THE TWO NOBLE KINSMEN

by Shakespeare · Cluster: Blank Verse · Tragicomedy · Romance Play

Abstract

A late tragicomic romance (with Fletcher) from Chaucer’s Knight’s Tale, in which kinsmen Palamon and Arcite, sworn friends, fall in love with Emilia and fight to the death for her; themes are the conflict of love and friendship, fortune’s paradoxes, and chivalric ritual.

Capitoli / Chapters

Connections

Topoi: Fortune’s Wheel, Combat Strife Archetypes: Lover, Innocent Motifs: Madness (2), Swords and Weapons, Horse, Flowers Themes & Concepts: Friendship, Romantic Love, Honour, Fate and Free Will, Paradox Forms & Genres: Tragicomedy, Romance Play, Blank Verse Historical References: Greek Mythology, Ancient Greece Settings: Ancient Greece (2) Characters: Palamon, Arcite, Emilia, Theseus, Hippolyta, Jailers Daughter

Testo integrale / Full text

THE TWO NOBLE KINSMEN BY JOHN FLETCHER AND WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE WHEN it first appeared in print, in 1634, The Two Noble Kinsmen was stated to be ‘by the memorable worthies of their time, Mr John Fletcher, and Mr William Shakespeare’. There is no reason to disbelieve this ascription: many plays of the period were not printed till long after they were acted, and there is other evidence that Shakespeare collaborated with Fletcher (1579―1625). The morris dance in Act 3, Scene 5, contains characters who also appear in Francis Beaumont’s Masque of the Inner Temple and Gray’s Inn performed before James I on 20 February 1613. Their dance was a great success with the King; probably the King’s Men—some of whom may have taken part in the masque—decided to exploit its success by incorporating it in a play written soon afterwards, in the last year of Shakespeare’s playwriting life. The Two Noble Kinsmen, a tragicomedy of the kind that became popular during the last years of the first decade of the seventeenth century, is based on Chaucer’s Knight’s Tale, on which Shakespeare had already drawn for episodes of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. It tells a romantic tale of the conflicting claims of love and friendship: the ‘two noble kinsmen’, Palamon and Arcite, are the closest of friends until each falls in love with Emilia, sister-in-law of Theseus, Duke of Athens. Their conflict is finally resolved by a formal combat with Emilia as the prize, in which the loser is to be executed. Arcite wins, and Palamon’s head is on the block as news arrives that Arcite has been thrown from his horse. Dying, Arcite commends Emilia to his friend, and Theseus rounds off the play with a meditation on the paradoxes of fortune. Studies of style suggest that Shakespeare was primarily responsible for the rhetorically and ritualistically impressive Act 1, for Act 2, Scene 1. Act 3, Scenes 1 and 2; and for most of Act 5 (Scene 4 excepted), which includes emblematically spectacular episodes related to his other late plays. Fletcher appears mainly to have written the scenes showing the rivalry of Palamon and Arcite along with the sub-plots concerned with the Jailer’s daughter’s love for Palamon and the rustics’ entertainment for Theseus. Though the play was adapted by William Davenant as The Rivals (1664), its first known performances since the seventeenth century were at the Old Vic in 1928; it has been played only occasionally since then, but was chosen to open the Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1986. Critical interest, too, has been slight; but Shakespeare’s contributions are entirely characteristic of his late style, and Fletcher’s scenes are both touching and funny. THE PERSONS OF THE PLAY PROLOGUE THESEUS, Duke of Athens HIPPOLYTA, Queen of the Amazons, later wife of Theseus EMILIA, her sister PIRITHOUS, friend of Theseus Hymen, god of marriage A BOY, who sings ARTESIUS, an Athenian soldier Three QUEENS, widows of kings killed in the siege of Thebes VALERIUS, a Theban A HERALD WOMAN, attending Emilia An Athenian GENTLEMAN MESSENGERS Six KNIGHTS, three attending Arcite and three Palamon A SERVANT A JAILER in charge of Theseus’ prison The JAILER’S DAUGHTER The JAILER’S BROTHER The WOOER of the Jailer’s daughter Two FRIENDS of the Jailer A DOCTOR Six COUNTRYMEN, one dressed as a babion, or baboon Gerald, a SCHOOLMASTER NELL, a country wench Four other country wenches: Friz, Madeline, Luce, and Barbara Timothy, a TABORER EPILOGUE Nymphs, attendants, maids, executioner, guard

The Two Noble Kinsmen Prologue Flourish. Enter Prologue PROLOGUE New plays and maidenheads are near akin: Much followed both, for both much money giv’n If they stand sound and well. And a good play, Whose modest scenes blush on his marriage day And shake to lose his honour, is like her That after holy tie and first night’s stir Yet still is modesty, and still retains More of the maid to sight than husband’s pains. We pray our play may be so, for I am sure It has a noble breeder and a pure, A learned, and a poet never went More famous yet ‘twixt Po and silver Trent. Chaucer, of all admired, the story gives: There constant to eternity it lives. If we let fall the nobleness of this And the first sound this child hear be a hiss, How will it shake the bones of that good man, And make him cry from under ground, ‛O fan From me the witless chaff of such a writer, That blasts my bays and my famed works makes lighter Than Robin Hood’? This is the fear we bring, For to say truth, it were an endless thing And too ambitious to aspire to him, Weak as we are, and almost breathless swim In this deep water. Do but you hold out Your helping hands and we shall tack about And something do to save us. You shall hear Scenes, though below his art, may yet appear Worth two hours’ travail. To his bones, sweet sleep; Content to you. If this play do not keep A little dull time from us, we perceive Our losses fall so thick we must needs leave. Flourish. Exit

1.1 Music. Enter Hymen with a torch burning, a Boy in a white robe before, singing and strewing flowers. After Hymen, a nymph encompassed in her tresses, bearing a wheaten garland. Then Theseus between two other nymphs with wheaten chaplets on their heads. Then Hippolyta, the bride, led by Pirithous and another holding a garland over her head, her tresses likewise hanging. After her, Emilia holding up her train. Then Artesius ⌈and other attendants⌉ BOY (sings during procession) Roses, their sharp spines being gone, Not royal in their smells alone, But in their hue; Maiden pinks, of odour faint, Daisies smell-less, yet most quaint, And sweet thyme true; Primrose, first-born child of Ver, Merry springtime’s harbinger, With harebells dim; Oxlips, in their cradles growing, Marigolds, on deathbeds blowing, Lark’s-heels trim; All dear nature’s children sweet, Lie fore bride and bridegroom’s feet, He strews flowers Blessing their sense. Not an angel of the air, Bird melodious, or bird fair, Is absent hence. The crow, the sland’rous cuckoo, nor The boding raven, nor chough hoar, Nor chatt’ring pie, May on our bridehouse perch or sing, Or with them any discord bring, But from it fly. Enter three Queens in black, with veils stained, with imperial crowns. The First Queen falls down at the foot of Theseus; the Second falls down at the foot of Hippolyta; the Third, before Emilia FIRST QUEEN (to Theseus) For pity’s sake and true gentility’s, Hear and respect me. SECOND QUEEN (to Hippolyta) For your mother’s sake, And as you wish your womb may thrive with fair ones, Hear and respect me. THIRD QUEEN (to Emilia) Now for the love of him whom Jove hath marked The honour of your bed, and for the sake Of clear virginity, be advocate For us and our distresses. This good deed Shall raze you out o’th’ Book of Trespasses All you are set down there. THESEUS (to First Queen) Sad lady, rise. HIPPOLYTA (to Second Queen) Stand up. EMILIA (to Third Queen) No knees to me. What woman I may stead that is distressed Does bind me to her. THESEUS (to First Queen) What’s your request? Deliver you for all. FIRST QUEEN ⌈kneeling still⌉ We are three queens whose sovereigns fell before The wrath of cruel Creon; who endured The beaks of ravens, talons of the kites, And pecks of crows in the foul fields of Thebes. He will not suffer us to burn their bones, To urn their ashes, nor to take th‘offence Of mortal loathsomeness from the blest eye Of holy Phoebus, but infects the winds With stench of our slain lords. O pity, Duke! Thou purger of the earth, draw thy feared sword That does good turns to’th’ world; give us the bones Of our dead kings that we may chapel them; And of thy boundless goodness take some note That for our crowned heads we have no roof, Save this, which is the lion’s and the bear’s, And vault to everything. THESEUS Pray you, kneel not: I was transported with your speech, and suffered Your knees to wrong themselves. I have heard the fortunes Of your dead lords, which gives me such lamenting As wakes my vengeance and revenge for ’em. King Capaneus was your lord: the day That he should marry you—at such a season As now it is with me—I met your groom By Mars’s altar. You were that time fair, Not Juno’s mantle fairer than your tresses, Nor in more bounty spread her. Your wheaten wreath Was then nor threshed nor blasted; fortune at you 6 Dimpled her cheek with smiles; Hercules our kinsman— Then weaker than your eyes—laid by his club. He tumbled down upon his Nemean hide And swore his sinews thawed. O grief and time, Fearful consumers, you will all devour. FIRST QUEEN ⌈kneeling still⌉ O, I hope some god, Some god hath put his mercy in your manhood, Whereto he’ll infuse power and press you forth Our undertaker. THESEUS O no knees, none, widow: ⌈The First Queen rises⌉ Unto the helmeted Bellona use them And pray for me, your soldier. Troubled I am. He turns away SECOND QUEEN ⌈kneeling still⌉ Honoured Hippolyta, Most dreaded Amazonian, that hast slain The scythe-tusked boar, that with thy arm, as strong As it is white, wast near to make the male To thy sex captive, but that this, thy lord— Born to uphold creation in that honour First nature styled it in—shrunk thee into The bound thou wast o‘erflowing, at once subduing Thy force and thy affection; soldieress, That equally canst poise sternness with pity, Whom now I know hast much more power on him Than ever he had on thee, who ow’st his strength, And his love too, who is a servant for The tenor of thy speech; dear glass of ladies, Bid him that we, whom flaming war doth scorch, Under the shadow of his sword may cool us. Require him he advance it o‘er our heads. Speak’t in a woman’s key, like such a woman As any of us three. Weep ere you fail. Lend us a knee: But touch the ground for us no longer time Than a dove’s motion when the head’s plucked off. Tell him, if he i’th’ blood-sized field lay swoll’n, Showing the sun his teeth, grinning at the moon, What you would do. HIPPOLYTA Poor lady, say no more. I had as lief trace this good action with you As that whereto I am going, and never yet Went I so willing way. My lord is taken Heart-deep with your distress. Let him consider. I’ll speak anon. ⌈The Second Queen rises⌉ THIRD QUEEN (kneeling ⌈still⌉ to Emilia) O, my petition was Set down in ice, which by hot grief uncandied Melts into drops; so sorrow, wanting form, Is pressed with deeper matter. EMILIA Pray stand up: Your grief is written in your cheek. THIRD QUEEN O woe, You cannot read it there; there, through my tears, Like wrinkled pebbles in a glassy stream, You may behold ’em. ⌈The Third Queen rises⌉ Lady, lady, alack— He that will all the treasure know o’th’ earth Must know the centre too; he that will fish For my least minnow, let him lead his line To catch one at my heart. O, pardon me: Extremity, that sharpens sundry wits, Makes me a fool. EMILIA Pray you, say nothing, pray you. Who cannot feel nor see the rain, being in’t, Knows neither wet nor dry. If that you were The ground-piece of some painter, I would buy you T’instruct me ’gainst a capital grief, indeed Such heart-pierced demonstration; but, alas, Being a natural sister of our sex, Your sorrow beats so ardently upon me That it shall make a counter-reflect ’gainst My brother’s heart, and warm it to some pity, Though it were made of stone. Pray have good comfort. THESEUS Forward to th’ temple. Leave not out a jot O’th’ sacred ceremony. FIRST QUEEN O, this celebration Will longer last and be more costly than Your suppliants’ war. Remember that your fame Knolls in the ear o’th’ world: what you do quickly Is not done rashly; your first thought is more Than others’ laboured meditance; your premeditating More than their actions. But, O Jove, your actions, Soon as they move, as ospreys do the fish, Subdue before they touch. Think, dear Duke, think What beds our slain kings have. SECOND QUEEN What griefs our beds, That our dear lords have none. THIRD QUEEN None fit for th’ dead. Those that with cords, knives, drams, precipitance, Weary of this world’s light, have to themselves Been death’s most horrid agents, human grace Affords them dust and shadow. FIRST QUEEN But our lords Lie blist’ring fore the visitating sun, And were good kings, when living. THESEUS It is true, And I will give you comfort to give your dead lords graves, The which to do must make some work with Creon. FIRST QUEEN And that work presents itself to th’ doing. Now ’twill take form, the heats are gone tomorrow. Then, bootless toil must recompense itself With its own sweat; now he’s secure, Not dreams we stand before your puissance Rinsing our holy begging in our eyes To make petition clear. SECOND QUEEN Now you may take him, Drunk with his victory. THIRD QUEEN And his army full Of bread and sloth. THESEUS Artesius, that best knowest How to draw out, fit to this enterprise The prim’st for this proceeding and the number To carry such a business: forth and levy Our worthiest instruments, whilst we dispatch This grand act of our life, this daring deed Of fate in wedlock. FIRST QUEEN (to the other two Queens) Dowagers, take hands; Let us be widows to our woes; delay Commends us to a famishing hope. ALL THREE QUEENS Farewell. SECOND QUEEN We come unseasonably, but when could grief Cull forth, as unpanged judgement can, fitt’st time For best solicitation? THESEUS Why, good ladies, This is a service whereto I am going Greater than any war—it more imports me Than all the actions that I have foregone, Or futurely can cope. FIRST QUEEN The more proclaiming Our suit shall be neglected when her arms, Able to lock Jove from a synod, shall By warranting moonlight corslet thee! O when Her twinning cherries shall their sweetness fall Upon thy tasteful lips, what wilt thou think Of rotten kings or blubbered queens? What care For what thou feel’st not, what thou feel’st being able To make Mars spurn his drum? O, if thou couch But one night with her, every hour in’t will Take hostage of thee for a hundred, and Thou shalt remember nothing more than what That banquet bids thee to. HIPPOLYTA (to Theseus) Though much unlike You should be so transported, as much sorry I should be such a suitor—yet I think Did I not by th’abstaining of my joy, Which breeds a deeper longing, cure their surfeit That craves a present medicine, I should pluck All ladies’ scandal on me. ⌈Kneels⌉ Therefore, sir, As I shall here make trial of my prayers, Either presuming them to have some force, Or sentencing for aye their vigour dumb, Prorogue this business we are going about, and hang Your shield afore your heart—about that neck Which is my fee, and which I freely lend To do these poor queens service. ALL THREE QUEENS (to Emilia) O, help now, Our cause cries for your knee. EMILIA (kneels to Theseus) If you grant not My sister her petition in that force With that celerity and nature which She makes it in, from henceforth I’ll not dare To ask you anything, nor be so hardy Ever to take a husband. THESEUS Pray stand up. ⌈They rise⌉ I am entreating of myself to do That which you kneel to have me.—Pirithous, Lead on the bride: get you and pray the gods For success and return; omit not anything In the pretended celebration.—Queens, Follow your soldier. (To Artesius) As before, hence you, And at the banks of Aulis meet us with The forces you can raise, where we shall find The moiety of a number for a business More bigger looked. Exit Artesius (To Hippolyta) Since that our theme is haste, I stamp this kiss upon thy current lip— Sweet, keep it as my token. (To the wedding party) Set you forward, For I will see you gone. (To Emilia) Farewell, my beauteous sister.—Pirithous, Keep the feast full: bate not an hour on’t. PIRITHOUS Sir, I’ll follow you at heels. The feast’s solemnity Shall want till your return. THESEUS Cousin, I charge you Budge not from Athens. We shall be returning Ere you can end this feast, of which, I pray you, Make no abatement.—Once more, farewell all. Exeunt Hippolyta, Emilia, Pirithous, and train towards the temple FIRST QUEEN Thus dost thou still make good the tongue o’th’ world. SECOND QUEEN And earn’st a deity equal with Mars— THIRD QUEEN If not above him, for Thou being but mortal mak’st affections bend To godlike honours; they themselves, some say, Groan under such a mast’ry. THESEUS As we are men, Thus should we do; being sensually subdued We lose our human title. Good cheer, ladies. Now turn we towards your comforts. ⌈Flourish.⌉ Exeunt

