The Comedy of Errors, Act 4 Scene 4

184Lines 10Speakers

The Comedy of Errors, Act 4 Scene 4 runs 184 lines of dialogue, spoken by 10 speakers. That is longer than the play’s average scene length of about 178 lines. This scene is part of Act 4 of The Comedy of Errors.

Full Dialogue

Of Ephesus ♂

Fear me not, man; I will not break away:
I'll give thee, ere I leave thee, so much money,
To warrant thee, as I am 'rested for.
My wife is in a wayward mood to-day,
And will not lightly trust the messenger
That I should be attach'd in Ephesus,
I tell you, 'twill sound harshly in her ears.
Here comes my man; I think he brings the money.
How now, sir! have you that I sent you for?

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

Here's that, I warrant you, will pay them all.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

But where's the money?

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

Why, sir, I gave the money for the rope.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

Five hundred ducats, villain, for a rope?

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

I'll serve you, sir, five hundred at the rate.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

To what end did I bid thee hie thee home?

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

To a rope's-end, sir; and to that end am I returned.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

And to that end, sir, I will welcome you.

Officer ♂

Good sir, be patient.

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

Nay, 'tis for me to be patient; I am in adversity.

Officer ♂

Good, now, hold thy tongue.

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

Nay, rather persuade him to hold his hands.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

Thou whoreson, senseless villain!

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

I would I were senseless, sir, that I might not feel
your blows.

Antipholus ♂

Thou art sensible in nothing but blows, and so is an
ass.

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

I am an ass, indeed; you may prove it by my long
ears. I have served him from the hour of my
nativity to this instant, and have nothing at his
hands for my service but blows. When I am cold, he
heats me with beating; when I am warm, he cools me
with beating; I am waked with it when I sleep;
raised with it when I sit; driven out of doors with
it when I go from home; welcomed home with it when
I return; nay, I bear it on my shoulders, as a
beggar wont her brat; and, I think when he hath
lamed me, I shall beg with it from door to door.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

Come, go along; my wife is coming yonder.

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

Mistress, 'respice finem,' respect your end; or
rather, the prophecy like the parrot, 'beware the
rope's-end.'
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

Wilt thou still talk?

Courtezan ♀

How say you now? is not your husband mad?

Adriana ♀

His incivility confirms no less.
Good Doctor Pinch, you are a conjurer;
Establish him in his true sense again,
And I will please you what you will demand.

Luciana ♀

Alas, how fiery and how sharp he looks!

Courtezan ♀

Mark how he trembles in his ecstasy!

Pinch ♂

Give me your hand and let me feel your pulse.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

There is my hand, and let it feel your ear.

Pinch ♂

I charge thee, Satan, housed within this man,
To yield possession to my holy prayers
And to thy state of darkness hie thee straight:
I conjure thee by all the saints in heaven!
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

Peace, doting wizard, peace! I am not mad.

Adriana ♀

O, that thou wert not, poor distressed soul!
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

You minion, you, are these your customers?
Did this companion with the saffron face
Revel and feast it at my house to-day,
Whilst upon me the guilty doors were shut
And I denied to enter in my house?

Adriana ♀

O husband, God doth know you dined at home;
Where would you had remain'd until this time,
Free from these slanders and this open shame!
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

Dined at home! Thou villain, what sayest thou?

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

Sir, sooth to say, you did not dine at home.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

Were not my doors lock'd up and I shut out?

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

Perdie, your doors were lock'd and you shut out.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

And did not she herself revile me there?

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

Sans fable, she herself reviled you there.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

Did not her kitchen-maid rail, taunt, and scorn me?

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

Certes, she did; the kitchen-vestal scorn'd you.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

And did not I in rage depart from thence?

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

In verity you did; my bones bear witness,
That since have felt the vigour of his rage.

Adriana ♀

Is't good to soothe him in these contraries?

Pinch ♂

It is no shame: the fellow finds his vein,
And yielding to him humours well his frenzy.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

Thou hast suborn'd the goldsmith to arrest me.

Adriana ♀

Alas, I sent you money to redeem you,
By Dromio here, who came in haste for it.

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

Money by me! heart and goodwill you might;
But surely master, not a rag of money.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

Went'st not thou to her for a purse of ducats?

