Page 272 - King Lear: The Cambridge Dover Wilson Shakespeare

3.i. NOTES

14. unbonneted To go hatless out of doors was con-
sidered 'almost indecent' (Sisson). Cf. 4. 6. 181, n.
15. what will=anyone or anything that will, take
all Gen. explained as' the cry of the gambler who stakes
all on a last, desperate throw' but by 'all' Lear means
the whole world. Cf. 3. 2.1-9.
18. upon., .my note on the strength of that knowledge.
20-1. Although...cunning Bracketed in F.
20. is (F) Q (+Camb.) 'be'.
22-9. FromF. Qom. 22. have—as F'haue,as*.
23. Throned (<F) Q om. Theob.'s 'Throne' (e:d
misp.) is attractive [J.C.M.]. high? (Rowe) F'high;'.
no less sc. than servants pure and simple.
2 5. seen sc. by all and sundry. The invasion may be
due to this, or to 'something deeper'.
26. snuffs and packings' i.e. their readiness to take
offence and their secret plotting against each other.
27-8. the hard...King 'A metaphor from riding;
cf. Caes. 1. 2. 35' (Ver.).
29. perchance Bracketed in F.
30-42. From Q. F om. We conj. that the collator
for F added 11. 22-9 to Q, which the F compositor took
to be substitutes for 11. 30-42. We also think that
between 11. 29 and 30 'there were other lines which
have been omitted in both texts' (Schmidt, apudTurn,
pp. 367-70)—or at least one other line. If Sh. intended
1. 30 to follow 1. 29 directly, then he has given us an
extremely awkward (though perhaps not impossible)
construction. [G.I.D.]
32. Wise in—taking advantage of. have secret feet
have secretly set foot.
34. To...banner=\o march against us openly.
35. If...build If you dare credit my words.
37. making=&s you make.
47. As...shall Brackets <F.
48. your (Q+Camb.) F 'that'—which G.I.D.