Mojo, The Bard, & Me

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

So great a weight in his lightness. If he fill’d

 

 

Octavius Caesar

Antony and Cleopatra       Act I, Scene iv, Line 25

Okay, so what the heck is this? This, my friend is the 37^th line of print on page 929 of my book. It is line 25, of scene four in the first act of Antony and Cleopatra.

Now, this is a perfect example of what I deal with in this Totally Random Daily Line nonsense. Today’s line has the end of one sentence and the beginning of another. The sentence ending with So great… begins on the 27^th line of print. The sentence beginning with If he filled ends on 45^th line of print. There are 18 lines in this response of Octavius to Lepidus. Those 18 lines are comprised of 3 sentences. The first is You are too indulgent. The other 2 make up the rest of the response. They are peppered with semi-colons and dashes, and they intersect on the 37^th line of print.

So, what to do? Well, first I’m going to give you background and context, and then I’m going to summarize. Then I'll give you the full passage. Finally, I’ll give you a picture that will hopefully wake you up, because you’ll definitely be asleep by the time you finish reading this.

Rome is being ruled by a triumvirate: Octavius (Caesar’s pick), Lepidus (some old dude), and Antony (smooth talker). Antony has been in Egypt for a while having a good time with Cleopatra (that’s what smooth talking can get you). Octavius and Lepidus are in Rome in this scene discussing Antony. Octavius begins by pointing out that Antony is in Alexandria whooping it up, giving no thought to these two guys back in Rome doing all the work. Lepidus points out that Antony’s got good qualities too, and Octavius responds with today’s three sentence speech. 1. You, Lepidus, give him too much credit. 2. There’s nothing wrong with having a good time, if that’s what he enjoys doing, but we can’t excuse these excesses when we’re stuck here doing all the work in his absence. 3. If he did something (I can’t figure out what) we’d call him out on it, but to do something else (I can’t figure out what), well then he deserves to be scolded as we would scold boys who act poorly when they should know better.

Yes, that’s right, I can’t figure out exactly what Octavius is saying. Get over it. 

Now, I had originally thought to give you the whole speech by Octavius here. Yes, I can hear you from here – “Don’t bother!” But now that I’ve given you (mostly) the Pete Version, well, here goes anyway. Since you know the meaning (or most of it), read the passage and see if it doesn’t make some sense for you. Go ahead, it won’t kill you.

You are too indulgent. Let us grant, it is not

Amiss to tumble on the bed of Ptolemy;

To give a kingdom for a mirth; to sit

And keep the turn of tippling with a slave;

To reel the streets and noon, and stand the buffet

With knaves that smell of sweat: say this becomes him,-

As his composure must be rare indeed

Whom these things cannot blemish,- yet must Antony

No way excuse his soils, when we do bear

So great weight in his lightness. If he fill’d

His vacancy with his voluptuousness,

Full surfeits, and the dryness of his bones,

Call on him for’t: but to confound such time,

That drums him from his sport, and speaks as loud

As his own state and ours, - ‘tis to be chid

As we rate boys, who, being mature in knowledge,

Pawn their experience to their present pleasure,

And so rebel to judgement.

 

There: three periods - three sentences. I guess it’s fair to say that the second and third sentences would qualify as run-on sentences, but who am I to question Will.

So then, anyone care to take a crack at If he fill’d….his own state and ours? No? I can’t say I blame you.

Okay, here's your wake up picture.

Awake?