She repeats the word “thyself” four times and says “thy dear self” once. In this case, perhaps each instance of the word “thyself” has a slightly different tone, depending on the context in which it is spoken.
The word “self” will sound different when Adriana refers to “thy dear self’s better part” than it does when she implores Antipholus not to “tear away thyself from me.” Not all repetitions are the same. Study the repeated words and phrases and decide how you will use them to poetic and dramatic ends.
Adriana’s exclamation of “Ah, do not tear away thyself from me!” implies that she has either taken Antipholus by the arm or embraced him. If you are playing the scene with another actor, you can physically enact this, but if you are performing the monologue solo, perhaps you could interpret the phrase “tear away” to mean that Antipholus is walking away. If this is the case, you could take a step or two toward him.
This brings up an important point. When speaking to another character in a solo monologue, you must decide where that person is on stage. The character could be the audience as a whole, which can be achieved by looking straight out over the viewers. Another approach is to speak to an imagined person on the stage, presumably to your right or left (or moving across the stage). In the case of Antipholus’s “tearing” himself away from Adriana, whether Antipholus is on the stage or placed in the audience, the line indicates movement, so your eyes should follow Antipholus as he moves farther away. You might step closer to him for the next line.
This next line contains the phrase “my love.” Here Adriana is expressing how she feels inseparable from Antipholus. This echoes a speech by Antipholus of Syracuse in Act I, Scene II: “I to the world am like a drop of water/That in the ocean seeks another drop.”
In his earlier “drop of water” speech, Antipholus of Syracuse refers to his search for his long-lost brother. If playing this scene as a duo, Antipholus could react with recognition to this metaphor as Adriana speaks it, since he himself said similar words regarding his connection with his brother. If Adriana is playing the monologue solo, let the beauty and meaning of the words guide you. Luxuriate in their sound. Don’t rush the words. Enjoy them!
The sentence that begins “For know, my love,” is a long one—five lines—so you must find beats and breathing points. Find at least two places in the sentence to breathe and gather your vocal strength and tone. Certainly, the words “my love,” bracketed in commas, can be one breathing point. Again, use the repeated words (“drop,” “take,” “me”) and use them to give rhythmic and sonic shape to the speech. Perhaps simply emphasizing the repeated words will enhance their poetry.
Next, Adriana turns the tides, reminding Antipholus how he would feel if he suffered Adriana’s treatment. The language becomes sharper and harsher. The softness of the previous lines can now contrast with the coarseness of words such as “touch,” “quick,” “licentious,” “ruffian lust,” and “contaminate.” Emphasize the “s” and “t” sounds as you say them. Give physical illustration to words such as “spit,” “spurn,” “hurl,” “tear,” and “cut”. Lean your head forward when you say them. Use your arms to depict cutting, hurling, and tearing. This passage gives you an opportunity to show what Adriana feels in her body when she says these strong words.
In the final section of the soliloquy, Adriana again makes herself the subject of her words. This time, however, she does so in relation to Antipholus’s perceived misdeeds. She likens Antipholus’s infidelity to an infectious disease that stains her inside and out. Again, you can emphasize the sounds of key words such as “blood,” “crime,” “digest,” “poison,” “strumpeted,” and “contagion.”
Adriana’s text is full of beautifully descriptive language. If you color key words and phrases to give them their full expression, and study the speech for its poetry, meaning, and feeling, then you will indeed give life to Shakespeare’s wonderful depiction of a woman scorned.
SUGGESTED VIEWING
THE COMEDY OF ERRORS, 1978
Director: Phillip Casson
Starring: Judi Dench, Roger Rees
THE COMEDY OF ERRORS, 1983
Director: James Cellan Jones
Starring: Roger Daltrey, Suzanne Bertish
CHARACTERS IN THE PLAY
The following is a list of characters that appear in this scene of Hamlet.
HAMLET: Son of the late King Hamlet
OPHELIA: Daughter to Polonius; sister to Laertes
NARRATOR
SET AND PROP LIST
SET PIECES:
Throne
Chair
Table
PROPS:
Box (or bundle) of letters for Ophelia
A room in the castle.
Enter NARRATOR from stage rear, coming downstage center.
NARRATOR
Hamlet and Ophelia, the daughter of King
Claudius’s chief officer Polonius, have recently
confessed their affection for each other. But when
Ophelia’s father, bound by the king to spy on
Hamlet, orders Ophelia to return Hamlet’s love
letters, the prince’s vicious and unhinged reaction
upsets her greatly.
Exit NARRATOR stage right.
Enter HAMLET from stage right.
Enter OPHELIA from stage left, holding letters.
OPHELIA
My lord, I have remembrances of yours,
That I have longed long to re-deliver;
I pray you, now receive them.
HAMLET
