Page 127 - William_Shakespeare_-_The_Merchant_of_Venice_191

—Portia
I never praised myself° for doing good, 10 {did repent}
And° shall not now; for in such fond companions°— {Nor} {for in companions}
Who do converse and pass° their time together, {waste} / spend
Whose souls do bear an equal° yoke of love— 11 / are joined by the same
12
There must be needs a like proportion
Of character,° of manners, and of spirit, 13 {lineaments}
Which makes me think that this Antonio,
Being the dearest comrade°of my lord, 14 {bosom lover}
Must needs be like my lord. If it be so,
How little is the cost I have bestowed° / put forth / tendered
In rescuing° the semblance° of my soul 15 {purchasing} / saving now / likeness
From out the state° of hellish cruelty. / From this affront
This comes too near the° praising of myself 16 / This near approaches
Therefore, no more of it. Hear° other things: / Now
Lorenzo, I commit into° your hands, / transfer unto
The oversight° and° manage of my house 17 {husbandry}
Until my lord’s return. For mine own part,
I have toward heaven breathed a secret vow
To live in prayer and contemplation, 18
Attended only° by Nerissa here, {Only attended}
Until her husband and my lord° return. {lord’s}
There is a monastery two miles off, 19

enforce you: prompt, impel, incline you; make you feel
Herein, the original line has been expanded into two. The sense here is that the act of kindness Portia is
performing (in helping Antonio) would be more pleasing to her than from the usual and regular acts of kindness that
she, out of the goodness of her heart, is wont to perform. This action goes above and beyond the normal generosity
(the customary bounty) of her usual charitable acts.
Various editors interpret this line as follows: ‘Than your wonted generosity make you feel’ (Cam); ‘Than
ordinary acts of kindness allow you to feel’ (Appl);‘Than ordinary kindness can make you.’ (Pelican); ‘Than
ordinary acts of kindness can incline you to be’ (Ar); ‘Than your usual acts of benevolence make you perform’ (Ox);
‘Then the usual acts of kindness you are prompted (by your good nature) to perform.’
10. {I never did repent° for doing good} / regret / seek praise
/ I ne’er did pride myself for doing good
11. / Whose souls unite by the same yoke of love
12. {There must be needs a like proportion}
/ There must be needs a likeness of manner / Must share an inclination of like manner
13. / . . . a like proportion of | Characteristics, manner, and of spirit,
/ . . . a like proportion | Of character, sentiment, and of sprit
/ Must share a like proportion of manner | Of character, sentiment, and of spirit
14. / Being my lord’s most true and dearest friend / Being the dearest-most friend of my lord
15. / How little is the price I pay to save | One, so like one, with whom I share a soul
16. {This comes too near the praising of myself}
/ This comes too near to mine own self-endorsement!
/ This near approaches self-praise and conceit
17. / The running and management of my house / The management and care of my estate
18. Here Portia is saying she has made a vow to heaven, when clearly she has not. This white lie gives her an
unsuspecting reason to leave the estate for a few days.
19. a monastery two miles off: This suggests that Belmont is an island, which is close enough to the mainland to be
connected by a bridge, or that it is a peninsula which appears to be an island as one approaches it from the sea.
Lines 3.4.81-84 (where Portia indicates a 20 miles journey by coach, to Padua) and the arrival of other characters, by