{"id":196,"date":"2019-05-15T13:22:25","date_gmt":"2019-05-15T13:22:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/provincialenglish\/chapter\/twelfth-night-act-4\/"},"modified":"2019-08-28T19:22:23","modified_gmt":"2019-08-28T19:22:23","slug":"twelfth-night-act-4","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/provincialenglish\/chapter\/twelfth-night-act-4\/","title":{"raw":"Twelfth Night: Act 4","rendered":"Twelfth Night: Act 4"},"content":{"raw":"Twelfth Night<\/em> (Modern). Internet Shakespeare Editions<\/a>. University of Victoria. Editors: David Carnegie and Mark Houlahan.\n

Scene 1<\/h1>\nEnter Sebastian and Clown [following].<\/em>[footnote]Sebastian, sightseeing as arranged at 3.3, enters trying to get clear of the Clown, who has evidently been dogging him for some time.[\/footnote]\n\nClown<\/strong>\n1920<\/sub>Will you make me believe that I am not sent for you?\n\nSebastian<\/strong>\nGo to, go to, thou art a foolish fellow,\nLet me be clear of thee.\n\nClown<\/strong>\nWell held out[footnote]Kept up.[\/footnote] i'faith! No, I do not know you, nor I am not sent to you by my\n1925<\/sub>lady, to bid you come speak with her; nor your name is not Master Cesario;\nnor this is not my nose neither. Nothing that is so, is so.\n\nSebastian<\/strong>\nI prithee vent[footnote]Give vent to, let out. The Clown pretends that Sebastian is using this ordinary word affectedly to mean \"utter forth\" (a use becoming popular about this time). Compare his mockery of \"element\" at TLN 1269-1270. Possibly also a farting joke.[\/footnote] thy folly somewhere else,\nThou know'st not me.\n\nClown<\/strong>\n1930<\/sub>Vent my folly! [To the audience]<\/em> He has heard that word of some great man,\nand now applies it to a fool. Vent my folly! I am afraid this great lubber the\nworld will prove a cockney.[footnote]i.e. I fear the great clumsy world will turn out to be an affected townsman. Originally \"cockney\" meant \"nestle-cock, mother's pet,\" was then applied disparagingly to adults spoiled in their upbringing, and by transference to townspeople with no country skills. \"Londoners . . . are in reproach called Cockneys, and eaters of buttered toasts\" (Fynes Moryson, An Itinerary<\/i>, 1617).[\/footnote] [To Sebastian]<\/em> I prithee now, ungird thy\nstrangeness,[footnote]i.e. stop pretending you don't know me (literally, \"unbelt your aloofness\"). The Clown is adopting in mockery the affected speech of which he accuses Sebastian.[\/footnote] and tell me what I shall vent to my lady. Shall I vent to her that\nthou art coming?\n\n1935<\/sub>Sebastian<\/strong>\nI prithee, foolish Greek,[footnote]A \"merry Greek\" was a familiar term for a roisterer, a cheerful joker. The term is possibly a corruption of \"grig\" = grasshopper or cricket: \"merry as a cricket.\"[\/footnote] depart from me. [Giving a coin]<\/em>\nThere's money for thee; If you tarry longer,\n[Threatening a blow]<\/em> I shall give worse payment.[footnote]Blows.[\/footnote]\n\nClown<\/strong>\nBy my troth, thou hast an open hand.[footnote]Generous (with money, and the threat of blows).[\/footnote] [To the audience]<\/em> These wise men that\n1940<\/sub>give fools money get themselves a good report--after fourteen years'\npurchase![footnote]At the rate of calculation of the purchase price as fourteen years' rent, an inflated price since twelve year's rent was the usual market value (\"purchase\"). A good reputation with fools is worthless anyway.[\/footnote]\nEnter Sir Andrew, Sir Toby, and Fabian.<\/em>\n\nSir Andrew<\/strong>\nNow, sir, have I met you again? There's for you!\n[He strikes Sebastian.]<\/em>\n\nSebastian<\/strong>\nWhy, there's for thee, and there, and there!\n[He beats Sir Andrew with the handle of his dagger.]<\/em>[footnote]Compare Rom<\/i>. TLN 2695-2696, \"Then will I lay the serving-creature's dagger on your pate.\"[\/footnote]\n[To the audience]<\/em> Are all the people mad?\n\n1945<\/sub>Sir Toby<\/strong>\n[Seizing Sebastian]<\/em> Hold, sir, or I'll throw your dagger o'er the house.\n\nClown<\/strong>\n[To the audience]<\/em> This will I tell my lady straight;[footnote]Immediately.[\/footnote] [To them]<\/em> I would not be\nin some of your coats for twopence.\n[Exit.]<\/em>\n\nSir Toby<\/strong>\nCome on, sir, hold!\n\nSir Andrew<\/strong>\n1950<\/sub>Nay, let him alone. I'll go another way to work[footnote]I'll use a different route for my purpose (proverbial).[\/footnote] with him: I'll have an action\nof battery[footnote]Lawsuit for assault (which Sir Andrew goes on to admit has no basis in law).[\/footnote] against him, if there be any law in Illyria. Though I struck him\nfirst, yet it's no matter for that.\n\nSebastian<\/strong>\n[To Sir Toby]<\/em> Let go thy hand!\n\nSir Toby<\/strong>\n1955<\/sub>Come, sir, I will not let you go. Come, my young soldier, put up your iron.[footnote]Dagger. Compare Rom<\/i>. TLN 2702-2703, \"I will dry-beat you with an iron wit, and put up my iron dagger.\"[\/footnote]\nYou are well fleshed.[footnote]Blooded, initiated into fighting.[\/footnote] Come on!\n\nSebastian<\/strong>\nI will be free from thee. [He breaks free and draws his sword.]<\/em> What\nwouldst thou now?\nIf thou dar'st tempt[footnote](a) test, (b) incite.[\/footnote] me further, draw thy sword.\n\nSir Toby<\/strong>\n1960<\/sub>[Drawing]<\/em> What, what! Nay then, I must have an ounce or two of this\nmalapert[footnote]Impudent.[\/footnote] blood from you.\nEnter Olivia.<\/em>[footnote]She may, possibly like Antonio with Viola in 3.4, throw herself between the combatants (so Nunn film).[\/footnote]\n\nOlivia<\/strong>\nHold, Toby! On thy life I charge thee, hold!\n\nSir Toby<\/strong>\nMadam.[footnote]Many options are open to the actor of Sir Toby in how to play this single word.[\/footnote]\n\nOlivia<\/strong>\nWill it be ever thus? Ungracious wretch,\n1965<\/sub>Fit for the mountains and the barbarous caves,\nWhere manners ne'er were preached! Out of my sight!\n[To Sebastian]<\/em> Be not offended, dear Cesario.\n[To Sir Toby]<\/em> Rudesby,[footnote]Ruffian. Presumably they are amazed at Olivia's open display of affection for \"Cesario.\" Compare Shr<\/i>. TLN 1398, \"a mad-brain rudesby full of spleen.\"[\/footnote] be gone! [Exeunt Sir Toby, Sir Andrew and Fabian.]\n[To Sebastian]<\/em> I prithee, gentle friend,\nLet thy fair wisdom, not thy passion, sway[footnote]Rule, bear sway.[\/footnote]\n1970<\/sub>In this uncivil[footnote]Barbarous.[\/footnote] and unjust extent[footnote]Assault (a legal term used here in a generalized sense).[\/footnote]\nAgainst thy peace. Go with me to my house,\nAnd hear thou there how many fruitless pranks\nThis ruffian hath botched up,[footnote]Patched together (compare TLN 338-339).[\/footnote] that thou thereby\nMayst smile at this. Thou shalt not choose but go;\n1975<\/sub>Do not deny.[footnote]Olivia may have taken \"Cesario\"s\" dazed failure to reply as a further refusal.[\/footnote] Beshrew his soul for me,[footnote]My curse upon him.[\/footnote]\nHe started one poor heart[footnote](a) startled my heart, (b) roused from cover (a hunting term) a hart (deer; compare TLN 26).[\/footnote] of mine in thee.[footnote]She has given her heart to \"Cesario,\" hence Sir Toby's attack was as if on her. Olivia has used the intimate singular form \"thee\" throughout, which will further bewilder Sebastian. [\/footnote]\n\nSebastian<\/strong>\n[To the audience]<\/em> What relish[footnote]Taste (hence, \"How do I identify what is going on?\")[\/footnote] is in this? How runs the stream?\nOr I am mad, or[footnote]Either . . . or. Compare another accidental lover, in Err<\/i>. TLN 609, \"Sleeping or waking, mad or well advised?\"[\/footnote] else this is a dream.\nLet fancy still my sense in Lethe steep;[footnote]Let imagination continue to drown my rationality in the river of forgetfulness.[\/footnote]\n1980<\/sub>If it be thus to dream, still let me sleep!\n\nOlivia<\/strong>\nNay, come, I prithee; would thou'dst be ruled[footnote]i.e. if only you would do as I wish. Sebastian's agreement in the next line is an astonishing reversal of Olivia's despair.[\/footnote] by me!\n\nSebastian<\/strong>\nMadam, I will.\n\nOlivia<\/strong>\nO say so, and so be[footnote]i.e. \"ruled by me\".[\/footnote]. Exeunt.<\/em>\n

