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 today,
And will not lightly trust the messenger
That I should be attach’d in Ephesus;
I tell you ’twill sound harshly in her ears.
Fear me not, man, I will not break away:
I’ll give you before I leave you so much money,
To warrant you, as I am ’rested for.
My wife is in a wayward mood today,
And will not lightly trust the messenger
That I should be attach’d in Ephesus;
I tell you ’twill sound harshly in her ears.
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.
Fear me not, man, I will not break away:
Here’s that, I warrant you, will pay them all.
Hbefore’s that, I warrant you, will pay them all.
Here’s that, I warrant you, will pay them all.
Here’s that, I warrant you, will pay them all.
But where’s the money?
But whbefore’s the money?
But where’s the money?
But where’s the money?
Why, sir, I gave the money for the rope.
Why, sir, I gave the money for the rope.
Why, sir, I gave the money for the rope.
Why, sir, I gave the money for the rope.
Five hundred ducats, villain, for a rope?
Five hundred ducats, villain, for a rope?
Five hundred ducats, villain, for a rope?
Five hundred ducats, villain, for a rope?
I’ll serve you, sir, five hundred at the rate.
I’ll serve you, sir, five hundred at the rate.
I’ll serve you, sir, five hundred at the rate.
I’ll serve you, sir, five hundred at the rate.
To what end did I bid thee hie thee home?
To what end did I bid you hie you home?
To what end did I bid thee hie thee home?
To what end did I bid thee hie thee home?
To a rope’s end, sir; and to that end am I return’d.
To a rope’s end, sir; and to that end am I return’d.
To a rope’s end, sir; and to that end am I return’d.
To a rope’s end, sir; and to that end am I return’d.
And to that end, sir, I will welcome you.
And to that end, sir, I will welcome you.
And to that end, sir, I will welcome you.
And to that end, sir, I will welcome you.
Good sir, be patient.
Good sir, be patient.
Good sir, be patient.
Good sir, be patient.
Nay, ’tis for me to be patient. I am in adversity.
Nay, ’tis for me to be patient. I am in adversity.
Nay, ’tis for me to be patient. I am in adversity.
Nay, ’tis for me to be patient. I am in adversity.
Good now, hold thy tongue.
Good now, hold your tongue.
Good now, hold thy tongue.
Good now, hold thy tongue.
Nay, rather persuade him to hold his hands.
Nay, rather persuade him to hold his hands.
Nay, rather persuade him to hold his hands.
Nay, rather persuade him to hold his hands.
Thou whoreson, senseless villain.
Thou whoreson, senseless villain.
Thou whoreson, senseless villain.
Thou whoreson, senseless villain.
I would I were senseless, sir, that I might not feel your blows.
I would I wbefore senseless, sir, that I might not feel your blows.
I would I were senseless, sir, that I might not feel your blows.
I would I were senseless, sir, that I might not feel your blows.
Dr. Pinch is described in the play's cast as 'a Schoolmaster' but functions here as an exorcist-physician — a figure combining academic learning, religious authority, and medical practice that was common in Elizabethan England. The treatment he prescribes (restraint, dark room) was standard humoral medicine: excitement of the humours was treated by removing all stimulus. The exorcism he performs ('I charge thee, Satan, housed within this man') combines Catholic exorcism vocabulary (conjuring by saints, commanding Satan to yield to holy prayers) with Protestant-inflected anxiety — performed in England where Catholic exorcism was technically illegal after the Reformation. Shakespeare's audience would have found Pinch's hybrid role both familiar and slightly absurd: the conjunction of pedantic schoolmaster and theatrical exorcist is inherently comic. But there is also a serious point. Real people diagnosed as possessed — most often women, but men too — underwent exactly this treatment: binding, darkness, exorcism. Antipholus E's fate in this scene, played for laughs, was a lived reality for people wrongly diagnosed as mad or possessed in Shakespeare's England.
