Line 3205-07 - Commentary Note (CN) 
Commentary notes (CN):
1. SMALL CAPS Indicate editions. Notes for each commentator are divided into three parts:
In the 1st two lines of a record, when the name of the source text (the siglum) is printed in SMALL CAPS, the comment comes from an EDITION; when it is in normal font, it is derived from a book, article, ms. record or other source. We occasionally use small caps for ms. sources and for works related to editions. See bibliographies for complete information (in process).
2. How comments are related to predecessors' comments. In the second line of a record, a label "without attribution" indicates that a prior writer made the same or a similar point; such similarities do not usually indicate plagiarism because many writers do not, as a practice, indicate the sources of their glosses. We provide the designation ("standard") to indicate a gloss in common use. We use ≈ for "equivalent to" and = for "exactly alike."
3. Original comment. When the second line is blank after the writer's siglum, we are signaling that we have not seen that writer's gloss prior to that date. We welcome correction on this point.
4. Words from the play under discussion (lemmata). In the third line or lines of a record, the lemmata after the TLN (Through Line Number] are from Q2. When the difference between Q2 and the authors' lemma(ta) is significant, we include the writer's lemma(ta). When the gloss is for a whole line or lines, only the line number(s) appear. Through Line Numbers are numbers straight through a play and include stage directions. Most modern editions still use the system of starting line numbers afresh for every scene and do not assign line numbers to stage directions.
5. Bibliographic information. In the third line of the record, where we record the gloss, we provide concise bibliographic information, expanded in the bibliographies, several of which are in process.
6. References to other lines or other works. For a writer's reference to a passage elsewhere in Ham. we provide, in brackets, Through Line Numbers (TLN) from the Norton F1 (used by permission); we call these xref, i.e., cross references. We call references to Shakespearean plays other than Ham. “parallels” (//) and indicate Riverside act, scene and line number as well as TLN. We call references to non-Shakespearean works “analogues.”
7. Further information: See the Introduction for explanations of other abbreviations.
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Notes for lines 2951-end ed. Hardin A. Aasand
| 3205-6 man, good, if the man goe to this <wa-> | <ter and> {water &} drowne himselfe, it is will {M2} | |
|---|
| 3206-7 he, nill he, he goes, | marke you that{,}<?> but if the water come to him, & | |
|---|
1709 rowe2
rowe2:
3206 nil] Gildon (apud Rowe, ed. 1709 [1710], 7: lxxi) : “will not.”
1774-79? capn
capn
3206 nill] Capell (1779-83 [1774]:1:1:Glossary) : (Tam. a.s.l. [1150] will not. ‘ will he, nill he,’ is—will he, or will he not.”
1819 cald1
cald1
3205ff If the man go to this water] Caldecott (ed. 1819) : “Still floundering and confounding himself. He means to represent it as a willful act, and of course without any mitxure of nill or nolens in it. Had he gone, as stated, whether he would or not , it would not have been of his own accord, or his act.”
1832 cald2
cald2 = cald1
3205ff If the man go to this water]
1854 del2
del2
3206 nill he] Delius (ed. 1854) : “so ist das, er mag wollen oder nicht, so viel als: er geht.” [“so it is that he may or may not desire, so much as he goes.” ]
1856 hud1 (1851-6)
hud1 : see n. 3211
Hudson(1856 ed., p. 347) prints here the note from knt1 in TLN 3211 that presents the judge’s series of questions. He signs it with his initial H.
1857 elze1
elze1
3206 will he, nill he] Elze (ed. 1857): "’To nill’ ist eine Zusammensetzung von ’to will’ und der ags. und altengl. Negation ’ne’, mhd. ’ne’ und ’en’. ’Ne’ is noch bei Chaucer gebräuchlich, jedoch wie im Mhd. Meist in Verbindung mit einer zweiten Negation. Aehnliche Zusammensetzungen sind: nis=ne is ((veraltet)); none ((=no one)); never ((=no ever)); neither ((=no either)) u.A. Fiedler Wissenschaftl. Grammatik 234. Nares s. Nill und Will I, nillI.—Bei Shakespeare kommen nur noch die Redensarten ’Will he, nill he’ und ’Will you, nill you’ ((Taming of the Shrew II, 1)) vor." ["’to nil’ is a contraction of "to will" and the A.S. and O.E. negation ’ne’, MHGerman ’ne’ and ’en’. ’Ne’is still used in Chaucer, however as in MHGerman, mostly in combination with a second negation. There are similar contractions: nis=ne is ((obsolete)); none ((=ne one)); never ((=ne ever)); neither ((=ne either)) and A. Fiedler Wissenschaftl. Grammatik 234. Nares. See Nill and Will I, nill I.—In Shakespeare, it appears even still in the expression ’Will he, nill he’ and ’Will you, nill you" (([Tam. 3.1.]))."]
