Cry Havoc And Let Slip The Dogs Of War Meaning

The image conjured in the line cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war is one of shakespeare s finest poetic moments.

Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war meaning. This expression comes from the play julius caesar written by the english playwright william shakespeare in the year 1601. The dogs of war is a phrase spoken by mark antony in act 3 scene 1 line 273 of english playwright william shakespeare s julius caesar. In modern variations of this phrase let slip is also expressed as release unleash let loose etc. The let slip is an allusion to the slip collars that were used to restrain dogs and were easily let slip to allow the dogs to run and hunt.

Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war that this foul deed shall smell above the earth with carrion men groaning for burial. Origin of cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war. The black book of the admiralty 1385 is a collection of laws in french and latin that relate to the organisation of the english. The dogs of war can have a literal meaning which would be dogs trained to fight in war in the modern sense the dogs of war can simply mean soldiers weaponry missiles etc.

Let slip means to unleash. Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war speech analysis. What s the origin of the phrase cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war.