Aufidius: The Mirror Enemy
First appears: Act 1, Scene 2
Aufidius is the Volscian general who has fought Coriolanus his whole career and never beaten him cleanly. When Coriolanus arrives in his city as an exile and offers to fight for the Volscians instead, Aufidius accepts, partly from admiration and partly from calculation.
The two men are genuinely matched. Aufidius admires Coriolanus and resents him for the same reasons. He has had dreams about fighting him. The relationship is closer to obsession than enmity.
When Coriolanus spares Rome, Aufidius uses it as the pretext to destroy him. He calls him 'boy of tears' in front of the Volscian crowd (the single insult most likely to provoke him) and gets the reaction he wants.
Key Scenes
Famous Quotes
“Name not the god, thou boy of tears!”
Tullus Aufidius — Act 5, Scene 6
Themes
Other Characters in Coriolanus
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