"All for Love" Act IV

           Antony requests Dolabella to go to Cleopatra and bid farewell to her on his behalf for him to tell Cleopatra that he was leaving was worse than death. Her look would melt him and he would give up his determination to leave her. Dolabella then suggests that Ventidius should be sent for this purpose. He is rough by nature and can break news bluntly to her. But Antony thinks that Ventidius would break the news so harshly that it may even kill Cleopatra. Dolabella, alone, could convey the news in a nice manner. Dolabella, however, says that he is soft top nature.

         Antony says, that is exactly why he is sending him. He should convey the news of the separation so softly and gently that it should look like the meeting of two lovers. He tells his friend to tell her that if he acquires influence over Octavius he would arrange terms of peace for her in such a way that she remains a queen with all her dignity intact. A number of times he tries to go away but he comes back to give an additional message to Dolabella. He wants him to tell her that he has taken this decision under the compulsion of circumstances. She should also be told that she should keep her love for Antony intact. If he hears that she has taken another lover his heart will be broken. Saying this Antony goes away.

         Dolabella loved Cleopatra in the past and feels that attraction even now. He thinks that now he can make love to her because Antony has abandoned her. Ventidius wants that Cleopatra should be completely discredited and separated from Antony. So he thinks that if Dolabella and Cleopatra are in love Antony will completely abandon her. Alexes wants that Antony should not go away. He thinks that if Antony finds that Dolabella is in love with his beloved he will not go away. He will feel jealous and so he will fall more deeply in love with Cleopatra.

       So he suggests to Cleopatra that she should encourage love. Cleopatra says that she cannot do this sort of cheating. Her love is so pure that she can neither hide ir from Antony whom she loves nor show it to one whom she does not love. But Alexas tells her that she will have to force herself to show love to Dolabella. This will make Antony doubly desirous to possess his beloved whom he feared to lose.

          Dolabella now meets Cleopatra. Ventidius has placed himself at a point from where he can overhear the conversation. Dolabella sells Cleopatra that the Roman poets Gallus and Tibullus described the beauty of their beloveds, Cytheris and Delia but if they had seen Cleopatra they would have Only sung songs describing her beauty. He then tells her that he has brought bad news from Antony. He tells her that ..ntenv used the harshest words in his message of farewell. His eyes were red with anger and he had a stern face. In his anger he had blurted out, "Let her go away for ever. She is a stain on my fair name and has destroyed all my hopes. She should be driven to a remote place. If she is allowed to about she will corrupt the whole earth irredeemably."

        
           At this Cleopatra got such a shock that she collapsed and fainted Then Dolabella realized what a terrible mistake he had committed. When Cleopatra recovered consciousness she said that she wanted to die. She did not want to live in a world in which there is so much falsehood, where vows are broken and sincere love is wronged. She then tells Dolabella that he has been most unkind to speak those harsh words.

               Then Dolabella kneels before the queen and tells her that he has done a great injury to his dear friend. Antony never spoke those harsh words. He says, "l was traitor and I concocted that lie in order to win your love. I ask for your forgiveness." Cleopatra now confesses that she was only pretending when she showed her love to him. She says, ' wanted to call back Antony's departing love by rousing jealousy in his mind." Dolabella now feels that in abandoning Cleopatra Antony is losing a very big treasure.

           She feels that she is about to die and so requests Dolabella to arrange a private meeting between her and her love. Dolabella promises to arrange such a meeting but he asks for one favour ; he should he allowed to touch her hand. She permits him to hold her hand.

            The scene between Cleopatra and Dolabella has been observed by Ventidius and Octavia. When Dolabella and Cleopatra go away. Ventidius tells Octavia that the queen of Egypt seemed to say to her. "Take away your old man (Antony). I am happier with Dolabella."

           Octavia decides that she will not allow Antony to negotiate terms of peace for Cleopatra with her brother.

                  Antony comes there and asks Octavia whether her letters are ready. She says that they are. Antony then draws Ventidius aside and asks him when he saw Dolabella last. Ventidius tells him that he and Cleopatra have gone away together. Dolabella conveyed Antony's farewell to her and she bade farewell to her former lover by taking a new lover.

