Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra - depressed Cleopatra discovers Antony has married Octavia

Antony and Cleopatra

Please see the bottom of this page for explanatory notes and resources.

ACT II SCENE V	Alexandria. Cleopatra's palace.
[Enter CLEOPATRA, CHARMIAN, IRAS, and ALEXAS]
CLEOPATRA	Give me some music; music, moody food
	Of us that trade in love.
Attendants	The music, ho!
[Enter MARDIAN]
CLEOPATRA	Let it alone; let's to billiards: come, Charmian.
CHARMIAN	My arm is sore; best play with Mardian.	5
CLEOPATRA	As well a woman with an eunuch play'd
	As with a woman. Come, you'll play with me, sir?
MARDIAN	As well as I can, madam.
CLEOPATRA	And when good will is show'd, though't come
	too short,	10
	The actor may plead pardon. I'll none now:
	Give me mine angle; we'll to the river: there,
	My music playing far off, I will betray
	Tawny-finn'd fishes; my bended hook shall pierce
	Their slimy jaws; and, as I draw them up,	15
	I'll think them every one an Antony,
	And say 'Ah, ha! you're caught.'
CHARMIAN	'Twas merry when
	You wager'd on your angling; when your diver
	Did hang a salt-fish on his hook, which he	20
	With fervency drew up.
CLEOPATRA	That time,--O times!--
	I laugh'd him out of patience; and that night
	I laugh'd him into patience; and next morn,
	Ere the ninth hour, I drunk him to his bed;	25
	Then put my tires and mantles on him, whilst
	I wore his sword Philippan.
[Enter a Messenger]
	O, from Italy
	Ram thou thy fruitful tidings in mine ears,
	That long time have been barren.	30
Messenger	Madam, madam,--
CLEOPATRA	Antonius dead!--If thou say so, villain,
	Thou kill'st thy mistress: but well and free,
	If thou so yield him, there is gold, and here
	My bluest veins to kiss; a hand that kings	35
	Have lipp'd, and trembled kissing.
Messenger	First, madam, he is well.
CLEOPATRA	Why, there's more gold.
	But, sirrah, mark, we use
	To say the dead are well: bring it to that,	40
	The gold I give thee will I melt and pour
	Down thy ill-uttering throat.
Messenger	Good madam, hear me.
CLEOPATRA	Well, go to, I will;
	But there's no goodness in thy face: if Antony	45
	Be free and healthful,--so tart a favour
	To trumpet such good tidings! If not well,
	Thou shouldst come like a Fury crown'd with snakes,
	Not like a formal man.
Messenger	Will't please you hear me?	50
CLEOPATRA	I have a mind to strike thee ere thou speak'st:
	Yet if thou say Antony lives, is well,
	Or friends with Caesar, or not captive to him,
	I'll set thee in a shower of gold, and hail
	Rich pearls upon thee.	55
Messenger	Madam, he's well.
CLEOPATRA	Well said.
Messenger	And friends with Caesar.
CLEOPATRA	Thou'rt an honest man.
Messenger	Caesar and he are greater friends than ever.	60
CLEOPATRA	Make thee a fortune from me.
Messenger	But yet, madam,--
CLEOPATRA	I do not like 'But yet,' it does allay
	The good precedence; fie upon 'But yet'!
	'But yet' is as a gaoler to bring forth	65
	Some monstrous malefactor. Prithee, friend,
	Pour out the pack of matter to mine ear,
	The good and bad together: he's friends with Caesar:
	In state of health thou say'st; and thou say'st free.
Messenger	Free, madam! no; I made no such report:	70
	He's bound unto Octavia.
CLEOPATRA	For what good turn?
Messenger	For the best turn i' the bed.
CLEOPATRA	I am pale, Charmian.
Messenger	Madam, he's married to Octavia.	75
CLEOPATRA	The most infectious pestilence upon thee!
[Strikes him down]
Messenger	Good madam, patience.
CLEOPATRA	What say you? Hence,
[Strikes him again]
	Horrible villain! or I'll spurn thine eyes
	Like balls before me; I'll unhair thy head:	80
[She hales him up and down]
	Thou shalt be whipp'd with wire, and stew'd in brine,
	Smarting in lingering pickle.
Messenger	Gracious madam,
	I that do bring the news made not the match.
CLEOPATRA	Say 'tis not so, a province I will give thee,	85
	And make thy fortunes proud: the blow thou hadst
	Shall make thy peace for moving me to rage;
	And I will boot thee with what gift beside
	Thy modesty can beg.
Messenger	He's married, madam.	90
CLEOPATRA	Rogue, thou hast lived too long.
[Draws a knife]
Messenger	Nay, then I'll run.
	What mean you, madam? I have made no fault.
[Exit]
CHARMIAN	Good madam, keep yourself within yourself:
	The man is innocent.	95
CLEOPATRA	Some innocents 'scape not the thunderbolt.
	Melt Egypt into Nile! and kindly creatures
	Turn all to serpents! Call the slave again:
	Though I am mad, I will not bite him: call.
CHARMIAN	He is afeard to come.	100
CLEOPATRA	I will not hurt him.
[Exit CHARMIAN]
	These hands do lack nobility, that they strike
	A meaner than myself; since I myself
	Have given myself the cause.
[Re-enter CHARMIAN and Messenger]
	Come hither, sir.	105
	Though it be honest, it is never good
	To bring bad news: give to a gracious message.
	An host of tongues; but let ill tidings tell
	Themselves when they be felt.
Messenger	I have done my duty.	110
CLEOPATRA	Is he married?
	I cannot hate thee worser than I do,
	If thou again say 'Yes.'
Messenger	He's married, madam.
CLEOPATRA	The gods confound thee! dost thou hold there still?	115
Messenger	Should I lie, madam?
CLEOPATRA	O, I would thou didst,
	So half my Egypt were submerged and made
	A cistern for scaled snakes! Go, get thee hence:
	Hadst thou Narcissus in thy face, to me	120
	Thou wouldst appear most ugly. He is married?
Messenger	I crave your highness' pardon.
CLEOPATRA	He is married?
Messenger	Take no offence that I would not offend you:
	To punish me for what you make me do.	125
	Seems much unequal: he's married to Octavia.
CLEOPATRA	O, that his fault should make a knave of thee,
	That art not what thou'rt sure of! Get thee hence:
	The merchandise which thou hast brought from Rome
	Are all too dear for me: lie they upon thy hand,	130
	And be undone by 'em!
[Exit Messenger]
CHARMIAN	Good your highness, patience.
CLEOPATRA	In praising Antony, I have dispraised Caesar.
CHARMIAN	Many times, madam.
CLEOPATRA	I am paid for't now.	135
	Lead me from hence:
	I faint: O Iras, Charmian! 'tis no matter.
	Go to the fellow, good Alexas; bid him
	Report the feature of Octavia, her years,
	Her inclination, let him not leave out	140
	The colour of her hair: bring me word quickly.
[Exit ALEXAS]
	Let him for ever go:--let him not--Charmian,
	Though he be painted one way like a Gorgon,
	The other way's a Mars. Bid you Alexas
[To MARDIAN]
	Bring me word how tall she is. Pity me, Charmian,	145
	But do not speak to me. Lead me to my chamber.
[Exeunt]