Atto 1, Scena 2

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter Palamon and
(didascalia)	Arcite
ARCITE	Dear Palamon, dearer in love than blood, And our prime cousin, yet unhardened in The crimes of nature, let us leave the city, Thebes, and the temptings in’t, before we further Sully our gloss of youth. And here to keep in abstinence we shame As in incontinence; for not to swim I’th’ aid o’th’ current were almost to sink— At least to frustrate striving; and to follow The common stream ’twould bring us to an eddy Where we should turn or drown; if labour through, Our gain but life and weakness.
PALAMON	Your advice Is cried up with example. What strange ruins Since first we went to school may we perceive Walking in Thebes? Scars and bare weeds The gain o’th’ martialist who did propound To his bold ends honour and golden ingots, Which though he won, he had not; and now flirted By peace for whom he fought. Who then shall offer To Mars’s so-scorned altar? I do bleed When such I meet, and wish great Juno would Resume her ancient fit of jealousy To get the soldier work, that peace might purge For her repletion and retain anew Her charitable heart, now hard and harsher Than strife or war could be.
ARCITE	Are you not out? Meet you no ruin but the soldier in The cranks and turns of Thebes? You did begin As if you met decays of many kinds. Perceive you none that do arouse your pity But th’unconsidered soldier?
PALAMON	Yes, I pity Decays where’er I find them, but such most That, sweating in an honourable toil, Are paid with ice to cool ’em.
ARCITE	’Tis not this I did begin to speak of. This is virtue, Of no respect in Thebes. I spake of Thebes, How dangerous, if we will keep our honours, It is for our residing where every evil Hath a good colour, where every seeming good’s A certain evil, where not to be ev’n jump As they are here were to be strangers, and Such things to be, mere monsters.
PALAMON	’Tis in our power, Unless we fear that apes can tutor’s, to Be masters of our manners. What need I Affect another’s gait, which is not catching Where there is faith? Or to be fond upon Another’s way of speech, when by mine own I may be reasonably conceived—saved, too— Speaking it truly? Why am I bound By any generous bond to follow him Follows his tailor, haply so long until The followed make pursuit? Or let me know Why mine own barber is unblest—with him My poor chin, too—for ’tis not scissored just To such a favourite’s glass? What canon is there That does command my rapier from my hip To dangle’t in my hand? Or to go tiptoe Before the street be foul? Either I am The fore-horse in the team or I am none That draw i’th’ sequent trace. These poor slight sores Need not a plantain. That which rips my bosom Almost to th’ heart’s—
ARCITE	Our uncle Creon.
PALAMON	He, A most unbounded tyrant, whose successes Makes heaven unfeared and villainy assured Beyond its power there’s nothing; almost puts Faith in a fever, and deifies alone Voluble chance; who only attributes The faculties of other instruments To his own nerves and act; commands men’s service, And what they win in’t, boot and glory; one That fears not to do harm, good dares not. Let The blood of mine that’s sib to him be sucked From me with leeches. Let them break and fall Off me with that corruption.
ARCITE	Clear-spirited cousin, Let’s leave his court that we may nothing share Of his loud infamy: for our milk Will relish of the pasture, and we must Be vile or disobedient; not his kinsmen In blood unless in quality.
PALAMON	Nothing truer. I think the echoes of his shames have deafed The ears of heav’nly justice. Widows’ cries Descend again into their throats and have not
(didascalia)	Enter Valerius
PALAMON	Due audience of the gods—Valerius.
VALERIUS	The King calls for you; yet be leaden-footed Till his great rage be off him. Phoebus, when He broke his whipstock and exclaimed against The horses of the sun, but whispered to The loudness of his fury.
PALAMON	Small winds shake him. But what’s the matter?
VALERIUS	Theseus, who where he threats, appals, hath sent Deadly defiance to him and pronounces Ruin to Thebes, who is at hand to seal The promise of his wrath.
ARCITE	Let him approach. But that we fear the gods in him, he brings not A jot of terror to us. Yet what man Thirds his own worth—the case is each of ours— When that his action’s dregged with mind assured ’Tis bad he goes about.
PALAMON	Leave that unreasoned. Our services stand now for Thebes, not Creon, Yet to be neutral to him were dishonour, Rebellious to oppose. Therefore we must With him stand to the mercy of our fate, Who hath bounded our last minute.
ARCITE	So we must. Is’t said this war’s afoot? Or it shall be On fail of some condition?
VALERIUS	’Tis in motion, The intelligence of state came in the instant With the defier.
PALAMON	Let’s to the King, who, were he A quarter carrier of that honour which His enemy come in, the blood we venture Should be as for our health, which were not spent, Rather laid out for purchase. But, alas, Our hands advanced before our hearts, what will The fall o’th’ stroke do damage?
ARCITE	Let th’event—That never-erring arbitrator—tell us When we know all ourselves, and let us follow The becking of our chance.
(didascalia)	Exeunt

