Mojo, The Bard, & Me

 

Today’s Totally Random Line(s)

  

I had rather walk here, I thank you. I bruised my shin th’ other day with playing at sword and dagger with a master of fence; three veneys for a dish of stewed prunes, and , by my troth, I cannot abide the smell of hot meat since. Why do your dogs bark so? Be there bears i’ the town?

 

-Master Slender

 

The Merry Wives of Windsor                  Act I, Scene i, Line 273

 

Act I, scene i. I was able to take my time and listen to the whole scene this morning, since it is Sunday. So that's nice.

Justice Shallow, his cousin Master Slender, and Sir Hugh Evans have been discussing the viability of Anne Page as a wife for Master Slender. Now, a bit later in the scene, Slender finds himself alone with Anne outside her father’s house. She’s trying to get Slender to come in and join them all for dinner. Slender is nervous about trying to impress Anne and basically talks nonsense in his nervousness.

 Anne says, I pray you sir, walk in, trying to get Slender to come in to the house. Today’s Totally Random Line is his reply. For clarification, a master of fence is a master swordsman, and a veney is a bout. Basically, he’s telling Anne that he hurt himself fencing with a master swordsman, and that he bested the master swordsman winning a dish of stewed prunes. Now, apparently after eating the prunes, he doesn’t like the smell of meat. Then he quickly changes the topic to barking dogs and bears.

Quite the Don Juan, this fellow. Eh?

And here's a pic of me in my prime. You can tell just by looking how smooth this guy must have been. No talk of stewed prunes for him. No siree, it was pure creamed onions banter all the way.