Middle characters quotes (Mariana, Juliet, Claudio) Flashcards
When Claudio is being paraded in the streets he says:
‘why dost thou show me thus to the world’
he is being shown as a lesson to others
The line “Fellow, why dost thou show me thus to the world?” is spoken by Claudio in Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure, Act 1, Scene 2, as he is being led to prison. Claudio is questioning the officer (the “fellow”) about why he is being publicly humiliated and taken to prison.
Context:
Claudio has been arrested for sleeping with Juliet, and he is being led to prison by the Provost.
Claudio’s Question:
He is asking the officer why he is being “shown” to the world in this way, implying that he is being subjected to public shame and disgrace.
Provost’s Response:
The Provost replies that he is acting under the orders of Lord Angelo, the Duke’s deputy, who has imposed strict laws.
Themes:
This scene highlights the themes of justice, law, and the abuse of power, which are central to the play.
Example of the line:
Claudio: Fellow, why dost thou show me thus to the world? Bear me to prison, where I am committed.
Provost: I do it not in evil disposition, but from Lord Angelo by special charge.
What metaphor about rats does Claudio use to describe his fate when talking to Lucio in Act 1?
Like rats that ravin down their proper bane,
A thirsty evil; and when we drink we die.
essentially saying that like rats, men swallow sweet poison until they die. Their proper bane means ‘their own destruction but also a type of poison.’
His sexual lust is the poison in the metaphor
Translation:
Our human nature thirsts for evil, like rats devouring their scavenged food. And when we drink, we die.
Act 1 Scene 2: Claudio speaks these lines in response to his friend Lucio, who has just asked him why he’s been arrested. Claudio insists that he’s being punished for enjoying “too much liberty.” Claudio laments his lack of self-restraint, which has forced others to restrain him. Just as overeating can lead a person to “fast,” so does “immoderate use” inevitably lead to “restraint.” Yet according to Claudio, such a situation isn’t simply a personal failing. Indeed, it’s a matter of “our natures.” To demonstrate his point, he likens humans to “rats that raven down their proper bane”—that is, rats that devour poison. In other words, we humans cause our own suffering by not having sufficient self-knowledge to know what’s harmful to us.
Claudio when talking about Julietta post-imprisonment states?
‘upon a true contract I got possession of Julietta’s bed.’
Act 1 Scene 2
Claudio, introduced in Scene 2, speaks with sensitivity and wisdom of his imprisonment, causing Lucio to quip that he “had as lief have the foppery of freedom as the morality of imprisonment” (137-39). Claudio is also eloquent in his description of his sister. Altogether, the impression he leaves is that of a calm, intelligent young man.
Although Juliet is mentioned in the stage directions as entering with Claudio in Scene 2, the subsequent dialogue makes her presence seem unlikely. It would be odd of Claudio to speak so openly before her of his crime. Further, in discussing the matter with Lucio, he speaks of Juliet as if she were not present:
Thus stands it with me: upon a true contract
I got possession of Julietta’s bed:
You know the lady: she is fast my wife,
Save that we do the denunciation lack
Of outward order. (149-53)
How does Claudio describe the unused laws in Vienna?
To Lucio, with bitterness propagated towards the new deputy Angelo
‘unscour’d armour’
‘drowsy and neglected act’
saying the armour, this weaponry and protection, is rusty and unused
Context: Complaining about Angelo’s use of them ‘for a name’
Full Context and Translation (Useful) Act 1 Scene 2
but this new governor
Awakes me all the enrolled penalties
Which have, like unscour’d armour, hung by the wall
So long that nineteen zodiacs have gone round
And none of them been worn; and, for a name,
Now puts the drowsy and neglected act
Freshly on me: ‘tis surely for a name.
But this new governor has dredged up all the old punishments which, like unwashed armor, have hung on the wall for nineteen years without being worn. Now, for the sake of his reputation, he’s called these **old, forgotten rules **into effect. It surely has to be for the sake of his reputation.
How does the Provost describe Julietta?
as having ‘blistered her report.’
~lost her good reputation
What discussion do the friar and Julietta have?
