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Maria's Crew Goes to Watch Malvolio, Explained

Twelfth Night · 2012

Capítulo 16 de 25 · 3'23"

Maria and Fabian lead the others off to enjoy their handiwork: Malvolio in yellow stockings, grinning over a letter that was written to ruin him. "If you desire the spleen and will laugh yourself into stitches, follow me." Elsewhere, Antonio catches up with Sebastian, but won't walk openly, having enemies in the city.

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Key moments

Start here, then watch the full scene
  1. Fabian Leads the Others to Watch Malvolio

    0:47–1:51
    64s
  2. ❝ Monólogo · 6 frases Antonio and Sebastian Reunite

    1:58–3:15
    77s
  1. ❝ MonólogoAntonio's vow to follow6 frasesPracticar ↗

Maria's Crew Goes to Watch Malvolio, explained

What happens

Maria's group hurries off to watch Malvolio, who has obeyed their forged letter: yellow stockings, cross-garters, and a smug grin. Fabian says he has trailed him 'like his murderer.' In another street, Antonio finds Sebastian and explains he dare not walk the city openly, because of a past sea fight against the Duke's galleys.

What's really going on

The scene has two halves that never touch. The first is pure comedy of humiliation: Maria and Fabian can barely contain themselves at the sight of Malvolio strutting in his ridiculous outfit, still certain the letter is real. 'If you desire the spleen and will laugh yourself into stitches, follow me,' Fabian says, inviting the audience in on the joke. The second half is the opposite mood, a reunion full of devotion: Antonio has followed Sebastian out of love and jealousy, but stays wary because he has enemies here. The play cuts between prank and fidelity without a transition, and both rest on the same idea — love and malice both make people act against their own interest.

Key lines & what they mean

“If you desire the spleen and will laugh yourself into stitches, follow me.”
Fabian invites the others to watch Malvolio: if they want a fit of laughter, they should come along.
“My kind Antonino, I can no other answer make but thanks, and thanks, and ever thanks.”
Sebastian thanks Antonio over and over, having no richer way to repay his kindness.
“For Andrew, if he were opened and you find so much blood in his liver as will clog the foot of a flea, I'll eat the rest of the anatomy.”
A mocking image: Andrew is such a coward there's barely any blood in him, so little it would only trip a flea.
“I have dogged him like his murderer.”
A plotter says he has followed Malvolio everywhere, as closely as a killer stalking a victim — which is exactly how Malvolio would see it.
“I think oxen and wainropes cannot hale them together.”
Even oxen and cart-ropes couldn't drag the two mismatched suitors together, a comic way of saying it's hopeless.

Theme

  • Deception — Malvolio parades in yellow stockings because he believes a forged letter, while the plotters watch and laugh.
  • Friendship — Antonio follows Sebastian into a city where he has enemies, moved by love rather than safety.

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Ideas clave

Lo que te llevas
  1. Laugh into stitches means laugh until it hurts
  2. Ever thanks stacks gratitude again and again
  3. A gull is a person who is easily fooled
  4. By all means simply means go right ahead

Preguntas frecuentes

La pregunta, luego la frase
Why does Malvolio dress in yellow stockings?

The forged letter tells him Olivia wants to see him cross-gartered in yellow stockings, so he obeys. The outfit is designed to make him look absurd.

Who is the letter really from?

Maria, who forged Olivia's handwriting as a prank. Fabian says Malvolio 'obeys every point of the letter' they planted to betray him.

Why is Antonio cautious in town?

He has enemies there after fighting against the Duke's galleys at sea. He tells Sebastian he cannot walk the streets without danger.

Why did Antonio follow Sebastian?

Out of love and worry. He says his willing love drove him, and jealousy about what might befall an unguided stranger in these parts.

What does 'laugh yourself into stitches' mean?

It means to laugh so hard that you get a stitch — a sharp pain in your side. Fabian uses it to invite the others to watch Malvolio make a fool of himself.