Coriolanus Lesson Plan

Why does Coriolanus become so angry about the plebeians changing their votes?

Coriolanus's outrage does not come because he's lost the office of consul (which, as students may remember, he never really wanted anyway). Rather, he is it outraged at the notion that the plebeians – whom he considers useless, ungrateful inconstant, feeble-minded, and untrustworthy – should be able to hold up the politics of the Roman Republic in this way. Indeed, Coriolanus compares the plebeians' change of votes to an act of rebellion, and warns that if the Senate continues to countenance such behavior, it will undermine the very foundations of the state.

How does Coriolanus's personality...