Duke: So then it seems your most offenceful act was mutually committed
Julietta: mutually
Duke: Then was your sin of heavier kind than his.
What does Claudio say, accepting death, after he speaks with the friar?
To sue to live, I find I seek to die;
And, seeking death, find life: let it come on.
Translation: Act 3 Scene 1
CLAUDIO
I humbly thank you.
To sue to live, I find I seek to die;
And, seeking death, find life: let it come on.
CLAUDIO
I give you my humble thanks. In begging to live, I’m killing myself spiritually. Seeking death gives me eternal life. Bring it on.
How does Claudio express that he thinks Isabella should sleep with Angelo?
‘sure it is no sin, Or of the deadly seven it is the least.’
How does Claudio try to convince Isabella that death would be horrible for him?
Ay, but to die, and go we know not where;
To lie in cold obstruction and to rot;
This sensible warm motion to become
A kneaded clod; and the delighted spirit
To bathe in fiery floods, or to reside
In thrilling region of thick-ribbed ice;
To be imprison’d in the viewless winds,
And blown with restless violence round about
The pendent world;
…tis too horrible!
-he suggests death is cold horrible and lonely
How does Claudio suggests to Isabella that saving him would be virtuous?
‘Sweet sister, let me live. What sin you do to save a brother’s life, Nature dispenses with the deed so far that it becomes a virtue.’
God will pardon her doing this as it is to save a life.
Context and Translation (Act 3 Scene 1)
CLAUDIO
Sweet sister, let me live:
What sin you do to save a brother’s life,
Nature dispenses with the deed so far
That it becomes a virtue.
CLAUDIO
Sweet sister, let me live. Nature will be so forgiving of whatever sin you have to commit to save your brother’s life, that the sin will become a virtue.
ISABELLA
O you beast!
O faithless coward! O dishonest wretch!
Wilt thou be made a man out of my vice?
Is’t not a kind of incest, to take life
From thine own sister’s shame? What should I think?
Heaven shield my mother play’d my father fair!
For such a warped slip of wilderness
Ne’er issued from his blood. Take my defiance!
Die, perish! Might but my bending down
Reprieve thee from thy fate, it should proceed:
I’ll pray a thousand prayers for thy death,
No word to save thee.
ISABELLA
Oh, you animal! You weak coward! You lying dog! You want to save your life through my sin? Isn’t it a kind of incest to take your life from your own sister’s shame? What am I supposed to think? I hope my mother didn’t cheat on my father—but I’m sure such a deformed piece of savagery never came from his side of the family. I defy you! Die, die! If I could save you from your fate by praying, I’d do it. I’ll pray a thousand prayers for your death, but not a word to save you.
How does the Duke (Friar) describe where Mariana lives?
‘at the moated grange resides this dejected Mariana.’
she is living her life of grief in seculsion
Context and Translation (end of Act 3 Scene 2)
ISABELLA
The image of it gives me content already; and I
trust it will grow to a most prosperous perfection.
ISABELLA
I feel better just imagining it. I think it will work out extremely well.
DUKE VINCENTIO
It lies much in your holding up. Haste you speedily
to Angelo: if for this night he entreat you to his
bed, give him promise of satisfaction. I will
presently to Saint Luke’s: there, at the moated
grange, resides this dejected Mariana. At that
place call upon me; and dispatch with Angelo, that
it may be quickly.
DUKE VINCENTIO
It all depends on how you carry it out. Go quickly to Angelo. If he asks you to come to his bed tonight, promise him you will. I’ll go now to St. Luke’s, were poor Mariana lives at the convent. Find me there, and take care of Angelo so that it can all happen soon.
How does Mariana react when she first sees the friar as someone she already knows?
‘Here comes a man of comfort, whose advice hath often stilled my brawling discontent’
this implies that the Duke has been dressing up as a friar for a long time
Act 4 Scene 1: This implies that the Duke has been dressing up as a friar for a long time
The Duke’s thoughts on Mariana listening to music?
Interesting analysis
Mariana: ‘my mirth it much displeased, but pleased my woe.’
