---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As wicked dew as e'er my mother brushed…"
description: "\"“As wicked dew as e'er my mother brushed With raven's feather from unwholesom fen Drop on you both! A southwest blow on ye And blister you all o'er!”\" ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f5/william-shakespeare-4_caliban_as-wicked-dew-as-e-er-my-mother-brushed_1652203.jpg"
---

#  As wicked dew as e'er my mother brushed With raven's…

![“As wicked dew as e'er my mother brushed With raven's feather from unwholesom fen Drop on you both! A southwest blow on ye And blister you all o'er!” quote by William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f5/william-shakespeare-4_caliban_as-wicked-dew-as-e-er-my-mother-brushed_1652203.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f5/william-shakespeare-4_caliban_as-wicked-dew-as-e-er-my-mother-brushed_1652203.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f5/william-shakespeare-4_caliban_as-wicked-dew-as-e-er-my-mother-brushed_1652203.jpg)

> ““As wicked dew as e'er my mother brushed With raven's feather from unwholesom fen Drop on you both! A southwest blow on ye And blister you all o'er!””

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A whimsical, almost nonsensical curse mixes nature imagery with playful threat, showcasing Shakespeare’s love of wordplay.

**In simple terms:** A playful curse using nature.

Key Takeaway

Enjoy creative language.

Themes

language playfulness nature theatre poetry

Mood

playful enigmatic

Type

literary dramatic

When to use this quote

- Stage performance
- creative writing
- literary analysis

Key Concepts

Metaphor alliteration

Questions to Reflect On

- What feeling does the curse evoke?
- How does wordplay affect tone?

A Different Perspective

Such riddles may confuse rather than intimidate.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Caliban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caliban/) [Feather Unwholesom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feather-unwholesom-665618/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Raven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/raven/) [Raven Feather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/raven-feather-665616/) [Shakespearean-insult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespearean-insult-168548/) [Southwest Blow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/southwest-blow-665617/) [The-tempest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/the-tempest-188909/) [Wicked Dew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wicked-dew-665615/)

## Related quotes

> [“Thou poisonous slave, got by the devil himself Upon thy wicked dam”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/thou-poisonous-slave-got-by-the-devil-himself-upon-thy-wicked-dam/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [“Come, thou tortoise!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/come-thou-tortoise/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [“Thou most lying slave, Whom stripes may move, not kindness!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/thou-most-lying-slave-whom-stripes-may-move-not-kindness/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [“Get you gone, you dwarf, You minimus of hindering knotgrass made, You bead, you acorn!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/get-you-gone-you-dwarf-you-minimus-of-hindering-knotgrass-made-you/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [ “You mar our labour: keep your cabins:you do assist the storm\[...\] What cares these roarers for the name of king?” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/you-mar-our-labour-keep-your-cabins-you-do-assist-the-storm-what/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [“Ye elves of hills, brooks, standing lakes and groves, And ye that on the sands with printless foot Do chase the ebbing Neptune and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/ye-elves-of-hills-brooks-standing-lakes-and-groves-and-ye-that-on-the/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [“She's so pretty, isn't she? Beautiful, really. That prefect skin, those long legs. And that hair! It's so black. Black as a raven's feather,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-s-foster/she-s-so-pretty-isn-t-she-beautiful-really-that-prefect-skin-those/)

[amy s. foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-s-foster/)

> [“I stopped myself from reaching up to touch the raven feather I’d tied into my hair before leaving my cell. The thing had become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lesley-livingston/i-stopped-myself-from-reaching-up-to-touch-the-raven-feather-i-d-tied/)

[Lesley Livingston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lesley-livingston/)

> [“If "Frailty, thy name is woman", Frailty must be a man named as 'woman”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/munia-khan/if-frailty-thy-name-is-woman-frailty-must-be-a-man-named-as-woman/)

[Munia Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/munia-khan/)

> [“You tell me the dead are coming through a crack in my barn, but I shouldn’t worry?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-bryson/you-tell-me-the-dead-are-coming-through-a-crack-in-my-barn-but-i/)

[Kathy Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-bryson/)

> [“Years and years ago, there was a production of The Tempest, out of doors, at an Oxford college on a lawn, which was the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/years-and-years-ago-there-was-a-production-of-the-tempest-out-of/)

[Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/)

> [“We can rape, but we can also sing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-r-braunmuller/we-can-rape-but-we-can-also-sing/)

[A.R. Braunmuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-r-braunmuller/)

