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)
Ser. | Seru.
Words
294
Characters
1595
Typicality
0.34 (cosine to cluster centroid)
TCP id
A11954.29
BritDrama no.
1536
Cluster
Cluster 22 — Ghosts, curses & horror voices
Important excerpts
No keyword-matching excerpt could be extracted (the cluster label doesn't share vocabulary with this character's speech).
Full speech
Please you my Lord, there are certain Ladies Most desirous of admittance. There comes with them a forerunner my Lord, which bears that office, to signify their pleasures. Here my Lord, in readiness. My Lord, there are certain Nobles of the Senate newly alighted, and come to visit you. May it please your Honour, Lord Lucius (Out of his free love) hath presented to you Four Milkwhite Horses, trapped in Silver. My Lord, my Lord. I have told my Lord of you, he is coming down to you. Here's my Lord. Please your Lordship, here is the Wine. Yes sir, I shall. My Lord, They have all been touched, and found Base-Mettle, For they have all denied him. Excellent: Your Lordship's a goodly Villain: the devil knew not what he did, when he made man Poli tick; he crossed himself by't: and I cannot think, but in the end, the Villainies of man will set him clear. How fairly this Lord strives to appear foul? Takes Virtue ous Copies to be wicked: Like those, that under hot ar dent zeal, would set whole Realms on fire, of such a nam ture is his politic love. This was my Lords best hope, now all are fled Save only the Gods. Now his Friends are dead, Doors that were never acquainted with their Wards Many a bounteous year, must be employed Now to guard sure their Master: And this is all a liberal course allows, Who cannot keep his wealth, must keep his house. If I might beseech you Gentlemen, to repair some other hour, I should derive much from't. For tak't of my soul, my Lord leans wondrously to discontent: His comfortable temper has forsook him, he's much out of health, and keeps his Chamber.
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.