Today’s Totally Random Line

 

If ever I live to see it, I will challenge it.

 

King Henry

King Henry the Fifth                     Act IV, Scene i, Line 220

 

This is the scene that takes place the night before the Battle of Agincourt. King Henry is wandering about the camp disguised as a common soldier talking with the troops.

Todays’ Line is spoken to a soldier named Michael Williams. The King and Michael have gotten into an argument because the latter is disputing that the King would be willing to die with them in battle. Michael has said that the King has only said he would to make us fight cheerfully: but when our throats are cut, he may be ransom’d, and we ne’er the wiser.

By ransom’d he means that the French will take Henry captive and sell him back to British. It's what them did back then with all the high ranking soldiers. The commoners got killed in battle, whilst the officers got taken captive to be ransom’d.

That’s right, the one percenters lived and the ninety-nine percenters died. Sound familiar?

I'm not sure I like where this is going. It might be time to PULL UP!

 

 

Today’s Totally Random Line

 

‘Art thou ashamed to kiss? Then wink again,

And I will wink; so shall the day seem night;

Love keeps his revels where there are but twain;

Be bold to play, our sport is not in sight:

These blue-vein’d violets whereon we lean

Never can blab, nor know not what we mean.

 

Venus

Venus and Adonis                         Line 121

This is one verse from the poem. It’s the second page of an eleven-page poem, and Venus is trying to get some action from Adonis; trying and failing. She’s telling him that no one’s going to see them, and that the violets that they’re sitting on aren’t going to blab.

Can you believe it: Blab is a Shakespearean word? Blab? Who would’ve thunk it?  

Blab?

Yes, Mojo: Blab.

 

Today’s Totally Random Line

 

Sir, his wife, some two months since, fled from his house; her pretence is a pilgrimage to Saint Jaques le Grand; which holy undertaking, with most austere sanctimony, she accomplist; and there residing, the tenderness of her nature became as a prey to her grief; in fine, made a groan of her last breath; and now she sings in heaven.

 

First Lord

All’s Well That Ends Well             Act IV, Scene iii, Line 46

 

The first and second lord, two anonymous henchmen here, are bringing us up to date on what’s going on with the two main people of the play. Betram is working on getting into bed with some local babe (this was related earlier in the scene), whilst his wife Helena, having given up on her marriage, went on a pilgrimage and subsequently died of grief. Spoiler alert: she’s not really dead.

So, what can we say about Today’s Line? Should we talk about Will’s use of anonymous henchmen to relate off-stage happenings to keep the play flowing? He does this a lot in some of his plays. Should we spend some time with his language: became a prey to her grief. Perhaps we can discuss Will’s propensity for really long sentences: seven plus lines full of commas, and semicolons. Or is there something else. Or perhaps we don’t discuss the line at all? Thoughts?

How about turning up the damn heat, how's that for a thought, huh? 

Holey moley, I'm freezing my baguettes off here! 

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

And strange it is

That nature must compel us to lament

Our most persisted deeds.

 

Agrippa                                                               

Antony and Cleopatra                   Act V, Scene i, Line 28

 

In today’s context Agrippa is talking about the fact that they are all sad to hear that Antony has killed himself, even though he is the enemy and they are in Egypt to find Antony and defeat him. 

But, as with much of Will’s great lines, we can use this line to apply to a myriad of things in our own lives. I guess you can use this phrase to talk about bad habits; things you might do constantly even though you wish you didn’t do them. Actually, that would be a perfect use of it.

 

“I wish I weren’t such a push over. Every time someone asks me for something I say yes.”

“And strange it is that nature must compel us to lament our most persisted deeds.”

“Huh?”

 

Yeah, that would probably be the response in most cases: huh?

I don't foresee a lot of lamentation being a result of this persistent deed. Do you?

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

Did your letters pierce the queen to any demonstration of grief?

 

Earl of Kent                                                        

King Lear                      Act IV, Scene iii, Line 10

 

Kent is speaking to a messenger who had brought the former’s letter to Cordelia describing what has happened to Lear, her father, and how her sisters have mistreated him. Remember, after Lear rejected Cordelia she went and married the king of France. So, I guess that makes her a queen.