Atto 1, Scena 3

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter Pirithous, Hippolyta, and Emilia
PIRITHOUS	No further.
HIPPOLYTA	Sir, farewell. Repeat my wishes To our great lord, of whose success I dare not Make any timorous question; yet I wish him Excess and overflow of power, an’t might be, To dure ill-dealing fortune. Speed to him; Store never hurts good governors.
PIRITHOUS	Though I know His ocean needs not my poor drops, yet they Must yield their tribute there. (To Emilia) My precious maid, Those best affections that the heavens infuse In their best-tempered pieces keep enthroned In your dear heart.
EMILIA	Thanks, sir. Remember me To our all-royal brother, for whose speed The great Bellona I’ll solicit; and Since in our terrene state petitions are not Without gifts understood, I’ll offer to her What I shall be advised she likes. Our hearts Are in his army, in his tent.
HIPPOLYTA	In’s bosom. We have been soldiers, and we cannot weep When our friends don their helms, or put to sea, Or tell of babes broached on the lance, or women That have sod their infants in—and after eat them— The brine they wept at killing ’em: then if You stay to see of us such spinsters, we Should hold you here forever.
PIRITHOUS	Peace be to you As I pursue this war, which shall be then Beyond further requiring.
(didascalia)	Exit Pirithous
EMILIA	How his longing Follows his friend! Since his depart, his sports, Though craving seriousness and skill, passed slightly His careless execution, where nor gain Made him regard or loss consider, but Playing one business in his hand, another Directing in his head, his mind nurse equal To these so diff’ring twins. Have you observed him Since our great lord departed?
HIPPOLYTA	With much labour; And I did love him for’t. They two have cabined In many as dangerous as poor a corner, Peril and want contending; they have skiffed Torrents whose roaring tyranny and power I’th’ least of these was dreadful, and they have Fought out together where death’s self was lodged; Yet fate hath brought them off. Their knot of love, Tied, weaved, entangled with so true, so long, And with a finger of so deep a cunning, May be outworn, never undone. I think Theseus cannot be umpire to himself, Cleaving his conscience into twain and doing Each side like justice, which he loves best.
EMILIA	Doubtless There is a best, and reason has no manners To say it is not you. I was acquainted Once with a time when I enjoyed a playfellow; You were at wars when she the grave enriched, Who made too proud the bed; took leave o’th’ moon— Which then looked pale at parting—when our count Was each eleven.
HIPPOLYTA	’Twas Flavina.
EMILIA	Yes. You talk of Pirithous’ and Theseus’ love: Theirs has more ground, is more maturely seasoned, More buckled with strong judgement, and their needs The one of th‘other may be said to water Their intertangled roots of love; but I And she I sigh and spoke of were things innocent, Loved for we did, and like the elements, That know not what, nor why, yet do effect Rare issues by their operance, our souls Did so to one another. What she liked Was then of me approved; what not, condemned— No more arraignment. The flower that I would pluck And put between my breasts—O then but beginning To swell about the blossom—she would long Till she had such another, and commit it To the like innocent cradle, where, phoenix-like, They died in perfume. On my head no toy But was her pattern. Her affections—pretty, Though happily her careless wear—I followed For my most serious decking. Had mine ear Stol’n some new air, or at adventure hummed one, From musical coinage, why, it was a note Whereon her spirits would sojourn—rather dwell on— And sing it in her slumbers. This rehearsal— Which, seely innocence wots well, comes in Like old emportment’s bastard—has this end: That the true love ’tween maid and maid may be More than in sex dividual.
HIPPOLYTA	You’re out of breath, And this high-speeded pace is but to say That you shall never, like the maid Flavina, Love any that’s called man.
EMILIA	I am sure I shall not.
HIPPOLYTA	Now alack, weak sister, I must no more believe thee in this point— Though in’t I know thou dost believe thyself— Than I will trust a sickly appetite That loathes even as it longs. But sure, my sister, If I were ripe for your persuasion, you Have said enough to shake me from the arm Of the all-noble Theseus, for whose fortunes I will now in and kneel, with great assurance That we more than his Pirithous possess The high throne in his heart.
EMILIA	I am not Against your faith, yet I continue mine.
(didascalia)	Exeunt

Atto 1, Scena 4

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Cornetts. A battle struck within. Then a retreat. Flourish. Then enter Theseus, victor. The three Queens meet him and fall on their faces before him. Also enter a Herald, and attendants bearing Palamon and Arcite on two hearses
FIRST QUEEN	(to Theseus) To thee no star be dark.
SECOND QUEEN	(to Theseus) Both heaven and earth Friend thee for ever.
THIRD QUEEN	(to Theseus) All the good that may Be wished upon thy head, I cry ‘Amen’ to’t.
THESEUS	Th’impartial gods, who from the mounted heavens View us their mortal herd, behold who err And in their time chastise. Go and find out The bones of your dead lords and honour them With treble ceremony: rather than a gap Should be in their dear rites we would supply’t. But those we will depute which shall invest You in your dignities, and even each thing Our haste does leave imperfect. So adieu, And heaven’s good eyes look on you.
(didascalia)	Exeunt the Queens
THESEUS	What are those?
HERALD	Men of great quality, as may be judged By their appointment. Some of Thebes have told’s They are sisters’ children, nephews to the King.
THESEUS	By th’ helm of Mars I saw them in the war, Like to a pair of lions smeared with prey, Make lanes in troops aghast. I fixed my note Constantly on them, for they were a mark Worth a god’s view. What prisoner was’t that told me When I enquired their names?
HERALD	Wi’ leave, they’re called Arcite and Palamon.
THESEUS	’Tis right: those, those. They are not dead?
HERALD	Nor in a state of life. Had they been taken When their last hurts were given, ’twas possible They might have been recovered. Yet they breathe, And have the name of men.
THESEUS	Then like men use ‘em. The very lees of such, millions of rates Exceed the wine of others. All our surgeons Convent in their behoof; our richest balms, Rather than niggard, waste. Their lives concern us Much more than Thebes is worth. Rather than have ’em Freed of this plight and in their morning state—
(didascalia)	Sound and at liberty—I would ’em dead;
THESEUS	But forty-thousandfold we had rather have ’em Prisoners to us, than death. Bear ‘em speedily From our kind air, to them unkind, and minister What man to man may do-for our sake, more, Since I have known frights, fury, friends’ behests, Love’s provocations, zeal, a mistress’ task, Desire of liberty, a fever, madness, Hath set a mark which nature could not reach to Without some imposition, sickness in will O’er-wrestling strength in reason. For our love And great Apollo’s mercy, all our best Their best skill tender.—Lead into the city Where, having bound things scattered, we will post To Athens fore our army.
(didascalia)	Flourish. Exeunt

Atto 1, Scena 5

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Music. Enter the three Queens with the hearses of their lords in a funeral solemnity, with attendants
(didascalia)	Song
(didascalia)	Urns and odours, bring away, Vapours, sighs, darken the day; Our dole more deadly looks than dying. Balms and gums and heavy cheers, Sacred vials filled with tears, And clamours through the wild air flying: Come all sad and solemn shows, That are quick-eyed pleasure’s foes. We convent naught else but woes, We convent naught else but woes.
THIRD QUEEN	This funeral path brings to your household’s grave— Joy seize on you again, peace sleep with him.
SECOND QUEEN	And this to yours.
FIRST QUEEN	Yours this way. Heavens lend A thousand differing ways to one sure end.
THIRD QUEEN	This world’s a city full of straying streets, And death’s the market-place where each one meets.
(didascalia)	Exeunt severally

Atto 2, Scena 1

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter the Jailer and the Wooer
JAILER	I may depart with little, while I live; something I may cast to you, not much. Alas, the prison I keep, though it be for great ones, yet they seldom come; before one salmon you shall take a number of minnows. I am given out to be better lined than it can appear to me report is a true speaker. I would I were really that I am delivered to be. Marry, what I have—be it what it will—I will assure upon my daughter at the day of my death.
WOOER	Sir, I demand no more than your own offer, and I will estate your daughter in what I have promised.
JAILER	Well, we will talk more of this when the solemnity is past. But have you a full promise of her?
(didascalia)	Enter the Jailer’s Daughter with rushes
JAILER	When that shall be seen, I tender my consent.
WOOER	I have, sir. Here she comes.
JAILER	(to Daughter) Your friend and I have chanced to name you here, upon the old business—but no more of that now. So soon as the court hurry is over we will have an end of it. I’th’ mean time, look tenderly to the two prisoners. I can tell you they are princes.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	These strewings are for their chamber. ’Tis pity they are in prison, and ’twere pity they should be out. I do think they have patience to make any adversity ashamed; the prison itself is proud of ’em, and they have all the world in their chamber.
JAILER	They are famed to be a pair of absolute men.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	By my troth, I think fame but stammers ’em—they stand a grece above the reach of report.
JAILER	I heard them reported in the battle to be the only doers.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Nay, most likely, for they are noble sufferers. I marvel how they would have looked had they been victors, that with such a constant nobility enforce a freedom out of bondage, making misery their mirth, and affliction a toy to jest at.
JAILER	Do they so?
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	It seems to me they have no more sense of their captivity than I of ruling Athens. They eat well, look merrily, discourse of many things, but nothing of their own restraint and disasters. Yet sometime a divided sigh—martyred as ’twere i’th’ deliverance—will break from one of them, when the other presently gives it so sweet a rebuke that I could wish myself a sigh to be so chid, or at least a sigher to be comforted.
WOOER	I never saw ’em.
JAILER	The Duke himself came privately in the night,
(didascalia)	Palamon and Arcite appear at a window above
JAILER	and so did they. What the reason of it is I know not. Look, yonder they are. That’s Arcite looks out.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	No, sir, no—that’s Palamon. Arcite is the lower of the twain—(pointing at Arcite) you may perceive a part of him.
JAILER	Go to, leave your pointing. They would not make us their object. Out of their sight.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	It is a holiday to look on them. Lord, the difference of men!
(didascalia)	Exeunt

