Measure For Measure

Measure for
Measure
Study Guide by Course Hero
and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you

What's Inside again." In other words, those who judge others harshly will
themselves be judged harshly, and those who are lenient will
find leniency. Angelo, the play's strict judge, gives harsh
j Book Basics ................................................................................................. 1 sentences that seem out of proportion to the crimes
committed.
d In Context ..................................................................................................... 1
a Author Biography ..................................................................................... 4
h Characters ................................................................................................... 5 d In Context

k Plot Summary ............................................................................................. 9
c Scene Summaries .................................................................................. 14 Shakespeare's Sources

g Quotes ........................................................................................................ 25
Two major sources have been identified for the plot of
l Symbols ..................................................................................................... 28 Measure for Measure. The first is Gli Hecatommithi (1565), a
16th-century collection of short tales by Italian novelist
m Themes ...................................................................................................... 30 Giovanni Battista Giraldi (better known by the nickname
Cinthio). Although he was not the originator of the Measure for
e Suggested Reading .............................................................................. 32
Measure plot, Cinthio tells a version of the story that closely
anticipates Shakespeare's in many respects. Instead of a Duke,
Cinthio tells of an Emperor who leaves his deputy in charge of
j Book Basics
a city, ordering him to enforce the law strictly. Both Cinthio and
Shakespeare give this deputy a name with rich symbolic
overtones: Cinthio calls him Iuriste, meaning "a person deeply
AUTHOR knowledgeable about the law." Shakespeare's Angelo, partly
William Shakespeare true to his name, is initially shown as almost otherworldly in his
purity, making his fall from grace all the more dramatic.
YEARS WRITTEN
1603–04 The moral problems encountered in Cinthio's tale are
somewhat different from those dramatized by Shakespeare.
GENRE
For one thing, Cinthio's Vico, the counterpart to Claudio, is
Comedy
guilty of rape, whereas the act in Claudio and Juliet's case is
ABOUT THE TITLE consensual. In Measure for Measure, both Claudio and Angelo
To give measure for measure means to pay someone back are pardoned, but in Cinthio's version Vico is executed despite
exactly, whether returning a good deed or avenging a wrong. Iuriste's promise to the contrary. If Angelo's pardon is galling in
This biblical saying comes from the Gospel of Matthew in Measure for Measure, the corresponding Hecatommithi
which Jesus warns his disciples not to judge one another. "For episode is even more so, since Iuriste successfully carries out
with what judgment ye judge," he cautions, "ye shall be judged: his evil scheme.
Measure for Measure Study Guide In Context 2
The other, more direct, source is English dramatist George launching into a sobering monologue on aging, mortality, and
Whetstone's play Promos and Cassandra (1578), which was the inevitability of loss. Similarly the frolicsome Merry Wives of
itself adapted from the Hecatommithi story. This play Windsor (1597–1601) might seem to resemble A Midsummer
emphasizes the conflict between justice and mercy even more Night's Dream with its emphasis on mischievous pranks. There
strongly than does Cinthio's version. Like Shakespeare's is, however, a vindictive edge to the play's ending, which shows
subsequent adaptation, it also allows for the condemned the antiheroic Falstaff being humiliated before a group of
young man, this time named Andrugio, to be saved from laughing onlookers.
execution. To accomplish this, Whetstone resorts to the "head
trick," in which a fellow prisoner's head is presented instead of Measure for Measure is often considered one of
Andrugio's as "proof" of his demise. A further Shakespearean Shakespeare's "problem" plays—along with All's Well That Ends
addition is the "bed trick," in which Mariana, Angelo's long- Well and Troilus and Cressida, the play moves uncomfortably
suffering fiancée, sleeps with him in Isabella's place. The ruse, between comedic elements and a darker, more troubling
found neither in Cinthio nor in Whetstone but a frequent plotline. In addition, in the last decade of his career,
feature of Renaissance drama, spares Isabella's virginity and Shakespeare increasingly experimented with a blend of tragic
traps Angelo into following through on his promise of marriage and comic motifs, yielding works sometimes called the
to Mariana. Moreover Shakespeare's Isabella does not romances. These plays resemble comedies in that they have
proceed to marry her abuser, as Whetstone's Cassandra does. generally happy endings, but their plots veer closer to tragedy
Together these alterations allow for Isabella to appear more as and involve a greater recognition of loss and vulnerability.
a dramatic heroine than as a helpless victim. Pericles, in the 1606–08 play of the same name, loses his
daughter to pirates and is a broken man by the time he
reunites with her. Leontes, in The Winter's Tale, is effectively a
A Dark Comedy widower for many years before his wife is revived in a magical
episode at the play's end. Neither play comes with a cheerful
reassurance that "all shall be well," as Puck says in A
Readers acquainted with Shakespeare's earlier works may be
Midsummer Night's Dream. Although Measure for Measure
startled by the subdued tone of Measure for Measure. The play
lacks the romance plays' gestures toward magic and folklore, it
has moments of sheer silliness, most notably the long Abbott
nonetheless chips away at comfortable comic reassurances,
and Costello style of interaction between clumsy Constable
anticipating the more mature plays to follow.
Elbow and smooth-talking pimp Pompey Bum in Act 2, Scene 1.
Much of the play's fun, however, rings hollow. Lucio, the
foppish gentleman introduced mostly for laughs, is initially
presented as a carefree character who breezes his way Textual History
through Vienna's brothels and taverns. His behavior becomes
less funny when he starts to brag about being a deadbeat Measure for Measure has a fairly simple textual history, at least
father and compares his child's mother to a rotten piece of by Shakespearean standards. It initially appeared in the 1623
fruit (Act 4, Scene 3). Likewise, some of the tricks played by First Folio (a large collection of Shakespeare's plays published
the prison officials—such as showing fake death warrants to after the playwright's death) in a relatively clear and typo-free
the prisoners—are exceptionally cruel. This sort of humor is a edition, indicating the likely involvement of professional
far cry from the slapstick humor of The Comedy of Errors scrivener Ralph Crane. Subsequent 17th-century folios—the
(written 1589–94) or the magical antics of A Midsummer Second (1632), Third (1663), and Fourth (1685)—contain only
Night's Dream (1595–96). minor revisions as do the major 18th-century Works of

Shakespeare editions. Notably absent are any early editions in
Measure for Measure might be described as part of a move quarto: the cheaper, more portable format in which roughly half
away from the "safe" humor of the early comedies toward of Shakespeare's works first appeared. Such editions, when
something darker and more complex. Gestures in this direction they exist, often vary considerably from one to the next, fueling
are evident in As You Like It (1598–1600), in which rustic cheer centuries of debate over how Shakespeare actually intended
and comic matchmaking are undercut by meditations on death. his dramas to be performed and read. Thus, in a sense, the
"All the world's a stage," Jaques famously proclaims, before lack of early quartos of Measure for Measure simplifies the
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Measure for Measure Study Guide In Context 3
task of editing the play, since there are no major variations to Middleton (1580–1627)—like Shakespeare, a popular writer of
compare and collate. At the same time, the absence of both tragedies and comedies—as the most probable co-author.
quartos, which are often thought to be barely edited versions Middleton is also believed to have written parts of Macbeth,
of the play as it was originally performed, makes it difficult to Timon of Athens, and All's Well That Ends Well. Some critics
tell how much Measure for Measure was edited for publication. think the collaboration on Measure for Measure took place
during Shakespeare's lifetime, while others suggest that
Like most of Shakespeare's plays, Measure for Measure has Middleton adapted the play after Shakespeare's death. Gary
been adapted over the centuries to suit the changing tastes of Taylor and Rory Loughnane, proponents of this "adaptation
theatergoers. The Restoration period (1660–88) saw great hypothesis," offer a survey of the relevant issues in The New
demand for new comedies, and elaborate plots were very Oxford Shakespeare: Authorship Companion (2017).
much in fashion. Aware of this trend, English playwright Sir
William Davenant combined material from Measure for
Measure and another Shakespeare play, Much Ado about
Nothing, to create a "new" play. The resulting comedy, entitled
Measure for Measure in
The Law Against Lovers, was first performed in 1662. A
hodgepodge of recognizable Shakespearean motifs and
Performance
original material, it was the first in a long line of Restoration-era
The stage history of Measure for Measure parallels its many
adaptations of Shakespeare. Critic Katherine Schell
adaptations in print. After its 1604 premiere, there were no
(Philological Quarterly, 1997) calls it a "bizarre and fascinating
recorded performances for nearly 60 years—at which point it
combination" and describes Davenant's play as written mainly
was Davenant's Law Against Lovers, and not Shakespeare's
to fill seats rather than make a political or philosophical point.
original, that graced the stage. The first major reinterpretation
Since the play was not subsequently revived during the
of the play after Davenant was English writer Charles Gildon's
Restoration, it is doubtful whether Davenant succeeded in this
Measure for Measure, or, Beauty the Best Advocate, which
aim.
premiered in 1700. This play, like Davenant's, incorporated
Editors and critics in the 19th century were often deeply song-and-dance routines to entertain the audience. It also
disturbed by the plot of Measure for Measure. Their made Claudio and Juliet husband and wife from the start, thus
dissatisfaction stemmed partly from its sexual subject matter doing away with many of the dramatic complexities of the Folio
and partly from the apparent lack of justice in the play's ending. text.
The critic Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772–1834), for example,

Less heavily altered versions of Measure for Measure remained
found the play morally "disgusting" and censured its ending in
popular throughout the 18th century, as critic John Klause
his handwritten notes. Most disquieting for him was Angelo's
notes in his introduction to the Evans Edition (2011) of the play.
hypocritical behavior, which is pardoned rather than punished
These, like their Victorian successors, often cut many
in the final scene. Victorian editors, deeming various facets of
potentially objectionable lines, but they seldom mingled new
the play's plot to be "improper," produced a succession of
material with Shakespeare's text as Davenant had done.
expurgated editions—as they did for a number of
During the 19th century, the play declined in popularity
Shakespeare's works. These are usually known as bowdlerized
onstage, even as editors continued to produce more and more
versions, in recognition of their forerunner, Thomas Bowdler's
sanitized versions of the text. Toward the century's end,
Family Shakespeare. Many were no doubt inspired by Bowdler
however, the grand spectacles and heavily edited play texts of
(1754–1825) and his crusade to produce a family-friendly
mid-Victorian Shakespeare began to give way. This change
version of Shakespeare's plays for home reading.
created an opening for Measure for Measure, with its smaller
Modern editors, less afraid of exposing their readers to racy cast and urban setting, to experience a modest revival. By
material, have largely reverted to the First Folio text as the 1908 English director William Poel had drawn considerable
basis for their editions. There has, however, been some praise for his "authentic" production, which purported to revive
disagreement as to whether Shakespeare worked alone in Elizabethan theatrical practices in conjunction with the original
producing the text of Measure for Measure found in the Folio. Shakespearean script.
Those who answer in the negative generally identify Thomas

