Mojo, The Bard, & Me

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

Camillo, sir; I spake with him; who now

Has these poor men in question. Never saw I

Wretches so quake: they kneel, they kiss the earth;

Forswear themselves as often as they speak:

Bohemia stops his ears, and threatens them

With divers death in death.

 

Lord

The Winter’s Tale          Act V, Scene i, Line 199

Let’s get a little context and a little clarity. The poor men in question that the lord is talking about are a shepherd and his son who have little to do with the plot. They just happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, and now Bohemia (that’s the king of Bohemia) apparently is planning to kill them.

Forswear is a modern word, though not that common. In this context it means that the guys in question are contradicting themselves. Divers is the old way of spelling diverse. We’re not talking about scuba divers here. They didn’t use an e on the end of diverse back when they printed this word in the early seventeenth century.

And as far as threatening them with diverse death in death? Well your guess is as good as mine on that, but whilst it’s a little confusing, it sure don’t sound good. I don’t think I’d like to be facing diverse death in death, whatever the heck it means!

No Mojo, Priscilla didn't say anything about diverse death in death; she's just trying to give you a hug.