Line 3531 - Commentary Note (CN)

Commentary notes (CN):

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Notes for lines 2951-end ed. Hardin A. Aasand

For explanation of sigla, such as jen, see the editions bib.

3531 {Or} <Ere> I could make a prologue to my braines,	5.2.30

1733 mtheo3

mtheo3

3531 braines] Warburton ( 28 July 1733; #25, leaf 39-40): WW likes the motto. Essays on Man, question about being by Pope. On Hamlet: a passage they never discussed: Being thus benetted round with Villains...Brains: “I had made a Query in my Margin, but solv’d this odd Expression to Myself thus, “ere I could in my Brain, or Thoughts, frame a Prologue &c. But then, what was this prologue to be fram’d to? Mr. Phipelden the Surgeon (whom, however, I have no Liberty to name,) tells me it should be, “Ere I could make a prologue to my Banes, i.e My Misfortunes, the Dilemma’s I was under. They had an actual Commission for his Death, before he had devis’d any Expedient how to avoid the Danger. I shall be impatient of your Opinion upon it.” He also differs with WW on a line in Ant.: p. 35, Shall STAIN your Brother. WW had advised STALE. Theobald decided on STRAIN. He’s still asking about Tyrconnel. Also will Stukely and WW visit London in August as planned?

1733 theo1

theo1

3531 Or . . . braines] Theobald (ed. 1733) : “This Passage is certainly corrupt both in the Text and Pointing. Making a Prologue to his Brains is such a Phrase as SHAKESPEARE would never have us’d, to mean, e’re I could form my Thoughts to making a Prologue. I communicated my Doubts to my two ingenious friends Mr. Warburton and Mr. Bishop; and by their Assistance, I hope, I have reform’d the whole to the Author’s Intention: ‘Being thus benetted round with Villainy, (Ere I could make a Prologue, to my Bane They had begun the Play:) I sate me down,’ i.e. Being thus in their Snares, e’re I could make a Prologue (take the least previous Step) to ward off Danger, they had begun the Play (put their Schemes in Action) which was to terminate in my Destruction.”

1740 theo2

theo2=theo1

3531 Or . . . braines]

1747 warb

warb : theo1

3531 Or . . . braines] Warburton (ed. 1747) : “The second line [Ere . . . braines] is nonsense. The whole should be read thus, ‘Being thus benetted round with villains, Ere I could MARK THE Prologue to my BANE, They had begun the Play.’ i.e. They They had begun to act, to my destruction, before I knew there was a Play towards. Ere I could mark the Prologue. For it appears by what he says of his foreboding, that it was that only, and not any apparent mark of villainy, which set him upon fingering their packet. Ere I could make the Prologue, is absurd: Both, as he had no thoughts of playing them a trick till they had played him one; and because his counterplot could not be called a prologue to their Plot.”

1757 theo4

theo4 = theo2

3531 Or . . . braines]

1765 Heath

Heath : warb

3531-2 Ere . . . play] Heath (1765, p. 549-50) : “P. 252 (Ere I could mark the prologue to my bane They had begun the play.) That is, according to Mr. Warburton, to whom we are indebted for this emendation, ‘They (Rosincrantz and Guildenstern) begun to act to my destruction before I knew there was a play towards.’ He adds, that ‘it was Hamlet’s foreboding only, and not any apparent mark of villany, which set him upon fingering their packet; and that he had no thoughts of playing them a trick, till they had played him one.’ But all this is expressly contradicted by the play itself. Hamlet himself, speaking of his voyage to England, tells his mother, [0000]p. 215.‘There’s letters seal’d, and my two school-fellows (Whom I will trust, as I would adders fang’d) They bear the amndate; they must sweep my way, . . . When in one line two crafts directly meet! ‘And afterwards, when the King proposes this voyage to Hamlet, p. []20, upon Hamlet’s answering, Good; the King replies, / King. So is it, if thou knew’st our purposes. Ham. I see a cherub, that sees them; but come, for England ! The common reading was,(Ere I could make a prologue to my brains,They had begun the play. ) Brains , is here put, by a metonymy of the cause for the effect, for the performance, the counterplot, which was to be the product of Hamlet’s brain. The sense therefore is; Before I could take the very first step towards forming my own scheme, they had already proceeded a considerable way in the execution of theirs. This first step, whcih is here called the prologue , was Hamlet’s getting the commission into his power, in order to discover the depth of the contrivance against him, and thereby to disappoint it. This is what Mr. Warburton is pleased to call nonsense.”