Thou art sensible in nothing but blows, and so is an ass.
Thou art sensible in nothing but blows, and so is an ass.
Thou art sensible in nothing but blows, and so is an ass.
Thou art sensible in nothing but blows, and so is an ass.
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.
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 has
lamed me, I shall beg with it from door to door.
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
I am an ass indeed; you may prove it by my long ears. I have served him
Come, go along, my wife is coming yonder.
Come, go along, my wife is coming yonder.
Come, go along, my wife is coming yonder.
Come, go along, my wife is coming yonder.
Mistress, _respice finem_, respect your end, or rather, the prophesy
like the parrot, “Beware the rope’s end.”
Mistress, _respice finem_, respect your end, or rather, the prophesy
like the parrot, “Beware the rope’s end.”
Mistress, _respice finem_, respect your end, or rather, the prophesy
like the parrot, “Beware the rope’s end.”
Mistress, _respice finem_, respect your end, or rather, the prophesy
like the parrot, “Beware the rope’s end.”
Wilt thou still talk?
Wilt you still talk?
Wilt thou still talk?
Wilt thou still talk?
How say you now? Is not your husband mad?
How say you now? Is not your husband mad?
How say you now? Is not your husband mad?
How say you now? Is not your husband mad?
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.
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.
His incivility confirms no less.
Good Doctor Pinch, you are a conjurer;
Establish him in his true sense again,
His incivility confirms no less.
Alas, how fiery and how sharp he looks!
Alas, how fiery and how sharp he looks!
Alas, how fiery and how sharp he looks!
Alas, how fiery and how sharp he looks!
Mark how he trembles in his ecstasy.
Mark how he trembles in his ecstasy.
Mark how he trembles in his ecstasy.
Mark how he trembles in his ecstasy.
Give me your hand, and let me feel your pulse.
Give me your hand, and let me feel your pulse.
Give me your hand, and let me feel your pulse.
Give me your hand, and let me feel your pulse.
There is my hand, and let it feel your ear.
Thbefore is my hand, and let it feel your ear.
There is my hand, and let it feel your ear.
There is my hand, and let it feel your ear.
I charge thee, Satan, hous’d 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.
I charge you, Satan, hous’d within this man,
To yield possession to my holy prayers,
And to your state of darkness hie you straight.
I conjure you by all the saints in heaven.
I charge thee, Satan, hous’d within this man,
To yield possession to my holy prayers,
And to thy state of darkness hie thee straight.
I charge thee, Satan, hous’d within this man,
Peace, doting wizard, peace; I am not mad.
Peace, doting wizard, peace; I am not mad.
Peace, doting wizard, peace; I am not mad.
Peace, doting wizard, peace; I am not mad.
O, that thou wert not, poor distressed soul!
O, that you wert not, poor distressed soul!
O, that thou wert not, poor distressed soul!
O, that thou wert not, poor distressed soul!
You minion, you, are these your customers?
Did this companion with the saffron face
Revel and feast it at my house today,
Whilst upon me the guilty doors were shut,
And I denied to enter in my house?
You minion, you, are these your customers?
Did this companion with the saffron face
Revel and feast it at my house today,
Whilst upon me the guilty doors wbefore shut,
And I denied to enter in my house?
You minion, you, are these your customers?
Did this companion with the saffron face
Revel and feast it at my house today,
You minion, you, are these your customers?
O husband, God doth know you din’d at home,
Where would you had remain’d until this time,
Free from these slanders and this open shame.
O husband, God does know you din’d at home,
Whbefore would you had remain’d until this time,
Free from these slanders and this open shame.
O husband, God doth know you din’d at home,
Where would you had remain’d until this time,
Free from these slanders and this open shame.
O husband, God doth know you din’d at home,
Din’d at home? Thou villain, what sayest thou?
Din’d at home? Thou villain, what sayest you?
Din’d at home? Thou villain, what sayest thou?
Din’d at home? Thou villain, what sayest thou?
