Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

No, my good lord: myself, he, and my sister,

To-day did dine together. So befall my soul

As this is false he burdens me withal!

 

Adriana

The Comedy of Errors           Act V, Scene i, Line 209

 

Well, not an overly impressive line today. It’s all part of the mistaken identity premise which this whole play is based on, and which is about to come crashing down, here at that end of the play.

As I said, not a very exciting line. 

What'd you think Moj.....

Never mind.

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

That this foul deed shall smell above the earth

With carrion men, groaning for burial.

 

Marc Antony

Julius Caesar         Act III, Scene i, Line 274

 

Okay kids, we’ve got ourselves a humdinger this morning. I gave you the last two lines of Antony’s soliloquy, but I’m going to give you the whole darn thing in a minute. First though, a little setup.

This is the scene in the play where Brutus, Cassius, & Co, kill Caesar. “Et tu Brute?” and all that. Then Marc Antony shows up on the scene. Now Marc Antony is a very big fan of the dead guy lying on the ground. Brutus explains why they did it, and hopes that Antony will go along with them. He assures them that he will, and then as soon as they leave, he gives us this soliloquy to tell us how he really feels. Ready? If I can type the whole thing, you can read it. It’s really good. Will at his best. Ate, by the way, is the Greed Goddess of discord and revenge.

O, pardon me, thou bleeding piece of earth,

That I am meek and gentle with these butchers!

Thou art the ruins of the noblest man

That ever lived in the tide of times.

Woe to the hand that shed this costly blood!

Over thy wounds now do I prophesy,--

Which, like dumb mouths, do ope their ruby lips,

To beg the voice and utterance of my tongue,--

A curse shall light upon the limbs of men;

Domestic fury and fierce civil strife

Shall cumber all the parts of Italy;

Blood and destructions shall be so in use,

And dreadful objects so familiar,

That mothers shall but smile when they behold

Their infants quarter’d with the hands of war;

All pity choked with custom of fell deeds:

And Caesar’s spirit, ranging for revenge,

With Ate by his side come hot from hell,

Shall in these confines with a monarch’s voice

Cry ‘Havoc,’ and let slip the dogs of war;

That this foul deed shall smell above the earth

With carrion men, groaning for burial.

 

Cry ‘Havoc,’ and let slip the dogs of war. Now don’t try to tell me you’ve never heard that phrase. And now you see the proper context for it; where it comes from. That’s right, Marc Antony is out for revenge. Watch out Brutus and Cassius and the rest of you guys.

Look at this guy! Amazing!

I read him the whole thing and asked him if he could do a good let slip the dogs of war face. He suggested I use this camera angle.

I have to say, I'm intimidated. 

How about you?

 

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

What, ho! Chamberlain!

 

Gadshill

King Henry the Fourth Part I      Act II, Scene i, Line 47

 

A chamberlain is a bedchamber attendant. Gadshill is one of the n’er-do-wells that Hal hangs out with.

So, do we feel a need to discuss this line further? Not really. It should be noted, however, that it is a useful salutation. It can be used pretty much anywhere.

What, ho! Mojo!

What're you up to in your little rider basket there, buddy?

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

Speak not so grossly.  – You are all amazed:

 

Portia

The Merchant of Venice       Act V, Scene i, Line 266

 

Well, that’s not the end of the sentence, because she goes on for fourteen lines before coming to a period. No, it’s not a sonnet. She simply explains how she and Nerissa were the doctor and the clerk at the trial (everyone is amazed), and she also has good news about Antonio’s ships. Then, a few more lines down, the story ends. Everyone is happy, the couples all retire to the bedrooms, presumably Antonio is left alone with his good news, and Shylock is long forgotten.

 And that, my friends, is an Elizabethan Comedy.

"Wait a minute," you're saying, "neither of those two look like Mojo."

Well, you're right; and actually there are three. That's Bill Scrapps in the bottom right-hand corner of the picture. Luigi is the light haired guy on my lap, and that's the dark-haired lady Truffles sitting next to him. And that's a stack of Ikea boxes in front of us. 

Why this pic? Well, it is a pretty good explanation of the lack of posts lately. I was visiting Jessica and these guys at Little Broom Farm in Tennessee and helping out with some cabinet construction among other things. It was time well spent, but I'm afraid it kept me away from posting for a while. 

Anyway, I'm back to my own place now, and so back to posting. 

Amazed?

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

As certain as I know the sun is fire:

Where have you lurkt, that you made doubt of it?

 

Second Messenger

Coriolanus              Act V, Scene iv, Line 47

 

One guy is telling another guy that the Volscians and Coriolanus have been talked out of sacking the city, and the other guy asks if he’s certain about that. And this is his answer. I added the second line because where have you lurkt made me think of have you been living under a rock?

But that’s not important. What’s more germane is that I’ve got a line that I have a chance of remembering this time and it’s one that I can use a lot. A good memory aid will be to remember that it’s perfect Iambic pentameter. That will help. Am I sure?
As certain as I know the sun is fire!

Ears up! 

What's that sound?

It's your mother getting up.

Are you sure?

As certain as I know the sun is fire.

 

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

O sir, you are too sure an augurer;

That you did fear is done.

 

Dolabella

Antony and Cleopatra            Act V, Scene ii, Line 335

 

To augur is to predict future events. It’s a modern word, though not used all that much.
Dolabella sounds like a woman’s name, but it is one of Caesar’s guys and he’s speaking to Caesar. He’s referring to the fact that Antony and Cleopatra are both dead, something that apparently Caesar predicted.
There are only thirty-two lines left in the play, and it ends with some obligatory lofty words about our two dead heroes.

She shall be buried by her Antony:
No grave upon the earth shall clip in it
A pair so famous. High events as these
Strike those that make them; and their story is
No less in pity than his glory which
Brought them to be lamented. Our army shall
In solemn show attend this funeral;
And then to Rome. — Come, Dolabella, see
High order in this great solemnity.

Cut! And that’s a wrap.

Mojo likes to keep a degree of high order and great solemnity in everything he does. 

Well....almost everything.

 Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

What, what, what? Ill luck, ill luck?

Shylock

The Merchant of Venice                Act III, Scene i, Line 96

This is Shylock hearing for the first time that one of Antonio’s ships may have failed, and consequently that Antonio may not be able to pay the bond. It would appear that Shylock is pretty excited about this prospect. At least, that's a common way to interpret this scene. And this can lead us right into what could be a long and potentially contentious discussion about Shylock, his Jewishness, and what that means to this play. In fact, it is this topic which has made this play a very touchy subject and has led to it being discontinued as subject matter in many schools. 

So, is The Merchant of Venice an Anti-Semitic work? It depends on who you ask. If you ask me, the answer is no. Will's works are among the most complex bodies of literary works in existence, and much of what you see in his works goes far beyond what it appears to be. So, whilst there is no one answer to the question of whether or not it is Anti-Semitic, like much of Will's work, this play is many different things to many different people. 

But as I noted, it depends on who you ask.

He's such a contemplative little fellow. I read today's post to him, and he just looked up at me for a moment saying nothing. Then he hopped down and walked slowly over to the door and sat down there to think. And he's been sitting there contemplating the complexities of Will's works ever since.

It's either that or he's just looking for some birds to bark at.