A Midsummer Night's Dream Read online

25 More witnesseth is more certain testimony

  26 constancy consistency, truth

  27 admirable wondrous, extraordinary

  32 board table

  33 masques courtly entertainments involving music, dancing, and elaborate costumes 35 after-supper time after the evening meal

  41 abridgement pastime (to shorten the evening)

  44 brief summary

  44 ripe fully prepared

  46 battle ... Centaurs probably derived from Ovid's Metamorphoses, which tells of the battle of the Centaurs and the Lapithae; some versions say that Hercules was present 50 riot ... rage another tale from Ovid's Metamorphoses in which Orpheus was torn apart by female followers of Bacchus (Roman god of wine) 52 device show

  54 thrice ... beggary possible reference to Spenser's poem "The Tears of the Muses"

  56 critical judgmental

  57 sorting with appropriate for

  61 strange snow a word may be missing here, e.g. "strange black snow"

  62 concord harmony

  67 fitted suitable, apt

  76 toiled exhausted, taxed

  76 unbreathed unpracticed, inexperienced

  77 against in preparation for

  83 conned learned

  87 simpleness unassuming simplicity

  89 wretchedness o'er-charged humble people overburdened 90 his service its attempt to serve

  92 kind respect

  94 take accept, comprehend, value

  95 noble respect dignity and consideration that comes with nobility 96 in ... merit in terms of effort rather than actual value 97 clerks scholars

  100 Make periods full stops/rhetorical pauses

  101 accent speech, intonation

  104 picked extracted, detected

  105 modesty propriety/shyness

  105 fearful frightened

  109 capacity understanding

  110 addressed ready

  112 will. Quince inadvertently inserts a full stop here and changes the meaning of the line 114 will. another misplaced full stop

  115 end aim

  116 despite malice

  117 We ... you correctly punctuated, this would read "we come--but in despite we do not come--as minding to content you"

  118 is. erroneous full stop

  118 All exclusively

  118 delight missing punctuation (e.g. full stop, semicolon) 119 here. erroneous full stop

  120 show appearance/performance

  121 like likely

  122 stand upon points dwell on trivialities/insist on (correct) punctuation 123 rid dispensed with/ridden

  123 rough untrained

  124 stop pulling-up (of a horse)/full stop

  127 government control

  128 nothing not

  135 sunder separate

  140 scorn shame, disdain

  142 hight is called

  145 mantle loose cloak

  145 fall let fall

  147 tall fine/brave

  150 broached pierced

  153 twain two/separated

  158 interlude short play

  166 sinister left

  167 fearful frightened

  170 partition wall/section of a scholarly book

  173 grim-looked grim-looking, forbidding

  180 chink plays on sense of "vagina/anus"

  181 Jove Roman supreme god

  184 stones plays on sense of "testicles"

  185 sensible capable of feeling

  185 again in response

  189 pat exactly

  194 lime probably pronounced "limb," thus playing on sense of "penis"

  194 hair plays on "pubic hair"

  196 an if

  197 thou ... love Thisbe misplaces the pause that should be after "love"

  198 lover's grace i.e. gracious lover

  199 Limander malapropism for "Leander," lover of Hero 200 Helen mistake for "Hero"

  201 Shafalus to Procrus mistakes for "Cephalus," who was married to "Procris"

  204 hole plays on "arsehole"

  206 'Tide betide, i.e. come

  209 mural wall

  211 walls ... hear derived from the proverb "walls have ears"

  211 wilful willing

  214 in this kind of this sort

  214 shadows images/reflections/actors

  222 monstrous frightening/enormous

  224 rough wild/cruel

  226 fell fierce

  226 dam mother

  230 at i.e. at playing

  230 beast puns on best

  231 a very fox i.e. cunning

  231 for i.e. for all

  232 goose ... discretion i.e. foolish

  232 discretion judgment/prudence

  234 carries i.e. literally, as prey

  238 horned i.e. crescent-shaped

  239 horns ... head i.e. as a cuckold (men with unfaithful wives were said to grow horns) 240 no crescent no growing moon (presumably because he is so thin) 248 in snuff in need of blowing out/angry

  251 in the wane decreasing/lacking

  251 reason i.e. reasonable behavior

  251 stay the time wait for the moment, sit it out 265 moused seized/shaken (refers to Thisbe's mantle) 274 dole sorrow, grievous occurrence

  280 Furies three classical goddesses of vengeance

  280 fell fierce

  281 Fates three classical goddesses in control of human destiny (a thread which would be cut when death was due) 282 thrum end of warp-thread on a weaving loom, i.e. everything 283 Quail end, destroy

  283 quell overcome, ruin

  284 passion fit of grief

  284 friend lover

  285 go near to almost

  286 Beshrew curse

  287 frame create

  288 deflowered presumably a mistake for "devoured"

  290 cheer face/joy

  293 pap breast (usually a woman's)

  300 Tongue error for "eye"

  303 die one of a pair of dice

  303 ace one (single spot on a die)

  307 ass puns on ace

  311 passion sorrow/suffering (resulting in death)

  312 long one i.e. fit of grief

  314 mote tiny particle

  318 means laments/intends

  318 videlicet "that is to say" (Latin) 331 Sisters Three i.e. the Fates

  335 shore shorn, cut

  336 thread of silk i.e. life

  339 imbrue pierce

  347 Bergomask dance rustic dance, named after the people of Bergamo, Italy 347 between i.e. performed by

  355 iron tongue clapper of a bell

  355 told counted, i.e. rung (puns on "tolled") 358 overwatched stayed up late

  359 palpable-gross obviously clumsy

  359 beguiled whiled away

  360 heavy gait slow/sleepy passage

  361 solemnity celebration

  365 heavy exhausted

  366 fordone worn out

  367 wasted brands burned logs

  368 screech-owl the barn owl's cry was thought to be a bad omen 373 sprite spirit

  376 triple Hecate classical goddess of witchcraft and night, associated with the moon; often represented in triple form, she was known as Luna/Cynthia in heaven, Diana on earth, and Proserpina in the underworld 376 team i.e. the creatures, probably dragons, pulling her chariot 379 frolic frolicsome, merry

  381 hallowed blessed

  382 behind out from behind/behind

  383 give glimmering light probably a command to the fairies, who may have candles with them (perhaps carried on their heads to leave their hands free for dancing) 388 trippingly skillfully, lightly

  389 rehearse recite

  389 rote heart

  395 best bride-bed i.e. that of Theseus and Hippolyta 397 issue children

  397 create created

  404 prodigious ominous

  407 consecrate holy, blessed

  408 gait (own) course

  409 several individual

  413 stay delay

  419 weak deficient

  419 idle foo
lish/trifling

  420 yielding but meaningful than

  421 Gentles ladies and gentlemen

  421 reprehend reprove

  422 mend improve, put it right

  425 serpent's tongue i.e. audience hisses

  429 Give ... hands i.e. applaud

  430 restore amends make amends in return