Othello

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     My thrice-driven²⁴⁶ bed of down: I do agnize

     A natural and prompt alacrity²⁴⁷

     I find in hardness²⁴⁸, and do undertake

     This present wars against the Ottomites.

     Most humbly therefore bending to your state²⁵⁰,

     I crave fit disposition²⁵¹ for my wife,

     Due reference of place and exhibition²⁵²,

     With such accommodation²⁵³ and besort

     As levels with²⁵⁴ her breeding.DUKE   Why, at her fathers.BRABANTIO   I will not have it so.OTHELLO   Nor I.DESDEMONA   Nor would I there reside,

     To put my father in impatient thoughts

     By being in his eye²⁶⁰. Most gracious duke,

     To my unfolding²⁶¹ lend your prosperous ear,

     And let me find a charter²⁶² in your voice

     T’assist my simpleness²⁶³.DUKE   What would you, Desdemona?DESDEMONA   That I love the Moor to live with him,

     My downright violence²⁶⁶ and storm of fortunes

     May trumpet to the world. My heart’s subdued²⁶⁷

     Even to the very quality²⁶⁸ of my lord.

     I saw Othello’s visage in his mind,

     And to his honours and his valiant parts²⁷⁰

     Did I my soul and fortunes consecrate²⁷¹:

     So that, dear lords, if I be left behind

     A moth²⁷³ of peace, and he go to the war,

     The rites²⁷⁴ for why I love him are bereft me,

     And I a heavy interim shall support

     By his dear²⁷⁶ absence. Let me go with him.OTHELLO   Let her have your voice²⁷⁷.

     Vouch²⁷⁸ with me, heaven, I therefore beg it not

     To please the palate of my appetite,

     Nor to comply with heat²⁸⁰ — the young affects

     In my defunct and proper satisfaction²⁸¹—

     But to be free²⁸² and bounteous to her mind:

     And heaven²⁸³ defend your good souls that you think

     I will your serious and great business scant²⁸⁴

     When she is with me. No, when light-winged toys²⁸⁵

     Of feathered²⁸⁶ Cupid seel with wanton dullness

     My speculative and officed instrument²⁸⁷,

     That²⁸⁸ my disports corrupt and taint my business,

     Let housewives make a skillet²⁸⁹ of my helm,

     And all indign²⁹⁰ and base adversities

     Make head²⁹¹ against my estimation!DUKE   Be it as you shall privately determine,

     Either for her stay or going: th’affair cries²⁹³ haste,

     And speed must answer it.A SENATOR   You must away tonight.OTHELLO   With all my heart.DUKE   At nine i’th’morning here we’ll meet again.

     Othello, leave some officer behind,

     And he shall our commission bring to you,

     And such things else of quality and respect³⁰⁰

     As doth import³⁰¹ you.OTHELLO   So please your grace, my ancient:

     A man he is of honesty and trust:

     To his conveyance³⁰⁴ I assign my wife,

     With what else needful your good grace shall think

     To be sent after me.DUKE   Let it be so.

     Goodnight to everyone.— And, noble signior,To Brabantio     If virtue no delighted³⁰⁹ beauty lack,

     Your son-in-law is far more fair³¹⁰ than black.A SENATOR   Adieu, brave Moor: use Desdemona well.BRABANTIO   Look to her, Moor, if thou hast eyes to see:

     She has deceived her father, and may thee.Exeunt [Duke, Senators and Officers]OTHELLO   My life upon her faith! Honest³¹⁴ Iago,

     My Desdemona must I leave to thee:

     I prithee let thy wife attend on her,

     And bring them after in the best advantage³¹⁷.

     Come, Desdemona, I have but an hour

     Of love, of worldly matter and direction³¹⁹

     To spend with thee: we must obey the time³²⁰.

Exeunt [Othello and Desdemona]RODORIGO   Iago—IAGO   What say’st thou, noble heart³²²?RODORIGO   What will I do, think’st thou?IAGO   Why, go to bed and sleep.RODORIGO   I will incontinently³²⁵ drown myself.IAGO   If thou dost, I shall never love thee after. Why, thou

      silly gentleman?RODORIGO   It is silliness to live when to live is torment: and then

  have we a prescription³²⁹ to die when death is our physician.IAGO   O villainous! I have looked upon the world for four

      times seven years, and since I could distinguish betwixt a

      benefit and an injury, I never found man that knew how to

      love himself. Ere³³³ I would say I would drown myself for the

      love of a guinea- hen³³⁴, I would change my humanity with a

      baboon³³⁵.RODORIGO   What should I do? I confess it is my shame to be so

      fond³³⁷, but it is not in my virtue to amend it.IAGO   Virtue? A fig! ³³⁸ ’Tis in ourselves that we are thus or

      thus. Our bodies are our gardens, to the which our wills are

      gardeners: so that if we will plant nettles or sow lettuce, set³⁴⁰

      hyssop³⁴¹ and weed up thyme, supply it with one gender of

      herbs or distract³⁴² it with many, either to have it sterile with

      idleness or manured with industry, why, the power and

      corrigible authority³⁴⁴ of this lies in our wills. If the beam of

      our lives had not one scale of reason to poise³⁴⁵ another of

      sensuality, the blood³⁴⁶ and baseness of our natures would

      conduct us to most preposterous³⁴⁷ conclusions: but we have

      reason to cool our raging motions³⁴⁸, our carnal stings, our

      unbitted³⁴⁹ lusts, whereof I take this that you call love to be a

      sect or scion³⁵⁰.RODORIGO   It cannot be.IAGO   It is merely a lust of

      the blood and a permission of the will³⁵³. Come, be a man. Drown thyself? Drown cats and

      blind puppies. I have professed me thy friend and I confess

      me knit³⁵⁵ to thy deserving with cables of perdurable

      toughness: I could never better stead³⁵⁶ thee than now. Put

      money in thy purse: follow thou the wars: defeat thy favour³⁵⁷

      with an usurped beard: I say, put money in thy purse. It

      cannot be long that Desdemona should continue her love to

      the Moor. Put money in thy purse. Nor he his to her: it was

      a violent commencement in her, and thou shalt see an

      answerable sequestration³⁶². Put but money in thy purse.

      These Moors are changeable in their wills. Fill thy purse with

      money. The food that to him now is as luscious as locusts³⁶⁴

      shall be to him shortly as bitter as coloquintida³⁶⁵. She must

      change for youth³⁶⁶: when she is sated with his body, she will

      find the errors of her choice: therefore put money in thy

      purse. If thou wilt needs damn thyself, do it a more delicate³⁶⁸

      way than drowning. Make³⁶⁹ all the money thou canst. If

      sanctimony³⁷⁰ and a frail vow betwixt an erring barbarian and

      supersubtle³⁷¹ Venetian be not too hard for my wits and all

      the tribe of hell, thou shalt enjoy her. Therefore make money. A

      pox of³⁷³ drowning thyself! It is clean out of the way: seek thou

      rather to be hanged in³⁷⁴ compassing thy joy than to be

      drowned and go without her.RODORIGO   Wilt thou be fast³⁷⁶ to my hopes if I depend on the

      issue³⁷⁷?IAGO   Thou art³⁷⁸ sure of me. Go, make money. I have told

      thee often, and I re-tell thee again and again, I hate the

      Moor: my cause is hearted³⁸⁰; thine hath no less reason. Let us

      be conjunctive³⁸¹ in our revenge against him: if thou