Sir, sooth to say, you did not dine at home.
Sir, sooth to say, you did not dine at home.
Sir, sooth to say, you did not dine at home.
Sir, sooth to say, you did not dine at home.
Scene 4-4 is Shakespeare's most technically demanding piece of simultaneous truth-telling. By the time the bail-money dispute is in full swing (chunks 4-4-052 through 4-4-057), there are four people each stating a fact that contradicts the others while each is telling the exact truth. Adriana: 'I sent money with Dromio.' True — she gave it to Dromio S. Dromio E: 'I received no money.' True — he was sent for a rope and got none. Antipholus E: 'I sent him to her for a purse of ducats.' True — those were his instructions to Dromio S. Luciana: 'She gave it.' True — Adriana gave it to Dromio S. All four statements are simultaneously accurate. The audience, who has seen all the preceding scenes, holds all four truths in mind at once. The characters cannot reconcile them because they lack the one fact that would explain everything. This is structural dramatic irony at its most elegant: no one is lying, everyone is confused, the truth is simply missing one piece. It is the play's most concentrated version of its title theme: an 'error' (wandering, displacement) so systemic that truth itself appears to contradict itself.
Were not my doors lock’d up and I shut out?
Wbefore not my doors lock’d up and I shut out?
Were not my doors lock’d up and I shut out?
Were not my doors lock’d up and I shut out?
Perdy, your doors were lock’d, and you shut out.
Perdy, your doors wbefore lock’d, and you shut out.
Perdy, your doors were lock’d, and you shut out.
Perdy, your doors were lock’d, and you shut out.
And did not she herself revile me there?
And did not she herself revile me thbefore?
And did not she herself revile me there?
And did not she herself revile me there?
Sans fable, she herself revil’d you there.
Sans fable, she herself revil’d you thbefore.
Sans fable, she herself revil’d you there.
Sans fable, she herself revil’d you there.
Did not her kitchen-maid rail, taunt, and scorn me?
Did not her kitchen-maid rail, taunt, and scorn me?
Did not her kitchen-maid rail, taunt, and scorn me?
Did not her kitchen-maid rail, taunt, and scorn me?
Certes, she did, the kitchen-vestal scorn’d you.
Certes, she did, the kitchen-vestal scorn’d you.
Certes, she did, the kitchen-vestal scorn’d you.
Certes, she did, the kitchen-vestal scorn’d you.
And did not I in rage depart from thence?
And did not I in rage depart from thence?
And did not I in rage depart from thence?
And did not I in rage depart from thence?
In verity, you did; my bones bear witness,
That since have felt the vigour of his rage.
In verity, you did; my bones bear witness,
That since have felt the vigour of his rage.
In verity, you did; my bones bear witness,
That since have felt the vigour of his rage.
In verity, you did; my bones bear witness,
That since have felt the vigour of his rage.
Is’t good to soothe him in these contraries?
Is’t good to soothe him in these contraries?
Is’t good to soothe him in these contraries?
Is’t good to soothe him in these contraries?
It is no shame; the fellow finds his vein,
And yielding to him, humours well his frenzy.
It is no shame; the fellow finds his vein,
And yielding to him, humours well his frenzy.
It is no shame; the fellow finds his vein,
And yielding to him, humours well his frenzy.
It is no shame; the fellow finds his vein,
And yielding to him, humours well his frenzy.
Thou hast suborn’d the goldsmith to arrest me.
Thou have suborn’d the goldsmith to arrest me.
Thou hast suborn’d the goldsmith to arrest me.
Thou hast suborn’d the goldsmith to arrest me.
Alas! I sent you money to redeem you
By Dromio here, who came in haste for it.
Alas! I sent you money to redeem you
By Dromio hbefore, who came in havee for it.
Alas! I sent you money to redeem you
By Dromio here, who came in haste for it.
Alas! I sent you money to redeem you
By Dromio here, who came in haste for it.
