Merchant of Venice. - Repositories

128 NOTES [ACT I
1. 148. self. Same, very.
1. 150. As. For so.
11.150, 151. or . . . Or. What would modern usage demand
here?
1. 154. circumstance. Ceremony.
1. 155. An expression in this line that occurred before;
where ?
1. 156. question. In what sense had Bassanio " questioned "
Antonio's means ?
1. 160. prest. Prompt.
1. 162. that word. What word ?
1. 163. sometimes. In times past.
1. 166. Brutus' Portia. A noble Roman lady, the wife of
the Brutus who led the conspiracy against Julius Caesar. See
Shakespeare's Julius Gcesar and Clas. Diet.
1. 169. What especially beautiful phrase in this line ?
1. 170. The golden fleece was kept carefully guarded by the
king of Colchos, a country bordering on the Black Sea. A
mythical Greek hero, Jason, with a band of brave men in his
wonderful ship, the Argo^ sailed in quest of it. By the aid of
Medea, a sorceress, the daughter of the king, he succeeded in
getting the treasure. See Clas. Diet.
1. 174. one. Any one.
1. 175. presages. Ellipsis of the subject.
1. 183. presently. Immediately. Remember that the word
is constantly used in this meaning in Shakespeare.