The messenger’s response, indeed this whole very short scene, is worth reading. Well, it’s Shakespeare; so what else is new. Anyway, here’s the first part of the messenger’s response to Kent. 

Ay, sir; she took them, read them in my presence;

And now and then an ample tear trill’d down

Her delicate cheek: it seem’d she was a queen

Over her passion; who, most rebel-like,

Sought to be king o’er her.

The tear was ample, it trill’d, and her cheek was delicate.

I wish I could write like that.

Your writing's pretty good, Mr. Blagys. 

Of course, it's not Shakespeare; but whose is?

Thanks Mojo.

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

Fear it not, sir: I would I were so sure

To win the king, as I am bold her honour

Will remain hers.

 

Posthumus Leonatus

Cymbeline                      Act II, Scene iv, Line 1

 

Posthumus is saying that he’s sure that his wife will be faithful to him. He’s right, but rat-fink Iachimo is going to show up in a minute and convince him otherwise.

I have to say, Will certainly uses infidelity, whether real or assumed, as a major part of the plot of so many of his plays! Off the top of my head, Othello, The Winter’s Tale, Much Ado About Nothing… well that’s all I can come up with right now. I bet, though, that if I went through the list of his plays I’d come up with a few more.

Well, if you think about it, jealousy is one of the strongest of human emotions. Interesting to think about, isn’t it? It should be love, or maybe grief, but I’m not so sure. Jealousy is very strong. I guess Will knew that. Yes sir, I would love to sit down to a dinner with this guy.

When, oh  when, is this guy going to realize that William Shakespeare died four hundred years ago, and dead people don't come to dinner. When?

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

She is young and apt:

Our own precedent passions do instruct us

What levity’s in youth.

 

Old Athenian

Timon of Athens                    Act I, Scene i, Line 136

 

I find this line easily understandable. Is that because I read a lot of Shakespeare, or is it indeed easily understandable? Either way, it’s a nice line.

Just to add some context: the Old Athenian is at Timon’s house. It so happens that one of Timon’s servants is in love with the Old Athenian’s daughter and the old man is trying to get Timon to forbid his servant from seeing the girl. Timon asks if the girl is in love with his servant, and this is the Old Athenian’s response: she’s young, and our own experience of being young tells us how irresponsible and impulsive young people are. Our own precedent passions. Such a nice phrase, precedent passions.

See, that’s what Will is all about: putting words like that together. It’s so simple, and yet, two words that say so much. Precedent passions describe the feelings we experienced when we were young that we now no longer feel, and yet still remember.

Will struck this very same note in The Tempest when Prospero was watching his daughter Miranda interacting and falling in love with Ferdinand. Prospero said,

So glad of this as they I cannot be,

Who are surprised withal; but my rejoicing

At nothing can be more.

Prospero’s saying that he can’t feel the emotions the young’ns are feeling, but he’s still happy.

So glad of this as they I cannot be is nowhere near as lovely as precedent passions, but it gets the point across.

It’s interesting to note that both Timon and Tempest were written towards the tail end of Will’s career when he himself was getting older and feeling much more like the Old Athenian, or Prospero than like a young lover.

I could go on here, about my own personal experience and the difference between youthful bliss that can only be experienced and felt by the young, and the different kind of love and happiness that comes with an older age. But I won’t.

Anyway, I really like precedent passions.

So, how can this picture possibly be relevant? Well, I'll tell you how. It's tree climbing.

Yes, tree climbing is a boy's activity, and one that an older fellow can look back on and only try to remember the joy of being up so high and looking down on everything; a joy an older guy like me can no longer experience.

Or can he?

Granted, tree climbing does not involve the same degree of passion as the precedent passion talked about in Today's Line, but I think the relevance is valid nonetheless. 

And just in case you're wondering 'Where's Mojo?', well, he's in that fenced in area below the Prius - the light brown area with the raised beds. I guess you can't actually see him, but he's there. You can't see Patrice or Walker yelling  'Get out of that tree before you fall and break your neck, you old fool!', but they're there too. 

Ahhh, tree climbing.