Scene 2<\/h1>\n1985<\/sub>Enter Maria [carrying a minister's gown and a false beard,] and Clown.<\/em>\n\nMaria<\/strong>\nNay, I prithee put on this gown, and this beard;[footnote]False beards were standard in the theatre; compare MND<\/i> TLN 354-356, \"your straw-color beard, your orange-tawny beard, your purple-in-grain beard, or your French-crown-color beard.\"[\/footnote] make him believe thou art\nSir Topaz[footnote]Although Chaucer and others had comic knights of this name, here he is a priest (for the use of \"sir,\" see note to TLN 1789). Precious stones were thought to be curative, the topaz of lunacy.[\/footnote] the curate.[footnote]Probably (a) parish priest; just possibly (b) assistant curate (a minister appointed on a low salary to act for a non-resident or incapacitated priest).[\/footnote] Do it quickly.[footnote]This, like \"Nay, I prithee,\" implies some reluctance on the part of the Clown; Maria is again the organiser.[\/footnote] I'll call Sir Toby the whilst.[footnote]In the meantime.[\/footnote]\n[Exit.]<\/em>\n\nClown<\/strong>\n1990<\/sub>[To the audience]<\/em> Well, I'll put it on, and I will dissemble myself[footnote](a) disguise myself, (b) act hypocritically. The Clown's adoption of disguise here is a thematic reminder of Viola's (compare TLN 683), and of the multitude of mistakings in the play. [\/footnote] in't, and I\nwould I were the first that ever dissembled in such a gown.[footnote]A minister's gown; but, if Maria has not provided the legally-required white surplice, possibly alluding to the black Geneva gown of the puritan clergy. Compare AWW<\/i> TLN 414-416, \"though honesty be no puritan . . . it will wear the surplice of humility over the black gown of a big [i.e. proud] heart.\"[\/footnote] I am not tall[footnote]Possibly \"handsome,\" but more likely referring to a gown that is comically large for Armin. See also next note. Robert Armin, for whom Shakespeare presumably wrote the role, was apparently small, even \"dwarfish\" (David Wiles, Shakespeare's Clown<\/i> [Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987], p. 136\u2013163, esp. 148).[\/footnote]\nenough to become the function well, nor lean enough to be thought a good\nstudent;[footnote]Divinity scholars (like other students) were regarded as prone to weight loss and melancholy. Robert Armin is thought to have been small, although the line seems to depend on a plump actor for part of its point.[\/footnote] but to be said[footnote]Spoken of as.[\/footnote] an honest[footnote]Honorable.[\/footnote] man and a good housekeeper[footnote]Generous host.[\/footnote] goes as fairly\n1995<\/sub>as to say a careful[footnote]Either (a) careworn (from study), or (b) conscientious.[\/footnote] man and a great scholar.\nEnter Sir Toby [and Maria].<\/em>\n1995.1<\/sub>The competitors[footnote]Confederates, partners.[\/footnote] enter.\n\nSir Toby<\/strong>\nJove[footnote]Possibly Sir Toby substitutes a pagan \"God\" as a comment on the substitute parson.[\/footnote] bless thee, Master Parson.\n\nClown<\/strong>\nBonos dies,<\/em>[footnote]Good day (bad Latin for bonus dies<\/i>). The Clown\"s bad Latin may be inadvertent, or a satire on the curate, or reflecting the Spanish buenos d\u00edas<\/i>. He almost certainly speaks now in the mock-clerical voice of Sir Topaz.[\/footnote] Sir Toby: for as the old hermit of Prague,[footnote]As at TLN 329, an invented mock-authority.[\/footnote] that never saw pen and\n2000<\/sub>ink,[footnote]i.e. was illiterate.[\/footnote] very wittily said to a niece of King Gorboduc,[footnote]A legendary British king, subject of the earliest English tragedy in blank verse (perf. 1562). His unknown niece knitted bedsocks for the hermit of Prague.[\/footnote] \"That that is, is\";[footnote]Mock-learning from the mock-authority.[\/footnote] so I,\nbeing Master Parson, am Master Parson; for what is \"that\" but \"that,\" and\n\"is\" but \"is\"?\n\nSir Toby<\/strong>\nTo him, Sir Topaz!\n\nClown<\/strong>\n[In the voice of Sir Topaz]<\/em> What ho, I say. Peace in this prison.[footnote]n the Elizabethan Book of Common Prayer<\/i> (1559), \"the Priest entering into the sick person's house, shall say 'Peace be in this house'.\"[\/footnote]\n\nSir Toby<\/strong>\n[To the audience or Maria]<\/em> The knave counterfeits well: a good knave.\n2005<\/sub>Malvolio within.<\/em>[footnote]Malvolio is heard but not seen. The Folio stage direction at TLN 2005 says \"Malvolio within<\/i>,\" and there is no direction for him to enter later in the scene, or ever be seen at all. On the Elizabethan stage he could have been behind a stage door or, more likely, behind an arras at the back of the stage. The visual focus would therefore have been on the disguised Clown's apparently improvised comic teasing of Malvolio. Maria's comment to the Clown that \"Thou might'st have done this without thy beard and gown, he sees thee not\" (TLN 2049\u20132050) only makes sense if Malvolio is off-stage. Since the nineteenth century, however, it has been increasingly common to allow the audience to see Malvolio, or at least to see hands emerging from a trap door or through bars. The more of Malvolio they see, the more likely they are to feel sorry for him. Carried to an extreme, the character can be seen as tragic, as in Henry Irving's famous 1884 production in which he split the stage in half, as in the 1709 illustration (not based on performance) from Rowe below. (See David Carnegie, \"'Maluolio within<\/i>': Performance Perspectives on the Dark House,\" Shakespeare Quarterly<\/i> 52 [2001], pp. 393\u2013414.)[\/footnote]\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> Who calls there?\n\nClown<\/strong>\nSir Topaz the curate, who comes to visit Malvolio the lunatic.\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n2010<\/sub>[Within]<\/em> Sir Topaz, Sir Topaz, good Sir Topaz, go to my lady.\n\nClown<\/strong>\nOut, hyperbolical fiend![footnote]Fie, excessive devil (hyperbole, in rhetoric, is immoderate exaggeration of language). The Clown addresses the evil spirit which he pretends has taken possession of Malvolio (compare TLN 1614).[\/footnote] How vexest thou this man! Talkest thou nothing but\nof ladies?\n\nSir Toby<\/strong>\n[Aside to Clown]<\/em> Well said, Master Parson!\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n2015<\/sub>[Within]<\/em> Sir Topaz, never was man thus wronged. Good Sir Topaz, do not\nthink I am mad: they have laid me here in hideous darkness.\n\nClown<\/strong>\nFie, thou dishonest[footnote]Dishonorable.[\/footnote] Satan! I call thee by the most modest[footnote]Moderate.[\/footnote] terms-- [Including\nthe audience]<\/em> for I am one of those gentle[footnote]Courteous, well-bred.[\/footnote] ones that will use the devil\n2020<\/sub>himself with courtesy--say'st thou that house is dark?[footnote]i.e. room is dark. Compare AYL<\/i> TLN 1580-1581, \"Love . . . deserves as well a dark house and a whip as madmen do.\"[\/footnote]\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> As hell, Sir Topaz.\n\nClown<\/strong>\nWhy, it hath bay windows transparent as barricadoes,[footnote]Barricades (i.e. solid, like \"ebony\" in the next line). \"His joke is of the 'clear as mud' type\" (Penguin), but in a hyperbolically inflated version of learned language.[\/footnote] and the clerestories[footnote]Upper windows (especially in a church). Pronounced \"clear-stories.\"[\/footnote]\ntoward the south-north are as lustrous as ebony; and yet complainest thou of\n2025<\/sub>obstruction?[footnote]Blocking out (of light).[\/footnote]\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> I am not mad, Sir Topaz; I say to you this house is dark.\n\nClown<\/strong>\nMadman, thou errest. I say there is no darkness but ignorance, in which thou\n2030<\/sub>art more puzzled[footnote]Confused.[\/footnote] than the Egyptians in their fog.[footnote]One of the biblical plagues of Egypt was \"thick\" darkness \"that may be felt\" (Exodus 10: 21-3).[\/footnote]\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> I say this house is as dark as ignorance, though ignorance were as\ndark as hell; and I say there was never man thus abused.[footnote]Ill-used, wronged.[\/footnote] I am no more mad\nthan you are. Make the trial of it in any constant question.[footnote]Consistent interrogation.[\/footnote]\n\n2035<\/sub>Clown<\/strong>\nWhat is the opinion of Pythagoras[footnote]A classical philosopher whose belief in the kinship of all living beings led to the frequently-mocked doctrine that the soul could migrate between humans and animals. Compare AYL<\/i> TLN 1373-1374, \"I was never so berhymed since Pythogoras' time, that I was an Irish rat, which I hardly can remember.