The Winter's Tale (36 page)

¹⁵³
Jove
Roman king of the gods   

¹⁵⁴
What … hands?
i.e. There is no need to manhandle me   

¹⁵⁵
You
i.e. Leontes' attendants   

¹⁵⁸
set on
put up   

¹⁶²
straight
immediately   

¹⁶⁴
testimony
authority/ evidence   

¹⁶⁷
proper
own   

¹⁷⁶
credit
credibility/honor   

¹⁷⁷
beseech
beseech you   

¹⁷⁹
dear
heartfelt/valuable   

¹⁸²
foul issue
terrible outcome   

¹⁸³
I … blows
I am exposed to every opinion   

¹⁸⁹
Lady Margery
derogatory name for a woman; “Margery-prater” is a slang term for “hen”   

¹⁹¹
this beard's grey
probably refers to Antigonus' beard   

adventure
risk   

²⁰³
lewd-tongued
outspoken/lascivious   

²⁰⁴
enjoin
command   

²⁰⁵
liege-man
loyal servant   

²⁰⁷
desert
deserted   

²⁰⁹
it
its   

²¹⁰
strange fortune
unnatural circumstances/foreign events, i.e. Polixenes   

²¹³
commend … place
commit it to some foreign land   

²¹⁴
nurse … it
nurture or kill it   

²¹⁵
present
instant, immediate   

²¹⁷
kites
birds of prey   

ravens
thought to be a bird of ill omen   

²²⁰
Like
similar   

²²¹
more
more ways   

require
deserves   

²²²
thy
addressed to the baby   

²²⁶
posts
messengers   

²³²
beyond account
without precedent/beyond description   

²³⁵
suddenly
immediately   

²³⁷
session
legal hearing   

arraign
put on trial   

¹
delicate
exquisite/fragrant   

⁵
caught
struck/charmed   

habits
clothing   

⁷
grave
reverend, wise   

¹²
Kin
similar   

surprised
assailed, overwhelmed   

¹⁴
th'event
the outcome   

¹⁶
rare
wonderful, exceptional   

¹⁷
worth … on't
well spent   

²²
violent … it
rash way it has been executed   

²⁴
great divine
chief priest   

²⁵
discover
reveal   

⁴
Of
by   

⁷
Even … purgation
until we have established guilt or acquittal   

⁷¹
friend … yours
relative (Polixenes), who has professed his love freely
for
⁷³
you since childhood   

¹⁷
pretence
purpose   

¹⁹
counsel
advise/communicate with   

²⁴
boot
profit   

²⁵
mine … received
as I am thought to be a liar my claims shall be received accordingly   

³¹
patience
endurance, suffering   

³³
continent
restrained/faithful   

³⁵
history
any historical narrative or fictional tale   

pattern
show, provide a model for   

³⁶
take spectators
enthrall an audience   

³⁷
which owe
who owns   

³⁸
moiety
portion   

⁴⁰
prate
prattle   

⁴¹
For
⁴²
… spare
I value life as I do grief, both of which I could do without   

⁴²
for … for
honor is handed down from me to my children and it is only for that reason that I make a stand   

⁴⁵
conscience
also “inward consciousness”   

⁴⁶
grace
favor   

⁴⁷
merited
deserved   

encounter
behavior (plays on the sense of “sexual act”)   

⁴⁸
With … thus
by what unacceptable behavior have I transgressed that I appear on trial like this   

⁵³
fie
shame   

⁵⁴
I … first
I've never heard that adulterers lacked the same audacity to deny (
gainsay
) their actions that was required to perform them   

⁶¹
More … acknowledge
I must not answer for more than those faults that I actually possess   

⁷³
for
as for   

⁷⁴
dished
served up   

⁷⁸
Wotting
knowing   

⁸³
level … dreams
target, aim of your delusions   

⁸⁴
Which
i.e. my life   

⁸⁸
of your fact
who have committed your crime   

⁸⁹
concerns … avails
is of more importance than practical advantage to you   

⁹⁰
like to itself
which, as a bastard, it should be   

⁹³
in … death
i.e. the very mildest form of your punishment will be death, perhaps preceded by torture   