Atto 2, Scena 2

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter Palamon and Arcite in prison, in shackles, above
PALAMON	How do you, noble cousin?
ARCITE	How do you, sir?
PALAMON	Why, strong enough to laugh at misery And bear the chance of war. Yet we are prisoners, I fear, for ever, cousin.
ARCITE	I believe it, And to that destiny have patiently Laid up my hour to come.
PALAMON	O, cousin Arcite, Where is Thebes now? Where is our noble country? Where are our friends and kindreds? Never more Must we behold those comforts, never see The hardy youths strive for the games of honour, Hung with the painted favours of their ladies, Like tall ships under sail; then start amongst ’em And, as an east wind, leave ’em all behind us, Like lazy clouds, whilst Palamon and Arcite, Even in the wagging of a wanton leg, Outstripped the people’s praises, won the garlands Ere they have time to wish ‘em ours. O never Shall we two exercise, like twins of honour, Our arms again and feel our fiery horses Like proud seas under us. Our good swords, now— Better the red-eyed god of war ne’er wore— Ravished our sides, like age must run to rust And deck the temples of those gods that hate us. These hands shall never draw ’em out like lightning To blast whole armies more.
ARCITE	No, Palamon, Those hopes are prisoners with us. Here we are, And here the graces of our youths must wither, Like a too-timely spring. Here age must find us And, which is heaviest, Palamon, unmarried— The sweet embraces of a loving wife Loaden with kisses, armed with thousand Cupids, Shall never clasp our necks; no issue know us; No figures of ourselves shall we e’er see To glad our age, and, like young eagles, teach ’em Boldly to gaze against bright arms and say, ‘Remember what your fathers were, and conquer.’ The fair-eyed maids shall weep our banishments, And in their songs curse ever-blinded fortune, Till she for shame see what a wrong she has done To youth and nature. This is all our world. We shall know nothing here but one another, Hear nothing but the clock that tells our woes. The vine shall grow, but we shall never see it; Summer shall come, and with her all delights, But dead-cold winter must inhabit here still.
PALAMON	’Tis too true, Arcite. To our Theban hounds That shook the aged forest with their echoes, No more now must we holler; no more shake Our pointed javelins whilst the angry swine Flies like a Parthian quiver from our rages, Struck with our well-steeled darts. All valiant uses— The food and nourishment of noble minds— In us two here shall perish; we shall die— Which is the curse of honour—lastly, Children of grief and ignorance.
ARCITE	Yet, cousin, Even from the bottom of these miseries, From all that fortune can inflict upon us, I see two comforts rising—two mere blessings, If the gods please, to hold here a brave patience And the enjoying of our griefs together. Whilst Palamon is with me, let me perish If I think this our prison.
PALAMON	Certainly ’Tis a main goodness, cousin, that our fortunes Were twined together. ’Tis most true, two souls Put in two noble bodies, let ’em suffer The gall of hazard, so they grow together, Will never sink; they must not, say they could. A willing man dies sleeping and all’s done.
ARCITE	Shall we make worthy uses of this place That all men hate so much?
PALAMON	How, gentle cousin?
ARCITE	Let’s think this prison holy sanctuary, To keep us from corruption of worse men. We are young, and yet desire the ways of honour That liberty and common conversation, The poison of pure spirits, might, like women, Woo us to wander from. What worthy blessing Can be, but our imaginations May make it ours? And here being thus together, We are an endless mine to one another: We are one another’s wife, ever begetting New births of love; we are father, friends, acquaintance; We are in one another, families— I am your heir, and you are mine; this place Is our inheritance: no hard oppressor Dare take this from us. Here, with a little patience, We shall live long and loving. No surfeits seek us— The hand of war hurts none here, nor the seas Swallow their youth. Were we at liberty A wife might part us lawfully, or business; Quarrels consume us; envy of ill men Crave our acquaintance. I might sicken, cousin, Where you should never know it, and so perish Without your noble hand to close mine eyes, Or prayers to the gods. A thousand chances, Were we from hence, would sever us.
PALAMON	You have made me—I thank you, cousin Arcite—almost wanton With my captivity. What a misery It is to live abroad, and everywhere! ’Tis like a beast, methinks. I find the court here; I am sure, a more content; and all those pleasures That woo the wills of men to vanity I see through now, and am sufficient To tell the world ’tis but a gaudy shadow, That old Time, as he passes by, takes with him. What had we been, old in the court of Creon, Where sin is justice, lust and ignorance The virtues of the great ones? Cousin Arcite, Had not the loving gods found this place for us, We had died as they do, ill old men, unwept, And had their epitaphs, the people’s curses. Shall I say more?
ARCITE	I would hear you still.
PALAMON	Ye shall. Is there record of any two that loved Better than we do, Arcite?
ARCITE	Sure there cannot.
PALAMON	I do not think it possible our friendship Should ever leave us.
ARCITE	Till our deaths it cannot,
(didascalia)	Enter Emilia and her Woman below. Palamon sees Emilia and is silent
ARCITE	And after death our spirits shall be led To those that love eternally. Speak on, sir.
EMILIA	(to her Woman) This garden has a world of pleasure in’t. What flower is this?
WOMAN	’Tis called narcissus, madam.
EMILIA	That was a fair boy, certain, but a fool To love himself. Were there not maids enough?
ARCITE	(to Palamon) Pray forward.
PALAMON	Yes.
EMILIA	(to her Woman) Or were they all hard-hearted?
WOMAN	They could not be to one so fair.
EMILIA	Thou wouldst not.
WOMAN	I think I should not, madam.
EMILIA	That’s a good wench—But take heed to your kindness, though.
WOMAN	Why, madam?
EMILIA	Men are mad things.
ARCITE	(to Palamon) Will ye go forward, cousin?
EMILIA	(to her Woman) Canst not thou work such flowers in silk, wench?
WOMAN	Yes.
EMILIA	I’ll have a gown full of ’em, and of these. This is a pretty colour—will’t not do Rarely upon a skirt, wench?
WOMAN	Dainty, madam.
ARCITE	(to Palamon) Cousin, cousin, how do you, sir? Why, Palamon!
PALAMON	Never till now was I in prison, Arcite.
ARCITE	Why, what’s the matter, man?
PALAMON	Behold and wonder! Arcite sees Emilia By heaven, she is a goddess!
ARCITE	Ha!
PALAMON	Do reverence. She is a goddess, Arcite.
EMILIA	(to her Woman) Of all flowers Methinks a rose is best.
WOMAN	Why, gentle madam?
EMILIA	It is the very emblem of a maid— For when the west wind courts her gently, How modestly she blows, and paints the sun With her chaste blushes! When the north comes near her, Rude and impatient, then, like chastity, She locks her beauties in her bud again, And leaves him to base briers.
WOMAN	Yet, good madam, Sometimes her modesty will blow so far She falls for’t—a maid, If she have any honour, would be loath To take example by her.
EMILIA	Thou art wanton.
ARCITE	(to Palamon) She is wondrous fair.
PALAMON	She is all the beauty extant.
EMILIA	(to her Woman) The sun grows high—let’s walk in. Keep these flowers. We’ll see how close art can come near their colours. I am wondrous merry-hearted—I could laugh now.
WOMAN	I could lie down, I am sure.
EMILIA	And take one with you?
WOMAN	That’s as we bargain, madam.
EMILIA	Well, agree then.
(didascalia)	Exeunt Emilia and her Woman
PALAMON	What think you of this beauty?
ARCITE	’Tis a rare one.
PALAMON	Is’t but a rare one?
ARCITE	Yes, a matchless beauty.
PALAMON	Might not a man well lose himself and love her?
ARCITE	I cannot tell what you have done; I have, Beshrew mine eyes for’t. Now I feel my shackles.
PALAMON	You love her then?
ARCITE	Who would not?
PALAMON	And desire her?
ARCITE	Before my liberty.
PALAMON	I saw her first.
ARCITE	That’s nothing.
PALAMON	But it shall be.
ARCITE	I saw her too.
PALAMON	Yes, but you must not love her.
ARCITE	I will not, as you do, to worship her As she is heavenly and a blessèd goddess! I love her as a woman, to enjoy her— So both may love.
PALAMON	You shall not love at all.
ARCITE	Not love at all—who shall deny me?
PALAMON	I that first saw her, I that took possession First with mine eye of all those beauties In her revealed to mankind. If thou lov’st her, Or entertain’st a hope to blast my wishes, Thou art a traitor, Arcite, and a fellow False as thy title to her. Friendship, blood, And all the ties between us I disclaim, If thou once think upon her.
ARCITE	Yes, I love her—And if the lives of all my name lay on it, I must do so. I love her with my soul— If that will lose ye, farewell, Palamon! I say again, I love her, and in loving her maintain I am as worthy and as free a lover, And have as just a title to her beauty, As any Palamon, or any living That is a man’s son.
PALAMON	Have I called thee friend?
ARCITE	Yes, and have found me so. Why are you moved thus? Let me deal coldly with you. Am not I Part of your blood, part of your soul? You have told me That I was Palamon and you were Arcite.
PALAMON	Yes.
ARCITE	Am not I liable to those affections, Those joys, griefs, angers, fears, my friend shall suffer?
PALAMON	Ye may be.
ARCITE	Why then would you deal so cunningly, So strangely, so unlike a noble kinsman, To love alone? Speak truly. Do you think me Unworthy of her sight?
PALAMON	No, but unjust If thou pursue that sight.
ARCITE	Because another First sees the enemy, shall I stand still, And let mine honour down, and never charge?
PALAMON	Yes, if he be but one.
ARCITE	But say that one Had rather combat me?
PALAMON	Let that one say so, And use thy freedom; else, if thou pursuest her, Be as that cursed man that hates his country, A branded villain.
ARCITE	You are mad.
PALAMON	I must be. Till thou art worthy, Arcite, it concerns me; And in this madness if I hazard thee And take thy life, I deal but truly.
ARCITE	Fie, sir. You play the child extremely. I will love her, I must, I ought to do so, and I dare— And all this justly.
PALAMON	O, that now, that now Thy false self and thy friend had but this fortune— To be one hour at liberty and grasp Our good swords in our hands! I would quickly teach thee What ’twere to filch affection from another. Thou art baser in it than a cutpurse. Put but thy head out of this window more And, as I have a soul, I’ll nail thy life to’t.
ARCITE	Thou dar’st not, fool; thou canst not; thou art feeble. Put my head out? I’ll throw my body out And leap the garden when I see her next,
(didascalia)	Enter the Jailer above
ARCITE	And pitch between her arms to anger thee.
PALAMON	No more—the keeper’s coming. I shall live To knock thy brains out with my shackles.
ARCITE	Do.
JAILER	By your leave, gentlemen.
PALAMON	Now, honest keeper?
JAILER	Lord Arcite, you must presently to th’ Duke. The cause I know not yet.
ARCITE	I am ready, keeper.
JAILER	Prince Palamon, I must a while bereave you Of your fair cousin’s company.
(didascalia)	Exeunt Arcite and the Jailer
PALAMON	And me, too, Even when you please, of life. Why is he sent for? It may be he shall marry her—he’s goodly, And like enough the Duke hath taken notice Both of his blood and body. But his falsehood! Why should a friend be treacherous? If that Get him a wife so noble and so fair, Let honest men ne’er love again. Once more I would but see this fair one. Blessèd garden, And fruit and flowers more blessed, that still blossom As her bright eyes shine on ye! Would I were, For all the fortune of my life hereafter, Yon little tree, yon blooming apricot— How I would spread and fling my wanton arms In at her window! I would bring her fruit Fit for the gods to feed on; youth and pleasure Still as she tasted should be doubled on her; And if she be not heavenly, I would make her So near the gods in nature they should fear her—
(didascalia)	Enter the Jailer bove
PALAMON	And then I am sure she would love me. How now, keeper, Where’s Arcite?
JAILER	Banished—Prince Pirithous Obtained his liberty; but never more, Upon his oath and life, must he set foot Upon this kingdom.
(didascalia)	PALAMON aside
JAILER	He’s a blessed man. He shall see Thebes again, and call to arms The bold young men that, when he bids ’em charge, Fall on like fire. Arcite shall have a fortune, If he dare make himself a worthy lover, Yet in the field to strike a battle for her; And if he lose her then, he’s a cold coward. How bravely may he bear himself to win her If he be noble Arcite; thousand ways! Were I at liberty I would do things Of such a virtuous greatness that this lady, This blushing virgin, should take manhood to her And seek to ravish me.
JAILER	My lord, for you I have this charge to—
PALAMON	To discharge my life.
JAILER	No, but from this place to remove your lordship— The windows are too open.
PALAMON	Devils take ’em That are so envious to me—prithee kill me.
JAILER	And hang for’t afterward?
PALAMON	By this good light, Had I as word I would kill thee.
JAILER	Why, my lord?
PALAMON	Thou bring’st such pelting scurvy news continually, Thou art not worthy life. I will not go.
JAILER	Indeed you must, my lord.
PALAMON	May I see the garden?
JAILER	No.
PALAMON	Then I am resolved—I will not go.
JAILER	I must constrain you, then; and for you are dangerous, I’ll clap more irons on you.
PALAMON	Do, good keeper. I’ll shake ’em so ye shall not sleep: I’ll make ye a new morris. Must I go?
JAILER	There is no remedy.
PALAMON	Farewell, kind window. May rude wind never hurt thee. O, my lady, If ever thou hast felt what sorrow was, Dream how I suffer. Come, now bury me.
(didascalia)	Exeunt Palamon and the Jailer