\" For the thematic significance of transmigration of souls[\/footnote] concerning wildfowl?\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> That the soul of our grandam might haply[footnote]Perhaps.[\/footnote] inhabit a bird.\n\nClown<\/strong>\nWhat think'st thou of his opinion?\n\n2040<\/sub>Malvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> I think nobly of the soul, and no way approve his opinion.\n\nClown<\/strong>\nFare thee well. Remain thou still in darkness.[footnote](a) without light, (b) theological ignorance.[\/footnote] Thou shalt hold th'opinion of\nPythagoras ere I will allow of thy wits,[footnote]Accept that you are sane.[\/footnote] and fear to kill a woodcock[footnote]Proverbial for stupidity; compare TLN 1097.[\/footnote] lest thou\n2045<\/sub>dispossess the soul of thy grandam. [Moving away]<\/em> Fare thee well.\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> Sir Topaz, Sir Topaz!\n\nSir Toby<\/strong>\nMy most exquisite Sir Topaz!\n\nClown<\/strong>\nNay, I am for all waters.[footnote]Versatile. The origin of the phrase is uncertain, perhaps based on the proverb \"to have a cloak for all waters\" (prepared for any weather). The Clown may also pun on \"water\" as a measure of the luster of jewels (here, the \"Topaz\").[\/footnote]\n\nMaria<\/strong>\n2050<\/sub>Thou mightst have done this without thy beard and gown;[footnote]The Clown probably removes the disguise now, relying on changes of voice to bamboozle Malvolio for the rest of the scene.[\/footnote] he sees thee not.\n\nSir Toby<\/strong>\n[To Clown]<\/em> To him in thine own voice, and bring me word how thou find'st\nhim. I would we were well rid of this knavery. If he may be conveniently\n2055<\/sub>delivered,[footnote]Set free without trouble.[\/footnote] I would he were, for I am now so far in offence with my niece,\nthat I cannot pursue with any safety this sport to the upshot.[footnote]To its conclusion (archery term from the final shot in a match).[\/footnote] Come by and by\nto my chamber.[footnote]Since the dramatic purpose of this speech is to set in motion the release of Malvolio, it is probably all be spoken to the Clown. The sentence about Olivia's attitude could equally be to Maria; but \"Come . . . to my chamber,\" which some productions have played as an invitation to Maria to the hurried marriage (see TLN 2535), or even to immediate sex, is a further request that the Clown \"bring . . . word.\"[\/footnote]\nExit [Sir Toby][with Maria].<\/em>\n\nClown<\/strong>\n[Singing]<\/em>\nHey Robin,[footnote]The Clown allows Malvolio to identify him by singing, in further mockery, a dialogue song about a lover who has lost to a rival (i.e. Malvolio to Cesario in the affections of Olivia).[\/footnote] jolly Robin,\nTell me how thy lady does.\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> Fool!\n\n2060<\/sub>Clown<\/strong>\nMy lady is unkind, perdie.[footnote]By God (from French par Dieu<\/i>).[\/footnote]\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> Fool!\n\nClown<\/strong>\nAlas, why is she so?\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> Fool, I say!\n\nClown<\/strong>\nShe loves another--\nWho calls, ha?\n\n2065<\/sub>Malvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> Good fool, as ever thou wilt deserve well at my hand, help me to a\ncandle, and pen, ink, and paper. As I am a gentleman, I will live to be\nthankful to thee for't.\n\nClown<\/strong>\nMaster Malvolio?\n\n2070<\/sub>Malvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> Ay, good fool.\n\nClown<\/strong>\nAlas, sir, how fell you besides[footnote]Out of. Compare Sonnet 23: \"As an unperfect actor on the stage, \/ Who with his fear is put besides his part.\"[\/footnote] your five wits?[footnote]Mind (sometimes identified as common wit, imagination, fantasy, estimation, and memory).[\/footnote]\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> Fool, there was never man so notoriously[footnote]i.e. scandalously. The word will be repeated by both Malvolio and Olivia in 5.1, so it may be a Malvolioism.[\/footnote] abused. I am as well in\nmy wits, fool, as thou art.\n\nClown<\/strong>\n2075<\/sub>But as well? Then you are mad indeed, if you be no better in your wits than\na fool.\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> They have here propertied[footnote]i.e. treated like a chattel (or perhaps like a stage \"prop\").[\/footnote] me: keep me in darkness, send ministers\nto me, asses, and do all they can to face[footnote]Brazenly bully.[\/footnote] me out of my wits.\n\nClown<\/strong>\n2080<\/sub>Advise you[footnote]Be careful[\/footnote] what you say, the minister is here. [Speaking as Sir Topaz]\n<\/em>Malvolio, Malvolio, thy wits the heavens restore. Endeavour thyself[footnote]Exert yourself in attempting (i.e. strain to relax).[\/footnote] to\nsleep, and leave thy vain bibble babble.[footnote]Senseless babbling.[\/footnote]\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> Sir Topaz!\n\nClown<\/strong>\n2085<\/sub>[As Sir Topaz]<\/em> Maintain no words with him, good fellow. [Speaking as\nhimself]<\/em> Who I, sir? Not I, sir! God buy you,[footnote]God be with you (modern \"goodbye\").[\/footnote] good Sir Topaz. [As Sir Topaz]\n<\/em>Marry, amen. [As himself]<\/em> I will, sir,[footnote]Perhaps spoken after a pause, as if Sir Topaz had whispered further instructions.[\/footnote] I will.\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> Fool! Fool! Fool, I say![footnote]Probably an increasingly frantic stage whisper, since Malvolio will try to avoid being heard by Sir Topaz.[\/footnote]\n\nClown<\/strong>\nAlas, sir, be patient. What say you, sir? I am shent[footnote]Rebuked.[\/footnote] for speaking to you.\n\n2090<\/sub>Malvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> Good fool, help me to some light, and some paper; I tell thee I am\nas well in my wits as any man in Illyria.\n\nClown<\/strong>\nWell-a-day[footnote]Alas, I wish that.[\/footnote] that you were, sir.\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n2095<\/sub>[Within]<\/em> By this hand,[footnote]A conventional oath (which Malvolio used at TLN 818-819), so there is no need for his hand to be seen, although in modern productions it often is.[\/footnote] I am! Good fool, some ink, paper, and light; and\nconvey what I will set down to my lady. It shall advantage thee more than\never the bearing of letter did.\n\nClown<\/strong>\nI will help you to't. But tell me true, are you not mad indeed,[footnote]Truly mad.[\/footnote] or do you but\ncounterfeit?\n\n2100<\/sub>Malvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> Believe me, I am not, I tell thee true.\n\nClown<\/strong>\nNay, I'll ne'er believe a madman till I see his brains! I will fetch you light,\nand paper, and ink.\n\nMalvolio<\/strong>\n[Within]<\/em> Fool, I'll requite it in the highest degree. I prithee, be gone!\n\n2105<\/sub>Clown<\/strong>\n[Singing]<\/em>\nI am gone, sir, and anon,[footnote]\"I am gone\" picks up Malvolio's last word; \"anon\" means \"straight away.\" Internal rhyme continues through the song. No music survives, nor is it known if the words are by Shakespeare, but it seems clearly a song.[\/footnote] sir,\nI'll be with you again,\nIn a trice,[footnote]Moment.[\/footnote] like to the old Vice,[footnote]In morality plays from a generation earlier, the popular Vice character would drive the plot forward with broad farce and slapstick, in league with the devil but impudent. F.W. Sternfeld describes \"the Vice twitting the devil\" as \"a musical jester goading an anti-musical puritan\" (Music in Shakespearean Tragedy<\/i> [London: Routledge, 1963], p. 113).[\/footnote]\nYour need to sustain;\nWho with dagger of lath,[footnote]Wood (a theatrical prop). Rhyme-word with \"wrath,\" so probably here both vowels should be pronounced \"ah.\"[\/footnote] in his rage and his wrath,\n2110<\/sub>Cries \"Ah, ha!\"[footnote]i.e. in defiance.[\/footnote] to the devil,\nLike a mad lad, \"Pare thy nails,[footnote]i.e. have your wings clipped, your power reduced. Compare H5<\/i> TLN 2450-2451, where the braggart but cowardly Pistol is \"this roaring devil i' th' old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.\"[\/footnote] dad![footnote]The Vice is occasionally the devil's son, but here it may simply be impudence: \"old man.\"[\/footnote]\nAdieu, goodman devil.\"[footnote]\"Goodman\" is a respectful form of address, but absurd to the devil. It is unclear whether this final line belongs in quotes as addressed to the devil, or is the Clown's parting shot at Malvolio.[\/footnote]\nExit.<\/em>\n