Money by me? Heart and goodwill you might,
But surely, master, not a rag of money.
Money by me? Heart and goodwill you might,
But surely, master, not a rag of money.
Money by me? Heart and goodwill you might,
But surely, master, not a rag of money.
Money by me? Heart and goodwill you might,
But surely, master, not a rag of money.
Went’st not thou to her for a purse of ducats?
Went’st not you to her for a purse of ducats?
Went’st not thou to her for a purse of ducats?
Went’st not thou to her for a purse of ducats?
He came to me, and I deliver’d it.
He came to me, and I deliver’d it.
He came to me, and I deliver’d it.
He came to me, and I deliver’d it.
And I am witness with her that she did.
And I am witness with her that she did.
And I am witness with her that she did.
And I am witness with her that she did.
God and the rope-maker bear me witness
That I was sent for nothing but a rope.
God and the rope-maker bear me witness
That I was sent for nothing but a rope.
God and the rope-maker bear me witness
That I was sent for nothing but a rope.
God and the rope-maker bear me witness
That I was sent for nothing but a rope.
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.
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.
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.
Mistress, both man and master is possess’d,
Say, wherefore didst thou lock me forth today,
And why dost thou deny the bag of gold?
Say, whbeforefore didst you lock me forth today,
And why do you deny the bag of gold?
Say, wherefore didst thou lock me forth today,
And why dost thou deny the bag of gold?
Say, wherefore didst thou lock me forth today,
And why dost thou deny the bag of gold?
I did not, gentle husband, lock thee forth.
I did not, gentle husband, lock you forth.
I did not, gentle husband, lock thee forth.
I did not, gentle husband, lock thee forth.
The Comedy of Errors contains more stage violence than almost any other Shakespearean comedy. Both Dromios are beaten repeatedly throughout the play. The beating of Dromio E with his own rope in this scene is both the funniest and most uncomfortable moment in that pattern. Elizabethan comedy normalised master-servant violence as a genre convention — it was part of the Plautine tradition Shakespeare inherited. But there is something in Dromio E's 4-4-022 speech ('I have served him from the hour of my nativity... and have nothing at his hands for my service but blows') that exceeds comic convention. The catalogue of beatings — cold/hot, wake/sleep, depart/arrive — describes a life comprehensively structured around pain. Shakespeare seems aware that this is not simply funny. The joke works because Dromio delivers it with his characteristic wit; but the content is the complete account of a slave's life in which the only constant is violence. The play's resolution in Act 5 resolves identities and marriages, but it does not address the servitude. Both Dromios go back to their respective masters, presumably to more beatings. The play laughs at this, and invites the audience to notice what it's laughing at.
And gentle master, I receiv’d no gold;
But I confess, sir, that we were lock’d out.
And gentle master, I receiv’d no gold;
But I confess, sir, that we wbefore lock’d out.
And gentle master, I receiv’d no gold;
But I confess, sir, that we were lock’d out.
And gentle master, I receiv’d no gold;
But I confess, sir, that we were lock’d out.
Dissembling villain, thou speak’st false in both.
Dissembling villain, you speak’st false in both.
Dissembling villain, thou speak’st false in both.
Dissembling villain, thou speak’st false in both.
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.
Dissembling harlot, you 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.
Dissembling harlot, thou art false in all,
And art confederate with a damned pack
To make a loathsome abject scorn of me.
Dissembling harlot, thou art false in all,
O, bind him, bind him; let him not come near me.
O, bind him, bind him; let him not come near me.
O, bind him, bind him; let him not come near me.
O, bind him, bind him; let him not come near me.
More company; the fiend is strong within him.
More company; the fiend is strong within him.
More company; the fiend is strong within him.
More company; the fiend is strong within him.
Ay me, poor man, how pale and wan he looks!
Ay me, poor man, how pale and wan he looks!
Ay me, poor man, how pale and wan he looks!
Ay me, poor man, how pale and wan he looks!