Atto 2, Scena 3

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter Arcite
ARCITE	Banished the kingdom? ’Tis a benefit, A mercy I must thank ’em for; but banished The free enjoying of that face I die for— O, ‘twas a studied punishment, a death Beyond imagination; such a vengeance That, were I old and wicked, all my sins Could never pluck upon me. Palamon, Thou hast the start now—thou shalt stay and see Her bright eyes break each morning ’gainst thy window, And let in life into thee. Thou shalt feed Upon the sweetness of a noble beauty That nature ne’er exceeded, nor ne’er shall. Good gods! What happiness has Palamon! Twenty to one he’ll come to speak to her, And if she be as gentle as she’s fair, I know she’s his—he has a tongue will tame Tempests and make the wild rocks wanton. Come what can come, The worst is death. I will not leave the kingdom. I know mine own is but a heap of ruins, And no redress there. If I go he has her. I am resolved another shape shall make me, Or end my fortunes. Either way I am happy— I’ll see her and be near her, or no more.
(didascalia)	Enter four Country People, one of whom carries a garland before them. Arcite stands apart
FIRST COUNTRYMAN	My masters, I’ll be there—that’s certain.
SECOND COUNTRYMAN	And I’ll be there.
THIRD COUNTRYMAN	And I.
FOURTH COUNTRYMAN	Why then, have with ye, boys! ’Tis but a chiding— Let the plough play today, I’ll tickle’t out Of the jades’ tails tomorrow.
FIRST COUNTRYMAN	I am sure To have my wife as jealous as a turkey— But that’s all one. I’ll go through, let her mumble.
SECOND COUNTRYMAN	Clap her aboard tomorrow night and stow her, And all’s made up again.
THIRD COUNTRYMAN	Ay, do but put A fescue in her fist and you shall see her Take a new lesson out and be a good wench. Do we all hold against the maying?
FOURTH COUNTRYMAN	Hold? What should ail us?
THIRD COUNTRYMAN	Areas will be there.
SECOND COUNTRYMAN	And Sennois, and Rycas, and three better lads ne’er danced under green tree; and ye know what wenches, ha? But will the dainty dominie, the schoolmaster, keep touch, do you think? For he does all, ye know.
THIRD COUNTRYMAN	He’ll eat a hornbook ere he fail. Go to, the matter’s too far driven between him and the tanner’s daughter to let slip now, and she must see the Duke, and she must dance too.
FOURTH COUNTRYMAN	Shall we be lusty?
SECOND COUNTRYMAN	All the boys in Athens blow wind i’th’ breech on’s! And here I’ll be and there I’ll be, for our town, and here again and there again—ha, boys, hey for the weavers!
FIRST COUNTRYMAN	This must be done i’th’ woods.
FOURTH COUNTRYMAN	O, pardon me.
SECOND COUNTRYMAN	By any means, our thing of learning said so; where he himself will edify the Duke most parlously in our behalfs—he’s excellent i’th’ woods, bring him to th’ plains, his learning makes no cry.
THIRD COUNTRYMAN	We’ll see the sports, then every man to’s tackle—and, sweet companions, let’s rehearse, by any means, before the ladies see us, and do sweetly, and God knows what may come on’t.
FOURTH COUNTRYMAN	Content—the sports once ended, we’ll perform. Away boys, and hold.
ARCITE	(coming forward) By your leaves, honest friends, pray you whither go you? 6
FOURTH COUNTRYMAN	Whither? Why, what a question’s that?
ARCITE	Yet ’tis a question To me that know not.
THIRD COUNTRYMAN	To the games, my friend.
SECOND COUNTRYMAN	Where were you bred, you know it not?
ARCITE	Not far, sir Are there such games today?
FIRST COUNTRYMAN	Yes, marry, are there, And such as you never saw. The Duke himself Will be in person there.
ARCITE	What pastimes are they?
SECOND COUNTRYMAN	Wrestling and running. (To the others) ’Tis a pretty fellow.
THIRD COUNTRYMAN	(to Arcite) Thou wilt not go along?
ARCITE	Not yet, sir.
FOURTH COUNTRYMAN	Well, sir, Take your own time. (To the others) Come, boys.
FIRST COUNTRYMAN	My mind misgives me—This fellow has a vengeance trick o’th’ hip: Mark how his body’s made for’t.
SECOND COUNTRYMAN	I’ll be hanged though If he dare venture; hang him, plum porridge! He wrestle? He roast eggs! Come, let’s be gone, lads.
(didascalia)	Exeunt the four Countrymen
ARCITE	This is an offered opportunity I durst not wish for. Well I could have wrestled— The best men called it excellent—and run Swifter than wind upon a field of corn, Curling the wealthy ears, never flew. I’ll venture, And in some poor disguise be there. Who knows Whether my brows may not be girt with garlands, And happiness prefer me to a place Where I may ever dwell in sight of her? Exit

Atto 2, Scena 4

Chi parla

Battuta

(didascalia)

Enter the Jailer’s Daughter

JAILER’S DAUGHTER

Why should I love this gentleman? ’Tis odds
He never will affect me. I am base,
My father the mean keeper of his prison,
And he a prince. To marry him is hopeless,
To be his whore is witless. Out upon’t,
What pushes are we wenches driven to
When fifteen once has found us? First, I saw him;
I, seeing, thought he was a goodly man;
He has as much to please a woman in him—
If he please to bestow it so—as ever
These eyes yet looked on. Next, I pitied him,
And so would any young wench, o‘my conscience,
That ever dreamed or vowed her maidenhead
To a young handsome man. Then, I loved him,
Extremely loved him, infinitely loved him—
And yet he had a cousin fair as he, too.
But in my heart was Palamon, and there,
Lord, what a coil he keeps! To hear him
Sing in an evening, what a heaven it is!
And yet his songs are sad ones. Fairer spoken
Was never gentleman. When I come in
To bring him water in a morning, first
He bows his noble body, then salutes me, thus:
‘Fair, gentle maid, good morrow. May thy goodness
Get thee a happy husband.’ Once he kissed me—
I loved my lips the better ten days after.
Would he would do so every day! He grieves much,
And me as much to see his misery.
What should I do to make him know I love him?
For I would fain enjoy him. Say I ventured
To set him free? What says the law then? Thus much
For law or kindred! I will do it,
And this night; ere tomorrow he shall love me. Exit

Atto 2, Scena 5

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Short flourish of cornetts and shouts within. Enter Theseus, Hippolyta, Pirithous, Emilia, Arcite disguised, with a garland, and attendants
THESEUS	You have done worthily. I have not seen Since Hercules a man of tougher sinews. Whate’er you are, you run the best and wrestle That these times can allow.
ARCITE	I am proud to please you.
THESEUS	What country bred you?
ARCITE	This—but far off, prince.
THESEUS	Are you a gentleman?
ARCITE	My father said so, And to those gentle uses gave me life.
THESEUS	Are you his heir?
ARCITE	His youngest, sir.
THESEUS	Your father Sure is a happy sire, then. What proves you?
ARCITE	A little of all noble qualities. I could have kept a hawk and well have hollered To a deep cry of dogs; I dare not praise My feat in horsemanship, yet they that knew me Would say it was my best piece; last and greatest, I would be thought a soldier.
THESEUS	You are perfect.
PIRITHOIIS	Upon my soul, a proper man.
EMILIA	He is so.
PIRITHOUS	(to Hippolyta) How do you like him, lady?
HIPPOLYTA	I admire him. I have not seen so young a man so noble— If he say true—of his sort.
EMILIA	Believe His mother was a wondrous handsome woman— His face methinks goes that way.
HIPPOLYTA	But his body And fiery mind illustrate a brave father.
PIRITHOUS	Mark how his virtue, like a hidden sun, Breaks through his baser garments.
HIPPOLYTA	He’s well got, sure.
THESEUS	(to Arcite) What made you seek this place, sir?
ARCITE	Noble Theseus, To purchase name and do my ablest service To such a well-found wonder as thy worth, For only in thy court of all the world Dwells fair-eyed honour.
PIRITHOUS	All his words are worthy.
THESEUS	(to Arcite) Sir, we are much indebted to your travel, Nor shall you lose your wish.—Pirithous, Dispose of this fair gentleman.
PIRITHOUS	Thanks, Theseus. (To Arcite) Whate’er you are, you’re mine, and I shall give you To a most noble service, to this lady, This bright young virgin; pray observe her goodness. You have honoured her fair birthday with your virtues, And as your due you’re hers. Kiss her fair hand, sir.
ARCITE	Sir, you’re a noble giver. (To Emilia) Dearest beauty, Thus let me seal my vowed faith. He kisses her hand When your servant, Your most unworthy creature, but offends you, Command him die, he shall.
EMILIA	That were too cruel. If you deserve well, sir, I shall soon see’t. You’re mine, and somewhat better than your rank I’ll use you.
PIRITHOUS	(to Arcite) I’ll see you furnished, and, because you say You are a horseman, I must needs entreat you This afternoon to ride—but ’tis a rough one.
ARCITE	I like him better, prince—I shall not then Freeze in my saddle.
THESEUS	(to Hippolyta)
(didascalia)	Sweet, you must be ready—And you, Emilia, to Pirithous] and you, friend—and
THESEUS	all, Tomorrow by the sun, to do observance To flow’ry May in Dian’s wood. (To Arcite) Wait well, sir, Upon your mistress.—Emity, I hope He shall not go afoot.
EMILIA	That were a shame, sir, While I have horses. (To Arcite) Take your choice, and what You want, at any time, let me but know it. If you serve faithfully, I dare assure you, You’ll find a loving mistress.
ARCITE	If I do not, Let me find that my father ever hated— Disgrace and blows.
THESEUS	Go, lead the way—you have won it. It shall be so: you shall receive all dues Fit for the honour you have won. ’Twere wrong else. (To Emilia) Sister, beshrew my heart, you have a servant That, if I were a woman, would be master. But you are wise.
EMILIA	I hope too wise for that, sir.
(didascalia)	Flourish. Exeunt

Atto 2, Scena 6

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter the jailer’s Daughter
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Let all the dukes and all the devils roar— He is at liberty! I have ventured for him, And out I have brought him. To a little wood A mile hence I have sent him, where a cedar Higher than all the rest spreads like a plane, Fast by a brook—and there he shall keep close Till I provide him files and food, for yet His iron bracelets are not off. O Love, What a stout-hearted child thou art! My father Durst better have endured cold iron than done it. I love him beyond love and beyond reason Or wit or safety. I have made him know it— I care not, I am desperate. If the law Find me and then condemn me for‘t, some wenches, Some honest-hearted maids, will sing my dirge And tell to memory my death was noble, Dying almost a martyr. That way he takes, I purpose, is my way too. Sure, he cannot Be so unmanly as to leave me here. If he do, maids will not so easily Trust men again. And yet, he has not thanked me For what I have done—no, not so much as kissed me— And that, methinks, is not so well. Nor scarcely Could I persuade him to become a free man, He made such scruples of the wrong he did To me and to my father. Yet, I hope When he considers more, this love of mine Will take more root within him. Let him do What he will with me—so he use me kindly. For use me, so he shall, or I’ll proclaim him, And to his face, no man. I’ll presently Provide him necessaries and pack my clothes up, And where there is a patch of ground I’ll venture, So he be with me. By him, like a shadow, I’ll ever dwell. Within this hour the hubbub Will be all o’er the prison—I am then Kissing the man they look for. Farewell, father: Get many more such prisoners and such daughters, And shortly you may keep yourself. Now to him.
(didascalia)	Exit

