I have received a hurt: follow me, lady. Turn out that eyeless villain; throw this slave Upon the dunghill. Regan, I bleed apace: Untimely comes this hurt: give me your arm.
I’ve been hurt: follow me, lady. Throw out that blind villain; dump this slave On the garbage heap. Regan, I’m bleeding fast: This injury comes too late: give me your arm.
Duke of Cornwall · Act 3, Scene 7
Cornwall has just blinded Gloucester and is mortally wounded by his own servant in the act. The line matters because it captures the moment of poetic justice—the tyrant who has just committed atrocity is himself dying, even as he exults in his power. It suggests that the gods move quickly to answer cruelty, and that no evil act completes itself without consequence.
Lest it see more, prevent it. Out, vile jelly! Where is thy lustre now?
So that it doesn’t see more, stop it. Get out, disgusting thing! Where is your shine now?
Duke of Cornwall · Act 3, Scene 7
Cornwall has just put out Gloucester's first eye and is about to destroy the second. The line is unforgettable because it dehumanizes the eye itself—it becomes an object to be erased, not a part of a suffering man. It shows us that cruelty at its extreme reaches a kind of abstraction, where the victim ceases to be human and becomes only an obstacle to power.
See’t shalt thou never. Fellows, hold the chair. Upon these eyes of thine I’ll set my foot.
You’ll never see that. Hold him down, fellows. I’ll crush your eyes underfoot.
Duke of Cornwall · Act 3, Scene 7
Cornwall has just bound Gloucester in a chair and is about to blind him as Regan holds him down. The line lands because it is the moment of pure, deliberate mutilation—Cornwall asserting absolute power over his captive. It tells us that the play has moved from betrayal and cold rejection into something darker: the body itself becomes the site of revenge, and mercy has left the stage.