                 Antony tells Ventidius that he is slandering her. Ventidius says that he and Octavia saw Dolabella and Cleopatra making love and Dolabella kissing her on the cheeks. Octavia tells him that she also saw all this. Ventidius adds that now she is Dolabell's Cleopatra, in fact, she is everyone's Cleopatra. He says that it is natural for a mistress to take a new lover when her old lover has deserted her.

            Antony says that it is all false and it is a plot hatched by the two of them against Cleopatra. Ventidius says that Cleopatra is really false and he will prove that by bringing a witness before him. He calls Alexas and asks him what is happening between Cleopatra and her lover. Antony asks Alexas to be absolutely truthful.

            Alexas thinks that if he tells Antony that Cleopatra is in love with Dolabella his jealousy will be roused and he will become passionately devoted to Cleopatra. So he tells a lie. He tells them that in the past Cleopatra was sincerely in love with Antony.

                 But Dolabella has been loving her for a long time. After she was rejected by Antony she took Dolabella as her lover. Antony gets furious with Alexas and throws him out. He wishes that Alexas should be tortured in hell for ever.

          Octavia tells Antony that he is unfair to her in showing so much solicitude for a dissolute, faithless prostitute. Antony is so angry that he orders Octavia to leave him. Octavia asks him what crime she has committed.

              But Antony gets more and more angry and orders Octavia to leave him. He asks Ventidius why he has let this fury (Octavia) loose on him. Octavia becomes very angry at the use of the word 'fury' for her. She tells him that she is going away for ever. He has treated her love with contempt and she cannot bear it any longer. She tells him to go back to Cleopatra.

               She says that she will always do her duty to him. She willtake full care of her children who would cheer her in her miserable state. She says that she is leaving him finally because she has no hope of having him entirely to herself and she would never share him with Cleopatra. Saying that she leaves.

                 Ventidius says to himself that things are working in away opposite to his intentions. He wanted to separate Antony and Cleopatra and bring Antony and Octavia together. Instead of that he separated Octavia from her husband for ever.

             Antony sees Dolabella coming towards him. He asks him whether he had conveyed his message to Cleopatra. He says that he was very sorry to give the message and he had promised to her that Antony would bid farewell to her himself and Cleopatra is coming herself for this purpose.

              Antony tells them that both of them are false and faithless. They are serpents whom he warmed in the affection of his heart and who have now united in biting him. Cleopatra asks whether God has some other torture ready for her apart from her separation from Antony. Antony replies that the tortures that were inflicted on sinners in hell so far were mild. The gods will now have to devise new punishments for crimes such as theirs. They were treacherous to him while he reposed full faith in them.

              Dolabella tells Antony that he does not love her as much as he loves him. He says that Ventidius and Octavia saw them making love to each other. Cleopatra says that these two are her enemies, Antony replies that Alexas is not her enemy. He has confirmed their love. Dolabella tells him that he loved her and he is very sorry for that.

            
           But Cleopatra is innocent. Cleopatra explains that she kindled Dolabella's love because she wanted to create jealousy in Antony. Her aim was to retain Antony's love. Antony wants to know whether they have any witness to prove that this was their aim. Cleopatra says that their witnesses are themselves and God. He wants them to get away from his sight. Dolabella asks for forgiveness.

            Antony says that he can forgive an enemy but not a mistress and a friend. He asks them to go away forever. Cleopatra says that she does not want to leave him even for a moment and he is asking her to go away forever. Where is she to go ? She says, "If I have offended you, please kill me but please do not banish me from your sight."

             Antony says that his false sentiment urges him to forgive her but his sense of honour demands that he must banish her. He tells her that she was convicted on the evidence of her own eunuch, Alexas. Then she tells him that Alexas arranged this drama of love between Dolabella and Cleopatra in order to rouse his jealousy and bring her closer to his heart.

            But Antony is not prepared to depend on Alexas because he will say things according to his queen's moods. Then she says, "Farewell, my cruel lord." She says that she still loves him sincerely and intensely. Antony still believes that Dolabella and Cleopatra are in love. He wants that they should live separately in future. He says to Cleopatra, "Mourn over the fact that you were false to me and I could not trust you any longer." Then they go in different directions.