QUOTES FROM THE BARD

PLAY: Coriolanus ACT/SCENE: 1.1 SPEAKER: Menenius CONTEXT: FIRST CITIZEN
Care for us! True, indeed! They ne’er cared for us
yet: suffer us to famish, and their store-houses
crammed with grain; make edicts for usury, to
support usurers; repeal daily any wholesome act
established against the rich, and provide more
piercing statutes daily, to chain up and restrain
the poor. If the wars eat us not up, they will; and
there’s all the love they bear us.
MENENIUS
Either you must
Confess yourselves wondrous malicious,
Or be accused of folly. I shall tell you
A pretty tale: it may be you have heard it;
But, since it serves my purpose, I will venture
To stale ‘t a little more.
FIRST CITIZEN
Well, I’ll hear it, sir: yet you must not think to
fob off our disgrace with a tale: but, an ‘t please
you, deliver. DUTCH: Nu, wij willen het aanhooren; maar gij moet u niet
verbeelden, ons smadelijk onrecht met een sprookjen weg
te kunnen goochelen! Maar als gij wilt, voor den dag er
mee! MORE: Suffer=Allow
Usury=Charging interest
Wholesome=Suitable, beneficial
Piercing=Severe
Stale=Become old, stale (from repetition)
Pretty=Clever
Fob off=Dismiss, evade
Compleat:
Suffer=Toelaten
Usury=Woeker
To lend upon usury=Op rente leenen
Wholesom=Gezond, heylzaam, heelzaam
To pierce=Doorbooren, doordringen
To stale=Oud worden
Fobbed off=Bespot
To fob one off=Iemand te leur stellen, voor de gek houden Topics: abuse, poverty and wealth, order/society