Directors in the 20th century have offered a tremendous

Measure for Measure Study Guide Author Biography 4
variety of Measure for Measure interpretations. The Royal scholars to the conclusion that he was born on April 23 of that
Shakespeare Company staged the work nearly a dozen times year. Birth records were not usually kept in Shakespeare's
in the post–World War II era alone, with Isabella generally time, although clergy fastidiously kept church
considered to be the central role. Changes in costume and set records—baptisms, weddings, burials.
design have brought Measure for Measure to settings ranging
from the darkly gothic (1974, directed by Keith Hack) to the Shakespeare's family was solidly middle class, and he would
garishly carnivalesque (1978, directed by Barry Kyle). Other have had a typical education for an English boy of his time at a
renditions have opted for modern dress, as in the starkly public school endowed by Elizabeth I, which would have
designed 1999 production directed by Michael Boyd. One included studying the Latin language and Roman and Greek
Indiana theater company, Hoosier Bard, has even produced a classical literature. At age 18, Shakespeare married Anne
version of the play based on the adaptation hypothesis noted Hathaway, a woman eight years his elder who was pregnant
above. As professors Terri Bourus and Gary Taylor (2014) with their daughter Susanna. Anne gave birth to twins—Judith
report, this alternate Measure for Measure removes all the lines and Hamnet—a few years later. Church records reveal Hamnet
thought to have been written by Middleton. The result is only died in childhood.
slightly shorter than the Folio version, but for Bourus and
Taylor, the "small changes" add up to a "powerfully different"
experience. Theatrical Life
Modern productions may also be divided according to their Shakespeare moved to London to pursue a career as an actor
treatment of the play's ending, in which the Duke proposes and playwright, and over time he achieved success. He
marriage to Isabella. In the First Folio version, Isabella does not became a shareholder in the open-air Globe Theatre in London
reply. During the 19th century, directors sometimes attempted and enjoyed widespread fame as a playwright whose works
to round things out with an "amorous epilogue," as professor included romantic and classically inspired comedies, histories,
Michael D. Friedman notes in a Shakespeare Quarterly essay and tragedies. Measure for Measure, first performed in 1604, is
(1995). These consisted of 10 or so lines of love poetry in generally thought to have been written near the midpoint of
which the Duke makes a stronger case for asking for Isabella's Shakespeare's career. Although not as famous as the great
hand in marriage. Friedman points out, however, that 20th- tragedies of this period, it shows the playwright's increasing
century directors tended to eschew such additions, and 21st- confidence and ability in mixing comic and tragic elements. In
century productions have generally followed suit. Instead, all, Shakespeare is credited with writing at least 37 plays and
Isabella either has "silently refused," as she controversially did more than 150 sonnets.
in the Royal Shakespeare Company production of 1970, or has
signaled her acceptance with a nonverbal sign such as a kiss. Throughout his career Shakespeare and his fellow actors were
Lacking clear cues from Shakespeare, directors in future years supported by the patronage of the nation's monarchs—first by
will likely continue to see the scene as a chance to exercise Elizabeth I (1533–1603), under whose reign Shakespeare's
their creative license. company was known as the Lord Chamberlain's Men. When
James I (1566–1625) assumed the throne in 1603, the company
was renamed the King's Men. Although many of Shakespeare's
a Author Biography plays were written for performance at the Globe, the King's
Men also performed at the nearby Blackfriars Theatre, a
smaller indoor space, after 1608.
Childhood and Family Life

Retirement and Legacy
The childhood of William Shakespeare is a murky area for
scholars since few records of his early activities exist. Very In 1610 or 1611 Shakespeare retired, moving back to Stratford-
little is known about his birth, education, or upbringing. upon-Avon. Despite his retirement from London life, the
However, according to church records, he was baptized on playwright continued to do some writing, contributing to Henry
April 26, 1564, in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, which leads

Measure for Measure Study Guide Characters 5
VIII and Two Noble Kinsmen as well as to another play, extort sexual favors from her. From this point on Angelo is
Cardenio, now lost. Scholars believe these final works to be ashamed of his own conduct and experiences a painful sense
collaborations with John Fletcher (1579–1625), another of inner conflict, although not enough to change his behavior.
playwright. He is almost relieved when his crimes are exposed at the end
of the play.
Shakespeare died most likely on April 23, 1616, leading to the
romantic notion that he was born and died on the same date,
although there are no records of the exact date of either event.
He was 52 at his death and was buried on April 25 at Holy
Isabella
Trinity Church in Stratford-upon-Avon. Over 400 years after
Isabella plays a much more active role in the plot than does her
his death, Shakespeare is still regarded as the greatest
brother, Claudio. When she first appears onstage, she is a
playwright of the English-speaking world.
novice—a nun-in-training—who is about to renounce her earthly
life and enter a convent. Claudio's predicament draws her back
into public life, where she uses her knack for persuasive
h Characters speech to plead on her brother's behalf. Strictly virtuous in her
own conduct, Isabella refuses to sleep with Angelo even to
save her brother's life. For her, giving in to such a request
Duke entails a moral death far worse than physical suffering. At the
play's end, it remains unclear whether she accepts the Duke's
offer of marriage or returns to the convent.
The Duke of Vienna sets the play in motion by temporarily
abdicating his throne in favor of his deputy Angelo. He wishes
to purge the city of its vices and restore the enforcement of
longstanding laws against various crimes. However, he fears
Claudio
being seen as a tyrant if he carries out these reforms himself.
Worldlier than his sister, Claudio finds himself at the mercy of
While Angelo is implementing his own strict brand of justice,
Viennese law when it becomes evident that his fiancée, Juliet,
the Duke visits the city disguised as a friar. Although he is
is pregnant. He is at first appalled by the choice Isabella is
responsible for setting things right at the end of the play, the
forced to make and supports her in her refusal to sleep with
Duke is a morally ambiguous character. He evidently likes
Angelo. However, moments later he tries to persuade his sister
keeping his subjects in the dark, as he gives conflicting
to change her mind. Saving his life, he reasons, is more than
information to his highest officers and later deceives Isabella
sufficient reason to abandon her virginity. Although the play's
about Claudio's death. He is also somewhat vain, as evidenced
action centers on Claudio, he is more a victim than an active
by his harsh treatment of the slanderous Lucio at the end of
protagonist. He spends much of the play in a Viennese prison
the play.
cell, unaware of the Duke's plot to rescue him.
Angelo
Escalus
When the Duke suddenly leaves Vienna, Angelo is appointed to
Escalus is one of Vienna's leading judges and a man highly
rule until his return. He immediately begins to tighten up law
respected by the Duke. Despite having more experience than
enforcement, which he sees as having been excessively lax
Angelo, he takes a back seat to his colleague when the Duke
during the Duke's rule. His main initiative is the revival of a long-
leaves the two in charge of Vienna. Like Angelo, he is puzzled
forgotten law making extramarital sex a crime punishable by
by the Duke's behavior but, as a loyal subject, agrees to do as
death. At first Angelo believes himself virtuous and insists on
asked. During the Duke's absence, Escalus is ordered merely
holding others to the same high standard. This moral self-
to advise, not to challenge Angelo's decisions. He accepts this
certainty is almost immediately shattered when Angelo finds
restriction for the most part when Angelo is present. When he
himself lusting after Isabella and abusing his official powers to
has the chance to interact with citizens directly, however,

Escalus shows himself much more lenient than Angelo. He

even lets a few suspected criminals off with a
warning—something Angelo would never dream of doing.
Mariana
Angelo abandoned Mariana five years ago because of her
family's inability to pay the dowry. Despite this act of
callousness, she continues to long for him, listening to sad
songs and thinking about what might have been. When the
Duke devises a plan to trick Angelo, Mariana willingly goes
along with the ruse. By sleeping with Angelo, she will
consummate the marriage he agreed to but failed to follow
through on. Her loyalty to the undeserving Angelo is a mystery
to the other characters.

Character Map
Angelo
Imprisons Fiancé
Strict, unyielding ruler
of Vienna in the Duke's
absence
Lusts
Colleagues
after
Deputy
Isabella Escalus
Morally upright, articulate High-ranking, moderate
Proposes
novice nun Viennese magistrate
marriage
Deputy
Duke
Crafty, overly lenient
ruler of Vienna
Siblings
Grants
pardon
Helps regain
fiancé
Claudio Mariana
Young gentleman; Lovelorn gentlewoman;
imprisoned under longs to reunite
a harsh law with fiancé
Main Character
Other Major Character
Minor Character

Full Character List Constable Elbow is a goofy policeman

who constantly mixes up his words. He
Elbow arrests Pompey Bum and Froth and
brings them before the city's temporary
Character Description
rulers.
The widely admired ruler of Vienna, the

The nun Francisca appears in a single
Duke acknowledges that his city's laws
Francisca scene in which she instructs Isabella
have been too laxly enforced and
about the duties and rules of her order.
Duke instructs his deputy Angelo to rule in his
stead for a time. The Duke, disguised as
"Friar Lodowick" then spends much of A customer of the brothel run by
the play observing the result. Mistress Overdone and Pompey Bum,
Froth
Froth is arrested for buying sex but let
off with a warning.
The Duke's right-hand man, Angelo rules
Vienna during the Duke's absence. Many
Angelo
citizens resent his strict and literal This gentleman is one of two whose
administration of justice. First witty dialogue helps establish Lucio as a
gentleman fun-loving and somewhat scandalous
character.
Isabella, articulate and persuasive, is
Claudio's sister and a novice in a
Isabella Viennese convent. She wishes to save Like the first gentleman, the second
her brother's life but is unwilling to Second gentleman exists mainly to exchange
sacrifice her chastity to do so. gentleman jokes with Lucio. He appears with his
fellow gents in a single scene in Act 1.
Claudio is a young Viennese gentleman
sentenced to death for getting his Juliet is Claudio's fiancée. When her
Claudio
fiancée pregnant before their marriage Juliet pregnancy starts to show, both she and
is formally solidified. Claudio are imprisoned for fornication.
Escalus is a senior magistrate and one An unnamed justice of the Viennese

of the Duke's most trusted advisors. His court system is among those who
Escalus more lenient attitude toward justice Justice
comment on the harshness of Angelo's
serves to counterbalance Angelo's decrees.
strictness.
A garrulous gentleman with some

Mariana is Angelo's spurned fiancée unflattering and evidently false stories
who loves him despite his abandonment Lucio about the Duke, Lucio inadvertently
Mariana and cruel treatment. She agrees to help shares these stories with the Duke
the Duke trick Angelo in the hopes of himself when he meets him in disguise.
winning back her lost love.
The messenger delivers Angelo's orders

The executioner in Vienna's prison, Messenger
to the prison in Act 4.
Abhorson Abhorson is a gruff man who views his
work as a noble calling.
Mistress Overdone is the madam of a
Mistress Viennese brothel. Angelo's crackdown
Barnardine is one of Claudio's fellow Overdone on sexual indiscretions of all kinds
prisoners. His drunken and surly threatens her business.
Barnardine
demeanor has made him notorious
among the prison guards.
Friar Peter helps the Duke carry out his
Friar Peter scheme to catch Angelo and bring him
Appearing in the scene introducing to justice.
Boy Mariana, the boy sings a sad love song
to help set the mood.

Measure for Measure Study Guide Plot Summary 9
A desperate and ashamed Claudio asks his friend Lucio to find

Pompey Bum is a smooth-talking pimp
who, midway through the play, is his sister Isabella, a novice in a convent. Claudio hopes her
arrested and becomes an assistant skills in persuasive speech will save him from execution. The
Pompey Bum executioner to lighten his sentence. His virtuous Isabella is upset to hear of Claudio's sentence, but she
glib, overly flattering style of speech is
is also scandalized to hear of his behavior. Meanwhile the Duke
one of the play's main sources of comic
relief. hides out at a monastery near Vienna and secretly observes
Angelo's style of government. He wishes, he tells the monks, to
A senior constable in charge of bring some discipline and morality back to the city while also
administering Vienna's prisons, the testing Angelo's character as a leader. The Duke does not
Provost Provost carries out his duties faithfully hesitate to admit to his own excessive leniency in punishing
but not without sympathy for the
prisoners. lawbreakers.
Angelo's servant announces the various

Servant citizens who come to bring their Act 2
petitions before him.
Several of Claudio's fellow citizens, including Escalus, attempt

Friar Thomas is one of the monks who to intervene on Claudio's behalf, but none can persuade
Friar Thomas welcome the Duke to the monastery
after he leaves Vienna. Angelo to commute the sentence. Even the Provost of the
prison (a post similar to warden or captain) tries to influence
Varrius, a friend and supporter of the Angelo, but to no avail. Finally Isabella visits Angelo and tries to
Varrius Duke, is among the first to greet him shame him into relenting. Finding himself impassioned with lust
when he returns to Vienna. for the young and pure-hearted Isabella, Angelo asks her to
come back after he has had some time to think over his
decision. Meanwhile the Duke, in disguise as Friar Lodowick,
k Plot Summary
visits the prison and speaks with Juliet about her fiancé's fate.
The next morning Isabella appears before Angelo to hear his

answer. He shocks her by offering to spare Claudio in
Act 1 exchange for Isabella's virginity. At first she thinks he is joking,

but as the truth dawns on her, she is repulsed by his lechery.
She refuses his bargain and threatens to report their
Just before his sudden departure from the city, the Duke of
encounter to anyone who will listen. After Angelo, sneering that
Vienna summons his deputy Angelo and the high-ranking
no one will believe her, leaves her to reconsider his proposition,
magistrate Escalus. Angelo, he announces, will administer
she decides she will inform Claudio about the situation.
justice in Vienna until the Duke's return, with Escalus serving as
Angelo's advisor. Angelo accepts and soon begins enforcing
the city's laws much more harshly than the Duke has done. In
particular he brings back the long-ignored death penalty for
Act 3
fornication, and the young gentleman Claudio is the first to be
The Duke, still disguised, pays another visit to the prison. He
sentenced to death. Claudio's crime is a "border case" to begin
offers words of comfort to Claudio and cautions him to "be
with, because the woman he has gotten pregnant is his
absolute for death." When Isabella arrives, the Duke leaves but
fiancée, Juliet. The two, he protests to the audience, were
listens to their conversation. Isabella tells Claudio of Angelo's
planning to marry as soon as possible. (In Shakespeare's time,
attempt to proposition her, and Claudio initially reacts by nobly
two people who were formally betrothed were often
disdaining to be saved in such a manner. Moments later,
considered essentially married.) The madam, Mistress
however, he asks Isabella to at least consider sleeping with
Overdone, and her pimp, Pompey Bum, worry about the future
Angelo to spare her brother. Isabella is disgusted by her
of their business in a city where such laws are enforced.
brother's cowardice.