Scene 3<\/h1>\nEnter Sebastian.<\/em>[footnote]Sebastian's manner may give sufficient indication of his reception by Olivia to provoke audience laughter at both his good fortune and confusion.[\/footnote]\n\n2115<\/sub>Sebastian<\/strong>\n[To the audience]<\/em> This is the air, that is the glorious sun,\n[Indicating the pearl]<\/em> This pearl[footnote]Possibly on a ring, brooch or chain; or, if large, unmounted (compare Ham.<\/i> TLN 3731-3734). Sebastian is checking on real things as he conducts an internal dialogue between sanity and madness.[\/footnote] she gave me, I do feel't, and see't,\nAnd though 'tis wonder that enwraps me thus,\nYet 'tis not madness. Where's Antonio then?\nI could not find him at the Elephant,\n2120<\/sub>Yet there he was,[footnote]Needs emphasis for the meaning \"had been.\"[\/footnote] and there I found this credit,[footnote]Report (usage unique to Shakespeare).[\/footnote]\nThat he did range the town to seek me out.\nHis counsel now might do me golden service,\nFor though my soul disputes well (with my sense)[footnote]In accord with the evidence of my senses.[\/footnote]\nThat[footnote]Reasons convincingly . . . that (not \"argues with\").[\/footnote] this may be some error, but no madness,\n2125<\/sub>Yet doth this accident[footnote]Unexpected event.[\/footnote] and flood of fortune[footnote]i.e. river of good luck.[\/footnote]\nSo far exceed all instance,[footnote]Example, precedent.[\/footnote] all discourse,[footnote]Reasoning.[\/footnote]\nThat I am ready to distrust mine eyes,[footnote](which are seeing the reality of sun and pearl).[\/footnote]\nAnd wrangle with my reason that persuades me\nTo any other trust but that I am mad,\n2130<\/sub>Or else the lady's mad.[footnote]i.e. argue against my reason, which produces good evidence in favor of any conclusion except that I am mad or Olivia is.[\/footnote] Yet if 'twere so,\nShe could not sway[footnote]Rule, manage.[\/footnote] her house, command her followers,\nTake and give back affairs and their dispatch,[footnote]i.e. \"take\" in hand business matters (\"affairs\") and settle them quickly (\"give back their dispatch\").[\/footnote]\nWith such a smooth, discreet, and stable bearing\nAs I perceive she does. There's something in't\n2135<\/sub>That is deceivable.[footnote]Deceptive.[\/footnote]\nEnter Olivia, and Priest.<\/em>[footnote]In some productions (e.g. the Nunn film) his appearance shows that he is the real Sir Topaz on whom the Clown modeled himself.[\/footnote]\nBut here the lady comes.\n\nOlivia<\/strong>\nBlame not this haste of mine. If you mean well,\nNow go with me, and with this holy man,\nInto the chantry by;[footnote]Nearby chapel (endowed for a priest to sing daily mass for the souls of the founders or others). Presumably the Priest is attached to Olivia's household.[\/footnote] there before him,\n2140<\/sub>And underneath that consecrated roof,\nPlight me the full assurance of your faith,[footnote]i.e. enter with me into a full contract of betrothal (as binding as the marriage service later).[\/footnote]\nThat my most jealous[footnote](a) fearful, (b) mistrustful.[\/footnote] and too doubtful soul\nMay live at peace.[footnote]A pause is possibly intended here, as the line has only four feet. If so, what follows is urgent reassurance.[\/footnote] He shall conceal it,\nWhiles[footnote]Until.[\/footnote] you are willing it shall come to note[footnote]Become known.[\/footnote]\n2145<\/sub>What time[footnote]i.e. at what time. Many editors insert a semicolon after \"note,\" taking \"What time\" to mean \"at which time,\" but that obscures the sense that he's speaking of the future time \"when\" there will be a wedding (\"celebration\").[\/footnote] we will our celebration[footnote]i.e. wedding.[\/footnote] keep\nAccording to my birth.[footnote]Rank.[\/footnote] What do you say?\n\nSebastian<\/strong>\nI'll follow this good man, and go with you,\nAnd having sworn truth, ever will be true.\n\nOlivia<\/strong>\nThen lead the way, good father, and heavens so shine\n2150<\/sub>That they may fairly note[footnote]Look on with favor. The audience is aware that the gods have already improved Olivia's situation more than she knows.[\/footnote] this act of mine.\nExeunt.<\/em>","rendered":"

