Measure for Measure Mortality Quotes Page 2
(Act.Scene.Line). Line numbers correspond to the Riverside edition.
| Quote #4 O, were it but my life, |
Isabella declares that she would give her life to save her brothers but we wonder if this is really true. Some literary critics think Isabella is full of it when she says this. What do you think?
| Quote #5 Ay, but to die, and go we know not where; |
Earlier, we saw Claudio try to convince himself that he was ready to face his own mortality. Here, however, he expresses his fear and uncertainty in a speech that seems to anticipate Hamlet's great "To be, or not to be speech," where Hamlet calls death "the undiscover'd country from whose bourn / No traveller returns" (Hamlet, 3.1).
P.S. Literary critic Walter Pater thought this passage was one of the most "eloquent" speeches in all of Shakespeare. We have to agree that it's pretty stunning, but we think Hamlet's speech is awesome too.
| Quote #6 Sir, I have been an unlawful bawd time out of mind; |
Hmm. Pompey makes a very interesting point here. It's illegal for him to work in the sex industry, but it's perfectly "lawful" for him to work as an executioner. What's Shakespeare up to when he puts these words in Pompey's mouth?
