Promus - 13 Romeo and Juliet - She is light

Part 2 - Parallels between Bacon's Promus and Romeo and Juliet
(with special emphasis on Promus Folio 112)

Part 2g

R&J  Act 2.2.94-5, 99, & 127

"If thou dost love pronounce it faithfully.
Or if thou think'st I am too quickly won"
   ................................................
"And therefore thou may'st think my haviour light",     [line 99]
   ................................................
"Th'exchange of thy love's faithful vow for mine".      [line 127]

 Bacon's Promus entry 254 (Folio 88B):

"Fidelis sermo"  ["Faithful talk"; from 1 Timothy IV.9]

Promus entry 134 (Folio 85B):

"She is light, she may be taken in play"

Comment: I think Bacon is punning on two meanings of "light": (1) She is light in weight, like a ball, so it is possible to play with her; (2) She is light in morals, so one can enjoy sexual play with her. Juliet in L.99 uses "light" in the second sense. Shake-Speare several times uses "light" and "play" with a sexual connotation.

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R&J  Act 2.2.112-4

Romeo:   What shall I swear by?
Juliet:                     Do not swear at all.
              Or if thou wilt, swear by thy gracious self,
              Which is the God of my idolatry,

Bacon's Promus entry 42 (Folio 83B):

"Homo homini deus"  ["Man is man's God"; from Adagia 47]

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next we'll return to Folio 112 and its remarkable series of Promus entries.