Original: Why, I must die;
Modern: Well, I have to die;

Original: And if I do not by thy hand, thou art
Modern: And if you don’t kill me, then you are

Original: No servant of thy master’s. Against self-slaughter
Modern: Not a true servant of your master. Against suicide

Original: There is a prohibition so divine
Modern: There is a holy law so sacred

Original: That cravens my weak hand. Come, here’s my heart.
Modern: That makes my weak hand cowardly. Come, here’s my heart.

Original: Something’s afore ‘t; soft, soft! we’ll no defence;
Modern: Something’s in front of it; wait, wait! I’ll put up no defense;

Original: Obedient as the scabbard. What is here?
Modern: As obedient as a sword’s sheath. What is this?

Original: The scriptures of the loyal Leonatus
Modern: The letters from faithful Posthumus

Original: All turn’d to heresy! Away, away!
Modern: All turned into lies! Get away, get away!

Original: Corrupters of my faith; you shall no more
Modern: You destroyers of my trust; you will no longer

Original: Be stomachers to my heart. Thus may poor fools
Modern: Be worn close to my heart. This is how poor fools

Original: Believe false teachers; though those that are betray’d
Modern: Believe lying teachers; though those who are betrayed

Original: Do feel the treason sharply, yet the traitor
Modern: Do feel the betrayal painfully, yet the betrayer

Original: Stands in worse case of woe.
Modern: Is in an even worse situation of misery.

Original: And thou, Posthumus, thou that didst set up
Modern: And you, Posthumus, you who encouraged

Original: My disobedience ‘gainst the king my father,
Modern: My rebellion against the king, my father,

Original: And make me put into contempt the suits
Modern: And made me scorn the marriage proposals

Original: Of princely fellows, shalt hereafter find
Modern: Of noble men, you will later discover

Original: It is no act of common passage, but
Modern: It is not an ordinary thing, but

Original: A strain of rareness; and I grieve myself
Modern: Something truly exceptional; and I feel sad

Original: To think, when thou shalt be disedg’d by her
Modern: To think that when you grow tired of her

Original: That now thou tir’st on, how thy memory
Modern: That you’re now obsessed with, how your memory

Original: Will then be pang’d by me. Prithee, dispatch;
Modern: Will then be tormented by thoughts of me. Please, kill me quickly;

Original: The lamb entreats the butcher; where’s thy knife?
Modern: The lamb is begging the butcher; where’s your knife?

Original: Thou art too slow to do thy master’s bidding,
Modern: You’re taking too long to obey your master’s orders,

Original: When I desire it too.
Modern: When I want it too.

In Act III, Scene 4 of Cymbeline, Pisanio reveals to Imogen the contents of Posthumus’s letter, which commands him to kill her based on Posthumus’s belief that she has been unfaithful with Iachimo. Imogen is devastated by this revelation and initially begs Pisanio to carry out the murder, feeling that life is worthless if her husband believes her to be unchaste. She expresses her anguish at being falsely accused and her willingness to die rather than live under such suspicion.

Pisanio, however, refuses to kill his master’s wife, believing her to be innocent and suspecting that Posthumus has been deceived. He devises a plan for Imogen to disguise herself as a young man and travel to Milford Haven, where she can serve as a page to Lucius, a Roman general. Pisanio gives her male clothing and instructs her in how to behave as a man, including changing her gait and manner of speaking. He also provides her with a box of medicine from the Queen (unbeknownst to both of them, it contains a sleeping potion rather than the poison the Queen intended). The scene ends with Imogen accepting this plan as her means of survival and eventual reunion with Posthumus.

Cymbeline tells the story of King Cymbeline of Britain, whose daughter Imogen secretly marries Posthumus Leonatus against her father’s wishes. Cymbeline banishes Posthumus to Rome, where he boasts of Imogen’s virtue and fidelity. The cunning Iachimo wagers that he can seduce Imogen and prove her unfaithful. When his direct attempts fail, Iachimo hides in a trunk in Imogen’s bedchamber, emerges while she sleeps, and steals her bracelet while noting intimate details of her body and room.

Returning to Rome with his false evidence, Iachimo convinces Posthumus that Imogen has been unfaithful. Enraged, Posthumus orders his servant Pisanio to kill Imogen. Instead, Pisanio reveals the plot to Imogen and helps her escape by disguising her as a young man named Fidele. She flees to the Welsh mountains, where she unknowingly encounters her long-lost brothers, Guiderius and Arviragus, who were kidnapped as infants and raised by the banished lord Belarius.

Meanwhile, Cymbeline’s evil Queen (Imogen’s stepmother) plots to poison Imogen and place her own son Cloten on the throne. Cloten pursues Imogen to Wales, where Guiderius kills him in combat. The Queen’s physician Cornelius has secretly given her a sleeping potion instead of poison, but when Imogen takes it believing it to be medicine, she falls into a death-like sleep beside Cloten’s headless corpse, whom she mistakes for Posthumus upon awakening.

The play culminates when Roman forces invade Britain. During the battle, the disguised Imogen serves the Romans while her unknown brothers and Belarius fight for Britain. After Britain’s victory, all deceptions are revealed: Iachimo confesses his lies, the Queen dies after admitting her evil plots, Imogen’s true identity and virtue are established, the royal brothers are restored to their father, and Posthumus and Imogen are reunited. Cymbeline makes peace with Rome and pardons all offenders.