directory
home contact

Antony and Cleopatra

Please see the bottom of this page for explanatory notes and resources.
ACT IV SCENE VII Field of battle between the two camps. 
[ Alarum. Drums and trumpets. Enter AGRIPPA and others ]
AGRIPPARetire, we have engaged ourselves too far:
Caesar himself has work, and our oppression
Exceeds what we expected.
[Exeunt]
[Alarums. Enter MARK ANTONY and SCARUS wounded]
SCARUSO my brave emperor, this is fought indeed!
Had we done so at first, we had droven them home5
With clouts about their heads.
MARK ANTONYThou bleed'st apace.
SCARUSI had a wound here that was like a T,
But now 'tis made an H.
MARK ANTONYThey do retire.10
SCARUSWe'll beat 'em into bench-holes: I have yet
Room for six scotches more.
[Enter EROS]
EROSThey are beaten, sir, and our advantage serves
For a fair victory.
SCARUSLet us score their backs,15
And snatch 'em up, as we take hares, behind:
'Tis sport to maul a runner.
MARK ANTONYI will reward thee
Once for thy spritely comfort, and ten-fold
For thy good valour. Come thee on.20
SCARUSI'll halt after.
[Exeunt]


Antony and Cleopatra, Act 4, Scene 8
___________

Explanatory Notes for Act 4, Scene 7
From Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra. Ed. M. Eaton. Boston: Educational Publishing Company.
(Line numbers have been altered.)
__________

2. Oppression. That is, we have ventured too far and met more opposition than we expected.

5. Droven. An old form of "driven."

6. Clouts. That is, with their heads tied up in bandages.

8. T. Shaped like a T.

9. H. A pun is intended here on the word "ache," which was formerly pronounced like the letter H.

16. Snatch. Catch them by the neck as dogs catch hares.

19. Spritely. Spirited, encouraging.

___________
How to cite the explanatory notes:

Shakespeare, William. Antony and Cleopatra. Ed. M. Eaton. Boston: Educational Publishing Company, 1908. Shakespeare Online. 20 Feb. 2010. (date when you accessed the information) < http://www.shakespeare-online.com/plays/antony_4_7.html >.

___________

Related Articles

 Plutarch's Influence on Shakespeare and Other Writers of the Sixteenth Century
 An Analysis of Shakespeare's Indebtedness to North's Plutarch
 The Character of Mark Antony
 An Analysis of Octavius
 An Analysis of Octavia

 An Introduction to Shakespeare's Cleopatra
 Shakespeare's Interest in the Subject of Antony and Cleopatra
 Sources for Antony and Cleopatra
 Famous Quotations from Antony and Cleopatra

 Antony and Cleopatra: Plot Summary
 Pronouncing Shakespearean Names
 Shakespeare's Language
 Shakespeare's Metaphors and Similes

 Shakespeare's Reputation in Elizabethan England
 Shakespeare's Impact on Other Writers
 Why Study Shakespeare?