This is a simple plot summary of the play - Antony & Cleopatra.
Each act/scene is accompanied by quotes and written in brief bullet-point format, making it easy and quick to read and understand. perfect for using when writing your literature essays and as preparation for your Matric exams.
Anthony and Cleopatra
Key:
*A: Anthony *Caes/OC: Octavius Caesar
*C: Cleopatra *Pomp/SP/Pompey: Sextus Pompeius
*L: Lepidus *Eno: Enobarbus
*Oct: Octavia
, Act 1 Scene 1:
• Two Roman soldiers, Philo and Demetrius, discuss how Mark Anthony has fallen in
love with Cleopatra.
• They say he has lost interest in his proper job (Triumvirs, protectors of Rome:
Anthony, Octavius Caesar and Lepidus) and is ignoring Rome (1/1/1-6) + (1/1/10-13).
• (1/1/14) A & C enter, with C asking him to explain how much he loves her.
• A messenger enters with news from Rome but A refuses to hear the news. C tells
him he must listen to it.
• She teases him saying there could be important news from Octavius or from his wife
Fulvia. She encourages him to return to Rome, A then states Rome means nothing to
him. (1/1/33-39)
• He states his duty is to stay in Egypt and love C.
• They exit, not hearing the news, leaving Philo and Demetrius shocked (1/1/55-62).
Act 1 Scene 2:
• C enters with maids and a soothsayer (fortune teller).
• Soothsayer tells Charmian and Iris the same fortune: “Their pasts are better than
their futures and they will outlive the queen.”
• C then complains that A has turned his attention to Rome and is ignoring her
(1/2/74-85)
• She then leaves as he approaches to avoid seeing him (1/2/84)
• A messenger reports to A that Fulvia and Lucia (A’s brother) mounted an army
against Caesar but lost.
• Messenger implies that this would not have happened if A had been in Rome
(1/2/85-108)
• 2nd messenger brings news that Fulvia is dead. A says that although he has long
wished her dead, he now wants her back (1/2/115-127).
• Enobarbus enters thinking that Fulvia’s death should be welcomed and not mourned
(1/2/150-162).
• A is concerned that his idleness is responsible for the war, Fulvia’s death and the
battle at sea with Sextus Pompeius against the Triumvirs – He decides to return to
Rome (1/2/178-end).
Act 1 Scene 3:
• C sends Alexas to fetch A and then fakes fainting when he arrives.
• She questions his “truth” as he has been unfaithful to his own wife.
• A announces that he will return to Rome due to the political instability and that
Fulvia is dead (1/3/42-62)
• C wants A to mourn Fulvia’s death, as she worries if he does not mourn his own wife
he will never mourn for her.
• A departs, promising the distance will not interfere with his love (1/3/102-end).
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