A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Quotes

Egeus to Theseus Order vs Disorder, Page 2: Full of vexation come I, with complaint Against my child, my daughter Hermia.
Fairy to Puck Magic, page 12: I do wander every where, Swifter than the moon’s sphere; And I serve the fairy queen, To dew her orbs upon the green. The cowslips tall her pensioners be: In their gold coats spots you see; Those rubies, fairy favours, In those freckles live their savours: I must go seek some dewdrops here, And hang a pearl in every clowslip’s ear. Farewell, thou lob of sprits; I’ll be gone: Our queen and all her elves come here anon.
Puck to Fairy Magic, page 13: Thou speak’st alright; I am that merry wanderer of the night. I jest to Oberon, and make him smile, When I a fat and bean-fed horse beguile, Neighing in likeness of a filly foal: And sometimes lurk I in gossip’s boal, In very likeness of a roasted crab; And when she drinks, against her lips I bob And on her withered dewlap pour the ale.
Oberon to Puck Magic, page 17: That every time I saw, nut thou couldst not, Flying between the cold moon and the earth, Cupid all arm’d: a certain aim he took At a fair vestal throned by the west, And loosed his love-shaft smartly from his bow, As it should pierce a hundred thousand hearts: But I might see young Cupid’s fiery shaft Quench’d in the chaste beams of the watery moon, And the imperial votaress passed on, In maiden meditation, fancy-free. Yet mark’d I where the bolt of Cupid fell: It fell upon a little western flower, Before milk-white , now purple with love’s wound, And maidens call it love-in-idlenness. Fetch me that flower; the herb I shew’d thee once: Will make or man or woman madly dote Upon the next live creature that it sees. Fetch the leviathan can swim a leauge. I’ll put a girdle round about the earth In forty minutes.
Oberon Magic, page 21: What thou seest when thou dost wake, Do it for thy true-love take; Love and Languish for his sake: Be it ounce, or cat, or bear, Pard, or boar with bristled hair, In thy eye that shall appear When thou wakest, it is thy dear: Wake when some vile thing is near.
Puck Magic, page 23: Through the forest have I gone, But Athenian found I none, On whose eyes I might approve, This flower’s force in stirring love.
Quince to bottom Order vs. Disorder/Magic, page 28: O monstrous! O strange! we are haunted. Pray, masters! fly, masters! Help! (continues to next page up to.. Oh Bottom, thou art changed! what do I see on thee?)
Bottom Love (Has nothing to do with reason), page 30: Methinks, mistress, you should have little reason for that: and yet, to say the truth, reason and love keep little company together now-a-days
Lysander to Helena Love, page 35: Why should you think that I should woo in scorn? Scorn and derision never come in tears: Look, when I vow, I weep; and vows so born, In their nativity all truth appears. How can these things in me seem scorn to you, Bearing the badge of faith, to prove them true?
Demetrius to Helena Love, page 35: O Helen, goddess, nymph, perfect, divine! To what, my love, shall I compromise thine eyne? Crystal is muddy. O, how ripe in show Thy lips, those kissing cherries tempting grow! That pure congealed white, high Taurus snow, Fann’d with the eastern wind, turns to a crow When thou hold’st up thy hand: O, let me kiss This princess of pure white, this seal of bliss!
Helena to Demetrius & Demetrius to Helena Love, page 36: In Hermia’s love I yield you up my part; And yours of Helena to me bequeath, Whom I do love, and will do till my death. Never did mockers waste more idle breath. Lysander, keep thy Hermia; I will none: If e’er I loved her, all that love is gone. My heart to her but as a guest-wise sojourn’d, There to remain.
Helena Order vs. Disorder, page 37: Lo, she is one of this confederacy! …. (last line: And will you rent our aicent love asunder..)
Helena Love, page 38: What though I be not so in grace as you, So hung upon with love, so fortunate, But miserable most, to love unloved? This you should pity rather than despise.
Lysander Love, page 38: Stay, gentle Helena: hear my excuse: My love, my life, my soul, fair Helena!
Helena and Hermia Order vs. disorder, page 40: Have you no modesty, not maiden shame… (last line… And now, so you will let me quiet go..)
Lion Art and imagination, page 60: You, ladies, you, whose gentle hearts do fear The smallest monstrous mouse that creeps on floor, May now perchance both quake and tremble here, When lion rough in wildest rage doth roar. Then know that I, one Snug the joiner, arm A lion-fell, nor else no lion’s dam; For if I should as lion come in strife Into this place, ‘t were pity on my life.
Moonshine Art and imagination, page 61: All that I have to say, is, to tell you that the lanthorn is the moon; I, the man i’ the moon; this thorn-bush, my thorn bush; and this dog, my dog.
August 7, 2019