Act II Sc. 1
“Let higher Italy,” etc.
This passage has never been understood, yet it is perhaps plain enough. By ‘higher Italy’ is meant the part more distant from France. “Will you travel higher [i.e. go further south], or return again to France,” iv. 3. In this place it is Tuscany that is termed ‘higher Italy.’ “But then up farther, and as far as Rome,” Tam. of Shrew, iv. 2, where the speaker is at Padua. By ‘bated’ is meant abated, subdued, as we abate a nuisance; ‘inherit’ is, as usual, possess; and ‘the fall of the last monarchy’ is the fallen final state of the Roman Empire, the last monarchy according to the current interpretation of the Book of Daniel. “The antique ruins of the Roman Fall.”—F. Q. i. 549. “The underseated deities that circle Saturn’s fall.”—Chap. II. xv. 208. “Redeem’d him from his fall and made him mine.”—Fletch. Kt. of Burn. Pest. iv. 3. But perhaps we should read pall, as being still more contemptuous, indicating that the symbol only and not the real power had been inherited. By ‘Those,’ etc., I think are meant the Ghibelines or Imperial party, to which Siena belonged, while Florence was usually Guelf, the side which was always taken by France, out of opposition to the German Emperor. There is, however, no mention of Guelfs or Ghibelines either in the story in the Decamerone or in the Palace of Pleasure; so that Shakespeare must have gotten his knowledge elsewhere, which is to me one proof, among many, of the extent of his reading. I regard this as the only explanation that gives sense to the passage.
“And lustrous, in a word good metals.”
“With his cicatrice, an emblem of war,”
The folio reads ‘his cicatrice with.’ As usual, Theobald made the correction.
“Pardon, my lord, for me and for my tidings.—
I’ll see thee to stand up,” etc.
This is the arrangement of the folio, which Malone altered needlessly. For ‘see’ Theobald read fee, and in the next line bought for ‘brought.’ These corrections most editors have adopted, but I see no great gain in them. I confess I do not clearly discern the meaning here of either ‘see’ or fee; and Mr. Staunton’s sue is not much better, and I suspect that the poet’s word may have been a different one, which I think I can fix on with something like certainty. He wrote then ‘I beseech thee,’ but ch being either blotted or rubbed out, the transcriber or printer read I be ‘Ile,’ the usual form of I’ll. In Ham. iii. 4, and Tim. i. 2, we have a similar effacement of two letters. “Pardon, my lord.—I pray you all, stand up” (M. N. D. iv. 1), is exactly parallel. See also Hen. VIII. v. 1.
“Quicken a rock, and make you dance canary.”
We should, I apprehend, read it for ‘you.’ There had been no allusion yet to the king.
“And write to her a love line.”
It would be better to read, with Hanmer, as I have done, ‘To write.’
“Than I dare blame my weakness....”
We thus get some appearance of sense; but I still am suspicious of ‘blame.’ Task might seem better. “I dare not task my weakness with any more.”—Othel. ii. 3. We meet, however, in the Faerie Queen with
“Ne blame your honour with so shameful vaunt
Of vile revenge,” ii. 8. 16,
where blame seems to signify blemish, or expose to blame.
“With that malignant cause.”
We might suspect ‘cause’; but it is right.
“Leave us to cure this cause. For ’tis a sore upon us.”
Cor. iii. 1.
“Humbly entreating from your royal thoughts
A modest one, to bear me back again.”
This would seem to mean that, notwithstanding her boldness, he would still continue to think her modest. It would be derogatory to Helena to read sum for ‘one.’
“When miracles have by the greatest been denied.”
Johnson saw rightly that a line had been lost after this.
“Where hope is coldest and despair most shifts.”
For ‘shifts’ Pope read sits, Theobald fits, which I think is right; fits occurs in the sense of suits in
“The humble salve which wounded bosoms fits.”
Son. cxx.
“Ne worse of worst extended
With vilest tortures let my life be ended.”
She means, be racked to death. Malone read, as I do, Nay, worst of worse. ‘Nay’ was sometimes spelt ne. “Is’t true? Ne, let him run into the war.”—Chapman, All Fools, i.
