Upon your heads) is nothing, but heart's forrow, 4 He vanishes in thunder: then to foft mufick, enter the Shapes again, and dance with mops and moves, and carry out the table. Pro. [Afide.] Bravely the figure of this harpy haft thou Perform'd, my Ariel; a grace it had, devouring; 4 clear life] Pure, blameless, innocent. JOHNSON. So in Timon: "6" roots you clear heavens." STEEVENS. S -with mops and mowes.] So in K. Lear, and Flibbertigibbet of mopping and mowing." To mop and to move feem to have the fame meaning, i. e. to make mouths or wry faces. STEEVENS. 6 with good life,] This feems a corruption. I know not in what fenfe life can here be used, unless for alacrity, liveliness, vigour; and in this fenfe the expreffion is harfh. Perhaps we may read, with good lift, with good will, with fincere zeal for my fervice. I fhould have propofed,-with good lief, in the fame fense, but that I cannot find lief to be a fubftantive. With good life may however mean, with exact prefentation of their feveral characters, with obfervation frange of their particular and distinct parts. So we fay, he acted to the life. JOHNSON. Thus in the 6th canto of the Barons' Wars, by Drayton : "Done for the laft with fuch exceeding life "As art therein with nature seem'd at ftrife." Good life, however, in Twelfth Night, feems to be used for innocent jollity, as we now fay a bon vivant : "Would you (fays "the Clown) have a love fong, or a fong of good life?" Sir Toby anfwers, "A love fong, a love fong;" Ay, ay, (replies Sir Andrew) "I care not for good life." It is plain, from the character of the last speaker, that he was meant to mistake the fenfe in which good life is ufed by the Clown. It may therefore, in the Tempeft, mean honeft alacrity, or chearfulness. Life feems to be used in the chorus to the fifth act of K. Henry V. with fome meaning like that wanted to explain the approbation of Profpero : Which cannot in their huge and proper life "Be here prefented." STEEVENS. Their feveral kinds have done: my high charms work, And thefe, mine enemies, are all knit up In their distractions: they now are in my power And in these fits I'leave them, whilst I vifit Young Ferdinand (whom they fuppofe is drown'd) And his and my lov'd darling. [Exit Profpero from above. Gon. I'the name of fomething holy, fir, why stand you In this ftrange flare? Alon. O, it is monftrous! monftrous! Seb. But one fiend at a time, I'll fight their legions o'er. Ant. I'll be thy fecond. [Exit. [Exeunt. Gon. All three of them are defperate; their great guilt, Like poifon given to work a great time after, Now 'gins to bite the spirits :-I do befeech you Adri. Follow, I pray you. [Exeunt. 7bafs my trefpafs.] The deep pipe told it me in a rough bafs found. JOHNSON. So in Spenfer's Faery Queen, B. II. c. 12: "the rolling fea refounding foft, "In his big bafe them fitly answered." STEEVENS. Like poifon given, &c.] The natives of Africa have been fuppofed to be poffeffed of the fecret how to temper poisons with fuch art as not to operate till feveral years after they were administered, and were then as certain in their effect, as they were fubtle in their preparation. STEEVENS. this ecftaly] Ecftacy meant not anciently, as at prefent, rapturous pleasure, but alienation of mind. Mr. Locke has not inelegantly tiled it dreaming with our eyes open. STEVENS. VOL. I. G ACT ACT IV. SCENE I. Profpero's cell. Enter Profpero, Ferdinand, and Miranda. ΟΙ -a third of mine own life,] Thus all the impreffions in general; but why is the only a third of his own life? He had no wife living, nor any other child, to rob her of a share in his affection: fo that we may reckon her at least half of himself. Nor could he intend, that he loved himself twice as much as he did her; for he immediately fubjoins, that it was he for whom he tiv'd. In Othello, when fago alarms the fenator with the loss of his daughter, he tells him : "Your heart is burst, you have loft half your foul." And dimidium anima mea was the current language with the Latines on fuch occafions. THEOBALD. In confequence of this ratiocination Mr. Theobald printed the text, a thread of my own life. I have restored the ancient reading. Profpero, in his reafon fubjoined why he calls her the third of his life, feems to allude to fome logical distinction of caufes, making her the final caufe. JOHNSON. Though this conjecture be very ingenious, I cannot think the poet had any fuch idea in his mind. The word thread was formerly fpelt third; as appears from the following paffage : "Long maift thou live, and when the fifters fhall decree "To cut in twaine the twisted third of life, "Then let him die, &e." See comedy of Mucedorus, 1619. fignat. c. 3. HAWKINS. "A thrid of my own life" is a fibre or a part of my own life. Profpero confiders himself as the flock or parent-tree, and his daughter as a fibre or portion of himself, and for whofe benefit he himfelf lives. In this fenfe the word is ufed in Markham's English Hufbandman, edit. 1635. p. 146: "Cut off all the maine rootes, "within half a foot of the tree, only the fmall thriddes or twist 66 rootes you fhall not cut at all." Again, ibid. "Every "branch and thrid of the root." This is evidently the fame word as thread, which is likewife fpelt thrid by lord Bacon. TOLLET. The Or that for which I live; whom once again Fer. I do believe it, Against an oracle. Pro. Then, as my 3 gift, and thine own acquifition No sweet afperfion 5 fhall the Heavens let fall The late Mr. Hawkins has properly obferved that the word thread was anciently fpelt third. So in Lingua, &c. 1607; and I could furnish many more inftances: "For as a fubtle fpider closely fitting "In center of her web that spreadeth round, "She feels it inftantly." The following quotation, however, fhould feem to place the meaning beyond all difpute. In Acolaftus, a comedy, 1529, is this paffage : "one of worldly fhame's children, of his countenaunce, "and THREDE of his body." STEEVENS. 2 -ftrangely flood the teft:] Strangely is ufed by way of commendation, merveilleufement, to a wonder; the fenfe is the fame in the foregoing scene, with obfervation frange. JOHNson. -my gift,-] My gueft, firft folio. JOHNSON. 4 her virgin knot,] The fame expreffion occurs in Pericles Prince of Tyre, 1609: "Untide I ftill my virgin knot will keepe." STEEVENS. No fweet afperfion] Afperfion is here ufed in its primitive fenfe of Sprinkling. At prefent it is expreffive only of calumny and detraction. STEEVENS. That you fhall hate it both: therefore take heed, Fer. As I hope For quiet days, fair iffue, and long life, With fuch love as 'tis now; the murkieft den, Mine honour into luft; to take away The edge of that day's celebration, When I fhall think, or Phoebus' fteeds are founder'd,. Pro. Fairly spoke : Sit then, and talk with her, fhe is thine own.- Enter Ariel. Ari. What would my potent mafter? here I am. Pro. Thou and thy meaner fellows, your last service Did worthily perform; and I muft ufe you 6 In fuch another trick: go, bring the rabble, Ari. Presently? Pro. Ay, with a twink. Ari. Before you can fay, 7 Come, and go, And breathe twice; and cry, fo, so; Each one, tripping on his toe, Will be here with mop and moe: Do 7 you love me, mafter? no. -the rabble,] The crew of meaner fpirits. JOHNSON. -Come, and go, Each one, tripping on his toe,] So Milton: "Come, and trip it as you go STEEVENS. |