Measure for Measure · Chapter
Scene I explained
Angelo, acting as the Duke's deputy, orders Claudio's execution by morning to enforce the law against fornication.
What happens
Angelo, acting as the Duke's deputy, orders Claudio's execution by morning to enforce the law against fornication. Escalus pleads for mercy but is overruled. The scene shifts to Elbow bringing Froth and Pompey before Angelo and Escalus for alleged bawdy behavior. Escalus dismisses the charges with warnings, reflecting on the severity of Angelo's judgment.
Themes in this chapter
Justice and Mercy
Angelo's strict application of the law contrasts with Escalus's plea for mercy, highlighting the tension between rigid justice and compassionate leniency.
Hypocrisy and Appearance vs. Reality
Angelo's self-righteous stance is undercut by Escalus's suggestion that he too might have erred, foreshadowing his later hypocrisy.
Characters to notice
- Lord Angelo
As deputy, he rigidly enforces the law, ordering Claudio's execution and rejecting Escalus's plea for mercy.
- Escalus
Pleads for Claudio's life, arguing for leniency, and later handles the cases of Froth and Pompey with more moderation.
- Elbow
The constable brings Froth and Pompey before the court, comically misusing language and revealing his incompetence.
- Master Froth
A foolish gentleman brought before the court, dismissed by Escalus with a warning to avoid tapsters.
- Pompey
A tapster and part-time bawd, he defends his trade and is warned by Escalus to avoid further complaints.
Key passages
“We must not make a scarecrow of the law, Setting it up to fear the birds of prey, And let it keep one shape, till custom make it Their perch and not their terror.”
We must not create a law that only frightens people at first but becomes a comfortable perch for them over time.
Angelo argues that the law must be consistently enforced to remain effective.
“Let us be keen, and rather cut a little, Than fall, and bruise to death.”
Let us be sharp but moderate, pruning gently rather than causing fatal harm.
Escalus advocates for leniency, suggesting that excessive punishment is worse than a minor correction.
“Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall: Some run from brakes of ice, and answer none: And some condemned for a fault alone.”
Some people succeed through wrongdoing, while others fail despite their virtue; some escape punishment entirely, while others are condemned for a single mistake.
Escalus reflects on the unfairness of fortune and justice.