Marlowe Lives! death's a great disguiser              home      marliad      blog

Spear & (s)word shaking in Marlowe's Tamburlaine

©1996 Marlovian  newsletter

In the late 1580's, Christopher Marlowe's best-known play was undoubtedly Tamburlaine the Great, a magnificent drama on the order of Titus Andronicus, but better. Throughout the play occur images of pointed weapons shaking, leaves quaking. Evidence, that Marlowe had heard of "shaking a spear" before he heard of William.

Now Turks and Tartars shake their swords at thee. (1.1.16)

 

Thy words are swords. (1.1.74)

 

Lances shaking in the air . . . . (2.3.18)

 

With shivering spears enforcing thunder-claps . . . . (3.2.80)

 

Shaking their swords, their spears . . . . (4.1.26).

 

Leaves that autumn shaketh down . . . . (4.1.61). (parallel to sonnet)

 

His spear . . . [menaces] death and hell . . . . (4.1.61).

 

So shall our swords, our lances, . . .

fill all the air with fiery meteors. (4.2.52-3).

 

I long to break my spear upon his crest . . . . (4.3.46)

 

He now is seated on my horsemen's spears . . . . (5.2.51)

 

. . . Death,

sitting in scarlet on their armèd spears. (5.2.55)

 

. . . Shaking ghosts with ever-howling groans (5.2.182)

 

On horsemans' lances to be hoisted up . . . (5.2.265)

 

When all their riders charged with their quivering spears . . . (5.2.269)