Oth. Ay. [that 15 Des. Alas, my lord, what may you mean by I would not kill thy unprepared spirit; Oth. Ay, I do. Des. Then, heaven Have mercy on me! Oth. Amen, with all my heart! 20 Des. If you say so, I hope you will not kill me. 25 Des. And yet I fear you; for you are fatal then, know not, Since guiltiness I know not; but yet, I feel, 130 fear. Oth. Think on thy sins. Des. They are loves I bear to you. Des.That death's unnatural, that kills for loving. 35 Oth, Peace, and be still! Des. I will so: What's the matter? Oth. That handkerchief, which I so lov'd, and gave thee, Thou gay'st to Cassio. Des. No, by my life and soul; Send for the man, and ask him. Oth. Sweet soul, take heed, Take heed of perjury; thou art on thy death-bcd. Des. Ay, but not yet to die. Oth. Yes, presently; Therefore confess thee freely of thy sin; Cannot remove, nor choak, the strong conception Des. O, heaven, have mercy on me! Des, And have you mercy too!-I never did Des. He will not say so. Oth. No, his mouth is stopp'd; Honest Jago hath ta'en order for 't', Des, O, my fear interpets then,What, is he dead? [revenge Oth. Had all his hairs been lives, my great Had stomach for them all, Des. Alas, he is betray'd, and I undone. Oth. Out, strumpet! Weep'st thou for him to my face? Des. O, banish me, my lord, but kill me not, Des. Kill me to-morrow, let me live to-night. There is no pause. Des. But while I say one prayer. Emilia within. [He smothers her. My lord, my lord! what ho! my lord, my lord! Oth. What noise is this?-Not dead? not yet quite dead? I, that am cruel, am yet merciful; 40 would not have thee linger in thy pain.— So, so. 45 Emil. What ho! my lord, my lord! Amil. O, good my lord, I would speak a word with you. [dead, Oth. Yes; 'tis Emilia :-by-and-by. She's 'Tis like, she comes to speak of Cassio's death; The noise was high.-Ha! no more moving? Still as the grave.--Shall she come in? Were't good! 50I think, she stirs again :-No.-What's the best? If she come in, she'll sure come to my wife:My wife! my wife! what wife? I have no wife: insupportable! O heavy hour! Methinks, it should be now a huge eclipse 55 Of sun and moon; and that the affrighted globe Should yawn at alteration. Amil. I do beseech you I may speak with you, O, good my lord! Oth. I had forgot thee; Q, come in, Æmilia: 60lSoft, by-and-by:-Let me the curtains draw. The meaning is, (says Dr. Johnson,-who adds, that this dreadful scepe is not to be endured,) "Thou hast harden'd my heart, and makest me kill thee with the rage of a murderer, when I thought to have sacrificed thee to justice with the calmness of a priest striking a victim," ie, has taken measures, Where Call'd-Roderigo. Oth. Roderigo kill'd! And Cassio kill'd! Emil. No, Cassio is not kill'd. [tune Emil. O mistress, villainy hath made mocks My husband say, that she was false? say, thy husband; Do'st understand the word? My friend, thy husband, honest, honest Iago. Amil. If he say so, may his pernicious soul Oth. Not Cassio kill'd? Then murder's out of 15 Rot half a grain a day! he lies to the heart; And sweet revenge grows harsh. Des. O, falsely, falsely murder'd! [voice: 20 Emil. Out, and alas! that was my lady's This deed? Des. No body; I myself; farewell: Commend me to my kind lord; O,farewell.[Dies. Oth. Why, how should she be murder'd? Emil. Alas, who knows? Oth. You heard her say herself, it was not I. Emil.She said so; I must needs report the truth. Oth. She's, like a liar, gone to burning hell; Twas I that kill'd her. Emil. O, the more angel she, And you the blacker devil! Oth. She turn'd to folly, and she was a whore. Oth. Cassio did tup her; ask thy husband else: Oth. Thy husband. Emil. That she was false to wedlock? Oth. Ay, with Cassio. Nay, had she been true, If heaven would make me such another world Of one entire and perfect chrysolite, I'd not have sold hier for it. She was too fond of her most filthy bargain. Emil, Do thy worst: This deed of thine is no more worthy heaven, Oth. Peace, you were best. Emil. Thou hast not half that power to do me harm, As I have to be hurt. O gull! O dolt! 25 As ignorant as dirt! thou hast done a deed,I care not for thy sword; I'll make thee known, Tho' I lost twenty lives:-Help! help, ho! help! The Moor hath kill'd my mistress! Murder! murder! 