ABSTRACT
Shakespeare writes the atrocity of his age into Venus and Adonis, however comically, and in particular the Irish wars and rebellions of the late sixteenth century, full of gashes, throat-cuttings and beheadings. Shakespeare evokes the military sense of 'breach' in these works with both personal and political significance added. In both play and poem, civilization is imperilled by the wilful abuses of the over-mighty on the defenceless, either naked Roman matron or sleeping Scottish king. The theme of the sacrificed young hero corresponds with modern historicizing interpretations of Shakespeare's Venus and Adonis, albeit the critics ignore Irish circumstances. Shakespeare writes the poem as a sobering response to the glorification of martyrdom found in the works of the Counter-Reformation, and Southampton wisely responded by avoiding the same fate. Should Shakespeare's poem, in turn, allegorize Elizabeth as Venus, then we might understand Adonis as her servitor, like Norris's sons, whose peaceful, fertile tribute is demanded by the queen.