Twelfth Night<\/em> (Modern). Internet Shakespeare Editions<\/a>. University of Victoria. Editors: David Carnegie and Mark Houlahan.<\/p>\n

Scene 1<\/h1>\n

Enter Sebastian and Clown [following].<\/em>[1]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\n1920<\/sub>Will you make me believe that I am not sent for you?<\/p>\n

Sebastian<\/strong>
\nGo to, go to, thou art a foolish fellow,
\nLet me be clear of thee.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nWell held out[2]<\/sup><\/a> i’faith! No, I do not know you, nor I am not sent to you by my
\n1925<\/sub>lady, to bid you come speak with her; nor your name is not Master Cesario;
\nnor this is not my nose neither. Nothing that is so, is so.<\/p>\n

Sebastian<\/strong>
\nI prithee vent[3]<\/sup><\/a> thy folly somewhere else,
\nThou know’st not me.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\n1930<\/sub>Vent my folly! [To the audience]<\/em> He has heard that word of some great man,
\nand now applies it to a fool. Vent my folly! I am afraid this great lubber the
\nworld will prove a cockney.[4]<\/sup><\/a> [To Sebastian]<\/em> I prithee now, ungird thy
\nstrangeness,[5]<\/sup><\/a> and tell me what I shall vent to my lady. Shall I vent to her that
\nthou art coming?<\/p>\n

1935<\/sub>Sebastian<\/strong>
\nI prithee, foolish Greek,[6]<\/sup><\/a> depart from me. [Giving a coin]<\/em>
\nThere’s money for thee; If you tarry longer,
\n[Threatening a blow]<\/em> I shall give worse payment.[7]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nBy my troth, thou hast an open hand.[8]<\/sup><\/a> [To the audience]<\/em> These wise men that
\n1940<\/sub>give fools money get themselves a good report–after fourteen years’
\npurchase![9]<\/sup><\/a>
\nEnter Sir Andrew, Sir Toby, and Fabian.<\/em><\/p>\n

Sir Andrew<\/strong>
\nNow, sir, have I met you again? There’s for you!
\n[He strikes Sebastian.]<\/em><\/p>\n

Sebastian<\/strong>
\nWhy, there’s for thee, and there, and there!
\n[He beats Sir Andrew with the handle of his dagger.]<\/em>[10]<\/sup><\/a>
\n[To the audience]<\/em> Are all the people mad?<\/p>\n

1945<\/sub>Sir Toby<\/strong>
\n[Seizing Sebastian]<\/em> Hold, sir, or I’ll throw your dagger o’er the house.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\n[To the audience]<\/em> This will I tell my lady straight;[11]<\/sup><\/a> [To them]<\/em> I would not be
\nin some of your coats for twopence.
\n[Exit.]<\/em><\/p>\n

Sir Toby<\/strong>
\nCome on, sir, hold!<\/p>\n

Sir Andrew<\/strong>
\n1950<\/sub>Nay, let him alone. I’ll go another way to work[12]<\/sup><\/a> with him: I’ll have an action
\nof battery[13]<\/sup><\/a> against him, if there be any law in Illyria. Though I struck him
\nfirst, yet it’s no matter for that.<\/p>\n

Sebastian<\/strong>
\n[To Sir Toby]<\/em> Let go thy hand!<\/p>\n

Sir Toby<\/strong>
\n1955<\/sub>Come, sir, I will not let you go. Come, my young soldier, put up your iron.[14]<\/sup><\/a>
\nYou are well fleshed.[15]<\/sup><\/a> Come on!<\/p>\n

Sebastian<\/strong>
\nI will be free from thee. [He breaks free and draws his sword.]<\/em> What
\nwouldst thou now?
\nIf thou dar’st tempt[16]<\/sup><\/a> me further, draw thy sword.<\/p>\n

Sir Toby<\/strong>
\n1960<\/sub>[Drawing]<\/em> What, what! Nay then, I must have an ounce or two of this
\nmalapert[17]<\/sup><\/a> blood from you.
\nEnter Olivia.<\/em>[18]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Olivia<\/strong>
\nHold, Toby! On thy life I charge thee, hold!<\/p>\n

Sir Toby<\/strong>
\nMadam.[19]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Olivia<\/strong>
\nWill it be ever thus? Ungracious wretch,
\n1965<\/sub>Fit for the mountains and the barbarous caves,
\nWhere manners ne’er were preached! Out of my sight!
\n[To Sebastian]<\/em> Be not offended, dear Cesario.
\n[To Sir Toby]<\/em> Rudesby,[20]<\/sup><\/a> be gone! [Exeunt Sir Toby, Sir Andrew and Fabian.]
\n[To Sebastian]<\/em> I prithee, gentle friend,
\nLet thy fair wisdom, not thy passion, sway[21]<\/sup><\/a>
\n1970<\/sub>In this uncivil[22]<\/sup><\/a> and unjust extent[23]<\/sup><\/a>
\nAgainst thy peace. Go with me to my house,
\nAnd hear thou there how many fruitless pranks
\nThis ruffian hath botched up,[24]<\/sup><\/a> that thou thereby
\nMayst smile at this. Thou shalt not choose but go;
\n1975<\/sub>Do not deny.[25]<\/sup><\/a> Beshrew his soul for me,[26]<\/sup><\/a>
\nHe started one poor heart[27]<\/sup><\/a> of mine in thee.[28]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Sebastian<\/strong>
\n[To the audience]<\/em> What relish[29]<\/sup><\/a> is in this? How runs the stream?
\nOr I am mad, or[30]<\/sup><\/a> else this is a dream.
\nLet fancy still my sense in Lethe steep;[31]<\/sup><\/a>
\n1980<\/sub>If it be thus to dream, still let me sleep!<\/p>\n

Olivia<\/strong>
\nNay, come, I prithee; would thou’dst be ruled[32]<\/sup><\/a> by me!<\/p>\n

Sebastian<\/strong>
\nMadam, I will.<\/p>\n

Olivia<\/strong>
\nO say so, and so be[33]<\/sup><\/a>. Exeunt.<\/em><\/p>\n

Scene 2<\/h1>\n

1985<\/sub>Enter Maria [carrying a minister’s gown and a false beard,] and Clown.<\/em><\/p>\n

Maria<\/strong>
\nNay, I prithee put on this gown, and this beard;[34]<\/sup><\/a> make him believe thou art
\nSir Topaz[35]<\/sup><\/a> the curate.[36]<\/sup><\/a> Do it quickly.[37]<\/sup><\/a> I’ll call Sir Toby the whilst.[38]<\/sup><\/a>
\n[Exit.]<\/em><\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\n1990<\/sub>[To the audience]<\/em> Well, I’ll put it on, and I will dissemble myself[39]<\/sup><\/a> in’t, and I
\nwould I were the first that ever dissembled in such a gown.[40]<\/sup><\/a> I am not tall[41]<\/sup><\/a>
\nenough to become the function well, nor lean enough to be thought a good
\nstudent;[42]<\/sup><\/a> but to be said[43]<\/sup><\/a> an honest[44]<\/sup><\/a> man and a good housekeeper[45]<\/sup><\/a> goes as fairly
\n1995<\/sub>as to say a careful[46]<\/sup><\/a> man and a great scholar.
\nEnter Sir Toby [and Maria].<\/em>
\n1995.1<\/sub>The competitors[47]<\/sup><\/a> enter.<\/p>\n

Sir Toby<\/strong>
\nJove[48]<\/sup><\/a> bless thee, Master Parson.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nBonos dies,<\/em>[49]<\/sup><\/a> Sir Toby: for as the old hermit of Prague,[50]<\/sup><\/a> that never saw pen and
\n2000<\/sub>ink,[51]<\/sup><\/a> very wittily said to a niece of King Gorboduc,[52]<\/sup><\/a> “That that is, is”;[53]<\/sup><\/a> so I,
\nbeing Master Parson, am Master Parson; for what is “that” but “that,” and
\n“is” but “is”?<\/p>\n

Sir Toby<\/strong>
\nTo him, Sir Topaz!<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\n[In the voice of Sir Topaz]<\/em> What ho, I say. Peace in this prison.[54]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Sir Toby<\/strong>
\n[To the audience or Maria]<\/em> The knave counterfeits well: a good knave.
\n2005<\/sub>Malvolio within.<\/em>[55]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> Who calls there?<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nSir Topaz the curate, who comes to visit Malvolio the lunatic.<\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n2010<\/sub>[Within]<\/em> Sir Topaz, Sir Topaz, good Sir Topaz, go to my lady.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nOut, hyperbolical fiend![56]<\/sup><\/a> How vexest thou this man! Talkest thou nothing but
\nof ladies?<\/p>\n

