Antony and Cleopatra (1921) Yale/Notes
NOTES
I. i. 12. triple pillar of the world. A reference to the triumvirate, Octavius Cæsar, Antony, and Lepidus, then governing the Roman world. 'After the murder of Cæsar (44 B. C.) . . . Antony conceived the idea of making himself sole ruler . . . Brutus refused to surrender . . . and Antony set out to attack him in October, 44 B. C. But at this time Octavian, whom Cæsar had adopted as his son, arrived from Illyria, and claimed the inheritance of his "father." Octavian obtained the support of the Senate and . . . Antony was defeated at Mutina (43 B. C.) where he was besieging Brutus. The consuls, Aulus Hirtius and C. Vibius Pansa, however, fell in the battle, and the Senate became suspicious of Octavian, who . . . entered Rome at the head of his troops, and forced the Senate to bestow the consulship upon him. . . . Meanwhile Antony escaped . . . effected a junction with Lepidus, and marched towards Rome with a large force of infantry and cavalry. Octavian betrayed his party, and came to terms with Antony and Lepidus. The three leaders . . . adopted the title of Triumviri reipublicæ constituendæ as joint rulers. Gaul was to belong to Antony, Spain to Lepidus, and Africa, Sardinia, and Sicily to Octavian. . . . [The East was held for the Republic by Brutus and Cassius.] In the following year (42 B. C.) Antony and Octavian proceeded against the conspirators Cassius and Brutus, and by the two battles of Philippi annihilated the senatorial and republican parties. Antony proceeded to Greece, and thence to Asia Minor, to procure money for his veterans and complete the subjugation of the eastern provinces. On his passage through Cilicia in 41 B. C. he fell a victim to the charms of Cleopatra, in whose company he spent the winter in Alexandria. At length he was aroused by the Parthian invasion of Syria [by Labienus and Pacorus] and the report of an outbreak between Fulvia his wife and Lucius his brother, on the one hand, and Octavian on the other.' The Encyclopædia Britannica, 'Marcus Antonius.'
I. ii. S. d. Rannius, Lucillius. These characters take no part in the dialogue and do not appear again in the play.
I. ii. 4–6. O! that I knew this husband, which, you say, must charge his horns with garlands. The soothsayer apparently has been saying that Charmian will deceive her husband when she gets him. This, in the current Elizabethan phrase, was to make a cuckold of him, to give him invisible horns. That the horns were to be wreathed with garlands is a reflection, perhaps, upon the guile of Charmian.
I. ii. 30. Herod of Jewry. The Herod of the New Testament, with a slanting reference in the context to the Three Kings from the East and their adoration of the infant Jesus.
I. ii. 107. Labienus. Labienus, a republican general and therefore opposed to Antony (cf. I. i. 12, note), had united with Pacorus (cf. III. i. 1–5, note) and his Parthians, and had harried Syria and Asia Minor.
I. ii. 133–135. The present pleasure, By revolution lowering, does become The opposite of itself. What is pleasure (in this case the hope that Fulvia might die) revolves and becomes the opposite.
I. ii. 206. the courser's hair. It was an old belief that a hair from a horse's tail or mane when thrown into water would sometimes take life and become a worm.
I. iii. 68, 69. By the fire that quickens Nilus' slime. The reference is to the sun.
I. iii. 84, 85. How this Herculean Roman does become The carriage of his chafe. How becomingly this descendant of Hercules displays his irritation. Cleopatra is teasing Antony.
I. iii. 90, 91. O! my oblivion is a very Antony, And I am all forgotten. My memory deserts me like Antony; or, perhaps, 'I forget myself in thinking of Antony.'
I. iv. 24. foils. Many editors have substituted the word soils, with the same meaning.
I. v. 48. arm-gaunt. No very satisfactory explanation of this word has been offered. It is, perhaps, a misprint, possibly for 'rampaunt.'
