William Shakespeare Quotes About Shame

• Suspicion always haunts the guilty mind.

  William Shakespeare

  Lying, Memorable, Mind

  'Henry VI, Part 3' (1592) act 5, sc. 6, l. 11

• O comfort-killing night, image of hell, Dim register and notary of shame, Black stage for tragedies and murders fell, Vast sin-concealing chaos, nurse of blame!

  William Shakespeare

  Death, Night, Nurse

  William Shakespeare (2006). “The Poems: Venus and Adonis, The Rape of Lucrece, The Phoenix and the Turtle, The Passionate Pilgrim, A Lover's Complaint”, p.188, Cambridge University Press

• The Brightness of her cheek would shame those stars as daylight doth a lamp; her eyes in heaven would through the airy region stream so bright that birds would sing, and think it were not night.

  William Shakespeare

  Stars, Eye, Night

  William Shakespeare (1833). “The plays and poems of William Shakspeare”, p.812

• They whose guilt within their bosom lies, imagine every eye beholds their blame.

  William Shakespeare

  Lying, Eye, Guilt

  William Shakespeare (1797). “The Poetical Works of Shakespeare. With the Life of the Author ... Embellished with Superb Engravings [including a Portrait].”, p.118

• All the contagion of the south light on you,
  You shames of Rome! you herd of--boils and plagues
  Plaster you o'er; that you may be abhorr'd
  Further than seen, and one infect another
  Against the wind a mile!

  William Shakespeare

  Light, Rome, Wind

  William Shakespeare (1809). “The plays of William Shakspeare, with the corrections and illustr. of various commentators, to which are added notes by S. Johnson and G. Steevens, revised and augmented by I. Reed, with a glossarial index”, p.26

• For night's swift dragons cut the clouds full fast, And yonder shines Aurora's harbinger; At whose approach ghosts wandring here and there Troop home to church-yards.... For fear lest day should look their shames upon, They willfully exile themselves from light, And must for aye consort with black brow'd night.

  William Shakespeare

  Home, Cutting, Night

  William Shakespeare (1768). “The Works of Shakespear, from Mr. Pope's Edition”, p.122

• All the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand! Oh, oh, oh!

  William Shakespeare

  Hands, Lady Macbeth, Guilt

  'Macbeth' (1606) act 5, sc. 1, l. [55]

• There's nothing in this world can make me joy: Life is as tedious as a twice-told tale Vexing the dull ear of a drowsy man; And bitter shame hath spoil'd the sweet world's taste That it yields nought but shame and bitterness.

  William Shakespeare

  Life, Sweet, Men

  William Shakespeare, Edmond Malone, Samuel Johnson, George Steevens (1790). “The Plays and Poems of William Shakspeare: Twelfth-night. Winter's tale. Macbeth. King John”, p.519

• Time shall unfold what plaited cunning hides: Who cover faults, at last shame them derides.

  William Shakespeare

  Time, Lasts, Faults

  William Shakespeare (1820). “Select Plays of William Shakespeare: With the Corrections & Illustrations of Various Commentators”, p.151

• A true repentance shuns the evil itself, more than the external suffering or the shame.

  William Shakespeare

  Evil, Suffering, Shame

  William Shakespeare, Capel Lofft (1812). “Aphorisms from Shakespeare”, p.250

• The lily I condemned for thy hand, And buds of marjoram had stol'n thy hair: The roses fearfully on thorns did stand, One blushing shame, another white despair; A third, nor red nor white, had stol'n of both And to his robbery had annex'd thy breath; But, for his theft, in pride of all his growth A vengeful canker eat him up to death. More flowers I noted, yet I none could see But sweet or colour it had stol'n from thee.

  William Shakespeare

  Sweet, Flower, Pride

  William Shakespeare, Howard Staunton (1860). “The Plays of Shakespeare with the Poems”, p.775

• My charity is outrage, life my shame; And in that shame still live my sorrow's rage!

  William Shakespeare

  Sorrow, Charity, Shame

  Cross, William Shakespeare (1989). “William Shakespeare: The Complete Works”, p.106, Barnes & Noble Publishing

• If you did wed my sister for her wealth,
  Then for her wealth's sake use her with more kindness;
  Or, if you like elsewhere, do it by stealth;
  Muffle your false love with some show of blindness;
  Let not my sister read it in your eye;
  Be not thy tongue thy own shame's orator;
  Look sweet, speak fair, become disloyalty;
  Apparel vice like virtue's harbinger;
  Bear a fair presence, though your heart be tainted;
  Teach sin the carriage of a holy saint;
  Be secret-false.

