The Revenger's Tragedy Revenge Quotes

Does murder always get its comeuppance? Or do people sometimes get away with it? When the bad guys get killed in this play, is that believable?

The Duchess is not impressed—she wants revenge because the Duke won't let her son immediately off the hook for his crime. Why might this character decide on a sexual revenge (leaving behind wedlock faith or faithfulness) instead of a violent one? We're thinking her gender has something to do with it, though it's also interesting that her son's crime was sexual in nature.

Spurio complains that his father wronged him by fathering him outside of marriage (kids of unmarried parents don't inherit titles and property). He then argues that the Duke's sexual looseness encourages Spurio's own decision to get revenge by sleeping with the Duke's wife (Spurio's stepmother). This tortured logic makes a certain amount of (twisted) sense, even if the reality of it is pretty terrible to consider.

Here, Hippolito is exhorting others to vengeance against Junior. Is he justified in planning a vigilante revenge against Junior if the court doesn't sentence him? Or, to look at it differently, which should win in a fight: the law or justice?

Lussurioso and Vindice are discussing killing Piato, and Vindice seems to be savoring the irony that Lussurioso has unwittingly hired Vindice to kill himself (in his disguise as Piato). But there seems to be another irony going on here. When Vindice says, "I'll doom him [Piato]," he thinks he's being clever—but if you consider the end of the play, Vindice has totally doomed himself. If you find yourself stuck in a revenge tragedy (and we sincerely hope you don't), watch out for the irony.

Vindice is chatting with Hippolito here after being hired by Lussurioso to kill Piato (who is actually Vindice). When Hippolito says, "Brother, we lose ourselves," it's hard not to wonder if there's an ironic double layer in the phrase. Maybe they're not just losing themselves in thought, but also losing themselves in revenge. Are they still the men we met at the beginning of the play?

Hmm… Vindice seems awfully excited about killing Lussurioso. Who's in charge here, Vindice or his thirst for revenge?

One of the closing ironies of the play is that Antonio executes Vindice and Hippolito. Are they experiencing a kind of vengeance for being revengers? Antonio doesn't have a grudge against them, but he does seem to see them differently than they see themselves: as violent schemers, not morally guided avengers.

The Duke wouldn't have gotten poisoned if he hadn't kissed the skull of the woman he poisoned. Oh yes, irony will get you every time in this play.