Act 4, Scene 14 Summary

At Cleopatra's palace, Antony talks to Scarus of betrayal. Mardius arrives with the false news of Cleopatra's suicide. He is devastated, and asks Eros to help him end his life. Instead, Eros kills himself, and Antony falls on his own sword. He survives, and asks the guards to kill him, but they refuse. Diomedes arrives with news that Cleopatra is still alive. Antony asks his personal guard to carry him to the monument.

Act 4, Scene 14 Analysis

Talking to Eros about Cleopatra's love, and the battles he fought in its name, Antony uses the metaphor of the desert mirage, "black vesper's pageants" (line 8). He feels that his vision of his honor and of Cleopatra is comparable to an oasis, a false effect on the sense of sight caused by the imagination. Cleopatra has been central to his vision, and with his opinion...