Antony and Cleopatra

by: William Shakespeare

Act 2 Scene 2

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Original Text	Modern Text
Enter ENOBARBUS and LEPIDUS	ENOBARBUS and LEPIDUS enter.
LEPIDUS Good Enobarbus, ’tis a worthy deed, And shall become you well, to entreat your captain To soft and gentle speech.	LEPIDUS Good Enobarbus, you would be doing a very good thing if you advised your captain to speak calmly and quietly.
ENOBARBUS I shall entreat him To answer like himself. If Caesar move him, 5Let Antony look over Caesar’s head And speak as loud as Mars. By Jupiter, Were I the wearer of Antonio’s beard, I would not shave ’t today.	ENOBARBUS I will advise him to speak as he usually does. If Caesar makes him mad, let Antony stand tall and speak as loudly as Mars, the god of war. By Jupiter, if I were Antony, I wouldn’t shave my beard today. I’d leave it long and dare Caesar to insult me by pulling on it, just so I could fight him.
LEPIDUS ’Tis not a time for private stomaching.	LEPIDUS This is not the time for dwelling on personal grievances.
ENOBARBUS 10Every time serves for the matter that is then born in ’t.	ENOBARBUS It’s always appropriate to deal with matters as they arise.
LEPIDUS But small to greater matters must give way.	LEPIDUS But major issues must come before minor ones.
ENOBARBUS Not if the small come first.	ENOBARBUS Not if the minor ones come up first.
LEPIDUS Your speech is passion. But pray you stir No embers up. Here comes the noble Antony.	LEPIDUS You speak out of passion, but I beg you not to stir things up. Here comes the noble Antony.
Enter ANTONY and VENTIDIUS	ANTONY and VENTIDIUS enter.
ENOBARBUS 15And yonder, Caesar.	ENOBARBUS And there comes Caesar.
Enter OCTAVIUS CAESAR, MECAENAS, and AGRIPPA	CAESAR, MAECENAS, and AGRIPPA enter from another door.
ANTONY (to VENTIDIUS ) If we compose well here, to Parthia. Hark, Ventidius.	ANTONY (to VENTIDIUS ) If we can come to an agreement here, we’ll move on to Parthia. Listen, Ventidius.
They talk aside	They talk privately together.
CAESAR (to MECAENAS ) I do not know, Maecenas. Ask Agrippa.	CAESAR (to MAECENAS ) I don’t know, Maecenas. Ask Agrippa.

Read the Summary of Act I, scenes iv–v; Act II, scenes i–ii

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