## More by William Shakespeare

> [Let us kill all lawyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/let-us-kill-all-lawyers/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [O tiger's heart wrapped in a woman's hide!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/o-tiger-s-heart-wrapped-in-a-woman-s-hide/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [Divers philosophers hold that the lips is parcel of the mouth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/divers-philosophers-hold-that-the-lips-is-parcel-of-the-mouth/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [Short time seems long in sorrow's sharp sustaining.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/short-time-seems-long-in-sorrow-s-sharp-sustaining/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [“Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs; Being purg'd, a fire sparkling in lovers' eyes; Being vex'd, a sea nourish'd with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/love-is-a-smoke-made-with-the-fume-of-sighs-being-purg-d-a-fire/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [I, measuring his affections by my own, Which then most sought where most might not be found, Being one too many by my weary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-measuring-his-affections-by-my-own-which-then-most-sought-where/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [Ask God for temp'rance. That's th' appliance only Which your disease requires.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/ask-god-for-temp-rance-that-s-th-appliance-only-which-your-disease/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [“Thou hast no figures nor no fantasies Which busy care draws in the brains of men; Therefore thou sleep’st so sound. Julius Caesar (2.1.248-251)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/thou-hast-no-figures-nor-no-fantasies-which-busy-care-draws-in-the/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [Truth needs no color; beauty, no pencil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/truth-needs-no-color-beauty-no-pencil/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [Have you not heard it said full oft, A woman's nay doth stand for naught?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/have-you-not-heard-it-said-full-oft-a-woman-s-nay-doth-stand-for/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [Omittance is no quittance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/omittance-is-no-quittance/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [“Yes, madam: yet I cannot choose but laugh, To think it should leave crying and say 'Ay.' And yet, I warrant, it had upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/yes-madam-yet-i-cannot-choose-but-laugh-to-think-it-should-leave/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [I take thee at thy word: Call me but love, and I'll be new baptized; Henceforth I never will be Romeo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/i-take-thee-at-thy-word-call-me-but-love-and-i-ll-be-new-baptized/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

[Explore all 5,604 William Shakespeare quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

## More Caliban quotes

> [Be not afeard; the isle is full of noises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/be-not-afeard-the-isle-is-full-of-noises/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [ One of the reasons \[William\] Shakespeare is so endlessly fascinating is that you can look at that figure from about 10 different angles: Caliban… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/one-of-the-reasons-william-shakespeare-is-so-endlessly-fascinating-is/)

[Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/)

> [Evil is such a simplistic way to describe any character, be it Iago or Caliban, or any character from history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/evil-is-such-a-simplistic-way-to-describe-any-character-be-it-iago-or/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“It's wearying, like Caliban buttonholing you in hell and telling you the struggle he's having getting along with himself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-raymond/it-s-wearying-like-caliban-buttonholing-you-in-hell-and-telling-you/)

[Derek Raymond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-raymond/)

> [And teach me how To name the bigger light, and how the less, That burn by day and night ...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/and-teach-me-how-to-name-the-bigger-light-and-how-the-less-that-burn/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [When I waked, I cried to dream again](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/when-i-waked-i-cried-to-dream-again/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [“Do I do as false prophets do and puff air into simulacra? Am I a Sorcerer--like Macbeth's witches--mixing truth and lies in incandescent shapes?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/do-i-do-as-false-prophets-do-and-puff-air-into-simulacra-am-i-a/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [If you had told Sycorax that her son Caliban was as handsome as Apollo, she would have been pleased, witch as she was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/if-you-had-told-sycorax-that-her-son-caliban-was-as-handsome-as/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [“At the happy ending of the Tempest, Prospero brings the kind back togeter with his son, and finds Miranda's true love and punishes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/at-the-happy-ending-of-the-tempest-prospero-brings-the-kind-back/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [When thou cam'st first, Thou strok'st me and made much of me; wouldst give me Water with berries in't; and teach me how To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/when-thou-cam-st-first-thou-strok-st-me-and-made-much-of-me-wouldst/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [Gargoyles were the complement to saints; Leonardo's caricatures were complementary to his untiring search for ideal beauty. And gargoyles were the expression of all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-clark/gargoyles-were-the-complement-to-saints-leonardo-s-caricatures-were/)

[Kenneth Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-clark/)

> [Be not afeard; the isle is full of noises, Sounds, and sweet airs, that give delight and hurt not. Sometimes a thousand twangling instruments…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/be-not-afeard-the-isle-is-full-of-noises-sounds-and-sweet-airs-that/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [“We can rape, but we can also sing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-r-braunmuller/we-can-rape-but-we-can-also-sing/)

[A.R. Braunmuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-r-braunmuller/)

[Browse all 14 Caliban quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/caliban/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“As wicked dew as e'er my mother brushed With raven's feather from unwholesom fen Drop on you both! A southwest blow on ye And blister you all o'er!”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "William Shakespeare"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/as-wicked-dew-as-e-er-my-mother-brushed-with-raven-s-feather-from/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Caliban"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/as-wicked-dew-as-e-er-my-mother-brushed-with-raven-s-feather-from/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f5/william-shakespeare-4_caliban_as-wicked-dew-as-e-er-my-mother-brushed_1652203.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f5/william-shakespeare-4_caliban_as-wicked-dew-as-e-er-my-mother-brushed_1652203.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f5/william-shakespeare-4_caliban_as-wicked-dew-as-e-er-my-mother-brushed_1652203.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“As wicked dew as e'er my mother brushed With raven's feather from unwholesom fen Drop on you both! A…” — William Shakespeare",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "William Shakespeare",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“As wicked dew as e'er my...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/as-wicked-dew-as-e-er-my-mother-brushed-with-raven-s-feather-from/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/as-wicked-dew-as-e-er-my-mother-brushed-with-raven-s-feather-from/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
