HW HomePrevious CNView CNView TNMView TNINext CN

Line 469 - Commentary Note (CN) More Information

Notes for lines 0-1017 ed. Bernice W. Kliman
For explanation of sigla, such as jen, see the editions bib.
469 A Violet in the youth of primy nature,1.3.7
1730 mtheo2
mtheo2
469 primy] Theobald (20 Jan. 1730, fol. ?; Nichols, Illus, 2:426), conjecturing on primy in H5, says it means “ripe, in the prime of their youth.”
1805 Seymour
Seymour
469 primy] Strutt (apud Seymour, 1805, 2:152): “The early days of manhood. B. Strutt.”
1822 Nares
Nares
469 primy] Nares (1822): “Early, belonging to the spring; perhaps peculiar to the following passage: [quotes 469].”
1832 cald2
cald2
469 primy] Caldecott (ed. 1820): “Springtide, youthy. See ‘happiness and prime. [AWW 2.1.182 (793)] King.”
1872 cln1
cln1
469 of primy nature] Clark & Wright (ed. 1872): “nature in its spring-time.
1877 v1877
v1877 = Nares
469 primy]
1880 meik
meik: standard gloss + in magenta underlined
469 primy nature] Meikeljohn (ed. 1880): “nature in its first spring. The only instance of the word; but S. twice uses prime for spring.’”
1885 mull
mull cln1 without attribution
469 primy nature] Mull (ed. 1885): “spring-time.”
1899 ard1
ard1: standard
469 primy] Dowden (ed. 1899): “of the spring-time.”
1938 parc
parc
469 primy] Parrott & Craig (ed. 1938): “springlike.”
1939 kit2
kit2: Chapman
469 Violet] Kittredge (ed. 1939): "Cf. Chapman, Revenge for Honour,[5.2] (Pearson ed., III, 351): ’the prime virgins of the Spring, the violets.’ "

kit2: Hamlet’s age
469 in . . . nature] Kittredge (ed. 1939): "in the early prime (the springtim) of life. The passage is enough to settle the question of Hamlet’s age, and its testimony is confirmed by ’young’ [590] and ’blown youth [1815]."

kit2cald2; analogue
469 primy] Kittredge (ed. 1939): "Cf. The Repentance of Robert Greene, 1592 (ed. Grosart, XI, 179): ’Oh were I now to begin the flower of my youth, were I now in the prime of my years, how far would I bee from my former follyes.’ "
1947 cln2
cln2: standard
469 primy] Rylands (ed. 1947): "in its prime or springtime."
1957 pel1
pel1: standard
469 primy] Farnham (ed. 1957): “of the springtime.”
1967 SQ
Falk
469-71 Falk (1967, p. 32): “Ophelia’s destiny, like that of Laertes, also reflects her father’s influence: her fate is as much a result of his superficiality and misjudgment as it is of Hamlet’s behavior. She is a crucial link between plot and sub-plot, between the family of Hamlet (Claudius-Gertrude-Hamlet) and that of Polonius . . . .We meet both flower and proverb at the very introduction of Ophelia, Laertes admonition to her, foreshadowing her character and future in ways unknown to Laertes himself.;” Falk compares 469-71 to 3430-1.
1970 pel2
pel2 = pel1
469 primy] Farnham (ed. 1970): “of the springtime”
1980 pen2
pen2
469 Violet] Spencer (ed. 1980): “It was proverbial for transient existence, as well as being associated with love.”

pen2
469 the . . . nature] Spencer (ed. 1980): “its spring-like prime.”
1982 ard2
ard2:
469 primy] Jenkins (ed. 1982): “A Shakespearean coinage. In its prime or springtime, the period when youth is at its flower. Cf. Son. 12, ’When I behold the violet past prime’. This whole passage suggests a youthful Hamlet (cf. 590, 701), in contrast to the thirty years attributed to him at 3333-61 (on which see CN).”
1985 cam4
cam4
469 the youth . . . nature] Edwards (ed. 1985): "the spring-time of life (’primy’ seems to be a Shakespearean coinage)."
1987 oxf4
oxf4: Onions; Wilson +
469 primy] Hibbard (ed. 1987): "This word appears to be a Shakespearian invention. Onions glosses it ‘that is in its prime’; Wilson, ‘in its prime or springtime’. It may, however, be closely connected with a sense of prime that is to be found only in [Oth. 3.3.403 (2051)], ‘were they as prime as goats, as hot as monkeys’, where prime obviously means ‘sexually excited.’ "
1988 bev2
bev2: standard
469 primy] Bevington (ed. 1988): “in its prime, springtime.”
1992 fol2
fol2: standard
469 in . . . nature] Mowat & Werstine (ed. 1992): “in the early days of its prime”
2006 ard3q2
ard3q2: standard gloss; //; xref
469 primy] Thompson & Taylor (ed. 2006): “a Shakespearean coinage meaning ’in its prime’ or perhaps ’spring-like’; see ’For love is crowned with the prime / In spring-time’ (AYL 5.3.35-6) and ’When I behold the violet past prime’ (Son. 12.3). It may carry a sense of ’lustful’ here (see Oth. 3.3.406, ’as prime as goats’) and also implies that Hamlet is younger than the 30 years insisted upon at [3334-51].”
469 470 471 3430 3431