II. i. 26, 27. That sleep and feeding may prorogue his honour Even till a Lethe'd dulness! That with too much sleeping and eating any thought of his honor may be deferred until it sinks into dull forgetfulness. Lethe was the river of forgetfulness.
II. ii. 7, 8. Were I the wearer of Antonius' beard, I would not shave 't to-day. I would permit Cæsar to 'beard me,' that is, to defy me, if he dared.
II. ii. 27. I should do thus. Apparently Antony either embraced, or shook hands with, Cæsar.
II. ii. 46–48. Your wife and brother Made wars upon me, and their contestation Was theme for you, you were the word of war. The passage is probably corrupt. Was theme'd for you, and Was then for you have been suggested as emendations. The context indicates that the meaning is, 'their contestation drew its cause from you; you were the excuse for their going to war.' See especially ll. 98–102 of the present scene.
II. ii. 67, 68. The third o' the world is yours, which with a snaffle You may pace easy, but not such a wife. You may control your share of the world as easily as you can pace a good horse with a snaffle bit, but not such a wife.
II. ii. 116. your considerate stone. I shall be thoughtful, but as dumb as a stone.
II. ii. 140, 141. truths would be tales Where now half tales be truths. True reports of differences between you would be regarded as tales, where now mere rumors are regarded as truth.
II. ii. 144, 145. II. ii. 144, 145. For 'tis a studied, not a present thought, By duty ruminated. For it is an idea suggested by duty and carefully considered, not a casual thought.
II. ii. 158, 159. and never Fly off our loves again. And may our loves never fly apart again.
II. ii. 213. And what they undid did. While cooling her cheeks they made them glow with apparent warmth.
II. ii. 214–218. Her gentlewomen, like the Nereides, So many mermaids, tended her i' the eyes, And made their bends adornings. Deighton paraphrases as follows:—'the mermaids (sic) waited upon her, ever observant of her wishes as shown by her looks, and lent fresh beauty to the picture by the grace with which they paid their homage.' It is possible, however, that by the phrase tended her i' the eyes Shakespeare had reference to the bow, where are the eyes, or hawse holes, for the tackle. North writes in the translation of Plutarch which Shakespeare used, 'some steering the helm, others tending the tackle and ropes of the barge.' the silken tackle Swell with the touches of those flower-soft hands. At the touch of their hands the ropes swell with delight.
II. iii. 37, 38. his quails ever Beat mine, inhoop'd, at odds. His quails, fighting within a hoop, or ring, beat mine, even when the odds are against them.
II. v. 3. let's to billiards. An anachronism. Billiards are not known to have been played in the Roman period.
II. v. 23. his sword Philippan. The sword which Antony had worn at the battle of Philippi.
II. v. 103. That art not what thou'rt sure of. The probable meaning is, 'thou art not the cause of that unwelcome information of which thou art so sure.'
II. vi. 10–14. I do not know Wherefore my father should revengers want, Having a son and friends; since Julius Cæsar, Who at Philippi the good Brutus ghosted, There saw you labouring for him. Why should my father, who has a son and friends, go unrevenged, when you labored at the battle of Philippi in the cause of the dead Julius Cæsar.
II. vi. 27. Thou dost o'er-count me of my father's house. Antony, in the days of Julius Cæsar, had professedly bought the property of Pompey senior, but actually confiscated it.
II. vii. 7, 8. As they pinch one another by the disposition. As they irritate one another by references to subjects upon which one or the other is sensitive (?).
II. vii. 13–15. I had as lief have a reed that will do me no service as a partisan I could not heave. A weapon that cannot be lifted is no more valuable than a reed. Lepidus' position does him little service since he is not great enough to fill it.
II. vii. 16–19. To be called into a huge sphere, and not to be seen to move in 't, are the holes where eyes should be, which pitifully disaster the cheeks. To occupy an important position without doing anything is as bad as an empty socket where there should be an eye.
