In this essay I will explore the transformations of two signs that structure Antony and Cleopatra: performance and writing. As each circulates in the diverse dramatic contexts of the play, they articulate its thematic elements into a series of varying relations which operate at different levels of abstraction; from interactions between principles of flow and constraint, through the construction of characters' honour, virtue, or reputation, to what might be the perceived meaning of the physical …showed first 75 words of 5786 total…

…showed last 75 words of 5786 total…my helmet to My countryman: a Roman by a Roman Valiantly vanquish'd. (4.15.52-58) After a series of scenes in which the performances of Antony and Cleopatra have failed to live up to their reputations, Cleopatra--admitting her theatricality via the meta-theatrical device above--stages a self-conscious performance that will assure their reputations are perpetuated beyond the limits of Caesar's newly-established imperial power: Give me my robe, put on my crown, I have Immortal longings in me. (5.2.279-280)