DUKE VINCENTIO
‘Tis good; though music oft hath such a charm/To make bad good, and good provoke to harm.
-the music did not incite me to frivolity but helped to soothe my melancholy. The music is about kissing
Usually Shakespeare celebrates the beneficial effects of music, but the Duke feels Mariana is using music to luxuriate in her feelings of grief and loss.
Read Footnote, more useful :)
Context in the Scene
Mariana, abandoned by Angelo after her dowry was lost, has been living in seclusion. The Duke arrives to enlist her in the “bed trick” (a common Shakespearean plot device where one woman substitutes for another in a sexual encounter). He instructs her to take Isabella’s place in Angelo’s bed, ensuring Angelo’s corruption is exposed while preserving Isabella’s chastity.
Before this exchange, a boy sings the mournful song “Take, O take those lips away”, which echoes Mariana’s sorrow over lost love. The Duke then remarks:
“Tis good; though music oft hath such a charm
To make bad good, and good provoke to harm.”
Interpretation in the Play’s Themes
Moral Ambiguity & Deception
The Duke acknowledges music’s power to alter perception—just as he is manipulating appearances (as a friar) to orchestrate justice.
His line reflects the play’s central tension: Can “bad” (deception, like the bed trick) be used for “good” (justice)? Conversely, can “good” (Angelo’s strict morality) provoke harm (his hypocrisy and cruelty)?
The Duke’s Role as Puppet Master
The Duke’s musing on music mirrors his own actions: he “tunes” the play’s events like a composer, using deceit (a “charm”) to correct Vienna’s corruption.
His schemes—like music—have a double edge: they restore order but rely on morally questionable tactics.
Mariana’s Emotional State
The song’s melancholy affects her, showing how music “makes bad good” (soothing her grief) but also “provokes to harm” (reinforcing her attachment to Angelo, who wronged her).
The Duke exploits this vulnerability, urging her to participate in the bed trick—a morally ambiguous act.
Irony of “Measure for Measure”
The title suggests balance, yet the play explores how justice and mercy are rarely straightforward.
The Duke’s line hints that even noble tools (music, law, authority) can distort morality—just as Angelo’s rigid enforcement of Vienna’s laws leads to tyranny.
Connection to Shakespeare’s Larger Concerns
Shakespeare often explores how art (music, theater, language) can manipulate emotions and morals. Here, the Duke’s words foreshadow the play’s climax, where his grand “reveal” (like a dramatic crescendo) resolves the plot—but leaves audiences questioning whether his methods were truly just.
What does the name Mariana mean?
bitter
she is bitter about Angelo
How does the Duke convince Mariana that the bed trick is not sinful?
‘He is your husband on a pre-contract; to bring you thus together ‘tis no sin.’
Duke is dressed as a Friar so has the authority on what is and is not sinful in her mind.
Her and Angelo have a de future contract which means there were conditions to them becoming married, if the pairing is consummated they will be married in the eyes of the law.
How does Mariana indicate that she and Angelo were married and had sex?
‘he knew me as a wife.’
Why does the Duke marry her to Angelo before he plans to kill him? What is Mariana’s reaction?
Duke:
Consenting to the safeguard of your honour,
I thought your marriage fit; else imputation,
For that he knew you, might reproach your life
And choke your good to come; for his possessions,
Although by confiscation they are ours,
We do instate and widow you withal,
To buy you a better husband.
Mariana:
O my dear lord, I crave no other nor no better man.’
she recognises his faults and still loves him
Translation: Act 5 Scene 1
I thought it was best for your reputation to have you married; otherwise, you might have a difficult time in the future, since you had sex with him. As for his possessions, although I could confiscate them, you’re now his widow—so you can have it all. Buy yourself a better husband.
How does Mariana say she still loves Angelo despite his faults?
They say, best men are moulded out of faults;
And, for the most, become much more the better
For being a little bad
Act 5 Scene 1
What does the Duke say about the head trick in a measure for measure sense in Act 5?
‘The head of Ragozine for Claudio’s.’
