Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Please explain this sentence: "Now can I break my fast, dine, sup and sleep, / Upon the very naked name of love.." from Shakespeare's The Two...

As Valentine speaks to Proteus in Act II, scene iv, of
Shakespeare's Two Gentlemen of Verona, he is admitting that he has
rejected love in the past. He says that he has paid the price for such actions. In fact,
the man who at one time had no time for love (Valentine) has been punished for acting
far too superior to love—with a lack of appetite, groans, tears, sighs of sadness; he
also could not sleep but in his wakefulness, he could only observe his sorrow for not
being in love.


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With bitter fasts, with penitential
groans,


With nightly tears, and daily heart-sore
sighs;


For, in revenge of my contempt of
love,


Love hath chas'd sleep from my enthralled
eyes


And made them watchers of mine own heart's
sorrow



Valentine admits that
love is so strong that he is now humbled, but is not sad in learning of love. There is
nothing more joyous that he could do than to serve love. Because he
has found contentment in his heart, all the punishments of the past have vanished: he
now has an appetite—he can eat and sleep—all for love when he
says:


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Now can I break my fast,
dine, sup and sleep,


Upon the very
naked name of love.


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