King Lear : Act 2, Scene 2
Enter KENT [disguised as Caius]
and Steward [OSWALD], severally.
severally : separately, from different directions. — They are at Gloucester's house. Oswald is bringing a letter from Goneril to Regan, and Kent is bringing a letter from King Lear to Regan.
OSWALD
1 Good dawning to thee, friend: art of this
1. art of this house? : are you a servant here?
2 house?
KENT
3 Ay.
OSWALD
4 Where may we set our horses?
KENT
5 I' the mire.
5. mire: wet, soggy, muddy ground.
OSWALD
6 Prithee, if thou lovest me, tell me.
6. if thou lovest me: a conventional phrase equivalent to today's "my friend" when it's addressed to a stranger.
KENT
7 I love thee not.
OSWALD
8 Why, then, I care not for thee.
KENT
9 If I had thee in Lipsbury pinfold, I would
9. If I had thee in Lipsbury pinfold: i.e., If I had you in a place where you couldn't run away. >>>
10 make thee care for me.
OSWALD
11 Why dost thou use me thus? I know
12 thee not.
KENT
13 Fellow, I know thee.
OSWALD
14 What dost thou know me for?
KENT
15 A knave; a rascal; an eater of broken meats; a base,
15. broken meats: leftovers.
16 proud, shallow, beggarly, three-suited, hundred-
16. three-suited: cheaply dressed. hundred-pound: >>>
17 pound, filthy, worsted-stocking knave; a lily-livered,
17. worsted-stocking knave: lowly wearer of ugly socks. >>>
18 action-taking knave, a whoreson, glass-gazing, super-
18. action-taking: filing lawsuits. glass-gazing: looking in a mirror.
19 serviceable finical rogue; one-trunk-inheriting slave;
19. finical: affectedly fastidious.
20 one that wouldst be a bawd, in way of good service,
20. bawd . . . service: i.e., pimping in order to please.
21 and art nothing but the composition of a knave, beggar,
21. composition: combination.
22 coward, pandar, and the son and heir of a mongrel bitch:
23 one whom I will beat into clamorous whining, if thou
24 deniest the least syllable of thy addition.
24. thy addition: the titles [of abuse] I have given you.
OSWALD
25 Why, what a monstrous fellow art thou, thus to
26 rail on one that is neither known of thee nor knows
27 thee!
KENT
28 What a brazen-faced varlet art thou, to deny thou
28. varlet: a rascally menial.
29 knowest me! Is it two days ago since I tripped up
30 thy heels, and beat thee before the king? Draw, you
30. Draw: i.e., Draw your sword.
31 rogue: for, though it be night, yet the moon
32 shines; I'll make a sop o' the moonshine of you:
32. I'll make a sop o' the moonshine of you: I'll put so many holes in you that you will soak up the moonlight. >>>
33 draw, you whoreson cullionly barber-monger, draw.
33. cullionly barber-monger: rascally frequenter of barber-shops, fop.
[Drawing his sword.]
OSWALD
34 Away! I have nothing to do with thee.
KENT
35 Draw, you rascal: you come with letters against
36 the king; and take vanity the puppet's part against
36. vanity the puppet: the doll vanity; i.e., Goneril.
37 the royalty of her father: draw, you rogue, or I'll so
38 carbonado your shanks: draw, you rascal!
38. carbonado: hack.
39 Come your ways.
39. Come your ways: i.e., Come on, fight!
OSWALD
40 Help, ho! murder! help!
KENT
41 Strike, you slave; stand, rogue, stand; you neat
41. stand: stand still; quit dodging. neat: foppish.
Illustrator: H.C. Selous
Illustrator: H.C. Selous
42 slave, strike.
[Beating him.]
OSWALD
43 Help, ho! murder! murder!
Enter Bastard [EDMUND.]
EDMUND
44 How now! What's the matter? Part!
44. Part!: Back off! Stop fighting!
KENT [To Edmund.]
45 With you, goodman boy, an you please!
45. With . . . please!: i.e., I'll take you on, punk, if you like!
46 Come, I'll flesh ye; come on, young master.
46. flesh: initiate you into sword fighting.
[Enter] CORNWALL, REGAN, GLOUCESTER,
and Servants.
GLOUCESTER
47 Weapons! arms! What 's the matter here?
CORNWALL
48 Keep peace, upon your lives:
49 He dies that strikes again. What is the matter?
REGAN
50 The messengers from our sister and the king.
CORNWALL
51 What is your difference? speak.
OSWALD
52 I am scarce in breath, my lord.
KENT
53 No marvel, you have so bestirr'd your valour.
54 You cowardly rascal, nature disclaims in thee:
54. nature disclaims in thee: nature denies that she had any hand in creating you.