Returning to the stage after eavesdropping, the Duke offers

Isabella a way out of her dilemma. If she tells Angelo she Act 5
agrees to sleep with him after all, the Duke explains, Angelo's
fiancée, Mariana, will be able to take her place, and no harm A single, long scene concludes the play. Arriving at the city
will be done. This plan will save Claudio from execution without gate, the Duke greets Angelo and Escalus. Isabella runs before
requiring Isabella to give up her chastity. Outside the prison the him and demands justice, describing her mistreatment at the
constables arrest Pompey Bum, soon to be joined by Mistress hands of Angelo. The Duke pretends not to believe her, calling
Overdone. The disguised Duke hears unflattering rumors about her mad, and demands that someone produce the "Friar
himself from the frivolous Lucio. Lodowick" who encouraged her to appear before him. Mariana,
claiming Angelo as her husband, vouches for his
whereabouts—he was with her—the night he supposedly had
Act 4 the assignation with Isabella. Angelo claims to be the victim of

a conspiracy to ruin his reputation.
A succession of short scenes elaborates the Duke's The Duke leaves the stage and returns in his "Friar Lodowick"
counterplot against Angelo. Mariana, Angelo's jilted fiancée, disguise, but his identity is revealed when Angelo and Escalus
agrees to play her part by meeting Angelo for a midnight tryst attempt to have him seized and imprisoned. Angelo pleads for
in his garden. death, but first the Duke insists that he marry Mariana. He then
sentences Angelo, but both Mariana and Isabella beg for his
Meanwhile Pompey Bum finds new employment in prison as an
life to be spared. The Duke at last relents, and it is soon
assistant executioner. Angelo and Escalus prepare for the
revealed that Claudio has not been executed after all.
Duke's return, neither aware that he has been watching them
Pardoning all the remaining evildoers large and small, the Duke
all the while from within the city.
then asks Isabella for her hand in marriage—a proposal to
Offstage Angelo follows through with his planned rendezvous which she doesn't respond—and invites everyone back to his
with "Isabella"—actually Mariana—but does not keep his palace.
promise to pardon Claudio. The next day instead of the
expected pardon, the Provost receives Angelo's message
ordering Claudio to be beheaded at four o'clock in the morning
and demanding proof—Claudio's head—that his order has been
followed. The Duke, therefore, must find another head to
present to Angelo. Another prisoner, Ragozine—a Claudio
lookalike—has died of natural causes, and the Provost has this
man's head delivered to Angelo instead, while Claudio has
been hidden in another cell. Despite the success of this plan,
the Duke, still disguised, deliberately deceives Isabella into
believing her brother is dead, thinking to surprise her later. He
suggests that she apply to the Duke for justice when he
returns to town.
Afterward, guilt begins to crack the veneer of Angelo's

composure, and he wonders whether he should have let
Claudio live. The Duke, having snuck out of the city in disguise,
returns to Vienna in a highly publicized ceremony.

Plot Diagram
Climax
7
10 Falling Action
Rising Action
6
11
5
4 12
3 Resolution
2
1
Introduction
Introduction Climax
1. The Duke leaves Angelo in charge of Vienna. 9. Isabella demands justice from the Duke.
Rising Action Falling Action
2. Angelo sentences Claudio to death for fornication. 10. Angelo is arrested for Claudio's wrongful death.
3. Isabella pleads for Claudio's life to be spared. 11. Claudio is revealed to be still alive.
4. Angelo offers Claudio's life for Isabella's virginity.
5. The Duke hatches a plot to keep Claudio alive in secret.

Resolution
6. Isabella "agrees" to sleep with Angelo.
12. Angelo and Claudio are both pardoned.
7. Angelo is tricked into sleeping with Mariana instead.
8. The Duke makes his grand return to Vienna.

Timeline of Events
One day in Vienna
The Duke leaves town, nominating Angelo to rule in his

place.
Immediately afterward
Angelo begins enforcing the city's strict and long-

forgotten laws.
Within days
Claudio is arrested for fornication and sentenced to

death.
About two hours later
Lucio is dispatched to warn Isabella of her brother's

imprisonment.
Later that day
Isabella leaves the convent to visit Angelo and plead for

her brother's life.
The next morning
Angelo offers to spare Claudio's life if Isabella will sleep

with him.
Later that day
The disguised Duke visits Claudio in prison and prepares

him to face death.
Moments later
Isabella visits Claudio, who is less appalled than

surprised at Isabella's refusal to comply.
Moments later
The Duke reveals his plot to save Claudio while sparing

Isabella's virginity.
Hours later

Isabella and the Duke enlist Mariana's help in tricking

Angelo, her former fiancé.
Meanwhile
Breaking his promise, Angelo orders Claudio's execution

to be moved forward.
As dawn approaches
The Duke and Provost fool Angelo by sending him the

head of a Claudio lookalike.
Within two days
The Duke returns to Vienna in a highly publicized

procession.
During the procession
Isabella demands justice from the Duke.
Within minutes
Angelo is arrested for Claudio's wrongful death.
Meanwhile
The Duke "accidentally" reveals Claudio is still alive.
At long last
Angelo and Claudio are pardoned by the Duke.
Moments later
Isabella is silent when the Duke proposes marriage to

her.

Measure for Measure Study Guide Scene Summaries 14
c Scene Summaries Act 1, Scene 2
Act 1, Scene 1 Summary

In this Viennese street scene, Lucio and two other gentlemen
are gossiping about their city's political future. Mistress
Summary Overdone, the madam of a brothel and from whom Lucio has
"purchased ... many diseases," joins them and delivers some
At his palace in Vienna, the Duke holds court with a group of sobering news: the young gentleman Claudio has been
noblemen and high-ranking officials, including his right-hand sentenced to death, "his head to be chopped off" within three
man Angelo and the judge Escalus. Announcing his plan to days." His only crime, she says, is getting his fiancée, Juliet,
depart the city for a time, he hands Angelo and Escalus papers pregnant out of wedlock. Fornication is technically a capital
containing their "commissions" (duties) during his absence. offense under Viennese law, but until Angelo came into power,
Angelo, the Duke decrees, will rule Vienna in his place, and no one had enforced the statute for many years.
Escalus will be his second-in-command. Escalus agrees "if any
in Vienna be of worth / To undergo such ample grace and Pompey Bum, a pimp, wanders onstage and reports a new
honor, / It is Lord Angelo." At first Angelo declines the honor, edict banning prostitution in the Viennese suburbs. Mistress
but the Duke won't take no for an answer. Moreover he insists Overdone, whose "house of resort" (i.e., brothel) is among
on leaving the city at once without a big sending-off party. As those banned by the new law, frets about the future of her
he exits the stage, Angelo and Escalus mull over the Duke's business. As Pompey attempts to console her, Claudio comes
instructions. onstage, led by the Provost—a jail warden—and a group of
guards. Juliet is being led to prison, too, but she keeps silent in
this scene.
Analysis
Recognizing how his situation must appear to onlookers,
The Duke's sudden departure clearly ruffles some feathers Claudio excuses himself by noting that he and Juliet were
among his courtiers. Both Angelo and Escalus seem taken engaged at the time their child was conceived. Thus, it seems,
aback by his decision to leave, although neither likely suspects he is going to be beheaded on a mere technicality. Even so,
the purpose of his absence. Escalus's humility in endorsing the Claudio is at least embarrassed and perhaps contrite, as he
Duke's decision is consistent with later scenes, where he will refuses even to name his offense until Lucio presses him. He
plead with Angelo but never quarrel with him or attempt to likens his behavior to that of rats that "raven down their proper
overrule him. In giving Angelo the final say, Escalus is bane"—gorging themselves on food which proves to be
complying exactly with the Duke's instructions. poisonous.
Angelo, on the other hand, is harder to read, leaving more room Claudio asks Lucio to send for Isabella, Claudio's sister, who
for the actor's interpretation. Traditionally critics have seen may be able to persuade the "strict deputy" Angelo to
Angelo's protestations of unworthiness, or at least "some more commute his sentence. He describes his sister as particularly
test made of my mettle," as false modesty. He may say he is articulate and adept at words and logic ("reason and
not ready for so "great" a job as that of interim Duke, and he discourse"), skills which he hopes will give her a greater
may even in part believe this. Yet he settles into the role very chance of success. Lucio, moved with pity for Claudio's plight,
comfortably and by the next scene has begun a thorough promises to call on Isabella "within two hours."
overhaul of the Viennese criminal justice system.

order. The plan, he explains, is to give Angelo time to restore

Analysis strict justice in Vienna after 14 years of excessively lax rule.
Friar Thomas asks why the Duke does not administer justice
This scene shows the effects of Angelo's policies on two sets
himself. The Duke answers that if he were to do so, he would
of characters, who might be described as "high" and "low." The
be hated as a tyrant for suddenly reversing his own lenient
attitudes of these two groups clash conspicuously and help
policies: "Sith 'twas my fault to give the people scope, / 'Twould
establish the complex moral terrain of the play. Claudio and his
be my tyranny to strike and gall them / For what I bid them do."
fiancée, Juliet, constitute the "high" side of the dichotomy.
Moreover, the Duke says, he wishes to test Angelo's true
They are harmless young gentry who have made a reckless
character by letting him enjoy absolute power for a time. He
mistake. Because they know how highly their culture values
knows Angelo to be unmoved by emotion, believing "Lord
chastity (or claims to, anyway), they are
Angelo is precise; / Stands at a guard with envy, scarce
embarrassed—perhaps ashamed—to have succumbed to their
confesses / That his blood flows or that his appetite / Is more
lustful urges.
to bread than stone. Hence shall we see, / If power change
Pompey and Mistress Overdone, in contrast, are completely purpose."
casual about the subject of sex, whether inside marriage or
outside. As long as people are going to indulge their lust, they
figure, there's no point in banning the sex trade. To them Analysis
outlawing prostitution is as silly as outlawing the selling of food
and drink. Connecting the two worlds is the rakish and Friar Thomas's question is a good one, which might be
somewhat airheaded gentleman Lucio, whom the play phrased, more pointedly, as "Why doesn't the Duke clean up
describes as a "friend to Claudio." Lucio's personal appetites his own mess?" The Duke gives multiple reasons for his
bring him into contact with the bustling underworld of Vienna, absenteeism, and his excuses are superficially appealing but
but his social standing is closer to Claudio's. He sees the city's not ultimately very convincing. He claims, for example, to be
"punks" (prostitutes) as beneath him—even though, as is later letting Angelo rule just long enough to reveal his true nature.
revealed, he has fathered a child by one of them. Yet the reign of terror in Acts 3 and 4 suggests that this is a
high-risk way of testing one man's morality. Likewise, if he
Angelo's harsh laws make no distinction among the "wrong really feared overwhelming the citizens with a sudden policy
place, wrong time" slip-up of the young lovers, the casual change, he could have granted an amnesty period, as real-
brothel-hopping of Lucio, and the blithely commercial behavior world lawmakers have sometimes done. For that matter, he
of Overdone and Pompey. In his view any sexual act outside could have appointed the more lenient Escalus as interim ruler
marriage is a capital crime. Modern readers are inclined to see and then come back to do the dirty work of enforcement
such punishment as excessively strict. This scene, however, himself.
forces audiences to consider why Angelo's policies are wrong.
Is it because good-hearted characters like Claudio and Juliet Ultimately, like other powerful father figures in
get swept up in the same net as the more cynical Pompey and Shakespeare—Prospero in The Tempest for example—the
Lucio? Or is it, as others will later argue, because the death Duke is just a bit too concerned with saving face. Instead of
penalty is inherently too severe for such offenses? employing his own wisdom to right the city's wrongs, he foists
the job onto Angelo, who eagerly imposes order on "corrupt"
Vienna. In doing so, the Duke seems to think he is sparing
Act 1, Scene 3 himself from being "slandered" for "tyranny." When he revisits
the city in disguise, he will discover his reputation with the
citizenry is not as positive as he had thought.
Summary
At a monastery outside Vienna, the Duke confers with Friar
Thomas, a monk. The Duke asks for permission to stay with
the monks in secret, disguising himself as a member of their

