A few of the lines in Lear<\/i>\u2019s final scene are attributed differently depending on which version of the play one is reading. One of the most intriguing of these lines is \u201cAsk me not what I know\u201d at 5.3.158. (In the scan, see the note for 158 on page 377, and also the note for 152-158 on page 376.) In the quarto, Albany asks Goneril, \u201cKnowst thou this paper?\u201d and Goneril replies, \u201cAsk me not what I know,\u201d and then exits. In the folio, Goneril exits earlier, on the line \u201cWho can arraign me for it?,\u201d and Albany\u2019s question, rather than being addressed to his wife, is directed to Edmund, who gives the reply that was attributed to Goneril in the quarto. R.A. Foakes, Arden 3 editor of King Lear<\/i>, thinks that giving the line to Edmund \u201cmakes much better sense.\u201d But I am not as sure as Foakes about the attribution. Though ascribing the the line to Edmund does make logical sense on paper, it might make less sense in performance. Albany\u2019s subsequent line, \u201cGo after her; she\u2019s desperate, govern her,\u201d plays much better when it is delivered immediately after Goneril\u2019s exit, rather than being delayed by a conversation with Edmund. If Albany is, indeed, addressing Goneril, we might read his question \u201cKnowst thou this paper?\u201d as an impassioned, if redundant, attempt to elicit a confession from his wife. Attributing the line \u201cAsk me not what I know\u201d to Goneril does make good dramatic sense, as evidenced by the fact that many productions give her the line\u2014including one of my favorites, the version directed by Trevor Nunn starring Ian McKellen as King Lear. I would like to know more about the stage history of this particular line, and how it compares to the page history.<\/p>\n