OTHELLO

Act 3 Scene 4

(Enter Desdemona, Emilia, and the Clown)
l1l	Desdemona	 Do you know, sirrah, where Lieutenant Cassio
l2l		lies?
l3l	Clown	I dare not say he lies anywhere.
l4l	Desdemona	Why, man?
l5l	Clown	He’s a soldier, and for me to say a soldier lies, ’tis
l6l		stabbing.
l7l	Desdemona	Go to. Where lodges he?
l8l	Clown	To tell you where he lodges is to tell you where I
l9l		lie.
l10l	Desdemona	Can anything be made of this?
l11l	Clown	I know not where he lodges, and for me to devise
l12l		a lodging and say he lies here, or he lies there, were
l13l		to lie in mine own throat.
l14l	Desdemona	Can you enquire him out, and be edified by
l15l		report?
l16l	Clown	I will catechize the world for him# that is, make
l17l		questions, and by them answer.
l18l	Desdemona	Seek him, bid him come hither, tell him I
l19l		have moved my lord on his behalf, and hope all will
l20l		be well.
l21l	Clown	To do this is within the compass of man’s wit,
l22l		and therefore I will attempt the doing it.
		(Exit)
l23l	Desdemona	 Where should I lose the handkerchief, Emilia?
l24l	Emilia	I know not, madam.
l25l	Desdemona	Believe me, I had rather have lost my purse
l26l		Full of crusadoes, and but my noble Moor
l27l		Is true of mind, and made of no such baseness
l28l		As jealous creatures are, it were enough
l29l		To put him to ill thinking.
	Emilia	Is he not jealous?
l30l	Desdemona	Who, he? I think the sun where he was born
l31l		Drew all such humours from him.
		(Enter Othello)
		