Atto 3, Scena 1

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	A bush in place. Cornetts in sundry places. Noise and hollering as of people a-Maying. Enter Arcite
ARCITE	The Duke has lost Hippo)yta—each took A several laund. This is a solemn rite They owe bloomed May, and the Athenians pay it To th’ heart of ceremony. O, Queen Emilia, Fresher than May, sweeter Than her gold buttons on the boughs, or all Th’enamelled knacks o’th’ mead or garden—yea, We challenge too the bank of any nymph That makes the stream seem flowers; thou, O jewel O’th’ wood, o’th’ world, hast likewise blessed a pace
(didascalia)	With thy sole presence in thy
(didascalia)	rumination
ARCITE	That I, poor man, might eftsoons come between And chop on some cold thought. Thrice blessèd chance To drop on such a mistress, expectation Most guiltless on‘t! Tell me, O Lady Fortune, Next after Emily my sovereign, how far I may be proud. She takes strong note of me, Hath made me near her, and this beauteous morn, The prim’st of all the year, presents me with A brace of horses—two such steeds might well Be by a pair of kings backed, in a field That their crowns’ titles tried. Alas, alas, Poor cousin Palamon, poor prisoner—thou So little dream’st upon my fortune that Thou think’st thyself the happier thing to be So near Emilia. Me thou deem’st at Thebes, And therein wretched, although free. But if Thou knew’st my mistress breathed on me, and that I eared her language, lived in her eye-O, coz, What passion would enclose thee!
(didascalia)	Enter Palamon as out of a bush with his shackles. He bends his fist at Arcite
PALAMON	Traitor kinsman, Thou shouldst perceive my passion if these signs Of prisonment were off me, and this hand But owner of a sword. By all oaths in one, I and the justice of my love would make thee A confessed traitor. O thou most perfidious That ever gently looked, the void’st of honour That e’er bore gentle token, falsest cousin That ever blood made kin—call’st thou her thine? I’ll prove it in my shackles, with these hands, Void of appointment, that thou liest and art A very thief in love, a chaffy lord Not worth the name of villain. Had I as word And these house-clogs away—
ARCITE	Dear cousin Palamon—
PALAMON	Cozener Arcite, give me language such As thou hast showed me feat.
ARCITE	Not finding in The circuit of my breast any gross stuff To form me like your blazon holds me to This gentleness of answer—’tis your passion That thus mistakes, the which, to you being enemy, Cannot to me be kind. Honour and honesty I cherish and depend on, howsoe’er You skip them in me, and with them, fair coz, I’ll maintain my proceedings. Pray be pleased To show in generous terms your griefs, since that Your question’s with your equal, who professes To clear his own way with the mind and sword Of a true gentleman.
PALAMON	That thou durst, Arcite!
ARCITE	My coz, my coz, you have been well advertised How much I dare; you’ve seen me use my sword Against th’advice of fear. Sure, of another You would not hear me doubted, but your silence Should break out, though i’th’ sanctuary.
PALAMON	Sir, I have seen you move in such a place which well Might justify your manhood; you were called A good knight and a bold. But the whole week’s not fair If any day it rain: their valiant temper Men lose when they incline to treachery, And then they fight like compelled bears—would fly Were they not tied.
ARCITE	Kinsman, you might as well Speak this and act it in your glass as to His ear which now disdains you.
PALAMON	Come up to me, Quit me of these cold gyves, give me a sword, Though it be rusty, and the charity Of one meal lend me. Come before me then, A good sword in thy hand, and do but say That Emily is thine-I will forgive The trespass thou hast done me, yea, my life, If then thou carry’t; and brave souls in shades That have died manly, which will seek of me Some news from earth, they shall get none but this— That thou art brave and noble.
ARCITE	Be content, Again betake you to your hawthorn house. With counsel of the night I will be here With wholesome viands. These impediments Will I file off. You shall have garments and Perfumes to kill the smell o’th’ prison. After, When you shall stretch yourself and say but ’Arcite, I am in plight’, there shall be at your choice Both sword and armour.
PALAMON	O, you heavens, dares any So noble bear a guilty business! None But only Arcite, therefore none but Arcite In this kind is so bold.
ARCITE	Sweet Palamon.
PALAMON	I do embrace you and your offer—for Your offer do’t I only, sir; your person, Without hypocrisy, I may not wish
(didascalia)	Wind horns within
PALAMON	More than my sword’s edge on’t.
ARCITE	You hear the horns—Enter your muset lest this match between’s Be crossed ere met. Give me your hand, farewell. I’ll bring you every needful thing—I pray you, Take comfort and be strong.
PALAMON	Pray hold your promise, And do the deed with a bent brow. Most certain You love me not—be rough with me and pour This oil out of your language. By this air, I could for each word give a cuff, my stomach Not reconciled by reason.
ARCITE	Plainly spoken, Yet—pardon me—hard language: when I spur
(didascalia)	Wind horns within
ARCITE	My horse I chide him not. Content and anger In me have but one face. Hark, sir, they call The scattered to the banquet. You must guess I have an office there.
PALAMON	Sir, your attendance Cannot please heaven, and I know your office Unjustly is achieved.
ARCITE	’Tis a good title. I am persuaded this question, sick between’s, By bleeding must be cured. I am a suitor That to your sword you will bequeath this plea And talk of it no more.
PALAMON	But this one word: You are going now to gaze upon my mistress— For note you, mine she is—
ARCITE	Nay then—
PALAMON	Nay, pray you—You talk of feeding me to breed me strength— You are going now to look upon a sun That strengthens what it looks on. There you have A vantage o’er me, but enjoy it till I may enforce my remedy. Farewell.
(didascalia)	Exeunt
(didascalia)	severally, Palamon
(didascalia)	as into the bush

Atto 3, Scena 2

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter the Jailer’s Daughter, with a file
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	He has mistook the brake I meant, is gone After his fancy. ’Tis now wellnigh morning. No matter—would it were perpetual night, And darkness lord o’th’ world. Hark, ’tis a wolf! In me hath grief slain fear, and, but for one thing, I care for nothing—and that’s Palamon. I reck not if the wolves would jaw me, so He had this file. What if I hollered for him? I cannot holler. If I whooped, what then? If he not answered, I should call a wolf And do him but that service. I have heard Strange howls this livelong night—why may’t not be They have made prey of him? He has no weapons; He cannot run; the jangling of his gyves Might call fell things to listen, who have in them A sense to know a man unarmed, and can Smell where resistance is. I’ll set it down He’s torn to pieces: they howled many together And then they fed on him. So much for that. Be bold to ring the bell. How stand I then? All’s chared when he is gone. No, no, I lie: My father’s to be hanged for his escape, Myself to beg, if I prized life so much As to deny my act—but that I would not, Should I try death by dozens. I am moped— Food took I none these two days, Sipped some water. I have not closed mine eyes Save when my lids scoured off their brine. Alas, Dissolve, my life; let not my sense unsettle, Lest I should drown or stab or hang myself. O state of nature, fail together in me, Since thy best props are warped. So which way now? The best way is the next way to a grave, Each errant step beside is torment. Lo, The moon is down, the crickets chirp, the screech-owl Calls in the dawn. All offices are done Save what I fail in: but the point is this, An end, and that is all.
(didascalia)	Exit

Atto 3, Scena 3

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter Arcite with a bundle containing meat, wine, and
(didascalia)	files
ARCITE	I should be near the place. Ho, cousin Patamon!
(didascalia)	Enter Palamon as from the bush
PALAMON	Arcite.
ARCITE	The same. I have brought you food and files. Come forth and fear not, here’s no Theseus.
PALAMON	Nor none so honest, Arcite.
ARCITE	That’s no matter—We’ll argue that hereafter. Come, take courage— You shall not die thus beastly. Here, sir, drink; I know you are faint. Then I’ll talk further with you.
PALAMON	Arcite, thou mightst now poison me.
ARCITE	I might—But I must fear you first. Sit down and, good now, No more of these vain parleys. Let us not, Having our ancient reputation with us, Make talk for fools and cowards. To your health, sir.
PALAMON	Do.
(didascalia)	Arcite drinks
ARCITE	Pray sit down, then, and let me entreat you, By all the honesty and honour in you, No mention of this woman—’twilt disturb us. We shall have time enough.
PALAMON	Well, sir, I’ll pledge you. Palamon drinks
ARCITE	Drink a good hearty draught; it breeds good blood, man. Do not you feel it thaw you?
PALAMON	Stay, I’ll tell you After a draught or two more. Palamon drinks
ARCITE	Spare it not— The Duke has more, coz. Eat now.
PALAMON	Yes. Palamon eats
ARCITE	I am glad You have so good a stomach.
PALAMON	I am gladder I have so good meat to’t.
ARCITE	Is’t not mad, lodging Here in the wild woods, cousin?
PALAMON	Yes, for them That have wild consciences.
ARCITE	How tastes your victuals? Your hunger needs no sauce, I see.
PALAMON	Not much. But if it did, yours is too tart, sweet cousin. What is this?
ARCITE	Venison.
PALAMON	’Tis a lusty meat— Give me more wine. Here, Arcite, to the wenches
(didascalia)	We have known in our days. Drinking The lord
PALAMON	steward’s daughter. Do you remember her?
ARCITE	After you, coz.
PALAMON	She loved a black-haired man.
ARCITE	She did so; well, sir.
PALAMON	And I have heard some call him Arcite, and—
ARCITE	Out with’t, faith.
PALAMON	She met him in an arbour— What did she there, coz? Play o’th’ virginals?
ARCITE	Something she did, sir—
PALAMON	Made her groan a month for’t— Or two, or three, or ten.
ARCITE	The marshal’s sister Had her share too, as I remember, cousin, Else there be tales abroad. You’ll pledge her?
PALAMON	Yes.
(didascalia)	They drink
ARCITE	A pretty brown wench ’tis. There was a time When young men went a-hunting, and a wood, And a broad beech, and thereby hangs a tale— Heigh-ho!
PALAMON	For Emily, upon my life! Fool, Away with this strained mirth. I say again, That sigh was breathed for Emily. Base cousin, Dar’st thou break first?
ARCITE	You are wide.
PALAMON	By heaven and earth, There’s nothing in thee honest.
ARCITE	Then I’ll leave you— You are a beast now.
PALAMON	As thou mak’st me, traitor.
ARCITE	(pointing to the bundle) There’s all things needful: files and shirts and perfumes— I’ll come again some two hours hence and bring That that shall quiet all.
PALAMON	A sword and armour.
ARCITE	Fear me not. You are now too foul. Farewell. Get off your trinkets: you shall want naught.
PALAMON	Sirrah—
ARCITE	I’ll hear no more.
(didascalia)	Exit
PALAMON	If he keep touch, he dies for’t.
(didascalia)	Exit as into the bush

Atto 3, Scena 4

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter the Jailer’s Daughter
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	I am very cold, and all the stars are out too, The little stars and all, that look like agtets— The sun has seen my folly. Palamon! Alas, no, he’s in heaven. Where am I now? Yonder’s the sea and there’s a ship—how’t tumbles! And there’s a rock lies watching under water— Now, now, it beats upon it—now, now, now, There’s a leak sprung, a sound one—how they cry! Open her before the wind—you’ll lose all else. Up with a course or two and tack about, boys. Good night, good night, you’re gone. I am very hungry. Would I could find a fine frog—he would tell me News from all parts o‘th’ world, then would I make A carrack of a cockle-shell, and sail By east and north-east to the King of Pygmies, For he tells fortunes rarely. Now my father, Twenty to one, is trussed up in a trice Tomorrow morning. I’ll say never a word. (She sings) For I’ll cut my green coat, a foot above my knee, And I’ll clip my yellow locks, an inch below mine eye, Hey nonny, nonny, nonny, He s’buy me a white cut, forth for to ride, And I’ll go seek him, through the world that is so wide, Hey nonny, nonny, nonny. O for a prick now, like a nightingale, To put my breast against. I shall sleep like a top else.
(didascalia)	Exit