30 35 40 That men must lay their murders on your neck. Emil. Disprove this, villain, if thou be'st a man: Iago.I told him what I thought; and told no more Emil. But did you ever tell him, she was false? Amil. You told a lie; an odious, damned lie; 45 Upon my soul, a lie; a wicked lie: Mr. Steevens is of opinion, " that some theatrical direction has been omitted; and that when Othello says, Not dead? not yet quite dead? I, that am cruel, am yet merciful; I would not have thee linger in thy pain:-So, so he then stabs her, repeating the two last words, as he repeats the blow. After a repetition of wounds, Desdemona might speak again, with propriety, and yet very soon expire. The first resolution of Othello was to poison her; but from this measure he is dissuaded by the policy of lago. He is next determined to use the poniard; but, his tenderness awaking, he cannot bear to deform those beauties which he had so often approached with other sensations and for different purposes. Therefore, says he,-I'll not shed her blood, nor scar that whiter skin of hers than snow, and smooth as monumental alabaster: And this resolution we are to imagine he would have kept, but that he was averse to employing those means again, which had already appeared to be uncertain in their effect," 2 As water, that will support no weight, nor keep any impression. Villainy has taken advantage to play upon the weakness of a violent passion. She means to say, I have in this cause power to endure more than thou hast power to inflict. i. e. Apply some power, strong as a charm would be, to your tongue; for, nothing less can stop its volubility. Iago. What, are you mad? I charge you, get 10 Oth. O! O! O! [Othello looking on his wife. Oth. O, she was foul! [Rising. Which I have here recover'd from the Moor: Come, guard the door without; let him not pass, But kill him rather: I'll after that same villain, 15 For 'tis a damned slave. [Exeunt Mon. and Gra. Oth. I am not valiant neither, Iscarce did know you,uncle:There lies your niece, 20 I know, this act shews horrible and grim. dead; Thy match was mortal to him, and pure grief Oth. 'Tis pitiful: but yet Iago knows, Emil. O heaven! O heavenly powers! Emil. 'Twill out, 'twill out:-I hold my peace, No, I will speak as lib'ral' as the north; Emil. I will not. [lago offers to stab his wife. Your sword upon a woman? Amil. O thou dull Moor! that handkerchief, thou speak'st of, I found by fortune, and did give my husband; Iago. Villainous whore! Amil. She give it Cassio! no, alas; I found it, And I did give it my husband. Jago. Filth, thou liest. [men: 25 30 135 But every puny whipster gets my sword :- Emil. What did thy song bode, lady? [Dies. Gra. [within.] If thou attempt it, it will cost Thou hast no weapon, and perforce must suffer. Gra. What is the matter? A better never did itself sustain Upon a soldier's thigh: I have seen the day, That, with this little arm, and this good sword, 40I have made my way through more impediments Than twenty times your stop:-But,O vain boast! Who can controul his fate? 'tis not so now.Be not afraid, though you do see me weapon'd; Here is my journey's end, here is my butt, 45 The very sea-mark of my utmost sail. 50 Do you go back dismay'd? 'tis a lost fear; Pale as thy smock! when we shall meet at compt, 550 cursed, cursed slave !-Whip me, ye devils, From the possession of this heavenly sight! Blow me about in winds! roast me in sulphur! Wash me in steep-down gulfs of liquid fireO Desdemona! Desdemona! dead? Amil. By heaven, I do not; I do not, gentle-60 Dead? O! O! Q! 1 Liberal is free, under no controul. water. 