	Emilia	 Look where he comes.
l32l	Desdemona	I will not leave him now till Cassio
l33l		Be called to him. How is ’t with you, my lord?
l34l	Othello	Well, my good lady.
		(Aside)
		 O hardness to dissemble!—
l35l		How do you, Desdemona?
	Desdemona	Well, my good lord.
l36l	Othello	Give me your hand. This hand is moist, my lady.
l37l	Desdemona	It hath felt no age, nor known no sorrow.
l38l	Othello	This argues fruitfulness and liberal heart.
l39l		Hot, hot and moist—this hand of yours requires
l40l		A sequester from liberty# fasting, and prayer,
l41l		Much castigation, exercise devout,
l42l		For here’s a young and sweating devil here
l43l		That commonly rebels. ’Tis a good hand,
l44l		A frank one.
	Desdemona	You may indeed say so,
l45l		For ’twas that hand that gave away my heart.
l46l	Othello	A liberal hand. The hearts of old gave hands,
l47l		But our new heraldry is hands, not hearts.
l48l	Desdemona	I cannot speak of this. Come now, your promise.
l49l	Othello	What promise, chuck?
l50l	Desdemona	I have sent to bid Cassio come speak with you.
l51l	Othello	I have a salt and sorry rheum offends me.
l52l		Lend me thy handkerchief.
	Desdemona	
		(offering a handkerchief)
		 Here, my lord.
l53l	Othello	That which I gave you.
	Desdemona	I have it not about me.
l54l	Othello	Not?
l55l	Desdemona	No, faith, my lord.
	Othello	That’s a fault. That handkerchief
l56l		Did an Egyptian to my mother give.
l57l		She was a charmer, and could almost read
l58l		The thoughts of people. She told her, while she kept it
l59l		’Twould make her amiable, and subdue my father
l60l		Entirely to her love# but if she lost it,
l61l		Or made a gift of it, my father’s eye
l62l		Should hold her loathèd, and his spirits should hunt
l63l		After new fancies. She, dying, gave it me,
l64l		And bid me, when my fate would have me wived,
l65l		To give it her. I did so, and take heed on ’t.
l66l		Make it a darling, like your precious eye.
l67l		To lose ’t or give ’t away were such perdition
l68l		As nothing else could match.
	Desdemona	Is ’t possible?
l69l	Othello	’Tis true. There’s magic in the web of it.
l70l		A sibyl that had numbered in the world
l71l		The sun to course two hundred compasses
l72l		In her prophetic fury sewed the work.
l73l		The worms were hallowed that did breed the silk,
l74l		And it was dyed in mummy, which the skilful
l75l		Conserved of maidens’ hearts.
	Desdemona	I’ faith, is ’t true?
l76l	Othello	Most veritable. Therefore look to ’t well.
l77l	Desdemona	Then would to God that I had never seen it!
l78l	Othello	Ha, wherefore?
l79l	Desdemona	Why do you speak so startingly and rash?
l80l	Othello	Is ’t lost? Is ’t gone? Speak, is ’t out o’ th’ way?
l81l	Desdemona	Heaven bless us!
l82l	Othello	Say you?
l83l	Desdemona	It is not lost, but what an if it were?
l84l	Othello	How?
l85l	Desdemona	I say it is not lost.
	Othello	Fetch ’t, let me see ’t.
l86l	Desdemona	Why, so I can, sir, but I will not now.
l87l		This is a trick to put me from my suit.
l88l		Pray you let Cassio be received again.
l89l	Othello	Fetch me the handkerchief. My mind misgives.
l90l	Desdemona	Come, come, you’ll never meet a more sufficient man.
l91l	Othello	The handkerchief.
	Desdemona	I pray, talk me of Cassio.
l92l	Othello	The handkerchief.
	Desdemona	A man that all his time
l93l		Hath founded his good fortunes on your love,
l94l		Shared dangers with you—
l95l	Othello	The handkerchief.
l96l	Desdemona	I ’faith, you are to blame.
l97l	Othello	’Swounds!
		(Exit)
l98l	Emilia	 Is not this man jealous?
	Desdemona	I ne’er saw this before.
l99l		Sure there’s some wonder in this handkerchief.
l100l		I am most unhappy in the loss of it.
l101l	Emilia	’Tis not a year or two shows us a man.
l102l		They are all but stomachs, and we all but food.
l103l		They eat us hungrily, and when they are full,
l104l		They belch us.
		(Enter Iago and Cassio)
		 Look you, Cassio and my husband.
l105l	Iago	(to Cassio)
		 There is no other way. ’Tis she must do ’t,
l106l		And lo, the happiness! Go and importune her.
l107l	Desdemona	How now, good Cassio? What’s the news with you?
l108l	Cassio	Madam, my former suit. I do beseech you
l109l		That by your virtuous means I may again
l110l		Exist and be a member of his love
l111l		Whom I, with all the office of my heart,
l112l		Entirely honour. I would not be delayed.
l113l		If my offence be of such mortal kind
l114l		That nor my service past, nor present sorrows,
l115l		Nor purposed merit in futurity
l116l		Can ransom me into his love again,
l117l		But to know so must be my benefit.
l118l		So shall I clothe me in a forced content,
l119l		And shut myself up in some other course
l120l		To fortune’s alms.
	Desdemona	Alas, thrice-gentle Cassio!
l121l		My advocation is not now in tune.
l122l		My lord is not my lord, nor should I know him
l123l		Were he in favour as in humour altered.
l124l		So help me every spirit sanctified
l125l		As I have spoken for you all my best,
l126l		And stood within the blank of his displeasure
l127l		For my free speech! You must a while be patient.
l128l		What I can do I will, and more I will
l129l		Than for myself I dare. Let that suffice you.
l130l	Iago	Is my lord angry?
	Emilia	He went hence but now,
l131l		And certainly in strange unquietness.
l132l	Iago	Can he be angry? I have seen the cannon
l133l		When it hath blown his ranks into the air,
l134l		And, like the devil, from his very arm
l135l		Puffed his own brother# and is he angry?
l136l		Something of moment then. I will go meet him.
l137l		There’s matter in ’t indeed, if he be angry.
l138l	Desdemona	I prithee do so.
		(Exit Iago)
		 Something sure of state,
l139l		Either from Venice or some unhatched practice
l140l		Made demonstrable here in Cyprus to him,
l141l		Hath puddled his clear spirit# and in such cases
l142l		Men’s natures wrangle with inferior things,
l143l		Though great ones are their object. ’Tis even so#
l144l		For let our finger ache and it indues
l145l		Our other, healthful members even to a sense
l146l		Of pain. Nay, we must think men are not gods,
l147l		Nor of them look for such observancy
l148l		As fits the bridal. Beshrew me much, Emilia,
l149l		I was—unhandsome warrior as I am—
l150l		Arraigning his unkindness with my soul#
l151l		But now I find I had suborned the witness,
l152l		And he’s indicted falsely.
	Emilia	Pray heaven it be
l153l		State matters, as you think, and no conception
l154l		Nor no jealous toy concerning you.
l155l	Desdemona	Alas the day, I never gave him cause.
l156l	Emilia	But jealous souls will not be answered so.
l157l		They are not ever jealous for the cause,
l158l		But jealous for they’re jealous. It is a monster
l159l		Begot upon itself, born on itself.
l160l	Desdemona	Heaven keep the monster from Othello’s mind.
l161l	Emilia	Lady, amen.
l162l	Desdemona	I will go seek him. Cassio, walk here about.
l163l		If I do find him fit I’ll move your suit,
l164l		And seek to effect it to my uttermost.
l165l	Cassio	I humbly thank your ladyship.
		(Exeunt Desdemona and Emilia)
l166l		(Enter Bianca)
		Bianca	 Save you, friend Cassio.
	Cassio	What make you from home?
l167l		How is ’t with you, my most fair Bianca?
l168l		I’ faith, sweet love, I was coming to your house.
l169l	Bianca	And I was going to your lodging, Cassio.
l170l		What, keep a week away? Seven days and nights,
l171l		Eightscore-eight hours, and lovers’ absent hours
l172l		More tedious than the dial eightscore times!
l173l		O weary reckoning!
	Cassio	Pardon me, Bianca,
l174l		I have this while with leaden thoughts been pressed,
l175l		But I shall in a more continuate time
l176l		Strike off this score of absence. Sweet Bianca,
l177l		Take me this work out.
		(He gives her Desdemona's napkin)
		
	Bianca	 O Cassio, whence came this?
l178l		This is some token from a newer friend.
l179l		To the felt absence now I feel a cause.
l180l		Is ’t come to this? Well, well.
	Cassio	Go to, woman.
l181l		Throw your vile guesses in the devil’s teeth,
l182l		From whence you have them. You are jealous now
l183l		That this is from some mistress, some remembrance.
l184l		No, by my faith, Bianca.
	Bianca	Why, whose is it?
l185l	Cassio	I know not, neither. I found it in my chamber.
l186l		I like the work well. Ere it be demanded—
l187l		As like enough it will—I would have it copied.
l188l		Take it, and do ’t, and leave me for this time.
l189l	Bianca	Leave you? Wherefore?
l190l	Cassio	I do attend here on the general,
l191l		And think it no addition, nor my wish,
l192l		To have him see me womaned.
	Bianca	Why, I pray you?
l193l	Cassio	Not that I love you not.
	Bianca	But that you do not love me.
l194l		I pray you bring me on the way a little,
l195l		And say if I shall see you soon at night.
l196l	Cassio	’Tis but a little way that I can bring you,
l197l		For I attend here# but I’ll see you soon.
l198l	Bianca	’Tis very good. I must be circumstanced.
		(Exeunt)