Atto 3, Scena 5

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter Gerald (a schoolmaster), five Countrymen, one of whom is dressed as a Babion, five Wenches, and Timothy, a taborer. All are attired as morris dancers
SCHOOLMASTER	Fie, fie, What tediosity and disinsanity Is here among yet Have my rudiments Been laboured so long with ye, milked unto ye, And, by a figure, even the very plum-broth And marrow of my understanding laid upon ye? And do you still cry ‘where?’ and ‘how?’ and ‘wherefore?’ You most coarse frieze capacities, ye jean judgements, Have I said, ‘thus let be’, and ‘there let be’, And ‘then let be’, and no man understand me? Proh deum, medius fidius-ye are all dunces. Forwhy, here stand I. Here the Duke comes. There are you, Close in the thicket. The Duke appears. I meet him, And unto him I utter learnèd things And many figures. He hears, and nods, and hums, And then cries, ‘Rare!’, and I go forward. At length I fling my cap up—mark there—then do you, As once did Meleager and the boar, Break comely out before him, like true lovers, Cast yourselves in a body decently, And sweetly, by a figure, trace and turn, boys.
FIRST COUNTRYMAN	And sweetly we will do it, master Gerald.
SECOND COUNTRYMAN	Draw up the company. Where’s the taborer?
THIRD COUNTRYMAN	Why, Timothy!
TABORER	Here, my mad boys, have at ye!
SCHOOLMASTER	But I say, where’s these women?
FOURTH COUNTRYMAN	Here’s Friz and Madeline.
SECOND COUNTRYMAN	And little Luce with the white legs, and bouncing Barbara.
FIRST COUNTRYMAN	And freckled Nell, that never failed her master.
SCHOOLMASTER	Where be your ribbons, maids? Swim with your bodies And carry it sweetly and deliverly, And now and then a favour and a frisk.
NELL	Let us alone, sir.
SCHOOLMASTER	Where’s the rest o’th’ music?
THIRD COUNTRYMAN	Dispersed as you commanded.
SCHOOLMASTER	Couple, then, And see what’s wanting. Where’s the babion? (To the Babion) My friend, carry your tail without offence Or scandal to the ladies; and be sure You tumble with audacity and manhood, And when you bark, do it with judgement.
BABION	Yes, sir.
SCHOOLMASTER	Quousque tandem? Here is a woman wanting!
FOURTH COUNTRYMAN	We may go whistle—all the fat’s i’th’ fire.
SCHOOLMASTER	We have, As learned authors utter, washed a tile; We have been fatuus, and laboured vainly.
SECOND COUNTRYMAN	This is that scornful piece, that scurvy hilding That gave her promise faithfully she would be here— Cicely, the seamstress’ daughter. The next gloves that I give her shall be dogskin. Nay, an she fail me once—you can tell, Areas, She swore by wine and bread she would not break.
SCHOOLMASTER	An eel and woman, A learned poet says, unless by th’ tail And with thy teeth thou hold, will either fail— In manners this was false position.
FIRST COUNTRYMAN	A fire-ill take her! Does she flinch now?
THIRD COUNTRYMAN	What Shall we determine, sir?
SCHOOLMASTER	Nothing; Our business is become a nullity, Yea, and a woeful and a piteous nullity.
FOURTH COUNTRYMAN	Now, when the credit of our town lay on it, Now to be frampold, now to piss o’th’ nettle! Go thy ways—I’ll remember thee, I’ll fit thee!
(didascalia)	Enter the Jailer’s Daughter
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	(sings) The George Alow came from the south, From the coast of Barbary-a; And there he met with brave gallants of war, By one, by two, by three-a. ‘Well hailed, well hailed, you jolly gallants, And whither now are you bound-a? O let me have your company Till I come to the sound-a.’ There was three fools fell out about an owlet— The one he said it was an owl, The other he said nay, The third he said it was a hawk, And her bells were cut away.
THIRD COUNTRYMAN	There’s a dainty madwoman, master, Comes i’th’ nick, as mad as a March hare. If we can get her dance, we are made again. I warrant her, she’ll do the rarest gambols.
FIRST COUNTRYMAN	A madwoman? We are made, boys.
SCHOOLMASTER	(to the Jailer’s Daughter) And are you mad, good woman?
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	I would be sorry else. Give me your hand.
SCHOOLMASTER	Why?
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	I can tell your fortune.
(didascalia)	She examines his hand
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	You are a fool. Tell ten—I have posed him. Buzz! Friend, you must eat no white bread—if you do, Your teeth will bleed extremely. Shall we dance, ho? I know you—you’re a tinker. Sirrah tinker, Stop no more holes but what you should.
SCHOOLMASTER	Dii boni— A tinker, damsel?
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Or a conjurer— Raise me a devil now and let him play Qui passa o’th’ bells and bones.
SCHOOLMASTER	Go, take her, And fluently persuade her to a peace. Et opus exegi, quod nec Iovis ira, nec ignis— Strike up, and lead her in.
SECOND COUNTRYMAN	Come, lass, let’s trip it.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	I’ll lead.
THIRD COUNTRYMAN	Do, do.
SCHOOLMASTER	Persuasively and cunningly—
(didascalia)	Wind horns within
SCHOOLMASTER	away, boys, I hear the horns. Give me some meditation, And mark your cue.
(didascalia)	Exeunt all but Gerald the Schoolmaster Pallas inspire me.
(didascalia)	Enter Theseus, Pirithous, Hippolyta, Emilia, Arcite, and train
THESEUS	This way the stag took.
SCHOOLMASTER	Stay and edify.
THESEUS	What have we here?
PIRITHOUS	Some country sport, upon my life, sir.
THESEUS	(to the Schoolmaster) Well, sir, go forward—we will edify. Ladies, sit down—we’ll stay it.
(didascalia)	They sit: theseus in a chair, the others on stools
SCHOOLMASTER	Thou doughty Duke, all hail! All hail, sweet ladies.
THESEUS	This is a cold beginning.
SCHOOLMASTER	If you but favour, our country pastime made is. We are a few of those collected here, That ruder tongues distinguish ‘villager’; And to say verity, and not to fable, We are a merry rout, or else a rabble, Or company, or, by a figure, chorus, That fore thy dignity will dance a morris. And I, that am the rectifier of all, By title pedagogus, that let fall The birch upon the breeches of the small ones, And humble with a ferula the tall ones, Do here present this machine, or this frame; And dainty Duke, whose doughty dismal fame From Dis to Daedalus, from post to pillar, Is blown abroad, help me, thy poor well-willer, And with thy twinkling eyes, look right and straight Upon this mighty ‘Moor’—of mickle weight— ‘Ice’ now comes in, which, being glued together, Makes ‘morris’, and the cause that we came hither. The body of our sport, of no small study, I first appear, though rude, and raw, and muddy, To speak, before thy noble grace, this tenor At whose great feet I offer up my penner. The next, the Lord of May and Lady bright; The Chambermaid and Servingman, by night That seek out silent hanging; then mine Host And his fat Spouse, that welcomes, to their cost, The galled traveller, and with a beck’ning Informs the tapster to inflame the reck‘ning; Then the beest-eating Clown; and next, the Fool; The babion with long tail and eke long tool, Cum multis aliis that make a dance— Say ‘ay’, and all shall presently advance.
THESEUS	Ay, ay, by any means, dear dominie.
PIRITHOUS	Produce.
SCHOOLMASTER	(knocks for the dance) Intrate filii, come forth and foot it.
(didascalia)	He flings up his cap. Music.
(didascalia)	The Schoolmaster ushers in
SCHOOLMASTER	May Lord, Servingman, A Country Clown, or Shepherd, An Host, A He-babion, May Lady. Chambermaid. Country Wench. Hostess. She-babion. A He-fool, The Jailer’s Daughter as She-fool. All these persons apparelled to the life, the men issuing out of one door and the wenches from the
(didascalia)	other. They dance a morris
SCHOOLMASTER	Ladies, if we have been merry, And have pleased ye with a derry, And a derry, and a down, Say the schoolmaster’s no clown. Duke, if we have pleased thee too, And have done as good boys should do, Give us but a tree or twain For a maypole, and again, Ere another year run out, We’ll make thee laugh, and all this rout.
THESEUS	Take twenty, dominie. (To Hippolyta) How does my sweetheart?
HIPPOLYTA	Never so pleased, sir.
EMILIA	’Twas an excellent dance, And for a preface, I never heard a better.
THESEUS	Schoolmaster, I thank you. One see ’em all rewarded.
PIRITHOUS	And here’s something to paint your pole withal. He gives them money
THESEUS	Now to our sports again.
SCHOOLMASTER	May the stag thou hunt’st stand long, And thy dogs be swift and strong; May they kill him without lets, And the ladies eat his dowsets.
(didascalia)	Exeunt Theseus and train. Wind horns within
SCHOOLMASTER	Come, we are all made. Dii deaeque omnes, Ye have danced rarely, wenches.
(didascalia)	Exeunt

