How we cite our quotes: (Act.Scene.Line)
Quote #4
TIMON:
Plagues, incident to men,
Your potent and infectious fevers heap
On Athens, ripe for stroke! Thou cold sciatica,
Cripple our Senators, that their limbs may halt
As lamely as their manners. Lust and liberty
Creep in the minds and marrows of our youth,
That 'gainst the stream of virtue they may strive,
And drown themselves in riot! Itches, blains,
Sow all the Athenian bosoms; and their crop
Be general leprosy! Breath infect breath,
That their society, as their friendship, may
Be merely poison! (4.1.21-32)
As far as creepy curses go, this one is up there. Timon's wish for the society that hurt him isn't vague, but it is chock-full of disease and destruction. He's super specific in what he wants to happen to the bodies of everyone in Athens, perhaps so they can't continue to breed more infectious people?
Quote #5
TIMON:
Be a whore still: they love thee not that use thee;
Give them diseases, leaving with thee their lust.
Make use of thy salt hours: season the slaves
For tubs and baths; bring down rose-cheeked youth
To the tub-fast and the diet. (4.3.84-88)
Lovely advice, Timon. This dude's got an appetite for revenge, and he's willing to pay prostitutes to infect his old friends, if that's what it takes. His dark plan shows us the level of his hostility toward them, but it also turns the tables on his friends. They might have once been a poison to him, but now he will infect them. We should point out that Timon also seems to think this would be a totally effective strategy, which suggests that he knows his friends go to prostitutes pretty often. That wouldn't be surprising: these guys all mix up money and friendship, so it seems about right that they would mix up sex and money, too. Nobody actually cares about anybody else; everyone's just buying the favors they want.
Quote #6
APEMANTUS:
This is in thee a nature but infected;
A poor unmanly melancholy sprung
From change of fortune. Why this spade? this place?
This slave-like habit? and these looks of care?
Thy flatterers yet wear silk, drink wine, lie soft;
Hug their diseased perfumes, and have forgot
That ever Timon was. (4.3.203-209)
As much as this play talks about diseases, this is one of the few times it's not being literal. Timon may want to infect his friends with STDs, but Apemantus says that these people's very clothes are diseased. Why? Because these people continue to use other people and then throw them away. They're so bad that even their clothes are diseased. What's more: Apemantus thinks that Timon is infected, too. He accuses Timon of pretending to be grumpy when he really isn't. Apemantus thinks that Timon is putting on a big show... and maybe he is.