the Democratic party. The first connection between the tribunes and the Democratic party has to do with identification. For a while now, perhaps over four decades, Democrats have branded themselves as the "voice of the poor", while calling their main opponents, Republicans, advocates for the rich. As such, like Junius and Sicinius, they play on class envy and class warfare. Consider how often we've heard the meme "make the rich pay their fair share". Prominent Democrats, like Nancy Pelosi, President Obama and DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman-Schulz gave repeated public support to the Occupy Wall Street movement, which, among other things, advocated and carried out violence against the "rich", much like Junius and Sicinius prompted and supported in Coriolanus. Further, there is the undeniable hatred that Junius and Sicinius have for Caius Marcius, who put his life on the line for Rome more that once, and begrudgingly accepted the consulship against his better judgement. Even after Marcius had won the support of the people, the two tribunes managed to trick them into thinking that he had humiliated them, and used them for his own gain. While not a perfect fit, we witnessed a similar thing with former President George W. Bush. All one needs to do is look at the way Democrats and the media (remember, well over 75% of journalists consider themselves liberal) treated President Bush--"Bushitler" comes to mind. Further, Junius and Sicinius attempted to use their manipulations to gain influence; it cannot be less obvious that certain policies (like expanding food-stamps and unemployment benefits, or not enforcing immigration laws) only serve to create support for the Democratic Party among certain demographics.
There is another angle that presents itself, when we analyze it further. In Act II, Scene I, Menenius Agrippa (a Senator who "hath always loved the people"), confronts Sicinius and Junius, essentially calling them hypocrites, for they are quick to criticize Caius Marcius for faults they all too willingly exhibit themselves (like pride). This is similar to the Democratic attacks on President Bush for his war in Iraq while failing to attach President Obama (who engaged US military forces illegally in Libya--he did not notify or explain his actions until much after the fact--and 'unilaterally' engaged in military operations in new venues, all while continuing wars he said he'd end), or Democratic attacks on Dick Cheney for "crony capitalism" on creating a energy policy that supposedly benefits his oil buddies, while being mum on President Obama for giving "stimulus" monies to "green energy" companies which happened to have wealthy Obama supporters at the helm.
Junius and Sicinius manipulated public opinion and most certainly put themselves in a more advantageous position. However, their manipulations, while certainly bringing out the downfall of their enemy, Caius Marcius, also almost completely destroyed Rome. They lied to the people they supposedly stood for, for personal gain, despite the ruin it almost caused. The modern Democratic Party, which is engaging in the same thing, should take heed. Sure, Shakespeare's play is a work of fiction, but like all of the Bard's works, Coriolanus still exhibits a deeper knowledge of the human condition: often, we will engage in behaviors that can or will ultimately lead to the suffering of many for our own selfish ends.
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