How we cite our quotes: Act.Scene
Quote #1
Flam. So would I;
I would the common'st courtesan in Rome
Had been my mother, rather than thyself.
Nature is very pitiful to whores,
To give them but few children, yet those children
Plurality of fathers; they are sure
They shall not want. (1.2)
This is a totally ironic joke. Flamineo knows that the fathers of the children of prostitutes probably don't pay attention to their kids, or even know they exist. He's answering his mother's serious accusations and condemnations (she just said she wished she never gave birth to him) with scornful sass.
Quote #2
Isab. To dig that strumpet's eyes out; let her lie
Some twenty months a-dying; to cut off
Her nose and lips, pull out her rotten teeth;
Preserve her flesh like mummia, for trophies
Of my just anger! Hell, to my affliction,
Is mere snow-water. By your favour, sir;—
Brother, draw near, and my lord cardinal;—
Sir, let me borrow of you but one kiss;
Henceforth I'll never lie with you, by this,
This wedding-ring. (2.1)
Isabella's marriage has gone entirely off the rails. She (falsely) threatens Brachiano with divorce—but she doesn't mean it. (He's going to kill her, at any rate.) This is a crystal clear picture of exactly how disastrous their marriage has become.
Quote #3
Fran. Believe me, I am nothing but her grave;
And I shall keep her blessed memory
Longer than thousand epitaphs. (3.2)
Finally, someone who actually loves one of his relatives: Francisco is so genuinely moved by Isabella's death that it motivates his quest for revenge. His sibling-bond is one of the few familial relationships in the whole play that seems to mean anything permanent.
Quote #4
Flam… I have a strange thing in me, to the which
I cannot give a name, without it be
Compassion. (5.4)
After seeing his mother weeping over the corpse of his brother Marcello, Flamineo suddenly gets in touch with his basic humanity. But its been AWOL for a pretty long time, and its hard to even know how seriously to take him—though this seems to be real, albeit a little too late to make much of a difference.
Quote #5
Vit. I will read it:
I give that portion to thee, and no other,
Which Cain groan'd under, having slain his brother. (5.6)
Vittoria attacks Flamineo, comparing him to Cain, who killed his brother Abel (since Flamineo has just killed Marcello). Indeed, Flamineo is very Cain-esque—he's this doomed, damned figure roaming the earth, while searching only for his personal gain.
Quote #6
Vit. Oh, my greatest sin lay in my blood!
Now my blood pays for 't. (5.6)
Is Vittoria honest, here? She's blaming her brother (her "blood"—her family ties) for her sins, and refusing to take any responsibility herself. Isn't she the one who asked the Duke for phony "protection" from Camillo and Isabella?