55 a tailor made thee.
CORNWALL
56 Thou art a strange fellow: a tailor make a man?
KENT
58 Ay, a tailor, sir: a stone-cutter or painter could
59 not have made him so ill, though he had been
60 but two hours at the trade.
CORNWALL
61 Speak yet, how grew your quarrel?
OSWALD
62 This ancient ruffian, sir, whose life I have spared
63 at suit of his gray beard —
KENT
64 Thou whoreson zed! thou unnecessary letter! My
64. zed: the letter z, unnecessary because its sound could usually be represented by s.
65 lord, if you will give me leave, I will tread this
66 unbolted villain into mortar, and daub the wall of
66. unbolted: coarse, like unsifted ["unbolted"] flour.
67 a jakes with him. Spare my gray beard, you wagtail?
67. jakes: outhouse.
CORNWALL
68 Peace, sirrah!
69 You beastly knave, know you no reverence?
KENT
70 Yes, sir; but anger hath a privilege.
CORNWALL
71 Why art thou angry?
KENT
72 That such a slave as this should wear a sword,
73 Who wears no honesty. Such smiling rogues as these,
73. honesty: honorable character.
74 Like rats, oft bite the holy cords a-twain
74. holy cords: i.e., bonds of natural affection.
75 Which are t' intrinse t' unloose; smooth every passion
75. t' intrinse: too intricately knotted. smooth: humor, flatter.
76 That in the natures of their lords rebel;
77 Bring oil to fire, snow to their colder moods;
78 Renege, affirm, and turn their halcyon beaks
78. halcyon beaks: i.e., agreeable faces. >>>
79 With every gale and vary of their masters,
79. vary: i.e., shift in mood.
80 Knowing nought, like dogs, but following.
81 A plague upon your epileptic visage!
81. epileptic: grimacing face; frozen smile.
82 Smile you my speeches, as I were a fool?
82. Smile . . . fool?: Do you smile at my words as if I were a fool?
83 Goose, if I had you upon Sarum plain,
83. Sarum plain: Salisbury plain. — Stonehenge is on Salisbury plain, and according to some accounts, so was Camelot. I have no idea what the geese have to do with Salisbury Plain or Camelot.
84 I'ld drive ye cackling home to Camelot.
CORNWALL
85 Why, art thou mad, old fellow?
GLOUCESTER
86 How fell you out? say that.
86. How fell you out?: How did the quarrel start?
KENT
87 No contraries hold more antipathy
88 Than I and such a knave.
CORNWALL
89 Why dost thou call him a knave? What is his fault?
KENT
90 His countenance likes me not.
90. likes: pleases.
CORNWALL
91 No more, perchance, does mine, nor his, nor hers.
KENT
92 Sir, 'tis my occupation to be plain:
93 I have seen better faces in my time
94 Than stands on any shoulder that I see
95 Before me at this instant.
CORNWALL
95 This is some fellow,
96 Who, having been praised for bluntness, doth affect
97 A saucy roughness, and constrains the garb
98 Quite from his nature: he cannot flatter, he,
97-98. constrains the garb / Quite from his nature: i.e., wears the garb of a truth-teller in an over-the-top manner.
99 An honest mind and plain, he must speak truth!
100 An they will take it, so; if not, he's plain.
100. An . . . plain: i.e., If those who hear him take his truth-telling to heart, good; if they don't, it shows that they can't stand the plain truth.
101 These kind of knaves I know, which in this plainness
102 Harbour more craft and more corrupter ends
103 Than twenty silly ducking observants
103. silly ducking observants: obsequious, groveling attendants.
104 That stretch their duties nicely.
104. nicely: with excessive concern for detail.
KENT
105 Sir, in good sooth, in sincere verity,
105-108. — In this speech Kent ironically uses elaborately flattering language.
106 Under the allowance of your great aspect,
106. aspect: countenance.
107 Whose influence, like the wreath of radiant fire
108 On flickering Phoebus' front —
108. Phoebus' front: the sun-god's forehead.
CORNWALL
What mean'st by this?
KENT
109 To go out of my dialect, which you discommend
109. dialect: i.e., usual manner of speech.
110 so much. I know, sir, I am no flatterer: he that
111 beguiled you in a plain accent was a plain knave;
112 which for my part I will not be, though I should
113 win your displeasure to entreat me to 't.
112-113. though I should win your displeasure to entreat me to 't: i.e., even though it would be tempting to make you angry by being a plain knave.
CORNWALL
114 What was the offence you gave him?
OSWALD
115 I never gave him any:
116 It pleas'd the king his master very late
116. very late: recently.
117 To strike at me, upon his misconstruction;
117. upon his misconstruction: because he misunderstood me.
