How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Act.Scene.Line). Line numbers correspond to the Riverside edition.
Quote #1
ANTONY
But stirred by Cleopatra.
Now, for the love of Love and her soft hours,
Let's not confound the time with conference harsh.
There's not a minute of our lives should stretch
Without some pleasure now. What sport tonight? (1.1.50-54)
Antony’s reputation at one time rested on his noble work as a soldier, with all the Roman austerity and severity that came with it. His life in Egypt (or his love) has transformed him into a man that wants pleasure all the time, which is indulgent, but also completely contrary to the Roman way.
Quote #2
CAESAR
You may see, Lepidus, and henceforth know,
It is not Caesar's natural vice to hate
Our great competitor. From Alexandria
This is the news: he fishes, drinks, and wastes
The lamps of night in revel, is not more manlike
Than Cleopatra, nor the queen of Ptolemy
More womanly than he; (1.4.1-7)
Caesar criticizes Antony’s decadent actions in Egypt, but the hint is that these are things natural to Egypt (and thus unbefitting a Roman). This decadence is also characterized by its femininity, which is linked to an Eastern way of life, and a polar opposite to the Roman austere ideal, which is linked to masculinity.
Quote #3
ALEXAS
"Good friend," quoth he
"Say the firm Roman to great Egypt sends
This treasure of an oyster; at whose foot,
To mend the petty present, I will piece
Her opulent throne with kingdoms. All the East,
Say thou, shall call her mistress." (1.5.49-55)
Antony, in a very chivalrous fashion, sends his love to Cleopatra. He presents her a decadent bauble of a pearl (befitting the East), but it’s important that as he sets on his journey out of Egypt, he identifies himself as a "firm Roman." He goes as a soldier, and thus is leaving behind the decadence that characterized his life in Egypt, trading it for Roman austerity. He hasn’t forgotten her (and the East) in spite of this transformation; hence the gift.