⁹⁶
bug
imagined terror, fearful threat   

⁹⁷
commodity
thing of value   

⁹⁹
give
acknowledge, give up for   

¹⁰³
Starred most unluckily
born under an unlucky star   

¹⁰⁴
it
its   

¹⁰⁵
Haled
dragged   

post
proclamations were nailed up publicly   

¹⁰⁶
strumpet
harlot/whore   

immodest
outrageous   

¹⁰⁷
child-bed privilege
rights extended to women after they had given birth, including bed-rest   

'longs
belongs   

¹⁰⁸
fashion
ranks   

¹¹⁰
strength of limit
strength gained during the postnatal period of recuperation   

¹¹⁵
free
clear   

¹¹⁶
sleeping else
otherwise unforthcoming   

¹¹⁷
awake
create/muster   

¹¹⁸
rigour … law
severity rather than justice (plays on the phrase “the rigor of the law”)   

¹²⁷
flatness
absoluteness   

¹⁴⁰
truly begotten
conceived legitimately   

¹⁴⁷
sessions
trial   

¹⁵¹
conceit
imagining   

¹⁵²
speed
fate   

¹⁵⁷
mortal
fatal   

¹⁶⁸
transported
carried away, overcome   

¹⁷²
tardied
held back from   

¹⁷⁵
Not … done
depending on whether he did or did not do the deed   

¹⁷⁷
Unclasped my practice
revealed my plot   

¹⁷⁹
commended
entrusted   

¹⁸⁰
No richer than
with nothing but   

glisters
shines   

¹⁸⁴
lace
laces that fasten the corset,
cut
to relieve faintness   

¹⁸⁷
studied
planned   

¹⁸⁸
wheels
to which victims were tied and beaten   

Racks
torture instruments that stretched the limbs   

¹⁹³
Fancies
imaginings   

green
immature   

idle
foolish   

¹⁹⁶
bygone fooleries
previous mistakes   

spices
slight tastes   

¹⁹⁸
of
as   

inconstant
disloyal   

²⁰¹
Poor trespasses
small crimes   

²⁰⁴
or
either   

²⁰⁵
shed … done't
wept from his fiery eyes, or while burning in hellfire before he would commit such a sin   

²⁰⁸
tender
young   

cleft
broke   

²⁰⁹
conceive
understand   

sire
father   

²¹¹
Laid … answer
something you are required to answer to   

²¹²
said
finished speaking   

²¹⁴
dropped down
emerged   

²¹⁸
Tincture or lustre
color or brightness   

²²¹
heavier … stir
more sorrowful/weightier than all your remorse/misery can shift   

²²²
betake thee To
prepare for/go to   

²²⁵
still
permanent   

²²⁷
look … wert
look in your direction, take pity on you   

²³²
Howe'er … speech
whatever the nature of events you have erred in being so outspoken   

²⁴⁰
petition
urging, request   

²⁴¹
minded
reminded   

²⁴⁶
remember
remind   

²⁴⁷
patience
endurance, suffering   

²⁴⁹
Thou … truth
you spoke best when most truthfully   

²⁵¹
of
by   

²⁵³
them
i.e. the gravestones/burial monuments   

²⁵⁷
nature … exercise
I am physically able   

²⁵⁹
use
undertake   

¹
Thou … o'th'business
dialogue between Antigonus and Mariner is set as verse, but may have been intended as prose   

perfect
certain   

²
deserts
deserted coastal areas   

⁵
present blusters
impending storms   

conscience
opinion   

⁶
that … hand
what we are undertaking   

⁹
bark
small ship   

¹²
loud
stormy   

²²
creature
being, figure   

²³
some another
sometimes on the other side   

²⁴
vessel
container, figure   

²⁵
filled … becoming
full of sorrow and so beautiful