118 When he, compact, and flattering his displeasure,
118. compact: leagued [with the King].
119 Tripp'd me behind; being down, insulted, rail'd,
120 And put upon him such a deal of man
120. put . . . man: struck such macho attitudes.
121 That worthied him, got praises of the King
121. worthied him: made him appear worthy [to the King].
122 For him attempting who was self-subdued,
122. For . . . self-subdued: for assaulting one who restrained himself from fighting back.
123 And, in the fleshment of this dread exploit,
123. fleshment of: wild excitement produced by.
124 Drew on me here again.
KENT
None of these rogues and cowards
125 But Ajax is their fool.
124-125. None . . . fool: All such rogues and cowards boast that Ajax is nothing to them. — In the Illiad Ajax is portrayed as a fearsome warrior.
CORNWALL
Fetch forth the stocks!
125. 
the stocks: a device to imprison an offender in public. >>>
the stocks: a device to imprison an offender in public. >>>
126 You stubborn ancient knave, you reverend braggart,
127 We'll teach you —
KENT
127 Sir, I am too old to learn:
128 Call not your stocks for me: I serve the king;
129 On whose employment I was sent to you:
130 You shall do small respect, show too bold malice
131 Against the grace and person of my master,
131. grace and person: royal and personal honor.
132 Stocking his messenger.
CORNWALL
133 Fetch forth the stocks! As I have life and honour,
134 There shall he sit till noon.
REGAN
135 Till noon! till night, my lord; and all night too.
KENT
136 Why, madam, if I were your father's dog,
137 You should not use me so.
REGAN
Sir, being his knave, I will.
CORNWALL
138 This is a fellow of the self-same colour
138. of the self-same colour: with exactly the same character.
139 Our sister speaks of. Come, bring away the stocks!
139. sister: i.e., sister-in-law, Goneril. bring away: bring out.
Stocks brought out.
GLOUCESTER
140 Let me beseech your Grace not to do so:
141 His fault is much, and the good king his master
142 Will check him for't. Your purpos'd low correction
142. check: rebuke.
143 Is such as basest and contemned'st wretches
144 For pilf'rings and most common trespasses
145 Are punish'd with. The King must take it ill,
146 That he, so slightly valued in his messenger,
147 Should have him thus restrain'd.
CORNWALL
I'll answer that.
147. answer that: answer for that.
REGAN
148 My sister may receive it much more worse,
149 To have her gentleman abused, assaulted,
150 For following her affairs. Put in his legs.
150. For following her affairs: i.e., for carrying out his duties on her behalf.
[KENT is put in the stocks.]
151 Come, my good lord, away.
Exit [with all but GLOUCESTER and KENT.]
GLOUCESTER
152 I am sorry for thee, friend; 'tis the Duke's pleasure,
153 Whose disposition, all the world well knows,
154 Will not be rubb'd nor stopp'd: I'll entreat for thee.
154. Will not be rubb'd nor stopp'd: i.e, will not allow the slightest opposition.
KENT
155 Pray, do not, sir: I have watched and travell'd hard;
155. watched: i.e., stayed awake and alert.
156 Some time I shall sleep out, the rest I'll whistle.
156. sleep out: sleep through.
157 A good man's fortune may grow out at heels:
157. A good man's fortune may grow out at heels: i.e., a good man's good luck may wear out, just like his shoes or socks.
158 Give you good morrow!
GLOUCESTER
159 The duke's to blame in this; 'twill be ill taken.
Exit.
KENT
160 Good King, that must approve the common saw,
160. approve the common saw: prove the saying to be true. — The saying is "To run out of God's blessing to the warm sun," meaning "to go from better to worse."
161 Thou out of heaven's benediction com'st
162 To the warm sun!
163 Approach, thou beacon to this under globe,
163. beacon to this under globe: i.e., the moon.
164 That by thy comfortable beams I may
164. comfortable: aiding.
165 Peruse this letter.
[Takes out letter.]
Nothing almost sees miracles
166 But misery. I know 'tis from Cordelia,
165-166. Nothing . . . misery: It's almost always true that only those who suffer misery are granted miracles.
167 Who hath most fortunately been inform'd
168 Of my obscured course; and shall find time
168. obscured course: i.e., my attempts to look after Lear in this disguise. enormous state: monstrous state of affairs.
169 From this enormous state, seeking to give
170 Losses their remedies.
[Puts away letter.]
170 All weary and o'er-watch'd,
171 Take vantage, heavy eyes, not to behold
171. Take vantage: take advantage [of sleep].
172 This shameful lodging.
172. This shameful lodging: i.e., the stocks.
173 Fortune, good night: smile once more; turn thy wheel!
173. turn thy wheel: i.e., give me some good luck. >>>
[Sleeps.]
