Vol. 08 · Shakespeare ·Julius Caesar, Act I.ii ·Caesar
"Cassius has a lean and hungry look."
Not quite the line.
How it's usually quoted
"Cassius has a lean and hungry look."
What Shakespeare actually wrote
"Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look." Caesar — Julius Caesar, Act I.ii
Why it matters
Caesar is pointing — "yond" means "over there." The paraphrase makes it a generalisation; Shakespeare wrote it as a suspicious glance across a room.
More from the canon.
Browse the rest of the shelf, or try a cold reading.