Antony and Cleopatra, Act 2, Scene 6
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Explanatory Notes for Act 2, Scene 5
From Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra. Ed. M. Eaton. Boston: Educational Publishing Company.
(Line numbers have been altered.)
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1. Moody. Grave, melancholy.

4. Billiards. An English, not an Egyptian, game.

10. Short. Though the result is not a success.

12. Angle. Fishing rod.

14. Tawny. Yellow.

20. Salt-fish. See previous note.

21. Fervency. Eagerness.

25. Ninth. Nine o'clock.

26. Tires. Head-dresses.

27. Philippan. The sword was so named because Antony won the battle of Philippi, his greatest victory. It was an English, not a Roman custom, to name swords for a great victory.

34. Yield. Report.

39. Use. Are accustomed to say.

36. Go to. Here in the sense of "go on."

46. Tart a favor. So gloomy an expression.

49. Formal. Ordinary; not in the form of a man.

63. Precedence. What has gone before.

67. Pack. That is, the whole cpntents of your bundle of news.

80. Unhair. Tear out every hair.

82. Lingering. That is, you shall linger in pickle.

88. Boot. Give you to boot, give you in addition.

89. Modesty. Moderation.

93. Made. Committed.

94. Within yourself. Do you get beside yourself; control yourself.

98. All. That is, all kindly creatures.

102. Nobility. That is, it is beneath their dignity to strike a menial.

112. Worser. Shakespeare often uses this form of the comparative.

115. Hold. Stick to your word.

120. Narcissus. That is, the beauty of Narcissus, the son of Cephissus, a river god. He Was so beautiful that the nymph Echo pined away and died for love of him.

121. Ugly. On account of your news.

126. Unequal. Very unfair.

127. That art not what thou'rt sure of. This is the reading of the folios and seems to mean: You are only the messenger, not the evil message itself of which you are so sure. Some editors change the line to read thus:

"That art not; what? thou'rt sure of it?" etc.

129. Merchandise. Goods. The word is treated here as plural.

130. Hand, That is, you must be responsible for them.

139. Feature. Personal appearance.

140. Inclination. Disposition.

143. Gorgon. Medusa, a fabulous monster, who turned everyone to stone who looked upon her. The meaning is that he resembles one of the 'double" pictures formerly in vogue, which represented one subject on the front and another on the back. On one side he is as ugly as a Gorgon, on the other as splendid as Mars.

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How to cite the explanatory notes:
Shakespeare, William. Antony and Cleopatra. Ed. M. Eaton. Boston: Educational Publishing Company, 1908. Shakespeare Online. 20 Feb. 2010. (date when you accessed the information) < http://www.shakespeare-online.com/plays/antony_2_5.html >.

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