Emilia — “Their Husbands’ Faults”
Helping Desdemona undress for bed, Emilia argues back against the idea that a wife should always be faithful and forgiving. Worldly and clear-eyed, she lays out exactly why women stray — because men drive them to it — and insists women feel and deserve as much as men do. She wants Desdemona to see the truth she's too innocent to admit.
But I do think it is their husbands' faults
If wives do fall: say that they slack their duties,
And pour our treasures into foreign laps,
Or else break out in peevish jealousies,
Throwing restraint upon us; or say they strike us,
Or scant our former having in despite;
Why, we have galls, and though we have some grace,
Yet have we some revenge. Let husbands know
Their wives have sense like them: they see and smell
And have their palates both for sweet and sour,
As husbands have. What is it that they do
When they change us for others? Is it sport?
I think it is: and doth affection breed it?
I think it doth: is't frailty that thus errs?
It is so too: and have not we affections,
Desires for sport, and frailty, as men have?
Then let them use us well: else let them know,
The ills we do, their ills instruct us so.
How to Play It
This is an argument, so play it as one — she's persuading Desdemona (and herself) point by point, building a case. The 'I think it is… I think it doth…' section is a lawyer stacking evidence. Drive to the verdict at the end: if men treat wives badly, they teach the wrong they then complain of.
The trap is generic bitterness. Emilia is sharp, funny, and grounded, not sour. Keep it conversational and let the wit carry the anger; a wry, plain-spoken delivery lands harder than righteous fury.
This is the piece to bring instead of the much-overdone “quality of mercy.” It's active, contemporary-feeling, and casting rarely hears it — an instant point of difference.
Excellent for women 30s–50s who want a bold, modern-sounding classical that isn't a warhorse. Short enough to sit comfortably under a minute.
Want Will to Coach You Through It?
A monologue is a two-person scene where the other person never speaks. Working it 1-on-1 with a working actor is the fastest way to make it land.