Original: O Caesar, what a wounding shame is this,
Modern: Oh Caesar, this is such a painful embarrassment,

Original: That thou, vouchsafing here to visit me,
Modern: That you, honoring me by coming to visit me here,

Original: Doing the honour of thy lordliness
Modern: Showing the respect of your noble position

Original: To one so meek, that mine own servant should
Modern: To someone so humble as me, that my own servant should

Original: Parcel the sum of my disgraces by
Modern: Add to all my shame by

Original: Addition of his envy! Say, good Caesar,
Modern: Adding his jealousy! Tell me, good Caesar,

Original: That I some lady trifles have reserved,
Modern: That I’ve kept some small feminine trinkets,

Original: Immoment toys, things of such dignity
Modern: Unimportant little things, items of such quality

Original: As we greet modern friends withal; and say,
Modern: As we give to ordinary friends; and tell me,

Original: Some nobler token I have kept apart
Modern: Some more valuable gift I have set aside

Original: For Livia and Octavia, to induce
Modern: For Livia and Octavia, to encourage

Original: Their mediation; must I be unfolded
Modern: Their help in pleading for me; must I be exposed

Original: With one that I have bred? The gods! it smites me
Modern: By someone I raised myself? By the gods! it hurts me

Original: Beneath the fall I have.
Modern: More than my downfall already has.

Original: Prithee, go hence;
Modern: Please, get out of here;

Original: Or I shall show the cinders of my spirits
Modern: Or I’ll show the burning coals of my anger

Original: Through the ashes of my chance: wert thou a man,
Modern: Through the ruins of my fortune: if you were a real man,

Original: Thou wouldst have mercy on me.
Modern: You would have pity on me.

In Act V, Scene ii of Antony and Cleopatra, Cleopatra has barricaded herself in her monument with her attendants Charmian and Iras after learning of Antony’s defeat and death. Caesar’s forces, led by Proculeius and later Gallus, arrive at the monument to capture the Egyptian queen alive, as Caesar wishes to parade her in his Roman triumph. Despite Proculeius’s attempts to reassure her with promises of Caesar’s mercy, Cleopatra remains suspicious and threatens to kill herself rather than be taken to Rome. The Romans manage to gain entry to the monument and disarm her before she can harm herself.

Caesar himself then arrives and attempts to convince Cleopatra that she will be treated with honor, while she kneels before him and presents an inventory of her treasures. However, when her treasurer Seleucus reveals that she has hidden away half of her wealth, Cleopatra flies into a rage and attacks him. Caesar dismisses this as unimportant and departs, instructing his men to guard her carefully. Left alone with her women, Cleopatra reveals her true intentions to Charmian and Iras - she plans to take her own life rather than be displayed as a captive in Rome. A rural fellow arrives with a basket of figs that conceals the poisonous asp, and despite the guard’s questioning, he is allowed to deliver his “gift” to the queen.

Antony and Cleopatra follows the tragic downfall of Mark Antony, one of Rome’s three ruling triumvirs, who becomes consumed by his passionate love affair with Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt. The play opens with Antony already established in Alexandria, neglecting his Roman duties while reveling in the exotic pleasures of Cleopatra’s court. When news arrives that his wife Fulvia has died and that Pompey threatens Roman territories, Antony reluctantly returns to Rome, where he reconciles with Octavius Caesar and marries Caesar’s sister Octavia to strengthen their political alliance, temporarily abandoning Cleopatra.

Despite his marriage to Octavia, Antony cannot resist returning to Egypt and Cleopatra, effectively declaring war on Rome and Caesar. The political and personal tensions culminate in the naval Battle of Actium, where Cleopatra’s fleet flees mid-battle, and Antony, following her, seals both their military defeat and political doom. Back in Egypt, as Caesar’s forces close in, the lovers face their inevitable destruction with a series of miscommunications and desperate acts.

The tragedy reaches its climax when Cleopatra, fearing Antony’s rage, sends word that she has died. Devastated, Antony falls on his sword but survives long enough to be carried to Cleopatra’s monument, where he dies in her arms. Rather than face the humiliation of being paraded through Rome as Caesar’s prisoner, Cleopatra takes her own life by allowing an asp (cobra) to bite her. The play ends with Caesar’s arrival to find both lovers dead, and his recognition of their tragic grandeur, ordering them to be buried together with full honors.