QUOTES FROM THE BARD

PLAY: Coriolanus ACT/SCENE: 5.1 SPEAKER: Cominius CONTEXT: MENENIUS
Why, so: you have made good work!
A pair of tribunes that have rack’d for Rome,
To make coals cheap,—a noble memory!
COMINIUS
I minded him how royal ’twas to pardon
When it was less expected: he replied,
It was a bare petition of a state
To one whom they had punish’d.
MENENIUS
Very well: Could he say less?
COMINIUS
I offer’d to awaken his regard
For’s private friends: his answer to me was,
He could not stay to pick them in a pile
Of noisome musty chaff: he said ’twas folly,
For one poor grain or two, to leave unburnt,
And still to nose the offence. DUTCH: Ik stelde in ‘t licht, hoe koninklijk vergift nis
Zou wezen, onverwacht verleend; dit noemde
Hij recht armzalig smeeken van een staat
Tot een, nog onlangs door dien staat bestraft MORE: Rack=Stretch, strain, make huge effort
Make coals cheap=Burning Rome will make coal plentiful
A noble memory=A great way to be remembered
The less expected (the pardon), the more royal it is to give it
A bare petition=Unsubstantiated plea, without justification or excuse for the pardon
Nose the offence=Smell the offending material
Compleat:
Racked=Gerekt, gepynigd; gezuiverd
Bare=Bloot, naakt, kaal
Petition=Verzoek, smeekschrift, request Topics: achievement, friendship, value