Act 3 Scene 5
ORIGINAL TEXT
Enter LAUNCELOT the clown
and JESSICA
LAUNCELOT
Yes, truly, for look you, the sins of the
father are to be laid upon the children.
Therefore I promise ye I fear you. I was
always plain with you, and so now I
speak my agitation of the matter.
Therefore be o' good cheer, for truly I
think you are damned. There is but one
hope in it that can do you any good,
and that is but a kind of bastard hope
neither.
JESSICA
And what hope is that, I pray thee?
LAUNCELOT
Marry, you may partly hope that your
father got you not, that you are not the
Jew’s daughter.
JESSICA
That were a kind of bastard hope
indeed. So the sins of my mother
should be visited upon me.
LAUNCELOT
Truly then I fear you are damned both
by father and mother. Thus when I shun
Scylla your father, I fall into Charybdis
your mother. Well, you are gone both
ways.
JESSICA
I shall be saved by my husband. He hath
made me a
Christian.
LAUNCELOT
Truly, the more to blame he. We were
Christians eno' before, e'en as many as
MODERN TEXT
LAUNCELOT and JESSICA enter.
LAUNCELOT
Yes, look, it’s true that children are punished
for the sins of their fathers. That’s why I’m
worried about you. I’ve always been
straightforward with you, so now I’m telling
you what I think. Cheer up, because I think
you’re going to hell. There’s only one hope for
you, and even that’s a kind of illegitimate hope.
JESSICA
What hope is that, may I ask?
LAUNCELOT
You can hope your father isn’t your real father.
Maybe your mother fooled around, and you
aren’t the Jew’s daughter.
JESSICA
That really is an illegitimate hope. Then I’d be
punished for the sins of my mother.
LAUNCELOT
In that case I’m afraid you’re damned by both
your father and your mother. When you avoid
one trap, you fall into another. You’re in
trouble either way.
JESSICA
My husband will save me. He’s made me a
Christian.
LAUNCELOT
He was wrong to do that. There were enough
Christians before—as many of them as could
could well live one by another. This
making Christians will raise the price of
hogs. If we grow all to be pork-eaters,
we shall not shortly have a rasher on
the coals for money.
Enter LORENZO
JESSICA
I’ll tell my husband, Launcelot, what you
say. Here he comes.
LORENZO
25I shall grow jealous of you shortly,
Launcelot, if you thus get my wife into
corners.
JESSICA
Nay, you need not fear us, Lorenzo.
Launcelot and I are out. He tells me
flatly there is no mercy for me in heaven
because I am a Jew’s daughter, and he
says you are no good member of the
commonwealth, for in converting Jews
to Christians you raise the price of pork.
LORENZO
I shall answer that better to the
commonwealth than you can the
getting up of the Negro’s belly. The
Moor is with child by you, Launcelot.
LAUNCELOT
35It is much that the Moor should be
more than reason. But if she be less
than an honest woman, she is indeed
more than I took her for.
LORENZO
How every fool can play upon the word!
I think the best grace of wit will shortly
turn into silence, and discourse grow
commendable in none only but parrots.
Go in, sirrah. Bid them prepare for
dinner.
LAUNCELOT
stand to live near each other. All these new
Christians will make the price of hogs go up. If
we’re all pork-eaters, we won’t be able to get
our hands on a slice of bacon, even if we’ve got
the money for it.
LORENZO enters.
JESSICA
I’ll tell my husband what you’ve said, Launcelot.
Here he comes.
LORENZO
You’re going to make me jealous, Launcelot, if
you keep taking my wife into dark corners like
this!
JESSICA
No, you don’t need to worry about us, Lorenzo.
Launcelot and I can’t agree on anything. He
says I won’t get into heaven because I’m a Jew’s
daughter, and he says you’re irresponsible
because by converting Jews to Christianity
you’re raising the price of pork.
LORENZO
I can justify that better than you can justify
sleeping with Portia’s African servant.
The Mooris pregnant with your child, Launcelot.
LAUNCELOT
It’s too bad there’s more of the Moor than
there ought to be. Well, even if she’s a less than
honest woman, she’s still a lot morerespectable
than I thought at first.
LORENZO
Any fool can make puns! I think the best sign of
intelligence will soon be silence, and talking will
only be a good thing for parrots to do. Go in
and tell the servants to get ready for dinner.
LAUNCELOT
That is done, sir. They have all
stomachs.
LORENZO
Goodly Lord, what a wit-snapper are
you! Then bid them prepare dinner.
LAUNCELOT
That is done too, sir. Only “Cover!” is
the word.
LORENZO
45Will you cover then, sir?
LAUNCELOT
Not so, sir, neither. I know my duty.
LORENZO
Yet more quarreling with occasion! Wilt
thou show the whole wealth of thy wit
in an instant? I pray thee, understand a
plain man in his plain meaning. Go to
thy fellows, bid them cover the table,
serve in the meat, and we will come in
to dinner.
LAUNCELOT
For the table, sir, it shall be served in.
For the meat, sir, it shall be covered. For
your coming in to dinner, sir, why, let it
be as humours and conceits shall
govern.
Exit LAUNCELOT
LORENZO
O dear discretion, how his words are
suited!
50The fool hath planted in his memory
An army of good words, and I do know
A many fools that stand in better place,
Garnished like him, that for a tricksy
word
Defy the matter. How cheerest thou,
Jessica?
55And now, good sweet, say thy
opinion.
That’s already been done, sir. They’re all ready
to eat dinner.
LORENZO
Good Lord, what a clown you are! Tell them
to make the dinner.
LAUNCELOT
That’s also been done, sir. The word you’re
looking for is “ cover .”
LORENZO
Will you cover, then?
LAUNCELOT
No, sir—I know my duty.
Launcelot
LORENZO
You keep finding ways to mock me! Are you
planning on showing me all your wit at once?
Please understand my simple message: go tell
the servants to set the table and bring in the
food, and we’ll come in to dinner.
LAUNCELOT
About the table, sir, dinner will be served on it.
As for the food, it will be served in covered
dishes. As for your coming in to dinner, just do
what you feel is right.
LAUNCELOT exits.
LORENZO
Oh, he’s good at bending words around! The
fool has memorized a whole army full of fancy
words. I know jesters in better positions, with
the same talents he has. They also like to
digress from the topic at hand by playing with
language. Anyway, how are you, Jessica? And
how do you like Lord Bassanio’s wife?
How dost thou like the Lord Bassanio’s
wife?

