Must I go show them my unbarb'd sconce? must I
With my base tongue give to my noble heart
A lie that it must bear? Well, I will do't:
-Caius Marcius Coriolanus
Coriolanus Act III, scene ii, line 109
It’s the fabulous play Coriolanus again. Fabulous, fabulous. Caius Marcius Coriolanus is in trouble with the people because he can’t help but speak his mind. And his mind tells him that the people are pretty much just worthless rabble. But his mother, friends, and advisors have talked him into going in front of the people and telling them whatever they want to hear. He has finally decided that he will go along and do this, and that’s what today’s line is. Must I with my base tongue give to my noble heart a lie that it must bear? That’s a fabulous line. I told you; it’s a fabulous play.
Anyway, it really is a conundrum for him, and it’s hard to figure out who’s right and who’s wrong. On the one hand, Caius Marcius is pretty uppity, and he feels that he’s much better than the common man. On the other hand, in many respects maybe he is. And this is the honest side of him that he displays. So that makes him not the nicest guy, but at the very least an honest guy. And now he’s going to forgo that honesty and be the man that the people want. Seems like a bit of a Kobayashi Maru, a no-win scenario, for Caius.
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