No Fear Shakespeare
Othello
Get this No Fear to go!
Act 2, Scene 3, Page 4
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55 |
CASSIO
Fore heaven, an excellent song.
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CASSIO
My God, what a great song!
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IAGO
I learned it in England where indeed they are most potent in
potting. Your Dane, your German, and your swag-bellied
Hollander—Drink, ho!—are nothing to your
English.
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IAGO
I learned it in England, where they have a talent for drinking. The
Danes, the Germans, and the Dutch—come on, drink,
drink!—are nothing compared to the English.
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CASSIO
Is your Englishman so expert in his drinking?
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CASSIO
Are Englishmen really such heavy drinkers?
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IAGO
Why, he drinks you with facility your Dane dead drunk; he sweats
not to overthrow your Almain. He gives your Hollander a vomit ere
the next pottle can be filled.
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IAGO
They drink Danes under the table, and it takes them no effort at
all to out-drink Germans. And the Dutch are vomiting while the
English are asking for refills.
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CASSIO
To the health of our general!
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CASSIO
Let’s drink to our general!
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MONTANO
I am for it, lieutenant, and I’ll do you
justice.
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MONTANO
Hear, hear! I’ll drink as much as you do!
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65 70 |
IAGO
Oh, sweet England!
(sings)
King Stephen was a worthy
peer,
His breeches cost him but a
crown,
He held them sixpence all too
dear,
With that he called the tailor
lown.
He was a wight of high
renown,
And thou art but of low
degree,
'Tis pride that
pulls the country down,
Then take thine auld cloak
about thee.
Some wine, ho!
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IAGO
Oh, sweet England!
(he sings)
King Stephen was a good king,
and his pants were very cheap,
But he thought his tailor
overcharged him, so he called him a peasant.
And that was a man of noble
rank, much higher than you are.
So be happy with your worn-out
cloak,
Since pride is ruining the
nation.
More wine!
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CASSIO
Why, this is a more exquisite song than the other.
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CASSIO
God, that song’s even better than the other one.
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IAGO
Will you hear ’t again?
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IAGO
Do you want to hear it again?
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CASSIO
No, for I hold him to be unworthy of his place that does those
things. Well, heaven’s above all, and there be souls must
be saved, and there be souls must not be saved.
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CASSIO
No, because we shouldn’t be doing
that—stuff. Oh well, God’s in charge, and some
people have to go to heaven, while other people have to go to
hell.
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75 |
IAGO
It’s true, good lieutenant.
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IAGO
That’s true, lieutenant.
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