1858 Lloyd
Lloyd
3204-09 Lloyd (1858, sig. [R3v ]): <sig. [R3v ]> “Many who have seen the frequent willows drooping into the Avon about Stratford, will have had the thought that Ophelia, falling with the envious sliver, and floating awhile among her scattering flowers, is a picture of some misadventured maiden in the poet’s native town; there is even something particular in the sneer at ‘crowner’s quest law,’ that may intimate an opinion of a stupid verdict in such cases that had untender consequences centuries later; however, as in so many other cases the blundering attempt of a clown to express a distinction that is a falsity,—the discrimination here between voluntary and involuntary suicide,—provides the verity with terse and strict expression.
[cites 3204-09]
1859 stau
stau : see n. 3211
3209] STAUNTON (1859 ed., p. 404) borrows HAWKINs’ notes on HALE and GREY from presumably mal and/or v1778 . No attribution is given. As I look at knt1 and hud, these could be likely candidates as well. See TLN 3211 for the notes
1864-68 c&mc
c&mc
3206 will he, nill he] Clarke & Clarke (ed. 1864-68, rpt. 1874-78): “See Note 27, Act ii. [Tam.]”
1869 Romdahl
Romdahl
3206 will he, nill he]
Romdahl (1869, p. 40-1): <p. 40>“whether he will or not. Compare [
Tam. 2.1.273 (1150)]. In this phrase, which still is used in colloquial language, we have the only remain- </p. 40> <p.41>der of the old English verb
nill, A.S.
nyllan, nillan, formed of the particle
ne=not and
willan=to will. The formation in such a manner of negative expressions from words, especially pronouns and adverbs, beginning with a vowel,
h or
w, was in Anglo-Saxon not uncommon. The convenience of such forms was felt also by old English authors; Chaucer, for instance, wrote
n’am for
am not,
n’as for
was not,
n’ould for
would not, etc. The modern language has, in fact, retained some words of that kind, for example,
neither, never, none.” </p. 41>
1869 tsch
tsch
3206 nill] Tschischwitz (ed. 1869): “Die ursprüngliche Negationspartikel im Ags. ne, goth. ni, altn. ne, wurde im Ae. vielfach mit einem folgendenl Verb verschmolzen, wie habban, villan, vitan, vesan, indem der anlautende Consonant abfiel, also: nave, have not; nill, will not; niste, wiste not; nam, nis, nas, nere, für am not, is not, was not, were not. Hier und dort findet sich die einfache Negation ne noch bei Dictern erhalten, wie z.B. bei Spencer und selbst bei Lord Byron. Koch II. p. 492. M.I. 397. III. 123, cf. never, ne ever; nought, ne ought.”[The original negative particle in A.S., ne, Gothic ni, O.N. ne became in Old English blended often with the following consonant, as habban, villan, vitan, vesan, in which the initial consonant fell away, also: nave, have not; nill, will not; niste, wiste not; nam, nis, nas, nere for am not, is not, was not, were not.. Here and there one finds the simple negation ne still maintained by poets, as, for example, in Spencer and by Lord Byron himself. . . . cf. never, ne ever; nought, ne ought]
1872 del4
del4 = del2
3206 nill he]
1873 rug2
rug2
3205-06 if . . . water] Moberly (ed. 1873): “An old edition of the ‘Justice of the Peace’ lays down as follows: In some cases the act may be involuntary; as if I fall down, and another, pursuing his wicked intent to kill me, falls upon my sword and kills himself, he is felo de see.’ But if I stand on my defence, being assaulted, and he runs on my sword and kills himself, he is not ‘felo de se.’ It looks as if Shakspere was ridiculing these distinctions.” [see also n. 3211]
1881 hud3
hud3
3206 will he, nill he] Hudson (ed. 1881): “‘Will he, nill he,’ is will he, or will he not.’”
1889 Barnett
Barnett
3206 nill]
Barnett (1889, p. 58): <p. 58>“
ne will.” </p. 58>
1939 kit2
kit2≈ hud2
3206 will he, nill he]
kit2 ≈ cap w/o attribution
3206 nill
3206 nill] Kittredge (ed. 1939, Glossary):
1937 pen1a
pen1a : standard
1957 pel1
pel1 : standard
3206 will he, nill he] Farnham (ed. 1957): "willy-nilly."
1970 pel2
pel2=pel1
3206 will he, nill he]
1974 evns1
evns1 ≈ standard
3206 nill
evns1 ≈ standard
3204-09 see n. 3211
1980 pen2
pen2 : pel1
3206 nill] Spencer (ed. 1980): “willy-nilly.”
1985 cam4
cam4 ≈ standard ; pen2
3206 will he, nill he]
1987 oxf4
oxf4 : Tilley
3206 will he, nill he] Hibbard (ed. 1987): “proverbial ((Tilley W401)).”
1988 bev2
bev2: standard
3206 will he, nill he]
1992 fol2
fol2≈ standard
3206 will he, nill he]
1993 dent
dent ≈ standard
3206 will he, nill he]
dent
3206 he goes] Andrews (ed. 1989): “he that goes ((he who is accountable for his act)). What the Clown fails to note is that nill he would not apply to an act for which the victim was responsible.”