What, will you murder me? Thou jailer, thou,
I am thy prisoner. Wilt thou suffer them
To make a rescue?
What, will you murder me? Thou jailer, you,
I am your prisoner. Wilt you suffer them
To make a rescue?
What, will you murder me? Thou jailer, thou,
I am thy prisoner. Wilt thou suffer them
To make a rescue?
What, will you murder me? Thou jailer, thou,
Masters, let him go.
He is my prisoner, and you shall not have him.
Masters, let him go.
He is my prisoner, and you shall not have him.
Masters, let him go.
He is my prisoner, and you shall not have him.
Masters, let him go.
He is my prisoner, and you shall not have him.
Go, bind this man, for he is frantic too.
Go, bind this man, for he is frantic too.
Go, bind this man, for he is frantic too.
Go, bind this man, for he is frantic too.
What wilt thou do, thou peevish officer?
Hast thou delight to see a wretched man
Do outrage and displeasure to himself?
What wilt you do, you peevish officer?
Hast you delight to see a wretched man
Do outrage and displeasure to himself?
What wilt thou do, thou peevish officer?
Hast thou delight to see a wretched man
Do outrage and displeasure to himself?
What wilt thou do, thou peevish officer?
He is my prisoner. If I let him go,
The debt he owes will be requir’d of me.
He is my prisoner. If I let him go,
The debt he owes will be requir’d of me.
He is my prisoner. If I let him go,
The debt he owes will be requir’d of me.
He is my prisoner. If I let him go,
The debt he owes will be requir’d of me.
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!
I will discharge you before I go from you;
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!
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.
I will discharge thee ere I go from thee;
O most unhappy strumpet!
O most unhappy strumpet!
O most unhappy strumpet!
O most unhappy strumpet!
Master, I am here enter’d in bond for you.
Master, I am hbefore enter’d in bond for you.
Master, I am here enter’d in bond for you.
Master, I am here enter’d in bond for you.
Out on thee, villain! wherefore dost thou mad me?
Out on you, villain! whbeforefore do you mad me?
Out on thee, villain! wherefore dost thou mad me?
Out on thee, villain! wherefore dost thou mad me?
Will you be bound for nothing? Be mad, good master; cry, “the devil”.
Will you be bound for nothing? Be mad, good master; cry, “the devil”.
Will you be bound for nothing? Be mad, good master; cry, “the devil”.
Will you be bound for nothing? Be mad, good master; cry, “the devil”.
God help, poor souls, how idly do they talk!
God help, poor souls, how idly do they talk!
God help, poor souls, how idly do they talk!
God help, poor souls, how idly do they talk!
Go bear him hence. Sister, go you with me.
Go bear him hence. Sister, go you with me.
Go bear him hence. Sister, go you with me.
Go bear him hence. Sister, go you with me.
One of the most overlooked achievements in scene 4-4 is the portrait of Adriana as someone who is utterly efficient while emotionally devastated and completely wrong about everything. She arrives having been told her husband is mad. She deals with the situation: engages the expert, supervises the binding, addresses the officer, pays the debt, learns about the chain, and delegates home care. Each action is practical and reasonable given her understanding. Each action makes everything worse. There is a particular pathos in her line 'I long to know the truth hereof at large' — she is actively seeking truth while surrounded by a situation in which the truth she needs is systematically unavailable to her. Adriana is the play's most active agent of her own confusion: she takes more concrete action than anyone else in Act 4, and each action proceeds from a wrong premise. Her competence is what makes her situation painful as well as funny. She is not passive or foolish; she is simply operating without the one piece of information — there are two Antipholuses — that would change everything.
One Angelo, a goldsmith; do you know him?
One Angelo, a goldsmith; do you know him?
One Angelo, a goldsmith; do you know him?
One Angelo, a goldsmith; do you know him?
I know the man. What is the sum he owes?
I know the man. What is the sum he owes?
I know the man. What is the sum he owes?
