Page 128 - William_Shakespeare_-_The_Merchant_of_Venice_191

And there we will abide. I do desire° you, / ask of / request
20
Not to deny this sudden° imposition, / curt / rude / brusque
The which my love and some necessity° / more pressing needs
Now lays upon you.

—Lorenzo Madam, with all my heart
I shall obey you in all fair commands.° / you request

—Portia
My people do already know my wish° {mind}
And will acknowledge° you and Jessica / recognize / accept both
In place of Lord Bassanio and myself.
So fare you well till we shall meet again.

—Lorenzo
Fair thoughts and happy hours attend on you! ° / happiness all be with you!

—Jessica [turning back toward Portia]
I wish your ladyship all° heart’s content. / you, dear lady, all / your lady every

—Portia
I thank you for your wish, and am well-pleased
To wish the same for you.° Fare you well, Jessica. 21 {it back on you}

Exeunt Jessica and Lorenzo

Now, Balthazar, 22
As I have ever found thee plain and true,° {honest true} / true and honest
So let me find thee still: Take this same letter,
And use thou all thy acumen and skill° 23 {the endeavor of a man}
In speed° to Padua. See thou render° this / haste / giveth
24
Into the hands of my cousin, Bellario,

foot, also suggests that Belmont is connected to the mainland.
20. {Not to deny this imposition} / Not to deny this imposing request
To fulfill the meter, imposition, would be pronounced as: IMpoZIseeOWN
21. Portia’s farewell is directed to Jessica alone. The most likely scenario is that Portia is closer to Jessica, and
perhaps face-to-face with Jessica, holding her at elbow’s length, and mentions her name to indicate a more personal
farewell. Some productions, feeling the need to have Portia and Jessica alone on stage, have Jessica suddenly
running back (as she and Lorenzo are exiting) to bid Portia farewell. Such a staging, however, draws too much
attention to itself and is not necessary.
22. Portia uses the name of her servant, Balthazar, when she comes into court dressed as a man
23. {And use thou all th’endeavour of a man} / And use the fullest of thy manly prowess / And use thou all thy
gainèd skill and power / And use thou all your manly skill and power
24. Portia’s self-made plan to have Bellario provide her with all the books and garments she needs, as well as a
glowing letter of recommendation to appear in Bellario’s stead— is contingent upon: a) her knowing that Bellario
had since been requested, by the Duke, to oversee this very matter in Venice, b) that Bellario was too ill to comply,
and c) her confidence in her ability to school herself in all matters of Venician law so as to credibly rule over the
matter. (And, if she did not live up the heights of Bellario’s recommendation, it would seriously impair Bellario’s
hard-won reputation. So, in her letter, she would have to have convinced Bellario to stake his reputation upon her