SCENE I. Alexandria. OCTAVIUS CAESAR's camp. Antony and Cleopatra  Shakespeare homepage  |  Antony and Cleopatra  | Act 5, Scene 1 

 Previous scene  |  Next scene  SCENE I. Alexandria. OCTAVIUS CAESAR's camp. 

 Enter OCTAVIUS CAESAR, AGRIPPA, DOLABELLA, MECAENAS, GALLUS, PROCULEIUS, and others, his council of war  OCTAVIUS CAESAR  Go to him, Dolabella, bid him yield; 

 Being so frustrate, tell him he mocks 

 The pauses that he makes. 

 DOLABELLA  Caesar, I shall. 



 Exit 

 Enter DERCETAS, with the sword of MARK ANTONY  OCTAVIUS CAESAR  Wherefore is that? and what art thou that darest 

 Appear thus to us? 

 DERCETAS  I am call'd Dercetas; 

 Mark Antony I served, who best was worthy 

 Best to be served: whilst he stood up and spoke, 

 He was my master; and I wore my life 

 To spend upon his haters. If thou please 

 To take me to thee, as I was to him 

 I'll be to Caesar; if thou pleasest not, 

 I yield thee up my life. 

 OCTAVIUS CAESAR  What is't thou say'st? 

 DERCETAS  I say, O Caesar, Antony is dead. 

 OCTAVIUS CAESAR  The breaking of so great a thing should make 

 A greater crack: the round world 

 Should have shook lions into civil streets, 

 And citizens to their dens: the death of Antony 

 Is not a single doom; in the name lay 

 A moiety of the world. 

 DERCETAS  He is dead, Caesar: 

 Not by a public minister of justice, 

 Nor by a hired knife; but that self hand, 

 Which writ his honour in the acts it did, 

 Hath, with the courage which the heart did lend it, 

 Splitted the heart. This is his sword; 

 I robb'd his wound of it; behold it stain'd 

 With his most noble blood. 

 OCTAVIUS CAESAR  Look you sad, friends? 

 The gods rebuke me, but it is tidings 

 To wash the eyes of kings. 

 AGRIPPA  And strange it is, 

 That nature must compel us to lament 

 Our most persisted deeds. 

 MECAENAS  His taints and honours 

 Waged equal with him. 

 AGRIPPA  A rarer spirit never 

 Did steer humanity: but you, gods, will give us 

 Some faults to make us men. Caesar is touch'd. 

 MECAENAS  When such a spacious mirror's set before him, 

 He needs must see himself. 

 OCTAVIUS CAESAR  O Antony! 

 I have follow'd thee to this; but we do lance 

 Diseases in our bodies: I must perforce 

 Have shown to thee such a declining day, 

 Or look on thine; we could not stall together 

 In the whole world: but yet let me lament, 

 With tears as sovereign as the blood of hearts, 

 That thou, my brother, my competitor 

 In top of all design, my mate in empire, 

 Friend and companion in the front of war, 

 The arm of mine own body, and the heart 

 Where mine his thoughts did kindle,--that our stars, 

 Unreconciliable, should divide 

 Our equalness to this. Hear me, good friends-- 

 But I will tell you at some meeter season: 



 Enter an Egyptian  The business of this man looks out of him; 

 We'll hear him what he says. Whence are you? 

 Egyptian  A poor Egyptian yet. The queen my mistress, 

 Confined in all she has, her monument, 

 Of thy intents desires instruction, 

 That she preparedly may frame herself 

 To the way she's forced to. 

 OCTAVIUS CAESAR  Bid her have good heart: 

 She soon shall know of us, by some of ours, 

 How honourable and how kindly we 

 Determine for her; for Caesar cannot live 

 To be ungentle. 

 Egyptian  So the gods preserve thee! 



 Exit  OCTAVIUS CAESAR  Come hither, Proculeius. Go and say, 

 We purpose her no shame: give her what comforts 

 The quality of her passion shall require, 

 Lest, in her greatness, by some mortal stroke 

 She do defeat us; for her life in Rome 

 Would be eternal in our triumph: go, 

 And with your speediest bring us what she says, 

 And how you find of her. 

 PROCULEIUS  Caesar, I shall. 



 Exit  OCTAVIUS CAESAR  Gallus, go you along. 



 Exit GALLUS  Where's Dolabella, 

 To second Proculeius? 

 All  Dolabella! 

 OCTAVIUS CAESAR  Let him alone, for I remember now 

 How he's employ'd: he shall in time be ready. 

 Go with me to my tent; where you shall see 

 How hardly I was drawn into this war; 

 How calm and gentle I proceeded still 

 In all my writings: go with me, and see 

 What I can show in this. 



 Exeunt  Shakespeare homepage  |  Antony and Cleopatra  | Act 5, Scene 1 

 Previous scene  |  Next scene 