The Complete Works of William Shakespeare - Israel Gollancz William Shakespeare [901]
That was my wife's?
CASSIO.
I found it in my chamber;
And he himself confess'd but even now
That there he dropp'd it for a special purpose
Which wrought to his desire.
OTHELLO.
O fool! fool! fool!
CASSIO.
There is besides in Roderigo's letter,
How he upbraids Iago, that he made him
Brave me upon the watch, whereon it came
That I was cast. And even but now he spake
After long seeming dead, Iago hurt him,
Iago set him on.
LODOVICO.
You must forsake this room, and go with us.
Your power and your command is taken off,
And Cassio rules in Cyprus. For this slave,
If there be any cunning cruelty
That can torment him much and hold him long,
It shall be his. You shall close prisoner rest,
Till that the nature of your fault be known
To the Venetian state. Come, bring away.
OTHELLO.
Soft you; a word or two before you go.
I have done the state some service, and they know't.
No more of that. I pray you, in your letters,
When you shall these unlucky deeds relate,
Speak of me as I am; nothing extenuate,
Nor set down aught in malice. Then must you speak
Of one that loved not wisely but too well;
Of one not easily jealous, but, being wrought,
Perplex'd in the extreme; of one whose hand,
Like the base Indian, threw a pearl away
Richer than all his tribe; of one whose subdued eyes,
Albeit unused to the melting mood,
Drop tears as fast as the Arabian trees
Their medicinal gum. Set you down this;
And say besides, that in Aleppo once,
Where a malignant and a turban'd Turk
Beat a Venetian and traduced the state,
I took by the throat the circumcised dog
And smote him, thus. Stabs himself.
LODOVICO.
O bloody period!
GRATIANO.
All that's spoke is marr'd.
OTHELLO.
I kiss'd thee ere I kill'd thee. No way but this,
Killing myself, to die upon a kiss.
Falls on the bed, and dies.
CASSIO.
This did I fear, but thought he had no weapon;
For he was great of heart.
LODOVICO.
[To Iago.] O Spartan dog,
More fell than anguish, hunger, or the sea!
Look on the tragic loading of this bed;
This is thy work. The object poisons sight;
Let it be hid. Gratiano, keep the house,
And seize upon the fortunes of the Moor,
For they succeed on you. To you, Lord Governor,
Remains the censure of this hellish villain,
The time, the place, the torture. O, enforce it!
Myself will straight aboard, and to the state
This heavy act with heavy heart relate.
Exeunt.
KING LEAR
Though largely forgotten for many years, this tragedy is now regarded as one of the greatest plays ever written. It tells the story of Lear, who descends into madness after foolishly disposing of his kingdom between two of his three daughters. He holds a foolish ‘love test’, offering the largest share of his estate to the daughter that flatters him the most, bringing tragic consequences to all.
The play is based on the legend of Leir of Britain, a mythological pre-Roman Celtic king and was written between 1603 and 1606 and later revised. After the Restoration, the play was revised with a happy ending for audiences who disliked its dark and depressing tone, but since the 19th century Shakespeare's original version has been judged as one of his greatest achievements. The tragedy is particularly noted for its probing observations on the nature of human suffering, as depicted in the portrayal of many of the play’s characters.
Shakespeare's main source text for this play is available via this link.
The 1608 Quarto
CONTENTS
DRAMATIS PERSONAE
ACT I. Scene I. [King Lear's Palace.]
Scene II. The Earl of Gloucester's Castle.
Scene III. The Duke of Albany's Palace.
Scene IV. The Duke of Albany's Palace.
Scene V. Court before the Duke of Albany's Palace.
ACT II. Scene I. A court within the Castle of the Earl of Gloucester.
Scene II. Before Gloucester's Castle.
Scene III. The open country.
Scene IV. Before Gloucester's Castle; Kent in the stocks.
ACT III. Scene I. A heath.
Scene II. Another part of the heath.
Scene III. Gloucester's Castle.
Scene IV. The heath. Before a hovel.
Scene V. Gloucester's Castle.