Richard II (30 page)

²⁴⁸
grief
cause for grief (Bullingbrook shifts the sense to “sorrow”)
time
short while

²⁵²
travel
journey/labor

²⁵³
miscall
wrongly call

²⁵⁵
sullen
somber, melancholy

²⁵⁶
Esteem as foil
regard as a setting for a jewel

²⁵⁹
Caucasus
region bordering Asia Minor including the Caucasus Mountains, depicted by Ovid as cold and stony

²⁶⁰
cloy
satiate, gorge

²⁶³
fantastic
imaginary

²⁶⁴
apprehension
conception, awareness

²⁶⁶
Fell
fierce, cruel
rankle
cause festering

²⁶⁷
lanceth
pierces (to relieve infection)

²⁶⁸
bring
escort

²⁷⁰
adieu
goodbye

¹
We did observe
Richard enters mid-conversation

²
high
proud/of high rank

⁴
next
nearest

⁵
store
quantity, abundance

⁶
for me
on my part

⁸
rheum
watery discharge, i.e. tears

⁹
hollow
insincere

¹¹
for
because

¹²
craft
skill, cunning

¹³
counterfeit
pretend, fake

¹⁵
Marry
by the Virgin Mary

¹⁹
cousin
Aumerle’s father is the Duke of York, Richard’s uncle
doubt
doubtful

²¹
friends
relatives

²⁶
reverence
respect

²⁸
underbearing
endurance

²⁹
banish … him
take their affection into exile with him

³⁰
bonnet
soft brimless hat
oyster-wench
girl who sells oysters

³¹
brace of draymen
pair of cart drivers

³²
supple
easily bent

³⁴
in reversion
i.e. after my death (when leased land would revert to its true owner)

³⁵
our … hope
in terms of public expectation and favor, the nearest heir

³⁷
stand out
make a stand, hold out

³⁸
Expedient manage
swift management

³⁹
leisure
delay

⁴³
largesse
generosity

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farm
lease parts of the land to tenants who might then collect taxes on their own behalf

⁴⁶
come short
is insufficient

⁴⁷
substitutes
those appointed to govern during the king’s absence
blank charters
documents authorizing deputies to collect revenues, or forced loans; blank spaces were left for the names of those required to pay

⁴⁹
subscribe them
enter their names

⁵⁰
them
i.e. the
sums
collected

⁵¹
presently
immediately

⁵⁷
Ely House
the Bishop of Ely’s palace in Holborn, London

⁶⁰
lining
contents (puns on the sense of “lining of a coat”)

sick
Gaunt is probably carried on stage in a chair

²
unstaid
uncontrolled

⁹
listened
listened to

¹⁰
gloze
flatter, talk smoothly

¹¹
marked
paid attention to

¹²
close
closing cadence of a piece of music

¹³
last
at its end/for longest

¹⁶
sad
serious, solemn

¹⁸
state
kingly splendor

¹⁹
metres
verses
venom
poisonous

²¹
proud
arrogant/showy/splendid

²²
tardy apish
belatedly imitating

²⁴
vanity
trifle

²⁵
So
provided
there’s no respect
it does not matter

²⁶
buzzed
whispered busily

²⁷
That
so that

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will … regard
desire rebels against reasoned consideration

³¹
new inspired
newly filled with divine influence (plays on the sense of “full of newly drawn breath”)

³²
expiring
dying/breathing out

³³
riot
wasteful, dissolute lifestyle

³⁵
Small
composed of fine drops

³⁶
betimes
early

³⁸
Light vanity
frivolous foolishness
cormorant
glutton (literally, greedy seabird)

³⁹
means
resources, means of sustenance

⁴⁰
sceptred
invested with regal authority

⁴¹
earth of majesty
land fit for kings
Mars
Roman god of war

⁴⁵
happy breed
fortunate race

⁴⁷
office
function

⁵⁰
plot
land for cultivation

⁵¹
teeming
fertile

⁵²
by their breed
on account of their mighty ancestry

⁵⁵
sepulchre
cave outside Jerusalem in which Christ was buried
stubborn Jewry
the residents of Jerusalem who resisted Christianity

