I have a device to make all well. Write me a prologue and let the prologue seem to say we will do no harm with our swords, and that Pyramus is not killed indeed. And for the more better assurance, tell them that I, Pyramus, am not Pyramus, but Bottom the weaver. This will put them out of fear.
– William Shakespeare
A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act 3, Scene 1. Nick Bottom comes up with the solution to the ladies being frightened by the killing in the play. It is for Quince to write a prologue to explain that nobody is actually killed on stage. Bottom is clearly very over-confident in the acting abilities of the amateur troupe. Quince stamps his authority at their rehearsal in the woods and agrees to Bottom’s suggestion: "Well, we will have such a prologue, and it shall be written in eight and six" – meaning alternating lines of eight and six syllables.