oliloqu A man mourns the death of his friend and vows revenge.
Julius Caesar, the Roman emperor, has just been assassinated. His closest friend, Mark Antony, speaks to the assassins and pretends to accept their reasons. When they leave, he makes this speech over the body, revealing his true feelings and promising revenge.
Julius Caesar, Act 3, Scene 1
ANTONY: O, pardon me, thou bleeding piece of earth, That I am meek and gentle with these butchers! Thou art the ruins of the noblest man That ever lived in the tide of times. Woe to the hand that shed this costly blood! Over thy wounds now do I prophesy – Which, like dumb mouths, do ope their ruby lips, To beg the voice and utterance of my tongue – A curse shall light upon the limbs of men; Domestic fury and fierce civil strife Shall cumber all the parts of Italy; …
And Caesar’s spirit, ranging for revenge, With Ate by his side come hot from hell, Shall in these confines with a monarch’s voice Cry ‘Havoc’, and let slip the dogs of war; That this foul deed shall smell above the earth With carrion men, groaning for burial.
1. EXPLORE W8.10
Find the lines in the soliloquy that match the modern equivalent. a) I am soft with these thugs. b) There will be the stench of walking, dead, unburied bodies. c) Now I foretell the future. d) Caesar’s ghost will wander, the goddess of vengeance beside him.