“Youth, beauty, virtue, wisdom, courage all.”
Warburton also supplied virtue, but after ‘wisdom.’ In the next scene but one, the King speaks again of her virtue.
“Ay, by my sceptre and my hopes of heaven.”
This is the correction of Thirlby; the folio has help for ‘heaven,’ regardless of rime.
“What husband in thy power I will command.”
The proper word would seem to be ‘demand’; but see on As You Like It, ii. 5.
“With any branch or image of thy state.”
For ‘image’ Warburton, whom Singer follows, read impage, while Steevens says (and, I believe, truly) there is no such word. By ‘image’ may be meant child, offspring, which is its signification in
“I have bewept a worthy husband’s death.
And liv’d by looking on his images.”
—Rich. III. ii. 2.
In the original tale she expressly excepts the children and relatives of the King.
Sc. 2
“An end, sir, to your business. Give Helen this.”
For ‘An end’ I feel almost certain we should read Attend, or possibly And now. I have, however, made no change in the text of my Edition. Some point ‘An end, sir: to your business.’
Sc. 3
“Mort de vinaigre! is not that Helena?”
“And writ as little beard.”
For ‘writ’ we should, I think, read wore or with. Mr. Dyce, however, says it was “the phraseology of Shakespeare’s time.” He should, then, have given us examples of it; for write man and such like are not such. Perhaps this and the following speeches of Lafeu should be Asides.
“Do they all deny her? An they were sons of mine,” etc.
The folio reads, “Do all they.”
“From lowest place, whence virtuous things proceed.”
So the folio reads and punctuates. The context shows that we should read when, with Thirlby. Two lines further on we have ‘additions swell’s,’ which, reading ‘swells,’ is grammatically right; but the 2nd folio read ‘addition,’ and Malone, who is usually followed, swell.
“Where dust and damn’d oblivion is the tomb.”
For ‘damn’d’ we might feel inclined to read dim, damp, or dank. “And in a dark and dankish vault,” Com. of Err. v. 1; or (as in Tr. and Cr. iii. 2) blind. The text, however, is probably right, for ‘damn’d’ often merely meant what is odious, or hateful, was to be condemned or simply was reprehensible. “Surfeits, impostumes, grief, and damn’d despair.”—Ven. and Adon. (See on Othel. i. 1.)
“My honour’s at the stake, which to defeat.”
I have read, with Theobald, defend. Farmer’s explanation of ‘defeat’ is untenable.
“Whose ceremony
Shall seem expedient on the now borne brief,
And be perform’d to-night.”
By ‘brief’ I would understand the marriage-contract; for brief is used with great latitude. So in v. 3 we have “a sweet verbal brief,” i.e. commission or address. The ‘now borne’ of the folio is, I think, now-born, i.e. which has just come into being, been made. Possibly we might read new-born, like “things new-born” (W. T. iii. 3), “new-born gauds” (Tr. and Cr. iii. 3). We have now for new (M. N. D. i. 1). I read come for ‘seem.’ (See on Macb. i. 2.)
“Than the commission of your birth and virtue give you heraldry for.”
Hanmer transposed ‘commission’ and ‘heraldry’; and most editors have followed him. They seem to be right, and I agree with them.
“What, what, what, sweetheart?”
“To the dark house and the detested wife.”
The folio reads detected; the correction is Rowe’s.
Sc. 5
“When I should take possession of the bride...
And ere I do begin.”...
For ‘And’ Mr. Collier found End in MS. in a copy of the folio.
“Than you have or will deserve at my hand.”
So the 2nd folio reads; the 1st has ‘to deserve’; and perhaps a noun may have been omitted after ‘have.’
“I think not so.—Why, do you not know him?”
Some would transfer ‘not’ to the former speech, but I think it more likely that not was omitted.
Ber. “Where are my other men?—
Hel. Monsieur, farewell.”
The folio gives all this to Helena; while Theobald, followed by the Cambridge editors, reads “Ber. Where are my other men, monsieur? Farewell.”