Act 1, Scene 4 Act 2, Scene 1
Summary Summary
Lucio pays a visit to the convent where Isabella, conversing This long scene takes place at Angelo's house and shows how
with the nun Francisca, is displeased by how much freedom his brand of justice is unfolding in Vienna. As the scene begins,
the nunnery's inhabitants are given. As Lucio begins to tell her Escalus is urging Angelo to show some leniency toward
of her "unhappy brother," she grows uneasy and demands to Claudio, suggesting "Let us be keen and rather cut a little /
know what has happened. Claudio, Lucio reports, is in prison Than fall and bruise to death." But Angelo insists on being
for having "got his friend [lover] with child" and will soon be strict. Each man, Angelo says, is responsible for resisting
executed. Ordinarily, Lucio says, one could make an appeal to temptation, and the law's task is to punish those offenders it
the merciful Duke, but now the cold, strict Angelo—"a man can catch. The Provost of the prison enters, and Angelo orders
whose blood / Is very snow-broth; one who never feels / The Claudio "executed by nine tomorrow morning."
wanton stings and motions of the sense"—is in charge. Lucio
urges Isabella to visit Angelo and plead for her brother's life. As the Provost leaves the room, the constable Elbow enters
with two prisoners, the pimp Pompey Bum and his "customer"
Froth. In a comical interrogation riddled with verbal slip-ups,
Analysis Elbow attempts to charge the two men with involvement in the
prostitution business. Escalus, who hears Elbow's report, is
This scene offers the first glimpses of Isabella's personality, tolerantly amused, but Angelo loses his patience and leaves
beginning with her strict and self-denying virtuousness. Her Escalus to handle the rest of the proceedings. Pompey,
disdain for earthly matters will drive her decisions and thus meanwhile, gives a glib but lengthy speech, hoping to establish
much of the play's action. This attitude will also create a rift he is a mere "tapster" (bartender) and no "bawd" (pimp). He
between her and Claudio, since his crime of fornication is a also tries to get Froth off the hook by touting Froth's virtues as
serious sin in Isabella's eyes. Although she agrees in seeing an honorable man.
death as too strong a sentence for such a deed, she will still
Although Escalus sees through the ruse, he does not have the
wonder about the moral ramifications of saving Claudio. This
heart to punish the men. He lets Froth go with a warning and
inner conflict is voiced in Act 3, Scene 1, where Isabella recoils
then takes Pompey aside for further questioning. He cautions
from Claudio's suggestion that she sin to spare his life. If he
Pompey about Angelo's insistence on "heading and hanging"
lives and does not repent, she reasons, he will merely
those involved in the sex trade. Pompey protests the severity
jeopardize his soul by his continued failure to be chaste.
of this punishment and says it will depopulate the city. Escalus
Lucio, meanwhile, struggles to rein in his roguish personality sarcastically thanks him for his opinion and then orders him to
and make Isabella understand the seriousness of his errand. go: "for this time, Pompey, fare you well." After some parting
He partly succeeds, although his reputation as a jokester words to Elbow, Escalus heads home to dinner, mulling over
seems to precede him even here in the convent. Although the harshness of Angelo's justice.
Lucio will be a largely comical character in the remainder of the
play, he here delivers a remarkably eloquent piece of advice
about self-doubt: "Our doubts are traitors," he says, "and make Analysis
us lose the good we oft might win / By fearing to attempt." He
encourages Isabella further by explaining that gentle The scene opens by showing the contrast in attitudes between
persuasion might soften Angelo. Lucio will continue to stoke the moderate Escalus and the unyielding Angelo. Using the
Isabella's self-confidence in Act 2, Scene 2, when she visits metaphor of cutting trees, Escalus explains it is better to "be
Angelo's house and attempts to save her brother. keen and rather cut a little / Than fall and bruise to death."
That is, it is better to trim a tree to keep it under control rather
than let it go and have to chop it down.

Shakespeare, it seems, enjoyed making jokes at the expense will not carry out his orders. The Provost asks what should be
of guards, policemen, and other "serious" minor officials. In his done with "the groaning Juliet," who has evidently gone into
comedies these characters are often overly convinced of their labor. Angelo authorizes him to transfer Juliet to a "fitter place"
own importance and oblivious to their own flaws. Constables in for giving birth, with "needful but not lavish" accommodations.
Shakespeare's England were not trained police officers but
rather ordinary citizens selected to serve as part of a loosely The servant returns and introduces Lucio and Isabella, who are
organized night watch. Perhaps because of their lack of admitted to Angelo's presence. At first Isabella is shy and
professionalism, they come in for a good amount of awkward in pleading for her brother's life, but when Lucio
lighthearted disparagement in Measure for Measure and accuses her of "coldness" in her pleas to Angelo, her speech
elsewhere. The textbook example of a bumbling constable becomes more passionate and eloquent. She reminds Angelo
comes from Much Ado About Nothing, where Dogberry and his of Christ's sacrifice on the cross, which she upholds as the
assistant Verges engage in a veritable stand-up routine of ultimate example of mercy. Angelo remains unmoved and
verbal gaffes and grandiose legal terms. Yet another dimwitted insists on the impartial nature of his justice, for "were he my
constable appears in Love's Labour's Lost. Constable Elbow, in kinsman, brother, or my son, / it should be thus with him."
other words, is part of a proud fraternity of Shakespearean

By and by, however, he is convinced—not so much by Isabella's
busybodies.
speech as by his growing recognition of his lust for her. He
Apart from providing relief from the play's more serious plot asks her to come back the next day, an invitation Isabella takes
developments, Elbow's antics help show another, less fearful, as an encouraging sign. Once she and the others have gone,
side of the law in Vienna. Until Elbow appears, the law has Angelo reveals his desires in a soliloquy. Isabella's virtue, he is
been an object of awe and terror, dispensed from above by the astonished to find, makes her more tempting than any
no-nonsense Angelo and his nameless officers. It's hard, "strumpet."
however, to imagine being terrified of Elbow, a simple citizen

who cannot even tell the difference between "detest" and
"attest." The execution of his duties is so slipshod, in fact, that
Analysis
Pompey barely has to answer the questions in his supposed
Why is Isabella initially so "cold," as Lucio accuses her of
interrogation. Here again, Shakespeare's contrast between
being? One possibility is a simple lack of self-confidence.
"higher" and "lower" society reveals two sides of the same coin.
Isabella, a private citizen, now stands before the highest
However, for a few unfortunates, including Claudio, the law of secular authority in the city-state of Vienna. Angelo is
Vienna operates with ruthless effectiveness, just as Angelo presented as a stern and intimidating person, and Lucio's
intends. Others, like Froth and Pompey Bum, are saved by the inspirational remarks to Isabella encourage the reader to
incompetence of Elbow and his kind or by the leniency of imagine her as shy and uncertain. Yet Isabella may also be
Escalus. This variety of outcomes is an implicit argument for "cold" because of her own moral strictness, as compared with
mercy rather than strictness, since it shows how much a the relative laxity she perceives in her brother. She may, in
person's sentence can depend on luck. other words, be unsure of the rightness of her cause—and
even partly convinced by Angelo's arguments in favor of
executing Claudio. This possibility gains further support from
Act 2, Scene 2 Isabella's scornful treatment of Claudio in Act 4, Scene 1,
where she rebukes him for having slept with Juliet outside of
marriage.
Summary Angelo, meanwhile, finds his own famous "coldness" thawing in

a disturbing way. Importantly, he is not a simple garden-variety
Elsewhere in Angelo's house, the Provost has had some hypocrite who has been lustful all along while pretending to be
misgivings about his orders. A servant brings Angelo forth, and chaste. Rather he seems genuinely surprised and confused by
the Provost asks whether he really wants to execute Claudio his own feelings for Isabella as he realizes "this virtuous maid /
so soon. Angelo impatiently threatens to fire the Provost if he Subdues me quite. Ever till now / When men were fond, I

smiled and wondered how." This lack of self-awareness, in

turn, goes a long way toward showing why a little leniency is to Act 2, Scene 4
be preferred to complete strictness. If Angelo had been aware
of his own moral weaknesses, he would likely have been less
quick to judge others for having the same flaws. Instead, by Summary
holding others to a strict accounting for their own lustful
tendencies, he has left himself open to judgment by the very Back at his home Angelo is stewing in his conflicted feelings
same "measure." for Isabella. He has prayed for strength, but his prayers have
evidently not been answered. A servant ushers Isabella into the
room so she may hear Angelo's decision concerning her
Act 2, Scene 3 brother. In a painfully roundabout way, Angelo proposes a
trade: her brother's life for "the treasures of [her] body." At first
Isabella does not catch Angelo's drift, but when she does, she
utterly refuses his offer. It is better, she says, for Claudio to die
Summary now than for her to condemn herself to hell by sleeping with
Angelo.
The Duke, disguised as a friar, visits the prison of Vienna.
There he speaks with Juliet, who is unafraid to "confess" and Admiring her resolve, Angelo persists in trying to persuade
"repent" her sin of fornication. The disguised Duke describes Isabella to "redeem [her] brother." Instead she turns the tables,
the sin as a "most offenseful act" and, under the guise of demanding a pardon for her brother and threatening to tell
hearing Juliet's confession, learns of her love for Claudio. He everyone about Angelo's corrupt and lecherous nature. Angelo,
informs her of Claudio's imminent execution, which comes as a provoked, ups the ante by saying he will torture
terrible shock to Juliet. Then, praying for her, the Duke Claudio—rather than merely execute him—unless Isabella
announces his intention to pay a visit to Claudio's cell. complies. He exits, leaving her to ponder his offer, but Isabella
refuses even to consider trading away her chastity. Instead
she decides to visit Claudio, reveal Angelo's treachery, and
Analysis warn him to prepare for the worst.
For the first, but not the last, time the disguised Duke engages
one of his subjects in a game of psychological cat-and-mouse.
Analysis
Whether or not he has a concrete plan to save Claudio's life,
his decision to tell Juliet of her fiancée's impending death Shocked and angered by Angelo's proposal, Isabella does not
reads as a bit of pointless cruelty. Almost as distasteful, though for a moment consider accepting it. Instead she uses the
perhaps necessary to his ruse of being a friar, is his insistence language of martyrdom to show how thoroughly she despises
on reprimanding Juliet for a sin she has already committed. the thought of selling her body as she reflects, "Th'impression
Episodes like this dampen the audience's sense of the Duke's of keen whips I'd wear as rubies / And strip myself to death as
virtue and the justice of his actions, since he willingly withholds to a bed / That longing have been sick for, ere I'd yield / My
important information from characters merely to test their body up to shame."
reactions.
In other words, Isabella would sooner die the most painful
Juliet herself is a minor character, despite the centrality of her death than sleep with Angelo. She has not budged an inch
pregnancy to the plot. After this scene, she will not appear from her pure-heartedness in the convent scene (Act 1, Scene
again until the last hundred lines of the play, where she is 4), where she gladly embraces a strict lifestyle. She will be
amply upstaged by her future sister-in-law, Isabella. This Juliet similarly demanding in dealing with her brother when they meet
is, incidentally, not at all related to her much more famous again in the next scene.
namesake in Romeo and Juliet.
Angelo, meanwhile, seems to be living by the rule of "in for a
penny, in for a pound." Having once revealed his baser

