Get out the microscope, because we’re going through this poem line-by-line.
Line 41
Is it done? Take my mask off! Nay, be not morose;
- She wonders again if the poison is done, and asks him to take off the glass mask.
- She tells the poison-maker to cheer up, to not be "morose," or sad.
- Sorry, but after hearing about how this woman wanted the horrible pain of death to eat another lady's face, we might feel a little "morose" too.
Line 42
It kills her, and this prevents seeing it close:
- The mask bugs her because she can't get a close look at the poison that's going to kill her rival.
- She also reminds us that this woman's death is something she's really excited about.
Line 43-44
The delicate droplet, my whole fortune's fee—
If it hurts her, beside, can it ever hurt me?
- She's giving up all her money in return for one little bit of poison, one "delicate droplet."
- She's not scared of this deadly stuff either.
- She can't imagine how anything that would kill the woman she hates most could ever be bad for her.
- There's some pretty great alliteration here, too. See that? "Delicate droplet" and "fortune's fee" both repeat the same initial sounds.