⁵⁶
world’s … son
i.e. Christ

⁶⁰
tenement
land or property held by a tenant
pelting
paltry

⁶¹
bound in
bordered, surrounded

⁶²
envious
malicious, hostile

⁶³
Neptune
Roman god of the sea
bound
legally bound

⁶⁴
inky … bonds
i.e. the corrupt blank charters

⁶⁵
wont
accustomed

⁷³
composition
state of health

⁷⁶
meat
food

⁷⁷
watched
remained awake/kept guard

⁸³
inherits
receives

⁸⁴
nicely
ingeniously, precisely

⁸⁵
to mock
in mocking

⁸⁶
kill … me
i.e. by banishing Gaunt’s son and heir

⁹³
see thee ill
see you imperfectly (as my sight is failing)/see the ill that is in you

¹⁰¹
compass
circumference

¹⁰²
verge
limit, rim/the twelve-mile radius around the king’s court/measure of land

¹⁰³
waste
wasteland/wastefulness/damage done to property by a tenant/waist

¹⁰⁴
grandsire
i.e. Edward III

¹⁰⁵
his sons
Edward’s sons, Richard’s uncles/Richard’s own (as yet unborn) children

¹⁰⁶
forth
beyond

¹⁰⁷
Deposing
disinheriting, depriving
possessed
in possession of the crown (sense then shifts to “inhabited by the devil”)

¹⁰⁹
cousin
kinsman
regent
ruler

¹¹¹
for … land
insofar as your world consists of this land

¹¹⁴
state … law
absolute legal status (as king) is now subject to legal processes (as a result of leasing out land)

¹¹⁶
Presuming on
taking advantage of
ague
fever and shaking

¹¹⁷
frozen
cold, hostile/chilled by illness

¹²⁰
seat
throne/status

¹²²
roundly
bluntly/fluently

¹²³
unreverent
disrespectful

¹²⁵
For that
because

¹²⁶
pelican
the bird’s offspring were thought to feed on her blood

¹²⁷
tapped out
drawn as from a barrel
caroused
drunk heartily/drunk toasts with

¹²⁹
fair
good, happiness

¹³³
unkindness
unnatural behavior

¹³⁹
sullens
sulks, gloomy moods

¹⁴⁰
become
befit, suit

¹⁴³
dear As Harry
as dearly as Gaunt holds Harry (but Richard interprets “as dearly as Harry holds Richard”)

¹⁵¹
spent
used up, exhausted

¹⁵⁵
pilgrimage
i.e. journey through life

¹⁵⁷
supplant
get rid of
rug-headed
shaggy-haired
kerns
lightly armed foot soldiers

¹⁶⁰
ask some charge
require some expenditure

¹⁶¹
seize
take possession (legal term)

¹⁶²
plate
gold or silver tableware
movables
portable property

¹⁶⁷
Gaunt’s rebukes
the rebukes given by Richard to Gaunt
private wrongs
wrongs done to individuals

¹⁶⁸
Bullingbrook … marriage
Richard prevented the exiled Bullingbrook from marrying a cousin of the French king

¹⁷¹
bend one wrinkle
direct one frown

¹⁷⁸
Accomplished … hours
i.e. when he was your age
Accomplished
equipped

¹⁹⁰
withal
with that

¹⁹¹
seize
take legal possession of

¹⁹²
royalties
rights granted by the king/rights due to one of royal blood

¹⁹⁴
true
loyal/legitimate (as heir)

¹⁹⁸
His
i.e. time’s
customary rights
i.e. of inheritance and succession

¹⁹⁹
ensue
follow

²⁰⁴
Call … patents
revoke the documents signed by the king granting land or titles

²⁰⁵
By … livery
allowing him to sue, through his lawyers, for the right to his inheritance

²⁰⁶
homage
avowal of allegiance, part of the formal process of receiving one’s inheritance

²⁰⁷
pluck
pull

²⁰⁹
prick
spur

²¹³
by
nearby, present

²¹⁵
courses
i.e. of action

²¹⁶
events
consequences

²¹⁸
repair
come

²¹⁹
see
attend to
Tomorrow next
tomorrow/tomorrow morning

²²⁰
trow
believe

²³⁰
great
swollen with emotion
with silence
by keeping silent

²³¹
liberal
freely speaking

²³⁴
Tends … to
does what you want to say relate to