nature—to Isabella and to himself—Angelo quickly completes Angelo abandoned Mariana, to whom he was formally
his transformation into a villain. If stirrings of emotion troubled contracted, after her brother was shipwrecked along with her
him in Act 2, Scene 2, they have quickly transformed into dowry. Thinking he is sleeping with Isabella, Angelo will instead
corrupt lust, and his act seems, particularly to modern consummate his marriage with Mariana and make it officially
audiences, far more punishable than Claudio's—particularly in binding. Thus Claudio will be saved, Isabella's chastity
light of his hypocrisy. Even as Angelo gives way to his own lust, preserved, Mariana avenged, and Angelo punished. Isabella
he is unwilling to temper his harshness toward sexual behavior agrees to the plan and sets out immediately to visit Angelo.
in general. This black-and-white way of thinking will make
Angelo hate himself all the more passionately in the later acts
of the play. When he is finally arrested by the Duke, he will beg Analysis
for death rather than ask for a chance to redeem himself.
In this hefty prison scene, the play's central plot begins to take
form. The Duke's manipulative double-talk continues in this
Act 3, Scene 1 scene as he warns Claudio to be ready for death and then
divulges a plan to prevent the execution. Perhaps, as he insists
elsewhere in the play, the Duke is merely looking after the
spiritual well-being of his subjects. By ridding Claudio of his
Summary attachments to earthly life, he is—according to the value
system of his time—doing the young man a favor. Claudio's
The Duke, still disguised, confers with Claudio in his cell and
soul will be fitter for judgment if he renounces the pleasures of
counsels him to "be absolute for death," meaning to abandon
this world before being forced to enter the next. Yet even if
hope of being spared from execution. He gives a pious speech
readers accept the virtuousness of this deed, they also will
about the sorrows and travails of earthly life, from which death
realize the Duke accomplishes this change of heart through
offers freedom. Claudio thanks him and announces his resolve
indirection and dishonesty. Moreover there is something more
to meet his fate with a clear mind.
than a little disturbing about the ease with which the Duke
Isabella is admitted to the prison and greets Claudio, while the impersonates a priest. He uses his "clergy" privileges to gain
Duke draws the Provost offstage and asks to listen in on the access to the prisons, which is understandable given his aim of
conversation between the siblings. Isabella eventually tells checking up on Vienna's justice system. But then the Duke
Claudio of the impossible choice Angelo has set before her. starts exploiting other aspects of his disguise. In particular, he
Initially Claudio is repulsed and offended by the idea of his poses as a confessor to both Claudio and Isabella, who confide
sister giving up her virginity to save him. Gradually however, his in him so readily because they believe he is a priest. This is not
fear of death gets the better of him, and he tentatively starts mere information gathering, but something more sinister that
trying to persuade Isabella to accept Angelo's offer. Eventually borders on voyeurism.
he is reduced to out-and-out begging and tries to convince her
Claudio's reaction to his upcoming execution is a very human
that a sin "to save a brother's life ... becomes a virtue." Isabella
one. Isabella, certainly, cannot in any sense be blamed for her
recoils in disgust and anger at his cowardice. If she saves
unwillingness to give in to Angelo's coercion. Her body, as she
Claudio but he then fails to repent, she warns, her yielding to
makes clear in Act 2, Scene 4, is hers to dispose of, and she
Angelo will be a doubly sinful act.
will do so only in a way she believes is right. At the same time,
At this point the Duke reappears and tells Claudio not to hope it's hard to blame Claudio for his desperation here, because for
for a reprieve. Claiming to be the priest who has heard all he knows, he is going to be dead within hours unless
Angelo's confession, he dismisses the temptation of Isabella as somebody intervenes. The siblings' conflict comes out of their
a trick intended to test her virtue. He then asks to speak with essential natures. Claudio's moral sense about sex is an easy
Isabella in private, offering her a chance to save her brother one. He feels little shame in his relationship with Juliet, whom
and expose Angelo. To accomplish this she must promise to he loves and was planning to marry. In other words, sex is no
meet Angelo for a tryst but then fail to keep the appointment. big deal. For Isabella, the future nun, it is. In fact she would give
In her place, Angelo's spurned fiancée, Mariana, will show up. her life for her brother's, but not her moral virtue.

It is worth noticing that the relationship between marriage and describing the Duke as a wise and moderate ruler. The two
sex is an ambiguous one. In Shakespeare's England, a formally confer a moment about Claudio's fate, then Escalus and the
betrothed couple was thought to be essentially married, and rest leave the stage. The Duke, now alone, recites a soliloquy
frequently such a marriage might be consummated before a about his plan to catch the hypocritical Angelo.
formal church ceremony. Judged by Angelo, Claudio has
committed a capital crime by having sex with his betrothed;
however, through the Duke's eyes, Angelo will simply Analysis
consummate his marriage by having sex (however
inadvertently) with his own betrothed. Lucio doesn't know it yet, but he's getting himself into hot
water with his inability to keep quiet. The Duke may well have
The Duke, in a roundabout way, is responsible for the conflict the moral authority to admonish Pompey Bum for his flesh-
in this scene, for he has encouraged Claudio to view his death mongering ways. Whether he is right in pretending to be a friar
as a foregone conclusion. If he had simply told both siblings of is another question. For Lucio to claim the moral high ground,
his plan from the start, the ugliest parts of this scene could on the other hand, is clearly ridiculous, for his sexual mores are
have been avoided. as loose as Pompey's. "If imprisonment be the due of a bawd,"
Lucio high-handedly declares, then Pompey certainly deserves
to be in jail. Yet if selling sex is immoral, then Lucio's buying of
Act 3, Scene 2 sex, from one "Kate Keepdown," can hardly be an act of virtue.
"One might as well maintain," as the philosopher Bertrand
Russell put it, "that keys are good, but keyholes are bad."
Summary Whether he is being hypocritical or merely foolish, Lucio's
dismissive treatment of Pompey makes him less likeable. Thus
In the street outside the prison, Constable Elbow is arresting
the scene adds a third dimension to a character presented as
Pompey Bum again. The Duke, still disguised as a friar,
mostly fun and frivolous (Act 1) but sometimes surprisingly
approaches and reprimands Pompey for making his living as a
noble (Act 2). Lucio's real problem, however, is simply that he
pimp. He urges Elbow to take Pompey to prison straightaway.
doesn't know to whom he's talking. If he had the faintest inkling
Lucio enters and engages Pompey in some lighthearted banter
of the "friar's" connection to the Duke, Lucio would likely
about his imprisonment. Pompey asks Lucio to post bail for
refrain from telling risqué stories about His Royal Grace.
him, but Lucio refuses. Elbow leads Pompey offstage with the
help of his officers. The Duke, meanwhile, is making a disturbing discovery. Until
now he has thought of himself as a benevolent, if over-tolerant,
Now alone with the "friar," Lucio asks him if he has heard any
father figure to his subjects. Now, through Lucio, he learns his
news of the Duke. He answers no, and Lucio, unaware of
citizens are not quite the adoring children he has envisioned.
whom he is addressing, proceeds to critique the Duke's
Rather they have their own opinions of the Duke, often formed
policies in putting Angelo in charge. He describes Angelo as an
in the absence of any direct knowledge. Moreover some, like
inhuman creature, as cold and cheerless as a fish. The Duke
Lucio, are happy to spread these uninformed opinions far and
tries to rein Lucio in, but instead the gentleman proceeds to
wide to anyone who will hear. Thus, inasmuch as putting
make personal remarks about the Duke as well. He tells the
Angelo in charge was a public-relations ploy, the Duke must
"friar" about the Duke's fondness for womanizing and drinking
now reckon with the possibility of its failure. As it turns out,
and ends his speech by calling the Duke a "superficial,
citizens like Lucio do miss the Duke but not because they think
ignorant, unweighing fellow." The disguised Duke pauses in
of him as just or wise. Rather they see the Duke as a human
amazement at these outrageous charges as Lucio exits the
being with flaws like their own, in contrast to the ice-blooded
stage.
Angelo.
Escalus and the Provost now enter, leading Mistress Overdone
to prison. Escalus greets the "friar," who, pretending not to be
from Vienna, asks about the Viennese Duke's character.
Escalus gives a much more favorable report than Lucio,

Act 4, Scene 1 Act 4, Scene 2
Summary Summary
The Duke, still disguised as a friar, meets Mariana at a large Back in the prison the Provost offers to lighten Pompey's
farmhouse on the outskirts of Vienna. When he approaches, sentence if he will agree to serve as an assistant executioner.
she is listening to a boy sing a sad song about unfaithfulness in He is introduced to his new supervisor, Abhorson, who is
love. The boy leaves, and the Duke asks Mariana whether reluctant to initiate a pimp into the "mystery" of his craft. The
anyone has come looking for him. She answers no. Provost orders the two to report at four in the morning, ready
for a beheading.
Just then Isabella arrives to report her exchange with Angelo.
She and Angelo have planned to meet at midnight in his As the executioner and his new apprentice exit, the Provost
garden, which is accessed with a pair of keys. He then asks his officer to call in Barnardine and Claudio. The latter
introduces Isabella to Mariana, and the two women exit the appears first, and the Provost informs him he must "be made
stage to converse. By the time the Duke has finished his brief immortal" by eight o'clock the following morning. Barnardine,
speech about the dangers of being a ruler, Isabella and meanwhile, has not yet been retrieved from his cell. The Duke,
Mariana have returned. Mariana has agreed to the plan—she in his friar disguise, enters the prison and speaks briefly with
will meet Angelo in Isabella's place at the appointed hour. The the Provost about the fairness of Claudio's sentence. As usual,
Duke confirms the legitimacy of the plan by assuring Mariana he insists the sentence is just. A messenger from Angelo
"He is your husband on a precontract. / To bring you thus arrives bearing strict orders to execute Claudio by four o'clock.
together 'tis no sin." Barnardine is then to be executed in the afternoon.
Who's Barnardine? asks the Duke. Barnardine, says the

Analysis Provost, is a vicious and unrepentant death-row prisoner who
spends most of his time getting drunk. Hearing this, the Duke
This short scene introduces Mariana and elaborates her role in hatches a plot: the Provost will execute Barnardine and have
the plot to catch Angelo. The boy's song about a "forsworn" his head delivered to Angelo in lieu of Claudio's. By way of
and "mislead[ing]" lover is a nice, compact piece of reassurance, he presents a letter with the Duke's seal and
characterization. We never hear from the boy himself signature—his own seal and signature, although the Provost
again—he collects his tip, packs up his lute, and heads offstage does not know this. Despite the great risk to his livelihood and
as soon as his song is done. He leaves readers, however, with perhaps his life, the Provost reluctantly agrees to follow the
a clear impression of Mariana, whose melancholy devotion is plan.
reflected in this song text better than in any dialogue.
This quick, musical character sketch is important because Analysis

Mariana, although central to the plot, gets very little stage time
in which to develop her personality. For her behavior at the end Barnardine and Abhorson, both newly introduced in this scene,
of the play to make sense, she must be understood as loving add a darkly comic twist to Shakespeare's portrayal of the
Angelo passionately despite his cruelty. In the final scene Viennese prison. Both men are "lifers" in different ways:
Mariana will get the opportunity to see Angelo executed, seize Barnardine, a murderer, has been on death row for years
his assets, and live as a rich widow. She forgoes this chance pending confirmation of his sentence. The executioner
and pleads for his life, an action that would seem ludicrous Abhorson has made a career of dispensing capital punishment,
unless her improbably great and enduring love is established and it is strongly suggested he lives on the prison grounds.
here. Each has accommodated himself to prison life to an unusual
degree, unsettling outsiders like Pompey Bum.

