Emil. He call'd her, whore; a beggar, in his drink, Could not have laid such terms upon his callet 16. Iago. Why did he so? Des. I do not know; I am sure, I am none such. Iago. Do not weep, do not weep; Alas, the day! Emil. Has she forsook so many noble matches, Her father, and her country, and her friends, To be call'd-whore? would it not make one weep? Des. It is my wretched fortune. Iago. Beshrew him for it! How comes this trick upon him? Des. Nay, heaven doth know. Emil. I will be hang'd, if some eternal villain, Some busy and insinuating rogue, Some cogging cozening slave, to get some office, Have not devis'd this slander; I'll be hang'd else. Iago. Fye, there is no such man; it is impossible. Des. If any such there be, heaven pardon him! Emil. A halter pardon him! and hell gnaw his bones! Why should he call her, whore? who keeps her company? What place? what time? what form? what likeli hood? 17 : The Moor's abus'd by some most villanous knave 17, 16 A callet is a trull, a drab. The word is of great antiquity in the English language. Chaucer has it in his Remedy of Love. Harington uses it in his translation of Ariosto, 1591: And thus this old ill-favour'd spitefull callet.' In a note he says, ' Callet is a nick-name used to a woman;' and that in Irish it signifies a witch. The etymology of the word is yet to seek. 17 The quarto has, 'some outrageous knave.' 18 Some notorious knave is here used for some knave worthy to be noted, or branded to everlasting infamy. 19 It has been already observed that companion was a term of contempt. See vol. viii. p. 255, note 11. And put in every honest hand a whip, Iago. Speak within door 2o. Emil. O, fye upon him! some such squire he was, That turn'd your wit the seamy side withouto1, And made you to suspect me with the Moor. Iago. You are a fool; go to. Des. O good Iago, Good friend, go to him; for, by this light of heaven, Or that I do not yet, and ever did, And ever will, though he do shake me off But never taint my love. I cannot say, whore; 20 Do not clamour so as to be heard beyond the house.' 21 Iago, in a former scene, speaks of Roderigo as of one Whom love hath turn'd almost the wrong side outward.' 22 The quarto omits the rest of this speech. 23 Discourse of thought' is the discursive range of thought.' Pope changed it to 'discourse or thought.' I have shown in a former page that the old reading is the poet's mode of expression. So in Davies's Epigrams, 'v. In Plurimos:'— 'But since the divell brought them thus togither, The selfe same divell did them part asunder.' See Hamlet, p. 174. Steevens thought that Pope's alteration defensible, because the Liturgy mentions three modes of committing sin' in thought, word, and deed.' To do the act that might the addition earn, Not the world's mass of vanity could make me. Tago. I pray you, be content; 'tis but his humour; The business of the state does him offence, And he does chide with you 24. Des. If 'twere no other,— Iago. It is but so, I warrant you. [Trumpets. Hark, how these instruments summon to supper! And the great messengers of Venice stay 15: Go in, and weep not; all things shall be well. [Exeunt DESDEMONA and EMILIA. Enter RODERigo. How now, Roderigo? me. Rod. I do not find, that thou deal'st justly with Iago. What in the contrary? Rod. Every day thou doff'st me with some device, Iago; and rather (as it seems to me now), keep'st from me all conveniency, than suppliest me with the least advantage of hope. I will, indeed, no longer endure it: Nor am I yet persuaded, to put up in peace what already I have foolishly suffered. Iago. Will you hear me, Roderigo? Rod. 'Faith, I have heard too much; for your words and performances, are no kin together. Jago. You charge me most unjustly. Rod. With nought but truth. I have wasted myself out of my means." The jewels you have To complaine, to 24 This was the phraseology of the time. make a quarrel, to chide with one for a thing. Expostulare et queri.' Again: Is it best to chide with him or take him up for this displeasure or wrong?'-Baret. So Shakspeare's 111th Sonnet : 'O for my sake do you with fortune chide.' 25 Thus the quarto. The folio poorly reads:The messengers of Venice stay the meat.' had from me, to deliver to Desdemona, would half have corrupted a votarist: You have told me--she has received them, and returned me expectations and comforts of sudden respect and acquittance; but I find none. Iago. Well; go to; very well. Rod. Very well! go to! I cannot go to, man; nor 'tis not very well: By this hand, I say, it is very scurvy; and begin to find myself fobbed in it. Iago. Very well. Rod. I tell you, 'tis not very well. I will make myself known to Desdemona: If she will return me my jewels, I will give over my suit, and repent my unlawful solicitation; if not, assure yourself, I will seek satisfaction of you. Iago. You have said now. Rod. Ay, and I have said nothing, but what I protest intendment of doing, Tago. Why, now I see there's mettle in thee; and even, from this instant, do build on thee a better opinion than ever before. Give me thy hand, Roderigo: Thou hast taken against me a most just exception; but, yet I protest, I have dealt most directly in thy affair. Rod. It hath not appeared. Iago. I grant, indeed, it hath not appeared; and your suspicion is not without wit and judgment 27. But, Roderigo, if thou hast that within thee indeed, which I have greater reason to believe now than ever, I mean, purpose, courage, and valour,26 The folio reads acquaintance. Acquittance is requital. So in King Henry V.: 'And shall forge the office of our hand Sooner than 'quittance of desert and merit.' 27 Shakspeare knew well that most men like to be flattered on account of those endowments in which they are most deficient. Hence Iago's compliment to this snipe on his sagacity and shrewdness.'-Malone. this night show it: if thou the next night following enjoyest not Desdemona, take me from this world with treachery, and devise engines for my life 28. Rod. Well, what is it? is it within reason, and compass? Iago. Sir, there is especial commission come from Venice, to depute Cassio in Othello's place. Rod. Is that true? why, then Othello and Desdemona return again to Venice. Iago. O, no; he goes into Mauritania, and takes away with him the fair Desdemona, unless his abode be lingered here by some accident; wherein none can be so determinate, as the removing of Cassio. Rod. How do you mean-removing of him? Iago. Why, by making him uncapable of Othello's place; knocking out his brains. Rod. And that you would have me do? Iago. Ay; if you dare do yourself a profit, and a right. He sups to-night with a harlot 29, and thither will I go to him; he knows not yet of his honourable fortune: if you will watch his going thence (which I will fashion to fall out between twelve and one), you may take him at your pleasure; will be near to second your attempt, and he shall fall between us. Come, stand not amazed at it, but go along with me; I will show you such a necessity in his death, that shall think yourself bound to put it on him. It is now high suppertime, and the night grows to waste 30: about it. Rod. I will hear further reason for this. Iago. And you shall be satisfied. you [Exeunt. 28 To devise engines seems to mean to contrive instruments of torture,' &c. So in King Lear : like an engine, wrench'd my frame of nature.' 29 The folio reads a harlotry.' Shakspeare has the expression, a peevish self-will'd harlotry,' in two other plays. 30 i. e. the night is wasting apace. So in Julius Cæsar: Sir, March is wasted fourteen days.' |