Sir Toby<\/strong>
\n[Aside to Clown]<\/em> Well said, Master Parson!<\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n2015<\/sub>[Within]<\/em> Sir Topaz, never was man thus wronged. Good Sir Topaz, do not
\nthink I am mad: they have laid me here in hideous darkness.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nFie, thou dishonest[57]<\/sup><\/a> Satan! I call thee by the most modest[58]<\/sup><\/a> terms– [Including
\nthe audience]<\/em> for I am one of those gentle[59]<\/sup><\/a> ones that will use the devil
\n2020<\/sub>himself with courtesy–say’st thou that house is dark?[60]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> As hell, Sir Topaz.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nWhy, it hath bay windows transparent as barricadoes,[61]<\/sup><\/a> and the clerestories[62]<\/sup><\/a>
\ntoward the south-north are as lustrous as ebony; and yet complainest thou of
\n2025<\/sub>obstruction?[63]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> I am not mad, Sir Topaz; I say to you this house is dark.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nMadman, thou errest. I say there is no darkness but ignorance, in which thou
\n2030<\/sub>art more puzzled[64]<\/sup><\/a> than the Egyptians in their fog.[65]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> I say this house is as dark as ignorance, though ignorance were as
\ndark as hell; and I say there was never man thus abused.[66]<\/sup><\/a> I am no more mad
\nthan you are. Make the trial of it in any constant question.[67]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

2035<\/sub>Clown<\/strong>
\nWhat is the opinion of Pythagoras[68]<\/sup><\/a> concerning wildfowl?<\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> That the soul of our grandam might haply[69]<\/sup><\/a> inhabit a bird.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nWhat think’st thou of his opinion?<\/p>\n

2040<\/sub>Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> I think nobly of the soul, and no way approve his opinion.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nFare thee well. Remain thou still in darkness.[70]<\/sup><\/a> Thou shalt hold th’opinion of
\nPythagoras ere I will allow of thy wits,[71]<\/sup><\/a> and fear to kill a woodcock[72]<\/sup><\/a> lest thou
\n2045<\/sub>dispossess the soul of thy grandam. [Moving away]<\/em> Fare thee well.<\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> Sir Topaz, Sir Topaz!<\/p>\n

Sir Toby<\/strong>
\nMy most exquisite Sir Topaz!<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nNay, I am for all waters.[73]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Maria<\/strong>
\n2050<\/sub>Thou mightst have done this without thy beard and gown;[74]<\/sup><\/a> he sees thee not.<\/p>\n

Sir Toby<\/strong>
\n[To Clown]<\/em> To him in thine own voice, and bring me word how thou find’st
\nhim. I would we were well rid of this knavery. If he may be conveniently
\n2055<\/sub>delivered,[75]<\/sup><\/a> I would he were, for I am now so far in offence with my niece,
\nthat I cannot pursue with any safety this sport to the upshot.[76]<\/sup><\/a> Come by and by
\nto my chamber.[77]<\/sup><\/a>
\nExit [Sir Toby][with Maria].<\/em><\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\n[Singing]<\/em>
\nHey Robin,[78]<\/sup><\/a> jolly Robin,
\nTell me how thy lady does.<\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> Fool!<\/p>\n

2060<\/sub>Clown<\/strong>
\nMy lady is unkind, perdie.[79]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> Fool!<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nAlas, why is she so?<\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> Fool, I say!<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nShe loves another–
\nWho calls, ha?<\/p>\n

2065<\/sub>Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> Good fool, as ever thou wilt deserve well at my hand, help me to a
\ncandle, and pen, ink, and paper. As I am a gentleman, I will live to be
\nthankful to thee for’t.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nMaster Malvolio?<\/p>\n

2070<\/sub>Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> Ay, good fool.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nAlas, sir, how fell you besides[80]<\/sup><\/a> your five wits?[81]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> Fool, there was never man so notoriously[82]<\/sup><\/a> abused. I am as well in
\nmy wits, fool, as thou art.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\n2075<\/sub>But as well? Then you are mad indeed, if you be no better in your wits than
\na fool.<\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> They have here propertied[83]<\/sup><\/a> me: keep me in darkness, send ministers
\nto me, asses, and do all they can to face[84]<\/sup><\/a> me out of my wits.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\n2080<\/sub>Advise you[85]<\/sup><\/a> what you say, the minister is here. [Speaking as Sir Topaz]
\n<\/em>Malvolio, Malvolio, thy wits the heavens restore. Endeavour thyself[86]<\/sup><\/a> to
\nsleep, and leave thy vain bibble babble.[87]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> Sir Topaz!<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\n2085<\/sub>[As Sir Topaz]<\/em> Maintain no words with him, good fellow. [Speaking as
\nhimself]<\/em> Who I, sir? Not I, sir! God buy you,[88]<\/sup><\/a> good Sir Topaz. [As Sir Topaz]
\n<\/em>Marry, amen. [As himself]<\/em> I will, sir,[89]<\/sup><\/a> I will.<\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> Fool! Fool! Fool, I say![90]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nAlas, sir, be patient. What say you, sir? I am shent[91]<\/sup><\/a> for speaking to you.<\/p>\n

2090<\/sub>Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> Good fool, help me to some light, and some paper; I tell thee I am
\nas well in my wits as any man in Illyria.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nWell-a-day[92]<\/sup><\/a> that you were, sir.<\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n2095<\/sub>[Within]<\/em> By this hand,[93]<\/sup><\/a> I am! Good fool, some ink, paper, and light; and
\nconvey what I will set down to my lady. It shall advantage thee more than
\never the bearing of letter did.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nI will help you to’t. But tell me true, are you not mad indeed,[94]<\/sup><\/a> or do you but
\ncounterfeit?<\/p>\n

2100<\/sub>Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> Believe me, I am not, I tell thee true.<\/p>\n

Clown<\/strong>
\nNay, I’ll ne’er believe a madman till I see his brains! I will fetch you light,
\nand paper, and ink.<\/p>\n

Malvolio<\/strong>
\n[Within]<\/em> Fool, I’ll requite it in the highest degree. I prithee, be gone!<\/p>\n

2105<\/sub>Clown<\/strong>
\n[Singing]<\/em>
\nI am gone, sir, and anon,[95]<\/sup><\/a> sir,
\nI’ll be with you again,
\nIn a trice,[96]<\/sup><\/a> like to the old Vice,[97]<\/sup><\/a>
\nYour need to sustain;
\nWho with dagger of lath,[98]<\/sup><\/a> in his rage and his wrath,
\n2110<\/sub>Cries “Ah, ha!”[99]<\/sup><\/a> to the devil,
\nLike a mad lad, “Pare thy nails,[100]<\/sup><\/a> dad![101]<\/sup><\/a>
\nAdieu, goodman devil.”[102]<\/sup><\/a>
\nExit.<\/em><\/p>\n

Scene 3<\/h1>\n

Enter Sebastian.<\/em>[103]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

2115<\/sub>Sebastian<\/strong>
\n[To the audience]<\/em> This is the air, that is the glorious sun,
\n[Indicating the pearl]<\/em> This pearl[104]<\/sup><\/a> she gave me, I do feel’t, and see’t,
\nAnd though ’tis wonder that enwraps me thus,
\nYet ’tis not madness. Where’s Antonio then?
\nI could not find him at the Elephant,
\n2120<\/sub>Yet there he was,[105]<\/sup><\/a> and there I found this credit,[106]<\/sup><\/a>
\nThat he did range the town to seek me out.
\nHis counsel now might do me golden service,
\nFor though my soul disputes well (with my sense)[107]<\/sup><\/a>
\nThat[108]<\/sup><\/a> this may be some error, but no madness,
\n2125<\/sub>Yet doth this accident[109]<\/sup><\/a> and flood of fortune[110]<\/sup><\/a>
\nSo far exceed all instance,[111]<\/sup><\/a> all discourse,[112]<\/sup><\/a>
\nThat I am ready to distrust mine eyes,[113]<\/sup><\/a>
\nAnd wrangle with my reason that persuades me
\nTo any other trust but that I am mad,
\n2130<\/sub>Or else the lady’s mad.[114]<\/sup><\/a> Yet if ’twere so,
\nShe could not sway[115]<\/sup><\/a> her house, command her followers,
\nTake and give back affairs and their dispatch,[116]<\/sup><\/a>
\nWith such a smooth, discreet, and stable bearing
\nAs I perceive she does. There’s something in’t
\n2135<\/sub>That is deceivable.[117]<\/sup><\/a>
\nEnter Olivia, and Priest.<\/em>[118]<\/sup><\/a>
\nBut here the lady comes.<\/p>\n