Barnardine, as will be seen more fully in Act 4, Scene 3, is a foil no more obliging to him than to the executioners. Killing
for Claudio. He has no remorse for his crimes and shows no Barnardine in this state, says the Duke, would be a sin and a
fear of the death sentence with which he is constantly disgrace.
threatened. Claudio, in contrast, is downright ashamed of his
much lesser offense and is, to his own further shame, terrified The Provost is now without a head to present to Angelo, thus
of being executed. In the warped logic of the Viennese justice threatening the plot to save Claudio. Fortunately, a pirate
system, Barnardine is actually likely to survive longer than named Ragozine has just died of illness in the prison. His age
Claudio because he is so uncooperative. Unrepentant and and hair color make him a closer fit for Claudio anyway, so the
perennially drunk, he forces his jailers to decide whether they Provost proposes sending Ragozine's head to Angelo instead.
can kill a man whose soul is clearly unprepared for death. The Duke, delighted, orders Claudio transferred to a "secret
hold" (solitary cell) to prevent his being detected in the
Abhorson, whose unusual name is a pun on the Elizabethan meantime. He then discloses his plan to write to Angelo
insult "whoreson," combined with the word abhor, is a devoted announcing his return to the city and his wish for a public
master of his profession. His interactions with Pompey Bum reception.
are made humorous by his insistence on treating the
executioner's trade as a "mystery," a respected craft similar to Isabella enters, and the still-disguised Duke decides not to tell
leatherworking or goldsmithing. The joke depends for its her about the plan to save her brother. The news, he argues in
impact on the real-life existence of such "mysteries" in a brief aside, will be all the more comforting if it is a surprise.
Shakespeare's day and of organizations devoted to practicing Thus, he lies to Isabella, telling her Claudio's "head is off, and
them and preserving their secrets. Also known as guilds, these sent to Angelo." She reacts with an outburst of rage and
associations were in fact a fixture of the early modern English despair, but he urges her to have patience and bring her cause
economy and enjoyed considerable clout in local governments. to the Duke when he returns. He hands her a letter and tells
Thus Shakespeare's overly serious Abhorson may be a dig at her to go to Friar Peter, who will secure her an audience before
the self-importance of guilds and their leaders. In any case, the Duke. Lucio arrives just as Isabella is exiting and engages
there was no such organization as an "Executioner's Guild" in the "friar" with more wild tales about the Duke.
Shakespearean England, where executioners were seen as

necessarily evils, not desirable members of society. Nor was
there one in Vienna, where the executioner's trade was viewed
Analysis
as so unclean it was dangerous even to associate with
Here, again, is the Duke with his cat-and-mouse routine. As the
executioners.
architect of the plan to save Claudio, he has good reason to
hope the plot will succeed, yet he still withholds this potentially
Act 4, Scene 3 comforting information from Isabella. His rationale for doing so
is even flimsier than in Act 3, Scene 1, where he warns Claudio
to "be absolute for death." There, he at least had the excuse of
helping Claudio purify his soul. Here, however, the Duke sees
Summary the news of Claudio's survival as a mere pleasant surprise, to
be revealed to Isabella when he deems it appropriate. The
Elsewhere in the prison Pompey remarks he is "well acquainted Duke's real motive in playing these manipulative games is
here as ... / in our house of profession. One would think it were never quite made clear, although he may simply be enjoying
Mistress / Overdone's own house, / for here be many / of her this new variety of power he holds over his subjects. If so, he
old customers." never admits it, instead doubling down on his claim to be acting
with the best interests of others in mind. Isabella may well
Abhorson orders Pompey to summon Barnardine for
prefer not to be lied to, but her opinion is not consulted.
execution. Pompey cajolingly tries to get Barnardine to come
along, but the prisoner claims to be hung over and thus in no The Duke's unwillingness to kill Barnardine, a murderer already
shape to be executed. The Duke, still posing as a friar, offers to sentenced to death, is another point that seems to underscore
help Barnardine prepare his soul for death, but Barnardine is his murky concept of justice. Like the general pardon in Act 5,

the Duke's decision here puts Barnardine and Claudio on an complete about-face from smug pride to abject self-loathing.
even footing. In fact, it gives Barnardine a privilege Claudio Once so quick to dispense death to others, he will crave it for
lacks—that of being executed when he chooses, not when the himself as the most merciful way to escape his guilty
law demands. It may be tempting to excuse the Duke by asking conscience.
what right he has to kill one prisoner and let another live. Yet
this is precisely the point—these decisions ultimately rest with
the Duke, who has (and elsewhere uses) absolute legal Act 4, Scene 5
authority in Vienna. The Duke has not only the right but also
the responsibility to determine who lives and who dies. His
legal system has given murder and fornication an equally harsh
Summary
punishment, and it is now his prerogative to decide whether
these punishments are fair.
The Duke has arrived at the fields outside Vienna and has
abandoned his friar disguise. He now meets with Friar Peter
(an actual friar, not another disguised nobleman) and asks him
Act 4, Scene 4 to inform certain friends—or perhaps simply courtiers—of his
whereabouts. Varrius, a friend of the Duke who has already
received a summons, arrives and is greeted warmly.
Summary
Back at the deputy's house, Angelo and Escalus are puzzling Analysis
over the seemingly contradictory letters sent by the Duke. The
most recent letters tell of the Duke's wish to have his return to This short scene continues to develop the Duke's plot against
Vienna publicly announced and to have Angelo and Escalus Angelo. It is, in essence, a "Warning: Climax Approaching" sign.
meet him at the city gate. Moreover anyone who "crave[s] The Duke is out of his disguise and ready to re-enter the city in
redress of injustice" is to be given a chance to petition the grand style, so a confrontation with the faithless Angelo cannot
Duke as he re-enters the city. Escalus bids Angelo farewell and be far off. Friar Peter makes only brief appearances until Act 5,
exits the stage. Alone now, Angelo gives vent to his guilt and but there he will be essential in stage-managing the Duke's
anxiety over his sins. He has, so he believes, "deflowered" showy trial of Angelo.
Isabella and killed her brother, who "should have lived." He
The other characters mentioned here—Flavius, Valencius,
comforts himself that Isabella will be too intimidated by his
Rowland, and Crassus—are never seen onstage or even
authority—and too ashamed of her deflowering—to denounce
spoken of outside this scene. Varrius, a silent well-wisher of
him publicly.
the Duke, is likewise unimportant to the larger plot, although he
reappears in the stage directions for Act 5.
Analysis
Morally speaking, Angelo hits rock bottom at the beginning of Act 4, Scene 6
this act. He successfully, so he thinks, has coerced Isabella
into parting with her virginity in exchange for Claudio's life.
(This has happened offstage, sometime after Act 4, Scene 1.) Summary
But before the tryst was accomplished, he went back on his
word and ordered Claudio's execution to be carried out sooner Standing near the city gate, Isabella and Mariana discuss the
than scheduled. (Hence the letter received in Act 4, Scene 2). cryptic instructions they have received from the "friar" (the
In this scene the enormity of Angelo's deeds starts to sink in. disguised Duke)—the "friar" has advised that it is Marina who
He first thinks of his violation of Isabella—"this deed unshapes" should open the complaint against Angelo and that Isabella
him—and he begins a painful struggle toward repentance. By should "veil [her] full purpose" when she approaches the Duke.
the end of the play, he will not only repent but also perform a He has also cautioned Isabella that he might seem to

contradict or argue against her, but this is all part of the plan. Peter offers to "disprove" Isabella's accusations. To this end he
Friar Peter arrives and conducts the women to a place where brings forth Mariana, whose face is hidden by a veil. Declaring
they may petition the Duke, who has begun his procession herself neither a maid (virgin) nor a wife nor a widow, she
through town. offers an alibi for Angelo: he was with her during the time he
supposedly met with Isabella. Mariana tells of her broken
engagement to Angelo, who admits to the story but denies
Analysis being her husband. He broke the engagement five years ago,
and the two have not had contact since. Angelo realizes that
This scene, like the previous one, serves mainly to get the Mariana and Isabella are pawns—"no more / But instruments"
characters into place for the final dramatic showdown. in a larger scheme, and asks for the Duke's permission to
Isabella's behavior is consistent with her previous character: investigate further. Granting him his authority, the Duke exits.
"To speak so indirectly I am loath," she says, preferring to tell
the truth straightforwardly. This is the same streak of Shortly thereafter, "Friar Lodowick" (the disguised Duke)
unstinting but somewhat inflexible virtue Isabella has shown all enters the stage, accompanied by Isabella and the Provost of
along. It appears, for example, in Act 1, Scene 4, when Isabella the prison. Friar Lodowick denies having induced anyone to
wishes for stricter rules at the nunnery. The trait is even more slander Angelo. Threatened with torture, he reiterates his
conspicuous in Act 3, Scene 1, when she practically disowns claims of innocence, but Angelo and Escalus demand to have
Claudio for suggesting she might sin to save his life. him thrown in prison. In the resulting tussle the friar's hood falls
off, revealing the Duke. Realizing he has been found out,
In describing his harsh words as "a physic / That's bitter to Angelo now begs for a speedy death. The Duke, however, has
sweet end," the Duke draws a comparison between his speech other plans. He orders Friar Peter to see that Angelo and
and a medicine that tastes unpleasant but gets the job done. Mariana are properly married. While this is taking place
This image, too, reflects a character trait previously developed: offstage, he asks Isabella's pardon for failing to save Claudio.
the Duke's sense of his role as a physician who must "cure" his
city of vice (Act 3, Scene 2). Angelo and Mariana return, escorted by the Provost. The Duke
passes a sentence of death on Angelo for his crimes, but
Mariana begs for his life to be spared. In a gesture of
Act 5, Scene 1 forgiveness, Isabella joins in kneeling and asking mercy for
Angelo. Ignoring their pleas for now, the Duke demands to
have the prisoner Barnardine—who was supposed to be
executed—brought before him. Barnardine is brought forward
Summary and pardoned, along with another hooded prisoner who turns
out to be Claudio. The Duke pardons Angelo too, exhorting him
The Duke is making a grand entrance at Vienna's city gate. He
to treat Mariana better. He also pardons Lucio for his
greets Angelo and Escalus and thanks them for their service in
slanderous speeches, provided Lucio marries the "punk"
his absence. Isabella, seizing her chance, rushes before the
(prostitute) by whom he has fathered a child. For his final trick,
Duke and, on her knees, implores him to grant her justice. He
the Duke proposes marriage to Isabella, although she does not
asks who has wronged her, and she accuses Angelo of being a
reply. All retire to the Duke's palace for a celebration.
"murderer," an "adulterous thief," a "hypocrite," and a "virgin-
violator." The Duke goads Isabella on by pretending to believe
she is out of her mind. Amid interruptions from Lucio, she tells
her story in full. The Duke then accuses her of being
Analysis
"suborned"—hired or otherwise induced—to ruin Angelo's
In this final scene, the play's longest by far, several disparate
reputation.
threads of the plot come together in quick succession. The
Duke's habit of tormenting his subjects through his capricious
As an officer comes to take her to prison, she names Friar
behavior (Act 2, Scene 3) comes back in full force as he starts
Lodowick as one who knew of her plan to expose Angelo. This
to dispense "justice." One may wonder whether justice is really
prompts a search for Lodowick, who—Friar Peter
served by continuing to pretend Claudio is dead or by
announces—is "sick ... of a strange fever." In his stead Friar

Measure for Measure Study Guide Quotes 25
threatening Angelo with a death sentence that is never carried The heaviness of this responsibility is revealed in the phrase
out. If Angelo's own words are to be believed, letting him live "mortality and mercy," which suggests an ideal balance
with his guilt may be crueler than sending him off to the between strictness—including capital punishment—and
hangman. Given his emphasis on paying "measure for leniency. Unlike the Duke, who later frets about having been
measure" earlier in the play, Angelo may indeed prefer to die overly lax in enforcing the law, Angelo will esteem mortality
for his crimes, as he insists here. above mercy in nearly all his visible decisions as ruler.
Yet this sort of retributive, tit-for-tat justice would do nothing to

console Mariana, who also has a moral claim on Angelo.
"As surfeit is the father of much
Instead the Duke assigns Angelo to the restorative justice of
trying to be a good husband to Mariana, whom he has spurned fast, / So every scope by the
and neglected. Lucio, whose real crime consists not of slander
but of abandoning his child and its mother, is given a similar
immoderate use / Turns to
"sentence." He, too, views his sentence of marriage and restraint."
responsible fatherhood as worse than death, although he likely
means this as a comical exaggeration. Interestingly, no act of
— Claudio, Act 1, Scene 2
repentance is demanded of the drunken murderer Barnardine,
who is simply set free.
In this remarkable exchange with his friend Lucio, Claudio
The Duke's marriage proposal is one of the most takes full responsibility for having broken the law. Even more
conspicuously open-ended moments in the Shakespearean strikingly, he sees himself as morally culpable for letting his
repertoire. From his point of view, Isabella is getting a good desires get the better of him. His crime is, as he puts it, a
deal if she trades in her nun's habit for the sumptuous gown of consequence of abusing his personal freedoms, which in
a duchess. He speaks about the prospective marriage as Claudio's view leads to its own kind of imprisonment. Without
something that "much imports [her] good," meaning she will moderation, he insists, a fate like his is inevitable.
benefit greatly. Materially this benefit seems undeniable:
duchesses have a more lavish and exciting life than cloistered
nuns. Yet Isabella chose to be a nun, so it's hard to say
"The baby beats the nurse, and
whether she would find the prospect of being a duchess at all
tempting. Faced with this ambiguity, actors and directors have quite athwart / Goes all decorum."
taken various approaches to Isabella's response, ranging from
an enthusiastic "yes" to a flat rejection. — Duke, Act 1, Scene 3
This odd image captures the Duke's sense of Vienna as a

g Quotes household gone awry. Likening citizens to babies and the legal
system to a "nurse," or caregiver, the Duke laments a reversal
of normal relations of authority, obedience, and respect.
"Mortality and mercy in Vienna /
The analogy, however, is faulty and naive, reflecting the Duke's
Live in thy tongue and heart."
immature sense of his relationship to his people. Nannies do
not, as a rule, dispense capital punishment, and babies cannot
— Duke, Act 1, Scene 1 be charged with obstruction of justice. The image of subjects
as infants is more than a mere metaphor: throughout the play,
With this utterance, the Duke vests Angelo with the authority to the Duke hoodwinks his subjects into doing what he believes
govern Vienna using his own best judgment, rather than merely will be best for them. Such behavior may be appropriate for
following precedent. Angelo, he hopes, will be able to balance managing an unruly toddler, but it's a highly dubious way to
mercy and justice in his "heart," where a ruler's virtues reside. treat an adult citizen.

