"Not to be married, / Not to knit my soul to an approvèd wanton."
— Shakespeare, William (1564-1616)
Work Title
Date
1600
Metaphor
"Not to be married, / Not to knit my soul to an approvèd wanton."
Metaphor in Context
CLAUDIO
Sweet Prince, you learn me noble thankfulness.
There, Leonato, take her back again.
Give not this rotten orange to your friend.
She's but the sign and semblance of her honour.
Behold how like a maid she blushes here!
O, what authority and show of truth
Can cunning sin cover itself withal!
Comes not that blood as modest evidence
To witness simple virtue? Would you not swear,
All you that see her, that she were a maid,
By these exterior shows? But she is none.
She knows the heat of a luxurious bed.
Her blush is guiltiness, not modesty.
LEONAT
What do you mean, my lord?
CLAUDIO
Not to be married,
Not to knit my soul to an approvèd wanton.
LEONATO
Dear my lord, if you in your own proof
Have vanquished the resistance of her youth
And made defeat of her virginity --
(IV.i.30-47)
Sweet Prince, you learn me noble thankfulness.
There, Leonato, take her back again.
Give not this rotten orange to your friend.
She's but the sign and semblance of her honour.
Behold how like a maid she blushes here!
O, what authority and show of truth
Can cunning sin cover itself withal!
Comes not that blood as modest evidence
To witness simple virtue? Would you not swear,
All you that see her, that she were a maid,
By these exterior shows? But she is none.
She knows the heat of a luxurious bed.
Her blush is guiltiness, not modesty.
LEONAT
What do you mean, my lord?
CLAUDIO
Not to be married,
Not to knit my soul to an approvèd wanton.
LEONATO
Dear my lord, if you in your own proof
Have vanquished the resistance of her youth
And made defeat of her virginity --
(IV.i.30-47)
Categories
Provenance
HDIS
Citation
Shakespeare, William. The Complete Works. Oxford Shakespeare. Electronic Edition for the IBM PC. Stanley Wells and Gary Taylor, Editor.
Date of Entry
08/27/2003