1765 john1

john1 = warb +

3531-2 Ere . . . play] Johnson (ed. 1765) : “In my opinion no alteration is necessary. Hamlet is telling how luckily every thing fell out; he groped out their commission in the dark without waking them; he found himself doomed to immediate destruction. Something was to be done for his preservation. An expedient occurred, not produced by the comparison of one method with another, or by a regular deduction of consequences, but before he could make a prologue to his Brains, they had begun the Play. Before he could summon his faculties, and propose to himself what should be done, a complete scheme of action presented itself to him. His mind operated before he had excited it. This appears to me to be the meaning.”

1773 v1773

v1773 = john1

3531-2 Ere . . . play]

1773 jen

jen : john1 ; Heath

3531-2 Ere . . . play] Jennens (ed. 1773) : “W[arburton] and T. [heobald] read bane; objecting against brains as nonsense; but brains may be here read a metonymy of cause for effect, and made use of for the effect of Hamlet’s brain, the counterplot. Vide Heath in loc.”

1774 capn

capn

CAPELL (1774:1:1:147) : see n. 3530.

1778 v1778

v1778 = v1773

3531-2 Ere . . . play]

1784 ays1

ays1 ≈john1 (minus “In my opinion . . . necessary” and “This appears to me to be the meaning.”)

3531-2 Ere . . . play]

1785 v1785

v1785 = v1778

3531-2 Ere . . . play]

1787 ann

ann = v1785 (minus “In my opinion no alteration is necessary”)

3531-2 Ere . . . play]

1790 mal

mal = v1785 +

3531 Or] Malone (ed. 1790) : “Or in old English signified before . See Vol. IV. p. 540, n. 9. MALONE”

-1790 mWesley

mWesley

3531 Or . . . braines] Wesley (typescript of ms. notes in ed. 1785): “[“His mind operated before he had excited it. This appears to me to be the meaning”] And to me also. Warburton confuses himself and his readers, puzzling the text to boot.”

1791- rann

rann

3531 Or . . . braines] Rann (ed. 1791-) : “Before I could summon my faculties to the task of consideration, my invention supplied me with an expedient.”

1793 v1793

v1793 = mal

3531-2 Ere . . . play]

1803 v1803

v1803 = v1793

3531-2 Ere . . . play]

1807 Pye

Pye = v1803 (MAL ) +

3531 Or . . . braines] Pye (1807, p. 328) : “What does Ere signify in modern English?”

1813 v1813

v1813 = v1803

3531-2 Ere . . . play]

v1813 = v1803

3531 Or . . . braines] Caldecott (ed. 1819) : “Ere I could well conceive what they were about, what could be their object in this mission; before I had time to give my first thoughts to their process, they were carrying their projects into act.”

1821 v1821

v1821 = v1813

3531-2 Ere . . . play]

1826 sing1

sing1

3531 Or] Singer (ed. 1826) : “Or for ere, before. See [Tem. 1.2.11 (92) p. 12.”

1832 cald2

cald2 = cald1

3531-2 Ere . . . play]

1833 valpy

valpy ≈ standard

3531 Or] Valpy (ed. 1833): “Before.”

1854 del2

del2

3531 Or . . . braines] Delius (ed. 1854) : “Die Qs. haben Or, was=before zu Sh.’s Zeit schon veraltete und nur in der Verbindung mit ‘e’er beibehalten, in der Fol. mit ere vertauscht ward.—Das Bild ist vom Theater entlehnt: die Spitzbuben in seiner Umgebung hatten schon angefangen, ihr Stück zu spielen, ehe er noch Zeit gefunden, zu seinem eigenen Anschlag dagegen (to my brains den Prolog zu machen. Es war also Gefahr im Verzug.” [The Qq have Or , what is equivalent to before , already obsolete in Shakespeare’s time and only retained in combination with e’er. In the Fol. it was changed with ere . The image is borrowed from the theatre: the rascals/scoundrels had already begun in his surroundings to play their part, before he found time to make his plot against it (to my brains to make the prologue. There was also danger in the delay.]