2 Steel is hardened by being put red-hot into very cold Wench originally signified only a young woman. Enter Enter Lodovico, Cassio brought in; Montano,| with Iago, prisoner; and Officers, Lod. Where is this rash and most unfortunate man? Oth. That's he that was Othello; here I am. Lod. Where is that viper? bring the villain forth. Oth. I look down towards his feet';-but that's a fable. If that thou be'st a devil, I cannot kill thee. Lod. O thou Othello, that wast once so good, Oth. Why, any thing: An honourable murderer, if you will; Did you and he consent in Cassio's death? Oth. O fool! fool! fool! Cas. There is, besides, in Roderigo's letter,~ How he upbraids lago, that he made him Brave me upon the watch; whereon it came 5 That I was cast: And even but now he spake, After long seeming dead,-Iago hurt him, lago set him on. [us: Lod. You must forsake this room, and go with Your power and your command is taken off, 10 And Cassio rules in Cyprus. For this slave,If there be any cunning cruelty, That can torment him much, and hold him long, It shall be his: You shall close prisoner rest, Till that the nature of your fault be known 15 To the Venetian state.-Come, bring him away. Oth. Soft you; a word or two, before you go. I have done the state some service, and they know it; No more of that:-I pray you, in your letters, 20 When you shall these unlucky deeds relate, Speak of me as I am; nothing extenuate, Nor set down aught in malice: then must you speak Of one, that lov'd not wisely, but too well; Of one, not easily jealous, but, being wrought, 25 Perplex'd in the extreme; of one, whose hand, Like the base Judean ', threw a pearl away Richer than all his tribe; of one, whose subdu'd eyes, Cas. Dear general, I never gave you cause. From this time forth I never will speak word. Gra. Torments will ope your lips. Lod.Sir, you shall understand what hath befall'n, letter, Found in the pocket of the slain Roderigo; And here, another: the one of them imports The death of Cassio to be undertook By Roderigo. Oth. O villain! Cas. Most heathenish, and most gross! a Lod. Now here's another discontented paper, Oth. O the pernicious caitiff!— How came you, Cassio, by that handkerchief Cas. I found it in my chamber: And he himself confess'd, but even now, 1 Albeit unused to the melting mood, 35I took by the throat the circumcised dog, 40 45 Lod. O bloody period! Gra. All that is spoke, is marr'd. Oth. I kiss'd thee, ere I kill'd thee;-No way but this, [Falling upon Desdemona. Killing myself, to die upon a kiss. [Dies. Cas. This did I fear, but thought he had no weapon; For he was great of heart. Lod. O Spartan dog1, More fell than anguish, hunger, or the sea! Look on the tragic loading of this bed; [To Lago. This is thy work: the object poisons sight;Let it be hid.-Gratiano, keep the house, 50 And seize upon the fortunes of the Moor, For they succeed on you.-Toyou, lord governor, Remains the censure of this hellish villain; The time, the place, the torture,-O, inforce it! Myself will straight aboard; and, to the state, 55 This heavy act with heavy heart relate. 5 [Exeunt. 2 i. e. in the snare, by the To see if, according to the common opinion, his feet be cloven. stratagem. By the Judean (which is the reading of the elder quarto, and adopted by Theobald and Warburton), the latter says, is meant Herod, whose usage to Mariamnè is so apposite to the speaker's case, that a more proper instance could not be thought of. Besides, he was the subject of a tragedy at that time, as appears from the words in Hamlet, where an ill player is described "_to out-herod Herod."-The metaphorical term of a pearl for a fine woman, is so common as scarce to need examples. The dogs of Spartan race, says Hanmer, were reckoned among those of the |
