"Leave this vain sorrow;
Things being at the worst, begin to mend:
The bee when he hath shot his sting into your hand
May then play with your eyelid." (IV.i.77-80)
Webster's dramatic irony at this moment is excruciating to me. Why won't Bosola just tell the Duchess that the figures are effigies? He obviously has a conscience; if he didn't, he wouldn't bother with this elaborate metaphor that eloquently describes the situation but completely fails to inform the Duchess. The lines sum up Bosola's character throughout the first four acts. He knows and wants to do what is right but continually acts as a pawn for evil. Even if he does somewhat redeem himself at the end of the play, his assistance to malevolent, powerful men has precipitated the tragedies of this play.
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