in Timon of Athens — Shakespeare, William; Middleton, Thomas
Metadata
Play
Timon of Athens
Author
Shakespeare, William; Middleton, Thomas
Year (catalogued)
1623
First performance
1607
Decade
1620s
Genre
Tragedy
Play type
Adult Professional
Company
King's Men
Speech prefix(es)
Pain. | Pain | Painter.
Words
447
Characters
2397
Typicality
0.39 (cosine to cluster centroid)
TCP id
A11954.29
BritDrama no.
1536
Cluster
Cluster 3 — Citizens, tradesfolk & neighbors
Important excerpts
No keyword-matching excerpt could be extracted (the cluster label doesn't share vocabulary with this character's speech).
Full speech
I am glad you're well. It wears sir, as it grows. I know them both: the others a Jeweller. You are rapt sir, in some work, some Dedica cion to the great Lord. A Picture sir: when comes your Book forth? Indifferent. It is a pretty mocking of the life: Here is a touch: Is't good? How this Lord is followed. Look more. How shall I understand you? I saw them speak together. It's conceived, to scope This Throne, this Fortune, and this Hill me thinks With one man beckoned from the rest below, Bowing his head against the steepy Mount To climb his happiness, would be well expressed In our Condition. I marry, what of these? 'Tis common: A thousand moral Paintings I can show, That shall demonstrate these quick blows of Fortune's, More pregnantly then words. Yet you do well, To show Lord Timon, that mean eyes have seen The foot above the head. A piece of Painting, which I do beseech Your Lordship to accept. The Gods preserve you. you are a Dog. As I took note of the place, it cannot be far where he abides. Our late Noble Master. He, and my self Have travailed in the great shower of your gifts, And sweetly felt it. So it is said my Noble Lord, but therefore Came not my Friend, nor I. So, so, my Lord. I know none such, my Lord. It's a good Piece. Certain. Alcibiades reports it: Phrinica and Timandylo Had Gold of him. He likewise enriched Poor straggling Soldiers, with great quantity. It's said, he gave unto his Steward A mighty sum. Nothing else: You shall see him a Palm in Athens again, And flourish with the highest: Therefore, it's not amiss, we tender our loves To him, in this supposed distress of his: It will show honestly in us, And is very likely, to load our purposes With what they travail for, If it be a joust and true report, that goes Of his having. Nothing at this time But my Visitation: only I will promise him And excellent Piece. Good as the best. Promising, is the very Air of the Time; It opens the eyes of Expectation. Performance, is ever the duller for his act, And but in the plainer and simpler kind of people, The deed of Saying is quite out of use. To Promise, is most Courtly and fashionable; Performance, is a kind of Will or Testament Which argues a great sickness in his judgement That makes it. True: When the day serves before blacke-corner'd night; Find what thou wantest, by free and offered light. Come. We are hither come To offer you our service.
Plot summary
Plot — Timon of Athens
; Timon gives freely of his riches to his acquaintances: every little gift will trigger disproportionate largesse by way of requital. He intervenes financially to secure Ventidius’ release from a debtors’ prison, and settles money on his servant Lucilius to enable him to marry the girl he loves, a wealthy man’s daughter. He entertains guests at a lavish feast at which a masque of Amazons is performed. But his creditors. are alarmed by his uncontrolled spending, and call in his debts, which amount to more than the value of his entire estate. He imagines that he can still call on the former recipients of his liberality, but they make their excuses and leave him in difficulties; he is failed even by Ventidius, now a rich man after his father’s death. Timon lays on a second feast, and invites his unreliable friends; they think normal service has been resumed, but are discomfited to find that the menu consists of water alone. Timon drives them off with abuse and leaves Athens in misanthropic fury. Alcibiades attempts to save a friend from execution for murder, but the Senate dismisses the appeal; when he persists, they banish him. In the forest, Timon digs for roots to eat, but finds only buried gold. He meets Alcibiades, marching against Athens with his soldiers, and gives him gold to ensure the city’s destruction; he also pays the army’s whores to spread venereal disease. He encourages a band of thieves to prey upon mankind, but his words persuade them to rethink their way of life. His faithful steward seeks him out and offers to share his own savings; Timon rewards him for his honesty but does not change his low opinion of the rest of humanity. News gets round that Timon still has gold, and hangers-on arrive, hoping this means his bankruptcy was only a bluff to test his friends; he drives them violently away. The Senate asks Timon to return to Athens as its tuler, to defend it against Alcibiades, but Timon, who is busy writing his own epitaph, wishes annihilation on them, and recommends suicide as their only means of escape. Alcibiades’ messenger to Timon finds only his tomb. Athens surrenders, and Timon’s epitaph is read.