All's Well That Ends Well, Act 4 Scene 4 runs 40 lines of dialogue, spoken by 3 speakers. That is shorter than the play’s average scene length of about 127 lines. This scene is part of Act 4 of All's Well That Ends Well.
Full Dialogue
Helena ♀
That you may well perceive I have not wrong'd you,
One of the greatest in the Christian world
Shall be my surety; 'fore whose throne 'tis needful,
Ere I can perfect mine intents, to kneel:
Time was, I did him a desired office,
Dear almost as his life; which gratitude
Through flinty Tartar's bosom would peep forth,
And answer, thanks: I duly am inform'd
His grace is at Marseilles; to which place
We have convenient convoy. You must know
I am supposed dead: the army breaking,
My husband hies him home; where, heaven aiding,
And by the leave of my good lord the king,
We'll be before our welcome.
One of the greatest in the Christian world
Shall be my surety; 'fore whose throne 'tis needful,
Ere I can perfect mine intents, to kneel:
Time was, I did him a desired office,
Dear almost as his life; which gratitude
Through flinty Tartar's bosom would peep forth,
And answer, thanks: I duly am inform'd
His grace is at Marseilles; to which place
We have convenient convoy. You must know
I am supposed dead: the army breaking,
My husband hies him home; where, heaven aiding,
And by the leave of my good lord the king,
We'll be before our welcome.
Widow ♀
Gentle madam,
You never had a servant to whose trust
Your business was more welcome.
You never had a servant to whose trust
Your business was more welcome.
Helena ♀
Nor you, mistress,
Ever a friend whose thoughts more truly labour
To recompense your love: doubt not but heaven
Hath brought me up to be your daughter's dower,
As it hath fated her to be my motive
And helper to a husband. But, O strange men!
That can such sweet use make of what they hate,
When saucy trusting of the cozen'd thoughts
Defiles the pitchy night: so lust doth play
With what it loathes for that which is away.
But more of this hereafter. You, Diana,
Under my poor instructions yet must suffer
Something in my behalf.
Ever a friend whose thoughts more truly labour
To recompense your love: doubt not but heaven
Hath brought me up to be your daughter's dower,
As it hath fated her to be my motive
And helper to a husband. But, O strange men!
That can such sweet use make of what they hate,
When saucy trusting of the cozen'd thoughts
Defiles the pitchy night: so lust doth play
With what it loathes for that which is away.
But more of this hereafter. You, Diana,
Under my poor instructions yet must suffer
Something in my behalf.
Diana ♀
Let death and honesty
Go with your impositions, I am yours
Upon your will to suffer.
Go with your impositions, I am yours
Upon your will to suffer.
Helena ♀
Yet, I pray you:
But with the word the time will bring on summer,
When briers shall have leaves as well as thorns,
And be as sweet as sharp. We must away;
Our wagon is prepared, and time revives us:
All's well that ends well; still the fine's the crown;
Whate'er the course, the end is the renown.
But with the word the time will bring on summer,
When briers shall have leaves as well as thorns,
And be as sweet as sharp. We must away;
Our wagon is prepared, and time revives us:
All's well that ends well; still the fine's the crown;
Whate'er the course, the end is the renown.
40 lines rendered verbatim from the dialogue corpus.
Who’s On Stage
Speaking characters in this scene
| Character | Lines | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Helena | 34 | 85.0% |
| Diana | 3 | 7.5% |
| Widow | 3 | 7.5% |
Line distribution
The top speaker in this scene delivers 34 lines, while the scene’s average per speaker is about 13 lines.
Total speakers on stage
3 named characters speak in this scene.
Scene in Context
Position within Act 4
This is Scene 4 of 5 in Act 4 of All's Well That Ends Well.
Scene length vs. play average
At 40 lines, this scene is shorter than the All's Well That Ends Well average scene in All's Well That Ends Well (~127 lines).
Adjacent scenes
Previous: Act 4 Scene 3 · Next: Act 4 Scene 5