Adriana ♀

He came to me and I deliver'd it.

Luciana ♀

And I am witness with her that she did.

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

God and the rope-maker bear me witness
That I was sent for nothing but a rope!

Pinch ♂

Mistress, both man and master is possess'd;
I know it by their pale and deadly looks:
They must be bound and laid in some dark room.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

Say, wherefore didst thou lock me forth to-day?
And why dost thou deny the bag of gold?

Adriana ♀

I did not, gentle husband, lock thee forth.

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

And, gentle master, I received no gold;
But I confess, sir, that we were lock'd out.

Adriana ♀

Dissembling villain, thou speak'st false in both.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

Dissembling harlot, thou art false in all;
And art confederate with a damned pack
To make a loathsome abject scorn of me:
But with these nails I'll pluck out these false eyes
That would behold in me this shameful sport.

Adriana ♀

O, bind him, bind him! let him not come near me.

Pinch ♂

More company! The fiend is strong within him.

Luciana ♀

Ay me, poor man, how pale and wan he looks!
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

What, will you murder me? Thou gaoler, thou,
I am thy prisoner: wilt thou suffer them
To make a rescue?

Officer ♂

Masters, let him go
He is my prisoner, and you shall not have him.

Pinch ♂

Go bind this man, for he is frantic too.

Adriana ♀

What wilt thou do, thou peevish officer?
Hast thou delight to see a wretched man
Do outrage and displeasure to himself?

Officer ♂

He is my prisoner: if I let him go,
The debt he owes will be required of me.

Adriana ♀

I will discharge thee ere I go from thee:
Bear me forthwith unto his creditor,
And, knowing how the debt grows, I will pay it.
Good master doctor, see him safe convey'd
Home to my house. O most unhappy day!
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

O most unhappy strumpet!

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

Master, I am here entered in bond for you.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Ephesus ♂

Out on thee, villain! wherefore dost thou mad me?

Dromio Of Ephesus ♂

Will you be bound for nothing? be mad, good master:
cry 'The devil!'

Luciana ♀

God help, poor souls, how idly do they talk!

Adriana ♀

Go bear him hence. Sister, go you with me.
Say now, whose suit is he arrested at?

Officer ♂

One Angelo, a goldsmith: do you know him?

Adriana ♀

I know the man. What is the sum he owes?

Officer ♂

Two hundred ducats.

Adriana ♀

Say, how grows it due?

Officer ♂

Due for a chain your husband had of him.

Adriana ♀

He did bespeak a chain for me, but had it not.

Courtezan ♀

When as your husband all in rage to-day
Came to my house and took away my ring–
The ring I saw upon his finger now–
Straight after did I meet him with a chain.

Adriana ♀

It may be so, but I did never see it.
Come, gaoler, bring me where the goldsmith is:
I long to know the truth hereof at large.

Luciana ♀

God, for thy mercy! they are loose again.

Adriana ♀

And come with naked swords.
Let's call more help to have them bound again.

Officer ♂

Away! they'll kill us.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Syracuse ♂

I see these witches are afraid of swords.

Dromio Of Syracuse ♂

She that would be your wife now ran from you.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Syracuse ♂

Come to the Centaur; fetch our stuff from thence:
I long that we were safe and sound aboard.

Dromio Of Syracuse ♂

Faith, stay here this night; they will surely do us
no harm: you saw they speak us fair, give us gold:
methinks they are such a gentle nation that, but for
the mountain of mad flesh that claims marriage of
me, I could find in my heart to stay here still and
turn witch.
ANTIPHOLUS

Of Syracuse ♂

I will not stay to-night for all the town;
Therefore away, to get our stuff aboard.

184 lines rendered verbatim from the dialogue corpus.

Who’s On Stage

Speaking characters in this scene

Character	Lines	Share
Dromio Of Ephesus	50	27.2%
Of Ephesus	42	22.8%
Adriana	37	20.1%
Pinch	16	8.7%
Officer	11	6.0%
Dromio Of Syracuse	9	4.9%
Courtezan	6	3.3%
Luciana	6	3.3%
Of Syracuse	5	2.7%
Antipholus	2	1.1%