  William Shakespeare

  Sweet, Kindness, Eye

  William Shakespeare (1857). “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare: Dramatic and Poetic”, p.287

• My hands are of your color, but I shame to wear a heart so white.

  William Shakespeare

  Heart, Hands, Color

  William Shakespeare (2005). “The Tragedy of Macbeth”, p.30, 1st World Publishing

• I hold my peace, sir? no; No, I will speak as liberal as the north; Let heaven and men and devils, let them all, All, all, cry shame against me, yet I'll speak.

  William Shakespeare

  Men, Heaven, Devil

  William Shakespeare (1790). “The plays and poems of William Shakspeare, with the corrections and illustr. of various commentators; to which are added An essay on the chronological order of his plays; an essay relative to Shakspeare and Jonson; a dissertation on the three parts of King Henry vi; an historical account of the English stage; and notes. By E. Malone. 10 vols. [in 11 pt.].”, p.634

• Is it thy will, thy image should keep open My heavy eyelids to the weary night? Dost thou desire my slumbers should be broken, While shadows like to thee do mock my sight? Is it thy spirit that thou send'st from thee So far from home into my deeds to pry, To find out shames and idle hours in me, The scope and tenor of thy jealousy? O, no! thy love, though much, is not so great: It is my love that keeps mine eye awake: Mine own true love that doth my rest defeat, To play the watchman ever for thy sake: For thee watch I, whilst thou dost wake elsewhere, From me far off, with others all too near.

  William Shakespeare

  Love, Eye, Home

  William Shakespeare (1838). “The Pictorial edition of the works of Shakspere, ed. by C. Knight. [8 vols., including a vol. entitled William Shakspere, by C. Knight].”

• Too much of water hast thou, poor Ophelia, And therefore I forbid my tears: But yet It is our trick; nature her custom holds, Let shame say what it will: when these are gone, The woman will be out. — Adieu, my lord! I have a speech of fire, that fain would blaze, But that this folly drowns it.

  William Shakespeare

  Fire, Water, Doubt

  "The Dramatic Works of William Shakspeare: With Remarks on His Life and Writings".

• Let life be short, else shame will be too long.

  William Shakespeare

  Life, Long, Shame

  1598-9 Bourbon, returning to the battle. HenryV, act 4, sc.5, l.19.

• What hands are here? ha! they pluck out mine eyes! Will all great Neptune’s ocean wash this blood clean from my hand? No; this my hand will rather the multitudinous seas incarnadine, making the green one red.” “My hands are of your colour; but I shame to wear a heart so white. A little water clears us of this deed: How easy it is then! Your constancy hath left you unattended.

  William Shakespeare

  Ocean, Heart, Eye

  'Macbeth' (1606) act 2, sc. 2, l. 61

• O, while you live, tell truth, and shame the Devil!

  William Shakespeare

  Truth, Devil, Shame

  William Shakespeare (2013). “Histories of Shakespeare in Plain and Simple English (a Modern Translation and the Original Version)”, p.684, BookCaps Study Guides

• Never shame to hear what you have nobly done

  William Shakespeare

  Inspirational, Motivational, Entrepreneur

  William Shakespeare, Warne Routledge (and Routledge (Londres)), William Hazlitt (1864). “The Dramatic Works of William Shakspeare: From the Text of Johnson, Stevens, and Reed with Glossarial Notes, Life &c. : in Four Volumes”, p.334

• Be not thy tongue thy own shame's orator.

  William Shakespeare

  Tongue, Shame, Stealth

  William Shakespeare (2016). “The New Oxford Shakespeare: Modern Critical Edition: The Complete Works”, p.746, Oxford University Press

• Live in thy shame, but die not shame with thee!

  William Shakespeare

  Creativity, Creative, Shame

  William Shakespeare (1823). “The Dramatic Works of William Shakspeare: From the Text of Johnson, Stevens, and Reed; with Glossarial Notes, His Life, and a Critique on His Genius & Writings”, p.374

• For my part, I may speak it to my shame,
  I have a truant been to chivalry;
  And so I hear he doth account me too.

  William Shakespeare

  May, Speak, Chivalry

  William Shakespeare, Roma Gill (2002). “Henry IV”, p.108, Oxford University Press, USA

• Tis a blushing shame-faced spirit that mutinies in a man's bosom. It fills a man full of obstacles. It made me once restore a purse of gold that (by chance) I found. It beggars any man that keeps it.

  William Shakespeare

  Men, Gold, Mutiny

  William Shakespeare (2013). “First Tetralogy In Plain and Simple English: Includes Henry VI Parts 1 - 3 & Richard III”, p.760, BookCaps Study Guides

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