"Our doubts are traitors, / And "Some rise by sin and some by
makes us lose the good we oft virtue fall."
might win / By fearing to attempt."
— Escalus, Act 2, Scene 1
— Lucio, Act 1, Scene 4

Escalus has a more pragmatic view of morality than Angelo
does. He is closer to what might today be called a "legal
Neither the most serious nor the most morally upright of
realist," recognizing and accounting for the foibles of judges
characters, Lucio nonetheless has some practical wisdom to
and juries. In speaking this line, Escalus acknowledges the
impart. His advice to Isabella is probably not the only impetus
imperfections of the Viennese system of justice—and, perhaps,
to get her out of the convent to plead for Claudio's life, but it
of any such system.
certainly helps. In Act 2 Lucio reprises his role as a cheerleader
by accompanying Isabella to Angelo's house. Angelo, too, understands that some criminals escape
punishment, but for him this is a reason to punish those who
In Acts 3 and 4, however, Lucio's big mouth gets him into
get caught as harshly as possible. He believes doing so deters
trouble when he cheerfully relates stories about the Duke's
others from committing the same crimes, even if those crimes
misbehavior. The audience for these tall tales, Lucio fails to
may go undetected.
realize, includes the Duke himself (in disguise). Isabella could,
perhaps, stand to have more self-confidence, as Lucio argues.
Lucio, in contrast, would likely be better served with a little less
confidence and a little more caution.
"Which is the wiser here, Justice
or Iniquity?"
"When I that censure him do so — Escalus, Act 2, Scene 1
offend, / Let mine own judgment

Escalus makes this little joke when Pompey Bum seems on the
pattern out my death, / And
cusp of outwitting Constable Elbow. In the context of the
nothing come in partial." scene, "Justice" is the clumsy Constable Elbow, and "Iniquity" is
the smooth-talking but morally lax Pompey.
— Angelo, Act 2, Scene 1
Escalus's rhetorical question, however, might also be applied to
the play as a whole. If white-collar criminals such as Angelo
Here Angelo offers to be judged by the same standard he and murderers such as Barnardine walk free, can Justice really
applies to others, welcoming the death penalty if he is ever be said to triumph over Iniquity?
found guilty of fornication. He thus submits himself to the
retributive "measure for measure" logic of the play's title.
There's no reason to suspect Angelo is being openly

"The law hath not been dead,
hypocritical at this moment. He is not a secret lecher who though it hath slept."
publicly professes his hatred of lechery. It's more plausible to
say that Angelo simply hasn't encountered true temptation yet
— Angelo, Act 2, Scene 2
and thus has no idea of his own weakness. This will change
when he meets Isabella at the end of Act 2 and finds his
virtuous intentions overwhelmed by lust. Angelo is one of Vienna's highest-ranking judges, so naturally
he has a stockpile of high-sounding phrases about law and
justice. Here he justifies his strict enforcement of the law by

reminding listeners that the law was technically in effect all

brother is our chastity."
along. Angelo is not making up new rules—not yet,
anyway—but simply cracking down on violations of existing
— Isabella, Act 2, Scene 4
rules.
Isabella's uncompromising virtue has attracted many

"O, it is excellent / To have a interpretations over the years. Some critics have faulted her
for not coming to her brother's rescue, while others have
giant's strength, but it is tyrannous applauded her refusal to yield her body to the lecherous
/ To use it like a giant." Angelo.
However one construes Isabella's decision, this line shows she

— Isabella, Act 2, Scene 2 means business. Whatever her chastity may mean to
her—virtue, honor, self-determination—it counts for "more than
In this oft-cited quote, Isabella likens Angelo to a mortal [her] brother." This is an exceptionally high price to place on
endowed with superhuman powers. By leaving him in charge of virginity.
Vienna, she says, the Duke has given him "a giant's strength." In
wielding that power, however, Angelo has grown "tyrannous"
and abusive. In other words he has overstepped boundaries "The weariest and most loathèd
and is not morally competent to handle the responsibilities of
rule.
worldly life ... is a paradise / To
what we fear of death."
So Isabella claims. This, however, is an odd accusation at this
point in the play, because Angelo is acting with fastidious
— Claudio, Act 3, Scene 1
strictness, not the clumsy rage of a giant. Nonetheless,
Angelo's barbaric behavior in Act 2, Scene 4 proves Isabella
right. These lines come at the end of a passionate, piteous speech in
which Claudio expresses his fear of death. At first he tries to
behave honorably and spare his sister the moral anguish of
"Sir, believe this: / I had rather give choosing between his life and her chastity. For Isabella,
however, this choice is a surprisingly easy one, leaving Claudio
my body than my soul." distraught over his chances of survival. His attitude is almost
the exact opposite of Isabella's: she would rather die than live
— Isabella, Act 2, Scene 4 in shame, and he would rather live in agony than die.
Isabella is willing to endure almost any form of torture (her

"body"), but giving up her chastity and thus her "soul" is off the "O, what may man within him hide
table. Angelo tries, with a mixture of flattery, threats, and
/ Though angel on the outward
insults, to get her to reconsider, but he fails. Later in this scene
Isabella backs up these words with a further, hair-raising side!"
speech in which she embraces martyrdom as an alternative to
sexual sin. — Duke, Act 3, Scene 2
Angered by Angelo's duplicity, the Duke reflects on

"Then, Isabel, live chaste, and, humankind's capacity for deceit in general. The rhyme is also a
brother, die. / More than our pun on Angelo, calling further attention to the deputy's outward

Measure for Measure Study Guide Symbols 28
reputation for almost unearthly purity of conduct. To those behavior. Such justice might be described more accurately as
who admire his strictness, Angelo seems like an "angel," "one size fits all."
although earthier types like Lucio see him instead as a cold
fish.
In the remaining lines of his speech, the Duke lays out a

l Symbols
devious plot of his own. Using "craft" to combat Angelo's "vice,"
he will catch the traitorous deputy in the midst of some less-
than-angelic behavior.
The Convent
"You must be so good, sir, to rise
The convent of the Poor Clares, seen only in Act 1, is the
and be put to death."
physical embodiment of Isabella's unworldly ideals. It serves as
a haven for those who, like her, desire a strict and
— Pompey Bum, Act 4, Scene 3 uncompromisingly chaste way of life. In real life the order itself
was—and continues to be—famously strict, even by the
Pompey's glib and flattering speech to Barnardine serves as an standards of a cloistered religious community. From its
illustration of his character in general. A "bawd," or pimp, by establishment in the 13th century, its members were well
profession, Pompey is used to getting what he wants through known for their fasting, extreme poverty, and other penitential
charm and insinuation rather than by argument or force. These practices. Thus when Isabella asks whether the nuns have "no
qualities are comically out of place in his new job as Vienna's farther privileges" than Francisca has just enumerated, the list
assistant executioner. of "privileges" in question is likely very short. In the same
scene, as if to give readers and viewers a quick demonstration
of convent life, Francisca spells out the rules for interacting
with men. Addressing Isabella she informs her "you must not
"Haste still pays haste, and leisure
speak with men / But in the presence of the Prioress. / Then, if
answers leisure; / Like doth quit you speak, you must not show your face; / Or if you show your
face, you must not speak."
like, and measure still for
As a novice, Isabella momentarily stands on the threshold of
measure."
this strict and isolated life. It remains uncertain whether she
returns to it after the main action of the play is complete. Even
— Duke, Act 5, Scene 1
in attempting to pursue such a life, however, Isabella sets
herself apart from the ordinary Viennese, who are concerned
This couplet conveys the Duke's idealized vision of justice. with pleasure seeking and moneymaking. Moreover, her
Executing Angelo is, he argues, a fair response to Angelo's decision to leave the convent—however briefly—means re-
killing of Claudio, who, as the Duke well knows, hasn't been immersing herself in a world she has voluntarily left behind.
killed at all. By itself this fact undercuts the Duke's claim to be
supplying "measure for measure," for he offers to repay an
attempted killing with a successful one.
The Brothel
From there, the problems multiply as the Duke pardons
everyone. In doing so he lumps attempted murderer and
fornicator (Angelo), actual murderer (Barnardine), slanderer
At the opposite end of Vienna's moral axis are its brothels,
(Lucio), and fornicator (Claudio) into the same legal category.
most notably the "house of resort" run by Mistress Overdone. It
Again, rather than giving "measure for measure" as he claims,
is too simplistic to pronounce the convent "good" and the
the Duke is doling out a single "measure" to all manner of

Measure for Measure Study Guide Symbols 29
brothel "evil." Rather, they embody different value systems. The spy on Angelo but to hold clandestine interviews with Claudio,
Poor Clares stand for strictness and discipline; Mistress Juliet, and Isabella. None of these characters realize they are
Overdone and her cohorts rely on laxness of both morals and face-to-face with the Duke—instead, they believe they are
purse strings. The nuns, like Angelo in the beginning of the confessing their sins to a Catholic priest. Thus, they open up to
play, are fastidious in avoiding any temptation that might him in a way they almost certainly would not if his true identity
jeopardize their honor or virtue. The brothel, in contrast, invites were known. So does the rakish Lucio, who has little respect
and even solicits contact with the outside world, and its for the friar's role. In Act 5, the Duke dramatically casts off his
proprietors and patrons mingle freely in Viennese society. They disguise and takes back power from Angelo, who goes from
are "promiscuous" in the original Latin sense of the term: interim ruler to death-row prisoner.
indiscriminately mixing. Finally the convent is a place of
seriousness and candor where deceptions and even jokes are In between, the play's plot is punctuated by two notable
unwelcome, as Isabella demonstrates when she rebukes Lucio moments, traditionally known as the "bed trick" and the "head
for his punning manner of speech. The brothel's denizens, on trick." As these terms suggest, the two episodes involve a kind
the other hand, love a good pun: asked what Claudio has done of ruse that should be easy to spot but is overlooked by the
to merit imprisonment, Pompey Bum curtly answers, "A targets of the deception. Some of the play's hard-won humor
woman." The brothel crowd also resort to euphemisms and comes from the sheer audacity of the "tricks," which are as
half-truths to disguise the nature of their work, as when transparent to the audience as Clark Kent "transforming" into
Pompey tells the police he is a "tapster" (a bartender). This Superman. In the "bed trick," Mariana agrees to take Isabella's
may technically be true, but it's hardly the most interesting part place (Act 4, Scene 1) during her tryst with Angelo. This might
of Pompey's employment. seem a risky gambit, but it pays off when Angelo comes to
believe he really has slept with Isabella (Act 4, Scene 4). Then,
Underneath these obvious differences are also some striking in the "head trick" (Act 4, Scene 3), the head of the dead pirate
similarities. Both the convent and the brothel are "worlds apart" Ragozine is substituted for that of Claudio. The resemblance is
from normal Viennese society, and both are female-dominated not necessarily a good one: Ragozine is about Claudio's age
spaces within a larger patriarchal society. Pompey's status as a and has a "beard and head / Just of [Claudio's] color."
pimp should not lure readers into overestimating his role in Nonetheless, Angelo is again unable to tell the difference, as
Mistress Overdone's establishment: he works for her, not the evidenced by his guilty speech about killing Claudio in Act 4,
other way around. In a sense, the brothel even represents a Scene 4. Together, the two "tricks" make Angelo less
valiant resistance to the Duke's deputies, since its occupants intimidating and even somewhat pitiable, since he unknowingly
continue in their trade despite Angelo's crackdown on provides the Duke with evidence of his own malfeasance.
prostitution. That this rebellion is commercially motivated does
not diminish its importance in a play in which strict justice and But why is Angelo seemingly so easy to dupe in the first place?
sexual abstinence are the law of the land. One answer is that he needs to be, if the play is to have a
happy ending. Once Angelo assumes the ducal throne in Act 1,
the odds are stacked against the ordinary Viennese who must
evade or withstand the city's harsh justice. If, in addition to
Disguises and Substitutions having near-absolute power, Angelo were shrewd enough to
see through the Duke's deceptions, there wouldn't be much of
a play. The villain would win, or perhaps escape, and the final
reckoning with justice would be denied. On the level of
Measure for Measure begins and ends with acts of substitution.
character, Angelo's gullibility also reflects his inflexible, rule-
In the opening scene, the Duke names Angelo as the interim
bound nature—the same trait that makes him so remorseless in
ruler of the city. "In our remove be thou at full ourself," he says,
dispensing justice and so desperate when he breaks his own
elevating Angelo from a mere deputy to something like an
laws. The "tricks," simplistic as they are, prey upon this aspect
"acting Duke." Angelo will, despite his initial protestations,
of Angelo's character: he does not expect to be challenged or
quickly adjust to the role. The Duke, meanwhile, returns in
undermined. Firmly convinced of his own moral and political
disguise, pretending to be a harmless friar rather than a
authority, he is unable to notice when others are maneuvering
powerful lord. He proceeds to exploit this disguise not only to
behind his back.