I know the man. What is the sum he owes?
Two hundred ducats.
Two hundred ducats.
Two hundred ducats.
Two hundred ducats.
Say, how grows it due?
Say, how grows it due?
Say, how grows it due?
Say, how grows it due?
Due for a chain your husband had of him.
Due for a chain your husband had of him.
Due for a chain your husband had of him.
Due for a chain your husband had of him.
He did bespeak a chain for me, but had it not.
He did bespeak a chain for me, but had it not.
He did bespeak a chain for me, but had it not.
He did bespeak a chain for me, but had it not.
When as your husband, all in rage, today
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.
When as your husband, all in rage, today
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.
When as your husband, all in rage, today
Came to my house and took away my ring,
The ring I saw upon his finger now,
When as your husband, all in rage, today
It may be so, but I did never see it.
Come, jailer, bring me where the goldsmith is,
I long to know the truth hereof at large.
It may be so, but I did never see it.
Come, jailer, bring me whbefore the goldsmith is,
I long to know the truth hbeforeof at large.
It may be so, but I did never see it.
Come, jailer, bring me where the goldsmith is,
I long to know the truth hereof at large.
It may be so, but I did never see it.
God, for thy mercy, they are loose again!
God, for your mercy, they are loose again!
God, for thy mercy, they are loose again!
God, for thy mercy, they are loose again!
And come with naked swords. Let’s call more help
To have them bound again.
And come with naked swords. Let’s call more help
To have them bound again.
And come with naked swords. Let’s call more help
To have them bound again.
And come with naked swords. Let’s call more help
To have them bound again.
Away, they’ll kill us.
Away, they’ll kill us.
Away, they’ll kill us.
Away, they’ll kill us.
I see these witches are afraid of swords.
I see these witches are afraid of swords.
I see these witches are afraid of swords.
I see these witches are afraid of swords.
She that would be your wife now ran from you.
She that would be your wife now ran from you.
She that would be your wife now ran from you.
She that would be your wife now ran from you.
Come to the Centaur, fetch our stuff from thence.
I long that we were safe and sound aboard.
Come to the Centaur, fetch our stuff from thence.
I long that we wbefore safe and sound aboard.
Come to the Centaur, fetch our stuff from thence.
I long that we were safe and sound aboard.
Come to the Centaur, fetch our stuff from thence.
I long that we were safe and sound aboard.
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.
Faith, stay hbefore 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 hbefore still and turn witch.
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
Faith, stay here this night, they will surely do us no harm; you saw
I will not stay tonight for all the town;
Therefore away, to get our stuff aboard.
I will not stay tonight for all the town;
Thbeforefore away, to get our stuff aboard.
I will not stay tonight for all the town;
Therefore away, to get our stuff aboard.
I will not stay tonight for all the town;
Therefore away, to get our stuff aboard.
The Reckoning
Scene 4-4 is the chaos peak of The Comedy of Errors — the moment when confusion, injustice, and farce are most compacted. Antipholus of Ephesus is completely sane, completely right about everything that happened to him, and is bound as a madman in his own city by his own wife. The injustice is total. Shakespeare gives him the most dignified protestations of innocence in the play, and they are absolutely ineffective because the confusion is structural, not personal — no amount of individual truth-telling can resolve a problem caused by the existence of identical twins. The scene requires the audience to laugh at a sane man being bound — which is not comfortable comedy. It is the play's darkest moment before the resolution.
If this happened today…
You've been arrested for fraud you didn't commit. You wait for your spouse to bail you out, and instead your employee arrives — with a different errand you sent someone else on. Your spouse shows up with a therapist who immediately diagnoses you as having a breakdown because you keep insisting you were locked out of your own house (which you were). The therapist has you sedated and taken home. Then your wife learns you owe money for a necklace and visits the jeweller. Thirty seconds later your exact double walks in with a sword and your wife runs for her life. You are alone in the dark room, tied up.