Again! and bring me word how ’tis with her.
Go back! And bring me an update on how she's doing.
Go check on her again. Come back and tell me how she's doing.
go check on her again. report back
A fever with the absence of her son;
A madness, of which her life’s in danger. Heavens,
How deeply you at once do touch me! Imogen,
The great part of my comfort, gone; my queen
Upon a desperate bed, and in a time
When fearful wars point at me; her son gone,
So needful for this present. It strikes me past
The hope of comfort. But for thee, fellow,
Who needs must know of her departure and
Dost seem so ignorant, we’ll enforce it from thee
By a sharp torture.
A fever from the absence of her son; a madness from which her life is in danger. Heavens, how deeply you strike me at once! Imogen, the great part of my comfort, is gone; my queen lies on a desperate bed, and at a time when fearful wars threaten me; her son gone, so needed for this moment. It strikes me beyond the hope of comfort. But for you, fellow, who must know about her departure and yet seem so ignorant, we will extract the truth from you by sharp torture.
A fever from missing her son; a madness that threatens her life. Heavens, you've hit me hard on every side! Imogen, my greatest comfort, is gone; my queen is dying in bed, and it's all happening while wars are threatening us; her son is gone too, and I need him right now. This breaks me completely. But you, fellow, you know what happened to Imogen and you're pretending ignorance. We'll torture the truth out of you.
fever from missing son madness threatening her life queen dying imogen gone wars threatening im broken you know what happened i'll torture you
Sir, my life is yours;
I humbly set it at your will; but for my mistress,
I nothing know where she remains, why gone,
Nor when she purposes return. Beseech your Highness,
Hold me your loyal servant.
Sir, my life belongs to you; I place it entirely at your disposal. But as for my mistress, I don't know anything—not where she is, not why she left, not when she plans to return. I beg your Majesty to consider me your faithful servant still.
Sir, my life is yours—do whatever you want with it. But as for my mistress, I have no idea where she is, why she disappeared, or when she's coming back. Please, Your Majesty, just let me keep being your loyal servant.
my life is urs. but i dont know where my mistress is. please let me stay loyal to u
This brief scene is Shakespeare's version of a news cycle arriving all at once. Cymbeline faces four simultaneous crises: his wife is dangerously ill, his stepson has disappeared, his daughter has vanished, and a Roman army is on the beach. His instinct is to blame the nearest available target — Pisanio, whose presence is conspicuous precisely because everyone else has gone. This is psychologically accurate: when people face multiple incomprehensible failures, they reach for the one explicable element and punish it. Pisanio survives by being exactly what Cymbeline accuses him of not being — honest. The scene is short by design. Shakespeare doesn't want us dwelling on Cymbeline's rationality; the king is not at his best, and the play knows it.
Good my liege,
The day that she was missing he was here.
I dare be bound he’s true and shall perform
All parts of his subjection loyally. For Cloten,
There wants no diligence in seeking him,
And will no doubt be found.
Your Majesty, the day his mistress went missing he was right here. I'm willing to guarantee he's truthful and will loyally perform all his duties as a subject. As for Cloten, there's no shortage of people searching for him, and he'll definitely be found.
Sir, the day your wife disappeared this man was right here with you. I'll swear he's honest and he'll do his job as a loyal servant. As for Cloten, people are searching hard for him and they're going to find him.
he was here the day ur wife left. hes loyal. cloten will be found
The time is troublesome.
This is a difficult time.
Things are complicated right now.
rough times
[_To Pisanio._] We’ll slip you for a season; but our jealousy
Does yet depend.
We'll let you go for a time, but we remain suspicious of you.
We'll give you a break for now, but don't think we trust you - we're still watching.
ur free for now but we're still sus
So please your Majesty,
The Roman legions, all from Gallia drawn,
Are landed on your coast, with a supply
Of Roman gentlemen by the Senate sent.
If it pleases your Majesty, the Roman legions, which were all called up from Gaul, have landed on your coast. They've brought Roman aristocrats sent by the Senate.
Your Majesty, the Roman armies that were stationed in Gaul have just landed on your shore. And the Senate sent some important Roman guys with them.
roman armies from gaul just landed. plus senate sent nobles
Now for the counsel of my son and queen!