Olivia<\/strong>
\nBlame not this haste of mine. If you mean well,
\nNow go with me, and with this holy man,
\nInto the chantry by;[119]<\/sup><\/a> there before him,
\n2140<\/sub>And underneath that consecrated roof,
\nPlight me the full assurance of your faith,[120]<\/sup><\/a>
\nThat my most jealous[121]<\/sup><\/a> and too doubtful soul
\nMay live at peace.[122]<\/sup><\/a> He shall conceal it,
\nWhiles[123]<\/sup><\/a> you are willing it shall come to note[124]<\/sup><\/a>
\n2145<\/sub>What time[125]<\/sup><\/a> we will our celebration[126]<\/sup><\/a> keep
\nAccording to my birth.[127]<\/sup><\/a> What do you say?<\/p>\n

Sebastian<\/strong>
\nI’ll follow this good man, and go with you,
\nAnd having sworn truth, ever will be true.<\/p>\n

Olivia<\/strong>
\nThen lead the way, good father, and heavens so shine
\n2150<\/sub>That they may fairly note[128]<\/sup><\/a> this act of mine.
\nExeunt.<\/em><\/p>\n

  1. Sebastian, sightseeing as arranged at 3.3, enters trying to get clear of the Clown, who has evidently been dogging him for some time. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  2. Kept up. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  3. Give vent to, let out. The Clown pretends that Sebastian is using this ordinary word affectedly to mean \"utter forth\" (a use becoming popular about this time). Compare his mockery of \"element\" at TLN 1269-1270. Possibly also a farting joke. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  4. i.e. I fear the great clumsy world will turn out to be an affected townsman. Originally \"cockney\" meant \"nestle-cock, mother's pet,\" was then applied disparagingly to adults spoiled in their upbringing, and by transference to townspeople with no country skills. \"Londoners . . . are in reproach called Cockneys, and eaters of buttered toasts\" (Fynes Moryson, An Itinerary<\/i>, 1617). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  5. i.e. stop pretending you don't know me (literally, \"unbelt your aloofness\"). The Clown is adopting in mockery the affected speech of which he accuses Sebastian. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  6. A \"merry Greek\" was a familiar term for a roisterer, a cheerful joker. The term is possibly a corruption of \"grig\" = grasshopper or cricket: \"merry as a cricket.\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  7. Blows. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  8. Generous (with money, and the threat of blows). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  9. At the rate of calculation of the purchase price as fourteen years' rent, an inflated price since twelve year's rent was the usual market value (\"purchase\"). A good reputation with fools is worthless anyway. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  10. Compare Rom<\/i>. TLN 2695-2696, \"Then will I lay the serving-creature's dagger on your pate.\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  11. Immediately. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  12. I'll use a different route for my purpose (proverbial). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  13. Lawsuit for assault (which Sir Andrew goes on to admit has no basis in law). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  14. Dagger. Compare Rom<\/i>. TLN 2702-2703, \"I will dry-beat you with an iron wit, and put up my iron dagger.\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  15. Blooded, initiated into fighting. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  16. (a) test, (b) incite. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  17. Impudent. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  18. She may, possibly like Antonio with Viola in 3.4, throw herself between the combatants (so Nunn film). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  19. Many options are open to the actor of Sir Toby in how to play this single word. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  20. Ruffian. Presumably they are amazed at Olivia's open display of affection for \"Cesario.\" Compare Shr<\/i>. TLN 1398, \"a mad-brain rudesby full of spleen.\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  21. Rule, bear sway. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  22. Barbarous. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  23. Assault (a legal term used here in a generalized sense). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  24. Patched together (compare TLN 338-339). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  25. Olivia may have taken \"Cesario\"s\" dazed failure to reply as a further refusal. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  26. My curse upon him. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  27. (a) startled my heart, (b) roused from cover (a hunting term) a hart (deer; compare TLN 26). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  28. She has given her heart to \"Cesario,\" hence Sir Toby's attack was as if on her. Olivia has used the intimate singular form \"thee\" throughout, which will further bewilder Sebastian. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  29. Taste (hence, \"How do I identify what is going on?\") ↵<\/a><\/li>
  30. Either . . . or. Compare another accidental lover, in Err<\/i>. TLN 609, \"Sleeping or waking, mad or well advised?\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  31. Let imagination continue to drown my rationality in the river of forgetfulness. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  32. i.e. if only you would do as I wish. Sebastian's agreement in the next line is an astonishing reversal of Olivia's despair. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  33. i.e. \"ruled by me\". ↵<\/a><\/li>
  34. False beards were standard in the theatre; compare MND<\/i> TLN 354-356, \"your straw-color beard, your orange-tawny beard, your purple-in-grain beard, or your French-crown-color beard.\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  35. Although Chaucer and others had comic knights of this name, here he is a priest (for the use of \"sir,\" see note to TLN 1789). Precious stones were thought to be curative, the topaz of lunacy. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  36. Probably (a) parish priest; just possibly (b) assistant curate (a minister appointed on a low salary to act for a non-resident or incapacitated priest). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  37. This, like \"Nay, I prithee,\" implies some reluctance on the part of the Clown; Maria is again the organiser. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  38. In the meantime. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  39. (a) disguise myself, (b) act hypocritically. The Clown's adoption of disguise here is a thematic reminder of Viola's (compare TLN 683), and of the multitude of mistakings in the play. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  40. A minister's gown; but, if Maria has not provided the legally-required white surplice, possibly alluding to the black Geneva gown of the puritan clergy. Compare AWW<\/i> TLN 414-416, \"though honesty be no puritan . . . it will wear the surplice of humility over the black gown of a big [i.e. proud] heart.\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  41. Possibly \"handsome,\" but more likely referring to a gown that is comically large for Armin. See also next note. Robert Armin, for whom Shakespeare presumably wrote the role, was apparently small, even \"dwarfish\" (David Wiles, Shakespeare's Clown<\/i> [Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987], p. 136\u2013163, esp. 148). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  42. Divinity scholars (like other students) were regarded as prone to weight loss and melancholy. Robert Armin is thought to have been small, although the line seems to depend on a plump actor for part of its point. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  43. Spoken of as. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  44. Honorable. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  45. Generous host. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  46. Either (a) careworn (from study), or (b) conscientious. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  47. Confederates, partners. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  48. Possibly Sir Toby substitutes a pagan \"God\" as a comment on the substitute parson. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  49. Good day (bad Latin for bonus dies<\/i>). The Clown\"s bad Latin may be inadvertent, or a satire on the curate, or reflecting the Spanish buenos d\u00edas<\/i>. He almost certainly speaks now in the mock-clerical voice of Sir Topaz. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  50. As at TLN 329, an invented mock-authority. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  51. i.e. was illiterate. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  52. A legendary British king, subject of the earliest English tragedy in blank verse (perf. 1562). His unknown niece knitted bedsocks for the hermit of Prague. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  53. Mock-learning from the mock-authority. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  54. n the Elizabethan Book of Common Prayer<\/i> (1559), \"the Priest entering into the sick person's house, shall say 'Peace be in this house'.\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  55. Malvolio is heard but not seen. The Folio stage direction at TLN 2005 says \"Malvolio within<\/i>,\" and there is no direction for him to enter later in the scene, or ever be seen at all. On the Elizabethan stage he could have been behind a stage door or, more likely, behind an arras at the back of the stage. The visual focus would therefore have been on the disguised Clown's apparently improvised comic teasing of Malvolio. Maria's comment to the Clown that \"Thou might'st have done this without thy beard and gown, he sees thee not\" (TLN 2049\u20132050) only makes sense if Malvolio is off-stage. Since the nineteenth century, however, it has been increasingly common to allow the audience to see Malvolio, or at least to see hands emerging from a trap door or through bars. The more of Malvolio they see, the more likely they are to feel sorry for him. Carried to an extreme, the character can be seen as tragic, as in Henry Irving's famous 1884 production in which he split the stage in half, as in the 1709 illustration (not based on performance) from Rowe below. (See David Carnegie, \"'Maluolio within<\/i>': Performance Perspectives on the Dark House,\" Shakespeare Quarterly<\/i> 52 [2001], pp. 393\u2013414.) ↵<\/a><\/li>
