Act 1, Scene 2 Quotes

Mistress Overdone: ‘There’s one yonder arrested and carried to prison, was worth five thousand of you all’

• Hyperbolic→ evoking sympathy, passion

• Elevating Claudio’s status, Who is this great man?

• Held in high standing by someone of a low standing→ Themes of value and worth

• Stark contrast to how society views Angelo

• Introduction to the main dramatic conflict

1st Gentleman: ‘thou art good velvet; thou’rt a three-piled piece’

‘as be piled, as thou art pilled, for a french velvet’

• ‘French velvet’ was used to disguise syphilis

• Play on words ‘piled’ means with a long nap like velvet and ‘pilled’ means bald

• The Gentleman is suggesting that Lucio is layered in french velvet. Therefore he is he accusing Lucio of having syphilis

• This is a humorous piece of dialogue with the gentleman clearly using exaggerated language to insult and banter with Lucio

• Shakespeare demonstrates how corrupt and uninhibited Viennese society is. They are extremely lewd and bawdy.

Lucio: ‘like the sanctimonious pirate, that went to sea with the Ten Commandments, but scraped one out of the table’

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