I am amaz’d with matter.
Now I need the advice of my son and queen! I'm overwhelmed with what's happening.
This is when I really need my son and queen's advice! I've got too much going on at once.
i need advice. too much is happening
Pisanio's closing soliloquy turns on one of the play's central ethical riddles: can deception be a form of loyalty? He lied to Posthumus about Imogen's death. He helped Imogen deceive everyone about her identity. He has concealed information from the king. Yet in each case, his motive was protection of the people he served. His line 'Wherein I am false I am honest; not true, to be true' is Shakespeare giving a genuinely difficult moral proposition its most compressed form. A servant in this period had almost no recourse when ordered to do something wrong. Pisanio found his third way: disobey the worst orders, protect the person, and bear the consequences. His final image — boats without steerers — is the play's most explicit statement that Providence must finish what humans cannot.
Good my liege,
Your preparation can affront no less
Than what you hear of. Come more, for more you’re ready.
The want is but to put those pow’rs in motion
That long to move.
Your Majesty, your military strength is equal to or greater than what you're hearing about. If you prepare further, you're prepared for more. All that's needed is to mobilize the armies that are ready to move.
Sir, you've got enough soldiers to handle whatever the Romans are bringing. If you get ready for more, you're ready for anything. You just need to get your troops moving—they're ready to go.
ur army matches theirs. just mobilize ur troops. ur ready
I thank you. Let’s withdraw,
And meet the time as it seeks us. We fear not
What can from Italy annoy us; but
We grieve at chances here. Away!
Thank you. Let's withdraw and face this moment as it comes. We're not afraid of what Italy can do to us, but we grieve over what's happening here at home. Let's go!
Thanks. Let's get out of here and deal with this as it happens. The Romans don't scare me, but all these problems at home are killing me. Let's go!
thx. let's face this. not worried about rome. worried about home things
I heard no letter from my master since
I wrote him Imogen was slain. ’Tis strange.
Nor hear I from my mistress, who did promise
To yield me often tidings. Neither know I
What is betid to Cloten, but remain
Perplex’d in all. The heavens still must work.
Wherein I am false I am honest; not true, to be true.
These present wars shall find I love my country,
Even to the note o’ th’ King, or I’ll fall in them.
All other doubts, by time let them be clear’d:
Fortune brings in some boats that are not steer’d.
I haven't received any letter from my master since I informed him that Imogen was killed. That's strange. And I haven't heard from my mistress either, even though she promised to write to me regularly. I also don't know what happened to Cloten, so I'm confused about everything. The gods must guide this. When I'm false I'm honest; to be true I must not be true. These wars will show that I love my country just as much as the King does, or I'll die fighting. Other worries will clear up in time. Fortune sometimes brings boats into harbor without a captain steering them.
My boss hasn't written to me since I told him Imogen was dead. That's weird. And my mistress isn't writing either, even though she said she would. I also have no idea what's happened to Cloten. Everything's a mess. I just have to trust the gods. When I lie I'm being honest; to be true I have to lie. This war will prove I love Britain as much as the King does, or I'll die trying. Other problems will work themselves out. Sometimes luck pushes ships to shore even without anyone steering.
no letters from my boss or mistress. everything's confusing. war will show i love britain. luck steers some ships without help
The Reckoning
This is a scene of cascading crisis — every pillar of the court has cracked at once. Cymbeline is barely holding together, threatening his most loyal servant out of sheer helplessness. Pisanio's closing lines are among the most quietly dignified in the play: a good man in an impossible position, choosing honesty over self-preservation and trusting that time will sort what he cannot. The audience, knowing far more than Cymbeline does, feels the irony of watching a king rage at the one man who is telling the truth.
If this happened today…
Imagine a CEO whose company is simultaneously dealing with a PR crisis, a missing executive, a family member in the hospital, and a hostile acquisition announcement — all on the same Monday morning. He calls his most trusted PA into the office and screams at her because she doesn't know where the missing executive is. She calmly says she wasn't involved and offers her resignation. He doesn't fire her — he needs her. She walks out, phones a friend, and says: 'I don't know what's going on, but I'm going to keep showing up and do my job and hope it becomes clear.' That's Pisanio.