  56. Fie, excessive devil (hyperbole, in rhetoric, is immoderate exaggeration of language). The Clown addresses the evil spirit which he pretends has taken possession of Malvolio (compare TLN 1614). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  57. Dishonorable. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  58. Moderate. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  59. Courteous, well-bred. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  60. i.e. room is dark. Compare AYL<\/i> TLN 1580-1581, \"Love . . . deserves as well a dark house and a whip as madmen do.\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  61. Barricades (i.e. solid, like \"ebony\" in the next line). \"His joke is of the 'clear as mud' type\" (Penguin), but in a hyperbolically inflated version of learned language. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  62. Upper windows (especially in a church). Pronounced \"clear-stories.\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  63. Blocking out (of light). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  64. Confused. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  65. One of the biblical plagues of Egypt was \"thick\" darkness \"that may be felt\" (Exodus 10: 21-3). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  66. Ill-used, wronged. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  67. Consistent interrogation. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  68. A classical philosopher whose belief in the kinship of all living beings led to the frequently-mocked doctrine that the soul could migrate between humans and animals. Compare AYL<\/i> TLN 1373-1374, \"I was never so berhymed since Pythogoras' time, that I was an Irish rat, which I hardly can remember.\" For the thematic significance of transmigration of souls ↵<\/a><\/li>
  69. Perhaps. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  70. (a) without light, (b) theological ignorance. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  71. Accept that you are sane. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  72. Proverbial for stupidity; compare TLN 1097. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  73. Versatile. The origin of the phrase is uncertain, perhaps based on the proverb \"to have a cloak for all waters\" (prepared for any weather). The Clown may also pun on \"water\" as a measure of the luster of jewels (here, the \"Topaz\"). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  74. The Clown probably removes the disguise now, relying on changes of voice to bamboozle Malvolio for the rest of the scene. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  75. Set free without trouble. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  76. To its conclusion (archery term from the final shot in a match). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  77. Since the dramatic purpose of this speech is to set in motion the release of Malvolio, it is probably all be spoken to the Clown. The sentence about Olivia's attitude could equally be to Maria; but \"Come . . . to my chamber,\" which some productions have played as an invitation to Maria to the hurried marriage (see TLN 2535), or even to immediate sex, is a further request that the Clown \"bring . . . word.\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  78. The Clown allows Malvolio to identify him by singing, in further mockery, a dialogue song about a lover who has lost to a rival (i.e. Malvolio to Cesario in the affections of Olivia). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  79. By God (from French par Dieu<\/i>). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  80. Out of. Compare Sonnet 23: \"As an unperfect actor on the stage, \/ Who with his fear is put besides his part.\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  81. Mind (sometimes identified as common wit, imagination, fantasy, estimation, and memory). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  82. i.e. scandalously. The word will be repeated by both Malvolio and Olivia in 5.1, so it may be a Malvolioism. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  83. i.e. treated like a chattel (or perhaps like a stage \"prop\"). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  84. Brazenly bully. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  85. Be careful ↵<\/a><\/li>
  86. Exert yourself in attempting (i.e. strain to relax). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  87. Senseless babbling. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  88. God be with you (modern \"goodbye\"). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  89. Perhaps spoken after a pause, as if Sir Topaz had whispered further instructions. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  90. Probably an increasingly frantic stage whisper, since Malvolio will try to avoid being heard by Sir Topaz. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  91. Rebuked. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  92. Alas, I wish that. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  93. A conventional oath (which Malvolio used at TLN 818-819), so there is no need for his hand to be seen, although in modern productions it often is. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  94. Truly mad. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  95. \"I am gone\" picks up Malvolio's last word; \"anon\" means \"straight away.\" Internal rhyme continues through the song. No music survives, nor is it known if the words are by Shakespeare, but it seems clearly a song. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  96. Moment. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  97. In morality plays from a generation earlier, the popular Vice character would drive the plot forward with broad farce and slapstick, in league with the devil but impudent. F.W. Sternfeld describes \"the Vice twitting the devil\" as \"a musical jester goading an anti-musical puritan\" (Music in Shakespearean Tragedy<\/i> [London: Routledge, 1963], p. 113). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  98. Wood (a theatrical prop). Rhyme-word with \"wrath,\" so probably here both vowels should be pronounced \"ah.\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  99. i.e. in defiance. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  100. i.e. have your wings clipped, your power reduced. Compare H5<\/i> TLN 2450-2451, where the braggart but cowardly Pistol is \"this roaring devil i' th' old play, that every one may pare his nails with a wooden dagger.\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  101. The Vice is occasionally the devil's son, but here it may simply be impudence: \"old man.\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  102. \"Goodman\" is a respectful form of address, but absurd to the devil. It is unclear whether this final line belongs in quotes as addressed to the devil, or is the Clown's parting shot at Malvolio. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  103. Sebastian's manner may give sufficient indication of his reception by Olivia to provoke audience laughter at both his good fortune and confusion. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  104. Possibly on a ring, brooch or chain; or, if large, unmounted (compare Ham.<\/i> TLN 3731-3734). Sebastian is checking on real things as he conducts an internal dialogue between sanity and madness. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  105. Needs emphasis for the meaning \"had been.\" ↵<\/a><\/li>
  106. Report (usage unique to Shakespeare). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  107. In accord with the evidence of my senses. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  108. Reasons convincingly . . . that (not \"argues with\"). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  109. Unexpected event. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  110. i.e. river of good luck. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  111. Example, precedent. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  112. Reasoning. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  113. (which are seeing the reality of sun and pearl). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  114. i.e. argue against my reason, which produces good evidence in favor of any conclusion except that I am mad or Olivia is. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  115. Rule, manage. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  116. i.e. \"take\" in hand business matters (\"affairs\") and settle them quickly (\"give back their dispatch\"). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  117. Deceptive. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  118. In some productions (e.g. the Nunn film) his appearance shows that he is the real Sir Topaz on whom the Clown modeled himself. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  119. Nearby chapel (endowed for a priest to sing daily mass for the souls of the founders or others). Presumably the Priest is attached to Olivia's household. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  120. i.e. enter with me into a full contract of betrothal (as binding as the marriage service later). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  121. (a) fearful, (b) mistrustful. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  122. A pause is possibly intended here, as the line has only four feet. If so, what follows is urgent reassurance. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  123. Until. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  124. Become known. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  125. i.e. at what time. Many editors insert a semicolon after \"note,\" taking \"What time\" to mean \"at which time,\" but that obscures the sense that he's speaking of the future time \"when\" there will be a wedding (\"celebration\"). ↵<\/a><\/li>
  126. i.e. wedding. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  127. Rank. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  128. Look on with favor. The audience is aware that the gods have already improved Olivia's situation more than she knows. ↵<\/a><\/li><\/ol><\/div>","protected":false},"author":90,"menu_order":4,"template":"","meta":{"pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":["william-shakespeare"],"pb_section_license":"public-domain"},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[60],"license":[50],"class_list":["post-196","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry","contributor-william-shakespeare","license-public-domain"],"part":188,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/provincialenglish\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/196","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/provincialenglish\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/provincialenglish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/provincialenglish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/90"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/provincialenglish\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/196\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":197,"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/provincialenglish\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/196\/revisions\/197"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/provincialenglish\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/188"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/provincialenglish\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/196\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/provincialenglish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=196"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/provincialenglish\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=196"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/provincialenglish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=196"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/provincialenglish\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=196"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}