“The quality of mercy is not strain'd, It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven Upon the place beneath: it is twice blest,— It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.” -The Merchant of Venice. You know, people sometimes misunderstand Shakespeare. And I've noticed that people on FB and elsewhere sometimes wonder why I post certain Shakespeare quotes. Well, first on the above play. Portia meant mercy in the context of the justice system. Did you know, when I starting studying this play and sharing the quotes c. 2000, some people thought I was becoming too much of a mercy-freak. I'm serious. They may have been right. I think retribution is a flawed concept. But I also am beginning to realize that our justice system is there to protect the weak and vulnerable too. And, perhaps sometimes I let people take advantage of me. I am a mercy-freak sometimes. I will try to be less a mercy-freak in the future. I promise. But anyways, it's context then, that is important, to understanding Shakespeare quotes. When Dick the Butcher says in Henry VI, Part II, Act IV, Scene 2, "kill all the lawyers" that's not how it goes. The full quote is "The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers". The first thing we do. Meaning it's at the top of the list. Jack Cade is listing all the ways he will turn England into an perfect place: "The three-hooped pot shall have ten hoops, and I will make it felony to drink small beer... There shall be no money; all shall eat and drink on my score; and I will apparel them all in one livery, that they may agree like brothers and worship me their lord." Now, Dick the Butcher is actually laughing at this point. In Shakespeare plays, they don't tell if the characters are laughing or crying, etc. Although they do include stage directions now, usually. It's a joke. "Small beer" means he thought the serving of beer they give at the bars of the time was way too small. Now, I agree. Back when I starting going out to bars, in the early 90's, they used to give you beer in these small little glasses, wide at the top. Remember those? And they were far too small. Now I wouldn't start a revolution on that, or make that law of the land. But that's the point. What Jack Cade is saying silly. And that's why Dick the Butcher jokes "The first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers". In other words, that wouldn't work either. Yeah, as I tell my FB friends. My quotes, esp. Shakespeare, are just to make people think. For example, my Timon of Athens "nothing emboldens sin so much as mercy" quote was making fun of how pro-justice some people are in this country. I was making fun of them those kinds of people, IOW. Maybe that wasn't clear. But you know, "Timon of Athens" also has: "'Tis not enough to help the feeble up, But to support him after." The difference here again is context. The helping the feeble quote is by the benevolent emperor Timon. The "emboldens" one is by the First Senator, doling out a punishment. So here it is who says the quote in the play that makes a big difference.
Another Shakespeare quote that you have to put in context is the one from "The Tempest", Act V, Scene 1: "O, wonder! How many goodly creatures are there here! How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world, That has such people in't!" Miranda of course talking about the modern age the occurred around Shakespeare's time just after the Renaissance. And the perfectibility of man morally. But the whole quote goes: "O, wonder! How many goodly creatures are there here! How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world, That has such people in't!" "'Tis new to thee." "'Tis new to thee" being Prospero's response to what his daughter says. IOW, only because these are the first outsiders you have ever seen. She is talking about Prospero's conspirators who arrive on Prospero's Island. The same ones who tried to depose him as Duke back home.
People often quote Shakespeare, sometimes haphazardly, not even realizing what Shakespeare really meant. You have to understand the time Shakespeare lived. And you have to put it in its right context. Like this quote: “My lord, you have my voice to it; the fault's Bloody; 'tis necessary he should die: Nothing emboldens sin so much as mercy.” -Timon of Athens, Act III, Scene 5. Some people misunderstand this quote. But like the "kill all the lawyers" quote from Henry VI, Part 2, it has to be taken in the right context. Alcibiades, an Athenian general, is overhearing it. He is pleading the case for an Athenian solder accused of misconduct in office. And he overhears two Roman senators having a discussion. (Actually they are discussing a different case. But he is still dismayed by their cruel attitude.) And the quote has three parts: • "You have my voice on it." The First Senator is saying it. And as I said, it is in the context of law and justice. And he is saying he is changing his "voice" (i.e., his vote). He voted for leniency before. But he feels that is not appropriate now. The guy deserves it this time. • "The fault's Bloody." Meaning it's punishable by death ("bloody" just means death penalty here). And it deserves the full punishment this time, he says. • Then, if you see the play, he turns to other senator, and says with clear disgust "Nothing emboldens sin so much as mercy". Meaning when people reoffend, you have to get more and more serious with how you handle it, with each new offense. Some people think this part sounds brutal. It is said with disgust as I said. But that is really what he means. Also, you know, Shakespeare really never said this. Well, he did. But it was the First Senator who spoke the words. And as in all of Shakespeare's plays, the context of what a character said is very important too.
I'm working out the linguistic math to translate Shakespeare into potty mouth playground nursery rhymes, and adult versions. The only way to comprehend Shakespeare and the Bible, is to take them both with 500lbs of salt. Pour as much salty humor as you can into them, and they make much more sense. Shakespeare only seems as foreign as it does, because salt-of-the-earth humor is rapidly becoming taboo, and widely censored. Of course, his own work had to get past the same idiots intent on censoring half of reality to this day, but American salt of the earth humor, has been reduced to Beavis and Butthead. Sesame Street is the saltiest humor left, and republicans keep threatening to lynch Big Bird.