Measure for Measure Study Guide Themes 30
when he describes Angelo's blood as "snow-broth."

m Themes
Concerns about the fairness and integrity of the justice system
were widespread in Shakespeare's day, as critic John Mullan
notes in the 2016 article "Measure for Measure and
Mercy versus Justice Punishment." Shakespeare's audiences, Mullan argues, would
have been quite aware of the "inconsistency" with which
different crimes were prosecuted and offenders sentenced.
The conflict between mercy and justice is the headline issue of Some, like Puritan reformers, thought the English justice
Measure for Measure. How, the play asks, can a ruler dispense system too lenient and wanted to see strict sentences handed
unbiased justice without being excessively strict or overly out more consistently. Others, including the real-life Pompey
lenient? Shakespeare offers no simple answer to this question Bums and Mistress Overdone of London's red-light district,
but instead explores different approaches and shows the flaws doubtless found the penalties too harsh—at least when it came
of each (and few of the merits). The Duke is, by his own to their trade. Measure for Measure reflects both points of
admission, excessively lax in enforcing the laws of his city. He view, but it never shows Vienna as reaching the longed-for
frets about his failures in this regard, not so much because the state of fair and consistent law enforcement. Instead the Duke
laws themselves are just as because the citizens now fail to simply pardons everyone in the play's final scene. This grand
respect the law at all. In a repentant speech to Friar Thomas but self-defeating gesture is a kind of "anti-sentence" that puts
(Act 1, Scene 3), the Duke likens himself to a father who has the crimes of murder, fornication, and slander on an equal legal
failed to discipline his children. Consequently, the children, or footing.
Viennese citizens, have become unruly brats, and the laws
"Dead to infliction, to themselves are dead ... / The baby beats
the nurse, and quite athwart / Goes all decorum."
Hypocrisy
Angelo, in contrast, is unrelentingly strict—excessively so, as
nearly all the play's characters agree. Indeed the Duke is the
sole character to consistently defend Angelo's harsh style of
The play's treatment of justice is complicated by the human
justice. Angelo argues, apparently in all sincerity, that stern and
frailty of its characters, including those in power. Angelo, the
consistent enforcement of the law is better for everyone
virtuous deputy who succumbs to temptation, is the prime
because it prevents future offenders from even considering
example. At the beginning of the play, he is an unusually harsh
the same crime. In his view, the law's purpose is not only to
ruler, and perhaps a killjoy—Pompey Bum certainly thinks
prevent people from materially harming one another but to
so—but he is not yet a hypocrite. Everything he does, he
enforce a kind of moral discipline on the citizens. Even Claudio,
insists, is for the good of the city and its populace, and at this
Angelo reasons, is morally saved from himself by being
point he may well be sincere in saying so. He punishes
executed before he can offend again. This interpretation of the
criminals, including those whose crimes are victimless, in such
law and its role is markedly different from the modern
a way as to deter similar behavior. In Act 1, Scene 2 he goes so
conception of criminal justice and from the restorative justice
far as to order his officers to escort Claudio through town as a
the Duke practices at the end of the play.
sort of public warning to other offenders, an act comparable to
a modern "perp walk." One sign of Angelo's sincerity is his
The waggish gentleman Lucio, not otherwise known for his
pronounced willingness to submit to the same strict justice if
wisdom, succinctly explains the contrast between the two
he should be found committing a similar crime. "When I that
systems in Act 1, Scene 4. There, he complains of "use and
censure [Claudio] do so offend," he insists, "let mine own
liberty"—here meaning excessive liberty—"run[ning] by the
judgment pattern out my death, / And nothing come in partial."
hideous law / As mice by lions." Under the Duke, in other
As yet Angelo cannot imagine himself giving in to the kinds of
words, citizens scoffed at the law and scorned its majesty. The
base temptations that would lead to a "crime" like Claudio's.
situation under Angelo, however, is hardly better, for Angelo is
cold and unfeeling to the point of tyranny. Lucio, a decidedly
Angelo's hypocrisy begins in earnest when he recognizes the
hot-blooded character, cannot mean to be complimentary

Measure for Measure Study Guide Themes 31
lustful impulse within himself but continues to act as though he pleasures—including the theaters themselves—were situated.
is unsusceptible to it. He is, at first, shocked to realize he is not Claudio uses the word to refer to unchecked freedom when he
so different from Claudio and all the other hot-blooded men blames his imprisonment on "too much liberty, my Lucio,
and women of the city—the very people over whom he liberty." The problem, as he understands it, is not the
previously sat in judgment. Wiser persons might respond by curtailment of his personal freedoms by the Duke's laws. He
accepting their own fallible natures and thus resolving to be a does not complain about the excessive harshness of a law
little gentler toward others—for example, not decapitating decreeing whom he may and may not sleep with. Rather the
young men for getting their girlfriends pregnant. Angelo, problem lies in his inability to govern his own desires, such as
however, is fairly unhinged by the contrast between his record the desire to go to bed with Juliet before their marriage is
of past virtue and this new impulse to sin. He makes the classic formalized. "Liberty," though it may sound odd from a modern
villain's mistake of blaming others—in this case God and the perspective, is widely viewed as a nuisance in Shakespeare's
Devil—for his feelings and his responses to them. Little by little Vienna.
Angelo rationalizes his predatory behavior by insisting on his
own status as a victim. He complains of having prayed for For the Duke and Angelo, the problem can be conceptualized
chastity and inner strength but not having received any, thus as an attempt to keep the citizens from taking excessive
putting the responsibility for his actions squarely on God. The "liberties" with the law, and with one another. The Duke speaks
madness stops only when Angelo is arrested by the Duke and to this issue early in the play when he complains that "liberty
forced to a public reckoning of his actions as deputy. plucks justice by the nose." Angelo magnifies the Duke's
concerns by insisting on policies that prevent future crime by
Nor is the Duke a poster child for moral consistency. He is the punishing present crime severely. Reining in the citizens now,
one to utter the famous couplet about justice and retribution: he argues, will prevent them from harming themselves later.
"Haste still pays haste, and leisure answers leisure; / Like doth Even Lucio, a character whose own love of freedom prevents
quit like, and measure still for measure." This sounds like an him from marrying, understands Angelo's basic desire "to give
excellent ideal to live up to: punishments should be exactly and fear to use and liberty." He may question Angelo's excessive
consistently proportionate to the crimes committed. The zeal for the task, but he understands the basic moral impulse
trouble is that the Duke fails to follow his own advice. In a that underlies it.
world where "measure" was really given "for measure," Lucio,
who spreads some unflattering rumors about the Duke, would A little liberty, Angelo believes, creates a desire for more. His
never receive the same sentence as Angelo, who perverts the own sad experiences prove this true when he finds himself
course of justice to gratify his own lust. Yet this is exactly what sliding from mere lust for Isabella into threats and coercion. "I
happens when the Duke comes back to town. He promises to have begun," he half-gloats, half-laments, "and now I give my
have Angelo and Lucio both executed, despite the vast sensual race the rein." Even an Angelo, it seems, can succumb
difference between their crimes, then ends up pardoning both. to a downward spiral of ever-expanding and less disciplined
liberties. But the tendency is hardly unique to Angelo, for much
earlier Claudio likens human nature to a rat that gorges on
food, heedless of whether it is poison. This comparison raises
Liberty a further question: should rulers grant their subjects the
"liberty" to engage in activities deemed immoral or self-
destructive by society? The Duke and Angelo both answer this
question with a "no," although only the latter really follows
The term liberty is bandied about frequently in Measure for
through on his conviction. The "yes" side of the argument is left
Measure. Its meaning only partly overlaps with the idealistic
to the characters traditionally seen as "lowlifes," including the
Enlightenment-era use of the word, as in "life, liberty, and the
sex-industry spokesman Pompey Bum.
pursuit of happiness." More often Shakespeare uses it to
connote excessive freedom, or an abuse of freedom. For
Shakespeare's audience, it would also have invoked the
"liberties," the sections of London just outside the city's walls
and legal jurisdiction, where all kinds of less-than-respectable

Measure for Measure Study Guide Suggested Reading 32
e Suggested Reading
"About the Play | Measure for Measure." Royal Shakespeare
Company, n.d.
Mardock, James D., editor. "Measure for Measure." Internet

Shakespeare Editions, University of Victoria, n.d.
Mullan, John. "Measure for Measure and Punishment."

Discovering Literature: Shakespeare and Renaissance Writers,
British Library, 15 Mar. 2016.
Pinker, Steven. "Shakespeare: One of the First and Greatest

Psychologists." Atlantic, 7 Jan. 2015.
Werner, Sarah. "Measure for Measure." Folger Shakespeare

Library, 15 Feb. 2015.
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Measure for

and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you

a Author Biography ..................................................................................... 4

h Characters ................................................................................................... 5 d In Context

c Scene Summaries .................................................................................. 14 Shakespeare's Sources

Night's Dream (1595–96). minor revisions as do the major 18th-century Works of

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The critic Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772–1834), for example,

Those who answer in the negative generally identify Thomas

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Childhood and Family Life

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Escalus shows himself much more lenient than Angelo. He

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Other Major Character

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Full Character List Constable Elbow is a goofy policeman

The widely admired ruler of Vienna, the

Escalus is a senior magistrate and one An unnamed justice of the Viennese

A garrulous gentleman with some

The messenger delivers Angelo's orders

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A desperate and ashamed Claudio asks his friend Lucio to find

Angelo's servant announces the various

Several of Claudio's fellow citizens, including Escalus, attempt

The next morning Isabella appears before Angelo to hear his

Act 1 exchange for Isabella's virginity. At first she thinks he is joking,

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Returning to the stage after eavesdropping, the Duke offers

Act 4 the assignation with Isabella. Angelo claims to be the victim of

Afterward, guilt begins to crack the veneer of Angelo's

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Rising Action Falling Action

4. Angelo offers Claudio's life for Isabella's virginity.

5. The Duke hatches a plot to keep Claudio alive in secret.

8. The Duke makes his grand return to Vienna.

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One day in Vienna

The Duke leaves town, nominating Angelo to rule in his

Angelo begins enforcing the city's strict and long-

Claudio is arrested for fornication and sentenced to

About two hours later

Lucio is dispatched to warn Isabella of her brother's

Later that day

Isabella leaves the convent to visit Angelo and plead for

The next morning

Angelo offers to spare Claudio's life if Isabella will sleep

Later that day

The disguised Duke visits Claudio in prison and prepares

Isabella visits Claudio, who is less appalled than

The Duke reveals his plot to save Claudio while sparing

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Isabella and the Duke enlist Mariana's help in tricking

Breaking his promise, Angelo orders Claudio's execution

The Duke and Provost fool Angelo by sending him the

Within two days

The Duke returns to Vienna in a highly publicized