1856 sing2

sing2 : sing1 only the Qq variant (minus the Tem. //)

3531 Or]

1857 elze1

elze1

3531 Or . . . braines] Elze (ed. 1857): "So QB folgg.; Fs: Ere I could &c.—Der Sinn ist: Ehe ich einen Prolog zu meinem Anschlage, d.h. zu meinem Racheplace gegen den König, machen konnte, waren sie, der König und seine Helfershelfer, bereits mitten im Stücke. Ob in ’brains’ etwa eine Verderbniss stecke, müssen wir dahingestellt sein lassen.—Warburton hat geschrieben: Ere I could mark the prologue to my bane They had begun &c." [so the Q2ff; Ff ’Ere I could etc.—The meaning is: Before I could make the prologue to my plot, i.e. for my revenge plan against the King, they were, the King his helpers, already in the middle of a piece. If a corruption is stuck somewhat in ’brains,’ we must leave it alone. —Warburton has written . . .]

1864-68 c&mc

c&mc

3531 Or . . . braines] Clarke & Clarke (ed. 1864-68, rpt. 1874-78): “Besides the characteristic effect of this as depicting Hamlet’s state of mind when devising the scheme for counter-plotting and frustrating the machinations of his treacherous uncle, we cannot but believe that it also gives us a vivid picture of Shakespeare’s own mode of sitting down to write—his teeming brains beginning a play, and seeing all its scope and bearings, ere he had well penned down the opening words.”

1869 tsch

tsch

3531 Or] Tschischwitz (ed. 1869): “or steht noch häufig für ere z.B. bei W. Scott. Ther will be broken heads among us or it’s late. R. Roy 30. Und Gen. 45, 48. I shal se hym, or I dye. (Me.) Koch II. 437. [“orfor ere occurs still often e.g. W. Scott, Ther will be broken heads among us or it’s late. R. Roy 30. Und Gen. 45, 48. I shal se hym, or I dye. (Me.) Koch II. 437”]

1870 Abbott

Abbott

3531 to my braines] Abbott (§186): “To hence means motion, ‘with a view to,’ ‘for an end,’ &c. This is of course still common before verbs, but the Elizabethans used to in this sense before nouns. . . . Hence it seems used for for in [cites 3531-2].”

1872 del4

del4 ≈ del2

3531 Or . . . braines] Delius (ed. 1854) : “Die Qs. haben Or, was=before zu Sh.’s Zeit schon veraltete und nur in der Verbindung mit ‘e’er beibehalten, in der Fol. mit ere vertauscht ward.—Das Bild ist vom Theater entlehnt: seine Gefährten hatte schon angefangen, ihr Stück zu spielen, ehe er noch Zeit gefunden, zu seinem eigenen Anschlag dagegen (to my brains) den Prolog zu machen. Es war also Gefahr im Verzug.” [The Qq have Or , what is equivalent to before , already obsolete in Shakespeare’s time and only retained in combination with e’er. In the Fol. it was exchanged with ere . The image is borrowed from the theatre: his companions had already begun to play their part, before he found time to make a prologue against this plot. There was also danger in the delay. ]

1872 cln1

cln1

3531 Or] Clark & Wright (ed. 1872): “So the quartos. The folios read ‘Ere.’ We have ‘Or’ in this sense frequently in Chaucer and the earlier writers, as e.g. in the Knight’s Tale, 1685: ‘Cleer was the day, as I have told or this.’We find the pleonastic combination of both in [Tem. 1.2.11 (92))]. In [Ham. 1.2.183 (371)], we have, according to the second and following quartos,’Or ever I had,’ where that of 1603 reads ‘Ere ever I had,’ and the folios ‘Ere I had ever.’”

1872 hud2

hud2 : see n. 3532

1873 rug2

rug2

3531 Or . . . braines] Moberly (ed. 1873): “Before I formed my real plan, my brains had done the work. This line should be carefully remarked. Hamlet writes the commission under a strong impulse rather of imagination than will, the ingenuity of the trick captivating him. (See Macbeth, Introduction, p. 9.) Then the encounter with the pirate puts an end to the chance of undoing it; and thus he is driven, somewhat uneasily, to justify his action to Horatio. As the latter receives his narrative with something like surprise, and even with a touch of compassion, we may conclude with safety that Hamlet’s kindly nature would have cancelled the letters, but for the accident which hindered his doing so.”