III. i. 1–5. Now, darting Parthia, art thou struck; and now Pleas'd fortune does of Marcus Crassus' death Make me revenger. Bear the king's son's body Before our army. Thy Pacorus, Orodes, Pays this for Marcus Crassus. The Parthians, who were famed for their shooting of arrows, especially when in retreat, had defeated and slain the Roman proconsul Marcus Crassus and later under Labienus and Pacorus (cf. note on I. ii. 107) had ravaged Asia Minor and Syria. Their defeat by Ventidius, with the slaying of Pacorus, son of the king Orodes, avenged the Roman dead.
III. ii. 26, 27. as my furthest band Shall pass on thy approof. As the greatest security I can give shall be ventured on your conduct.
III. ii. 51, 52. He has a cloud in's face. Eno. He were the worse for that were he a horse. A horse without a white mark, or star, on his forehead was supposed to have a mischievous or dogged disposition. He was said to have a cloud in his face.
III. iii. 3. Herod of Jewry. Herod, king of the Jews, was presented as a fierce blusterer in the miracle plays.
III. iii. 33, 34. and her forehead As low as she would wish it. Low foreheads were not esteemed in Shakespeare's day, especially among the ladies. The words 'as low as she would wish it' are ironical.
III. iv. S. d. Athens. Antony married Octavia in 40 B. C. and took the eastern half of the Roman empire for his province. In 32 B. C. he repudiated Octavia, and in the same year war was declared by Octavius, against Cleopatra. The battle of Actium in 31 B. C. and the capture of Alexandria in 30 B. C, with the death of Antony and Cleopatra, immediately succeeded. There is, therefore, a space of about eight years between Act II, Scene 2 and Act III, Scene 4. Within this period came the agreement with Pompey, a renewal of the triumvirate, and a war with the Parthians in which Antony was unsuccessful.
III. iv. 4. made his will, and read it. This is a mistake on Shakespeare's part. It was Antony's will that Cæsar took out of custody, read publicly, and criticised.
III. v. 12, 13. so the poor third is up, till death enlarge his confine. This may be paraphrased: 'so the weak third member of the triumvirate is done for, until death set him free.'
III. vi. 6. my father's son. Octavius Cæsar was a grandnephew of Julius Cæsar, but had been adopted by him as heir. Cæsarion was son of Julius Cæsar and Cleopatra.
III. vi. 52, 53. which, left unshown, Is often left unlov'd. This may be paraphrased: 'Love, like mine, when it is not displayed, often fails to develop itself.'
III. vi. 61. Being an abstract 'tween his lust and him. That is, Octavia's departure shortened the interval between Antony and Cleopatra, the object of his lust. Theobald and other editors read 'obstruct' in the sense of 'obstruction,' but the reference seems to be to 'which' in l. 60 rather than to Octavia.
III. vii. S. d. the Promontory of Actium. Actium is on the west coast of Greece above the Peloponnesus. The Antony of history seems to have chosen to fight here by sea, either because his army was short of provisions and declining in morale, or, and more probably, because the control of the Eastern Mediterranean was essential in order to safeguard his power over Egypt, Greece, and Asia Minor.
III. vii. 5, 6. If not denounc'd against us, why should not we Be there in person? The meaning is, even if the war is not declared against us, i.e., Cleopatra, there is no reason why we should not be there in person. Historically, the war was declared against Cleopatra, not Antony.
III. vii. 25, 26. A good rebuke, Which might have well becom'd the best of men. This may be paraphrased: 'The best of men might so have rebuked me.'
III. vii. 68, 69. but his whole action grows Not in the power on 't. Perhaps this means: 'but his whole action develops not according to the power (Antony's ability and resources) on which it should be based.'
III. vii. 80, 81. With news the time's with labour, and throes forth Each minute some. This may be paraphrased: 'The time gives birth each minute to some piece of news.'
III. ix. 52–54. How I convey my shame out of thine eyes By looking back what I have left behind 'Stroy'd in dishonour. This may be paraphrased: 'How I carry my shame out of thy sight by looking back toward the career I have left behind me, now destroyed by dishonour.'