JESSICA
Past all expressing. It is very meet
The Lord Bassanio live an upright life,
For having such a blessing in his lady,
60He finds the joys of heaven here on
earth.
And if on earth he do not merit it,
In reason he should never come to
heaven.
Why, if two gods should play some
heavenly match
And on the wager lay two earthly
women,
65And Portia one, there must be
something else
Pawned with the other, for the poor
rude world
Hath not her fellow.
JESSICA
I like her more than I can say. Bassanio should
live an upstanding life because having a wife
like Portia is a blessing. It’s as if he found
heaven here on earth. And if he doesn’t deserve
this joy on earth, he’ll never deserve it in
heaven. Imagine what would happen if two
gods in heaven made a bet. If one of them used
Portia as his stake, the other god would have a
hard time coming up with a human woman to
match her value. The poor rude world doesn’t
have her equal.

LORENZO LORENZO
Even such a husband As good a wife as she is, that’s how good a
Hast thou of me as she is for a wife. husband I am to you.

JESSICA JESSICA
Nay, but ask my opinion too of that! I’ll be the judge of that!

LORENZO
LORENZO I’ll give you a chance to judge later. First let’s go
70I will anon. First let us go to dinner. to dinner.

JESSICA JESSICA
Nay, let me praise you while I have a No, let me say some good things about you
stomach. while I’m in the mood.

LORENZO
No, pray thee, let it serve for table talk. LORENZO
Then howsome'er thou speak’st ’mong No, please, save it for dinner conversation. That
other things way, no matter what you say, I’ll digest it with
I shall digest it. everything else.

JESSICA JESSICA
Well, I’ll set you forth. In that case I’ll serve you up like a dish of food.

Exeunt They exit.