1877 v1877

v1877: ≈ theo1 (subst) ; ≈ warb (only They had begun to act, to my destruction, before I knew there was a Play towards.] ; ≈ Heath (summarized; and Before I could take the very first step towards forming my own scheme, they had already proceeded a considerable way in the execution of theirs.) ; ≈ john1 (summarized ; and . Before he could summon his faculties, and propose to himself what should be done, a complete scheme of action presented itself to him. His mind operated before he had excited it) ; ≈ rug2(minus Macbeth parenthetical)

v1877 : cald2

3531 Or . . . braines] Furness (ed. 1877): “Caldecott returns to Heath’s interpretation, as do Delius and Elze, but, with these exceptions, all the rest follow Johnson. Clarke sees herein a vivid picture of shakespeare’s own mode of composition, his teeming brains beginning aplay, and seeing all its scope and bearings, ere he had well penned the opening words.”

3531 Or . . . braines] Moberly (apud Furness, ed. 1877):

1881 hud3

Hud3: see n. 3532

3531 Or]

1889 Barnett

Barnett

3531 to my braines] Barnett (1889, p. 77): <p. 77> “To=for” </p. 77>

1899 ard1

Ard1 : standard (v1877?)

3531 Or . . . braines] Dowden (ed. 1899): “Hamlet’s brains operate without any scheme assigned to them by his conscious self. They proceed as players without an argument to the play. See the prologue to [Rom.], where the action of the play is set forth. Theobald, taking They as referring to Hamlet’s enemies, read (in parenthesis): ‘(Ere I could make a prologue, to my Bane They had begun the Play:)’”

1931 crg1

crg1 ≈ standard

3531 Or . . . braines]

1934 cam3

cam3

3531 Or] Wilson (ed. 1934): “F1 ‘Ere.’ MSH. p. 243. The meaning is the same.”

1934 rid1

rid1 : standard

3531 Or] Ridley (ed. 1934, Glossary):

1939 kit2

kit2

3531 Or] Kittredge (ed. 1939): “a by-form of ere. Hamlet means that before he could prepare his brains, they had begun to act in carrying out a plan. He is thinking, perhaps, of the difficulty he had found in devising a scheme to force the King to confess, and of the play that he finally used for that purpose.”

1947 cln2

cln2 ≈ standard

3531 Or . . . braines]

1951 crg2

crg2=crg1

3531 Or . . . braines]

1957 pel1

pel1 : standard

3531 Or]

1970 pel2

pel2=pel1

3531 Or]

1974 evns1

evns1 ≈ standard

3531 Or]

1980 pen2

pen2 ≈ standard

3531 Or]

pen2

3531 Or . . . braines] Spencer (ed. 1980): “go through the initial steps of submitting the problem to my intelligence (as often with Hamlet, a theatrical metaphor).”

1982 ard2

ard2 ≈ standard

3531 Or . . . braines]

1984 chal

chal : ≈ kit2

3531 Or . . . braines]

1985 cam4

cam4

3531 Or] Edwards (ed. 1985): “before, ere. See note to 1.2.147.”

cam4 ≈ standard

3531 Or . . . braines]

1987 oxf4

oxf4

3528 heare now how] Hibbard (ed. 1987): “i.e. before I could set my mind to work on evolving a logical course of action that mind was spontaneously busy in taking the right action. As the prologue to an Elizabethan play often contained the ‘argument’ or summary of the action to follow, it is tempting to speculate that Shakespeare is referring here to his own manner of working, which may well have been to start form a ‘rough-hewn; scenario and then allow things to take theri course, instead of adhering to any fixed or predetermined plan. Hamlet certainly views his play, which is also deadly earnest, with all the delight of an artist who has seen his ‘hunch’ work out.”

1988 bev2

bev2: standard (rug2)

3531 Or . . . braines]

1993 dent

dent ≈ standard

3531 Or]

3531

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