III. x. 35, 36. And what thou think'st his very action speaks In every power that moves. This may be paraphrased: 'And what thou think'st his actions themselves indicate as to his state of mind.'
III. xi. 126–128. O! that I were Upon the hill of Basan, to outroar The horned herd. An allusion (most improbable for the historical Antony) to Ps. 22. 12. There is a play upon horned as a symbol of a husband deceived by his wife.
IV. iii. 16, 17. 'Tis the god Hercules, whom Antony lov'd, Now leaves him. 'This opinion (that the Antonii were descended from Hercules) did Antonius seeke to confirme in all his doings; not onely resembling him in the liknesse of his bodie . . . but also in the wearing of his garments.' North's Plutarch.
IV. iv. 25. 'Tis well blown, lads. The reference may be either to the trumpets, or to the morning.
IV. x. 57. Alcides, thou mine ancestor. Hercules. Cf. note on IV. iii. 16, 17. For Lichas and the shirt of Nessus, see the story of Hercules.
IV. xi. 1, 2. O! he is more mad Than Telamon for his shield; the boar of Thessaly. 'That is, than Ajax Telamon for the armour of Achilles, the most valuable part of which was the shield. "The boar of Thessaly" was the boar killed by Meleager.' Steevens.
IV. xii. 48, 49. yea, very force entangles Itself with strength. Power to go on merely interferes with the strength to die.
IV. xii. 99. A nobleness in record. That is, they have gained an advantage in nobility over him in the record of great deeds. Cf. III. xi. 46, 'And earns a place i' the story.'
IV. xiii. 66. the odds is gone. 'There is now no longer any difference between youth and age, high and low, rich and poor.' Furness.
IV. xiii. 85. sirs. Sometimes used in addressing women.
V. i. 2, 3. Being so frustrate, tell him he mocks The pauses that he makes. Being so utterly defeated, he makes mockery of the time he uses for delay.
V. ii. 6–8. Which shackles accidents and bolts up change, Which sleeps and never palates more the dug, The beggar's nurse and Cæsar's. This may be paraphrased: 'Death, which prevents further accidents and stops change; death, the beggars' nurse and Cæsar's, which makes man like a babe who sleeps and cares no more for the breast of its mother.' The First Folio has dung for dug, but this his been generally though not universally emended.
V. ii. 27, 28. A conqueror that will pray in aid for kindness Where he for grace is kneel'd to. Freely paraphrased this means, 'A conqueror who, if he is asked for grace, will help you to obtain it.'
V. ii. 88–90. his delights Were dolphin-like, they show'd his back above The element they liv'd in. Apparently this means that even as the dolphin shows his back above water, so Antony's superiority was always shown in the pleasures in which he indulged.
V. ii. 97–99. nature wants stuff To vie strange forms with fancy; yet to imagine An Antony were nature's piece 'gainst fancy. Nature cannot compete with fancy in devising strange forms; yet when she imagined an Antony she presented a piece worth entering against the best that fancy could do.
V. ii. 168. Livia. Livia was wife of Octavius Cæsar. He married her in 38 B. C. Charmian's wish (I. ii. 31), that she might marry Octavius and be companioned with her mistress, came three years earlier.
V. ii. 176–178. and, when we fall, We answer others' merits, in our name, Are therefore to be pitied. If 'merits' be taken, as Dr. Johnson suggested, 'in an ill sense,' to mean 'demerits,' this passage becomes comprehensible.
V. ii. 190. he words me. The narrative in Plutarch makes it clear that Cleopatra in this scene intended to deceive Cæsar by her seeming desire to keep much of her wealth. She hoped to delude him into thinking that her purpose was no longer suicide. Plutarch says of Cæsar, 'So he tooke his leave of her, supposing he had deceived her, but indeede he was deceived himself.' There is at least an intimation that Seleucus was playing a part in collusion with Cleopatra.
V. ii. 218, 219. and I shall see Some squeaking Cleopatra boy my greatness. The reference is to the boys who took women's parts in the Elizabethan theatre. Their voices sometimes cracked.