Monologue

Cleopatra Monologue from All for Love

From All for Love by John Dryden

female · anguished · 1:13 min

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Thus low I thank you; And, since my innocence will not offend, I shall not blush to own it. (VENTIDIUS: After this, I think she'll blush at nothing.) You seem grieved (And therein you are kind) that Caesar first Enjoyed my love, though you deserved it better: I grieve for that, my lord, much more than you; For, had I first been yours, it would have saved My second choice: I never had been his, And ne'er had been but yours. But Caesar first, You say, possessed my love. Not so, my lord: He first possessed my person; you, my love: Caesar loved me; but I loved Antony. If I endured him after, 'twas because I judged it due to the first name of men; And, half constrained, I gave, as to a tyrant, What he would take by force.

About this piece

Cleopatra reflects on her past choices in love, expressing regret over her relationship with Caesar compared to her true feelings for Antony, revealing the complexity of her emotions and the constraints she faced.

30s · longing · love · betrayal · identity · power

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Run it out loud with a spotlight that follows your voice, line by line, until it's off the page. Free to start, no credit card.

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