Atto 3, Scena 6

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter Palamon from the bush
PALAMON	About this hour my cousin gave his faith To visit me again, and with him bring Two swords and two good armours; if he fail, He’s neither man nor soldier. When he left me, I did not think a week could have restored My lost strength to me, I was grown so low And crest-fall’n with my wants. I thank thee, Arcite, Thou art yet a fair foe, and I feel myself, With this refreshing, able once again To out-dure danger. To delay it longer Would make the world think, when it comes to hearing, That I lay fatting, like a swine, to fight, And not a soldier. Therefore this blest morning Shall be the last; and that sword he refuses, If it but hold, I kill him with; ’tis justice. So, love and fortune for me!
(didascalia)	Enter Arcite with two armours and two swords
PALAMON	O, good morrow.
ARCITE	Good morrow, noble kinsman.
PALAMON	I have put you To too much pains, sir.
ARCITE	That too much, fair cousin, Is but a debt to honour, and my duty.
PALAMON	Would you were so in all, sir—I could wish ye As kind a kinsman, as you force me find A beneficial foe, that my embraces Might thank ye, not my blows.
ARCITE	I shall think either, Well done, a noble recompense.
PALAMON	Then I shall quit you.
ARCITE	Defy me in these fair terms, and you show More than a mistress to me—no more anger, As you love anything that’s honourable. We were not bred to talk, man. When we are armed And both upon our guards, then let our fury, Like meeting of two tides, fly strongly from us; And then to whom the birthright of this beauty Truly pertains—without upbraidings, scorns, Despisings of our persons, and such poutings Fitter for girls and schoolboys—will be seen, And quickly, yours or mine. Will’t please you arm, sir? Or, if you feel yourself not fitting yet, And furnished with your old strength, I’ll stay, cousin, And every day discourse you into health, As I am spared. Your person I am friends with, And I could wish I had not said I loved her, Though I had died; but loving such a lady, And justifying my love, I must not fly from’t.
PALAMON	Arcite, thou art so brave an enemy That no man but thy cousin’s fit to kill thee. I am well and lusty—choose your arms.
ARCITE	Choose you, sir.
PALAMON	Wilt thou exceed in all, or dost thou do it To make me spare thee?
ARCITE	If you think so, cousin, You are deceived, for as I am a soldier, I will not spare you.
PALAMON	That’s well said.
ARCITE	You’ll find it.
PALAMON	Then as I am an honest man, and love With all the justice of affection, I’ll pay thee soundly. He chooses one armour This I’ll take.
ARCITE	(indicating the remaining armour) That’s mine, then. I’ll arm you first.
PALAMON	Do. Arcite arms Palamon Pray thee tell me, cousin, Where gott’st thou this good armour?
ARCITE	‘Tis the Duke’s, And to say true, I stole it. Do I pinch you?
PALAMON	No.
ARCITE	Is’t not too heavy?
PALAMON	I have worn a lighter— But I shall make it serve.
ARCITE	I’ll buckle’t close.
PALAMON	By any means.
ARCITE	You care not for a grand guard?
PALAMON	No, no, we’ll use no horses. I perceive You would fain be at that fight.
ARCITE	I am indifferent.
PALAMON	Faith, so am I. Good cousin, thrust the buckle Through far enough.
ARCITE	I warrant you.
PALAMON	My casque now.
ARCITE	Will you fight bare-armed?
PALAMON	We shall be the nimbler.
ARCITE	But use your gauntlets, though—those are o’th’ least. Prithee take mine, good cousin.
PALAMON	Thank you, Arcite. How do I look? Am I fall’n much away?
ARCITE	Faith, very little—love has used you kindly.
PALAMON	I’ll warrant thee, I’ll strike home.
ARCITE	Do, and spare not— I’ll give you cause, sweet cousin.
PALAMON	Now to you, sir. Palamon arms Arcite Methinks this armour’s very like that, Arcite, Thou wor’st that day the three kings fell, but lighter.
ARCITE	That was a very good one, and that day, I well remember, you outdid me, cousin. I never saw such valour. When you charged Upon the left wing of the enemy, I spurred hard to come up, and under me I had a right good horse.
PALAMON	You had indeed— A bright bay, I remember.
ARCITE	Yes. But all Was vainly laboured in me—you outwent me, Nor could my wishes reach you. Yet a little I did by imitation.
PALAMON	More by virtue— You are modest, cousin.
ARCITE	When I saw you charge first, Methought I heard a dreadful clap of thunder Break from the troop.
PALAMON	But still before that flew The lightning of your valour. Stay a little, Is not this piece too strait?
ARCITE	No, no, ’tis well.
PALAMON	I would have nothing hurt thee but my sword— A bruise would be dishonour.
ARCITE	Now I am perfect.
PALAMON	Stand off, then.
ARCITE	Take my sword; I hold it better.
PALAMON	I thank ye. No, keep it—your life lies on it. Here’s one—if it but hold, I ask no more For all my hopes. My cause and honour guard me.
ARCITE	And me, my love. They bow several ways, then advance and stand Is there aught else to say?
PALAMON	This only, and no more. Thou art mine aunt’s son, And that blood we desire to shed is mutual: In me, thine, and in thee, mine. My sword Is in my hand, and if thou kill’st me, The gods and I forgive thee. If there be A place prepared for those that sleep in honour, I wish his weary soul that falls may win it. Fight bravely, cousin. Give me thy noble hand.
ARCITE	Here, Palamon. This hand shall never more Come near thee with such friendship.
PALAMON	I commend thee.
ARCITE	If I fall, curse me, and say I was a coward— For none but such dare die in these just trials. Once more farewell, my cousin.
PALAMON	Farewell, Arcite. Fight. Horns within; they stand
ARCITE	Lo, cousin, lo, our folly has undone us.
PALAMON	Why?
ARCITE	This is the Duke a-hunting, as I told you. If we be found, we are wretched. O, retire, For honour’s sake, and safely, presently, Into your bush again. Sir, we shall find Too many hours to die. In, gentle cousin— If you be seen, you perish instantly For breaking prison, and I, if you reveal me, For my contempt. Then all the world will scorn us, And say we had a noble difference, But base disposers of it.
PALAMON	No, no, cousin, I will no more be hidden, nor put off This great adventure to a second trial. I know your cunning and I know your cause— He that faints now, shame take him! Put thyself Upon thy present guard—
ARCITE	You are not mad?
PALAMON	Or I will make th’advantage of this hour Mine own, and what to come shall threaten me I fear less than my fortune. Know, weak cousin, I love Emilia, and in that I’ll bury Thee and all crosses else.
ARCITE	Then come what can come, Thou shalt know, Palamon, I dare as well Die as discourse or sleep. Only this fears me, The law will have the honour of our ends. Have at thy life!
PALAMON	Look to thine own well, Arcite! They fight again.
(didascalia)	Horns. Enter Theseus, Hippolyta, Emilia, Pirithous, and train. Theseus separates Palamon and Arcite
THESEUS	What ignorant and mad malicious traitors Are you, that ’gainst the tenor of my laws Are making battle, thus like knights appointed, Without my leave and officers of arms? By Castor, both shall die.
PALAMON	Hold thy word, Theseus. We are certainly both traitors, both despisers Of thee and of thy goodness. I am Palamon, That cannot love thee, he that broke thy prison— Think well what that deserves. And this is Arcite; A bolder traitor never trod thy ground, A falser ne’er seemed friend. This is the man Was begged and banished; this is he contemns thee, And what thou dar’st do; and in this disguise, Against thine own edict, follows thy sister, That fortunate bright star, the fair Emilia, Whose servant—if there be a right in seeing And first bequeathing of the soul to—justly I am; and, which is more, dares think her his. This treachery, like a most trusty lover, I called him now to answer. If thou be’st As thou art spoken, great and virtuous, The true decider of all injuries, Say, ’Fight again’, and thou shalt see me, Theseus, Do such a justice thou thyself wilt envy. Then take my life—I’ll woo thee to’t.
PIRITHOUS	O heaven, What more than man is this!
THESEUS	I have sworn.
ARCITE	We seek not Thy breath of mercy, Theseus. ‘Tis to me A thing as soon to die as thee to say it, And no more moved. Where this man calls me traitor Let me say thus much—if in love be treason, In service of so excellent a beauty, As I love most, and in that faith will perish, As I have brought my life here to confirm it, As I have served her truest, worthiest, As I dare kill this cousin that denies it, So let me be most traitor and ye please me. For scorning thy edict, Duke, ask that lady Why she is fair, and why her eyes command me Stay here to love her, and if she say, ‘Traitor’, I am a villain fit to lie unburied.
PALAMON	Thou shalt have pity of us both, O Theseus, If unto neither thou show mercy. Stop, As thou art just, thy noble ear against us; As thou art valiant, for thy cousin’s soul, Whose twelve strong labours crown his memory, Let’s die together, at one instant, Duke. Only a little let him fall before me, That I may tell my soul he shall not have her.
THESEUS	I grant your wish; for to say true, your cousin Has ten times more offended, for I gave him More mercy than you found, sir, your offences Being no more than his. None here speak for ’em, For ere the sun set both shall sleep for ever.
HIPPOLYTA	(to Emilia) Alas, the pity! Now or never, sister, Speak, not to be denied. That face of yours Will bear the curses else of after ages For these lost cousins.
EMILIA	In my face, dear sister, I find no anger to ’em, nor no ruin. The misadventure of their own eyes kill ’em. Yet that I will be woman and have pity,
(didascalia)	She kneels
EMILIA	My knees shall grow to th’ ground, but I’ll get mercy. Help me, dear sister—in a deed so virtuous The powers of all women will be with us. Hippolyta kneels Most royal brother—
HIPPOLYTA	Sir, by our tie of marriage—
EMILIA	By your own spotless honour—
HIPPOLYTA	By that faith, That fair hand, and that honest heart you gave me—
EMILIA	By that you would have pity in another, By your own virtues infinite—
HIPPOLYTA	By valour, By all the chaste nights I have ever pleased you—
THESEUS	These are strange conjurings.
PIRITHOUS	Nay, then, I’ll in too.
(didascalia)	He kneels
PIRITHOUS	By all our friendship, sir, by all our dangers, By all you love most: wars, and this sweet lady—
EMILIA	By that you would have trembled to deny A blushing maid—
HIPPOLYTA	By your own eyes, by strength— In which you swore I went beyond all women, Almost all men—and yet I yielded, Theseus—
PIRITHOUS	To crown all this, by your most noble soul, Which cannot want due mercy, I beg first—
HIPPOLYTA	Next hear my prayers—
EMILIA	Last let me entreat, sir—
PIRITHOUS	For mercy.
HIPPOLYTA	Mercy.
EMILIA	Mercy on these princes.
THESEUS	Ye make my faith reel. Say I felt Compassion to ’em both, how would you place it?
(didascalia)	They rise
EMILIA	Upon their lives—but with their banishments.
THESEUS	You are a right woman, sister: you have pity, But want the understanding where to use it. If you desire their lives, invent a way Safer than banishment. Can these two live, And have the agony of love about ‘em, And not kill one another? Every day They’d fight about you, hourly bring your honour In public question with their swords. Be wise, then, And here forget ’em. It concerns your credit And my oath equally. I have said—they die. Better they fall by th’ law than one another. Bow not my honour.
EMILIA	O my noble brother, That oath was rashly made, and in your anger. Your reason will not hold it. If such vows Stand for express will, all the world must perish. Beside, I have another oath ’gainst yours, Of more authority, I am sure more love— Not made in passion, neither, but good heed.
THESEUS	What is it, sister?
PIRITHOUS	(to Emilia) Urge it home, brave lady.
EMILIA	That you would ne’er deny me anything Fit for my modest suit and your free granting. I tie you to your word now; if ye fail in’t, Think how you maim your honour— For now I am set a-begging, sir. I am deaf To all but your compassion—how their lives Might breed the ruin of my name, opinion. Shall anything that loves me perish for me? That were a cruel wisdom: do men prune The straight young boughs that blush with thousand blossoms Because they may be rotten? O, Duke Theseus, The goodly mothers that have groaned for these, And all the longing maids that ever loved, If your vow stand, shall curse me and my beauty, And in their funeral songs for these two cousins Despise my cruelty and cry woe worth me, Till I am nothing but the scorn of women. For heaven’s sake, save their lives and banish ’em.
THESEUS	On what conditions?
EMILIA	Swear ’em never more To make me their contention, or to know me, To tread upon thy dukedom; and to be, Wherever they shall travel, ever strangers To one another.
PALAMON	I’ll be cut a-pieces Before I take this oath—forget I love her? O all ye gods, despise me, then. Thy banishment I not mislike, so we may fairly carry Our swords and cause along—else, never trifle, But take our lives, Duke. I must love, and will; And for that love must and dare kill this cousin On any piece the earth has.
THESEUS	Will you, Arcite, Take these conditions?
PALAMON	He’s a villain then.
PIRITHOUS	These are men!
ARCITE	No, never, Duke. ’Tis worse to me than begging, To take my life so basely. Though I think I never shall enjoy her, yet I’ll preserve The honour of affection and die for her, Make death a devil.
THESEUS	What may be done? For now I feel compassion.
PIRITHOUS	Let it not fall again, sir.
THESEUS	Say, Emilia, If one of them were dead—as one must—are you Content to take the other to your husband? They cannot both enjoy you. They are princes As goodly as your own eyes, and as noble As ever fame yet spoke of. Look upon ’em, And if you can love, end this difference. I give consent. (To Palamon and Arcite) Are you content too, princes?
PALAMON	and ARCITE With all our souls.
THESEUS	He that she refuses Must die, then.
PALAMON	and ARCITE Any death thou canst invent, Duke.
PALAMON	If I fall from that mouth, I fall with favour, And lovers yet unborn shall bless my ashes.
ARCITE	If she refuse me, yet my grave will wed me, And soldiers sing my epitaph.
THESEUS	(to Emilia) Make choice, then.
EMILIA	I cannot, sir. They are both too excellent. For me, a hair shall never fall of these men.
(didascalia)	HIPPOLYTA to Theseus
EMILIA	What will become of ’em?
THESEUS	Thus I ordain it, And by mine honour once again it stands, Or both shall die. (To Palamon and Arcite) You shall both to your country, And each within this month, accompanied With three fair knights, appear again in this place, In which I’ll plant a pyramid; and whether, Before us that are here, can force his cousin, By fair and knightly strength, to touch the pillar, He shall enjoy her; the other lose his head, And all his friends; nor shall he grudge to fall, Nor think he dies with interest in this lady. Will this content ye?
PALAMON	Yes. Here, cousin Arcite, I am friends again till that hour.
ARCITE	I embrace ye.
THESEUS	(to Emilia) Are you content, sister?
EMILIA	Yes, I must, sir, Else both miscarry.
THESEUS	(to Palamon and Arcite) Come, shake hands again, then, And take heed, as you are gentlemen, this quarrel Sleep till the hour prefixed, and hold your course.
PALAMON	We dare not fail thee, Theseus.
THESEUS	Come, I’ll give ye Now usage like to princes and to friends. When ye return, who wins I’ll settle here, Who loses, yet I’ll weep upon his bier.
(didascalia)	Exeunt. ln the act-time the bush is removed

Atto 4, Scena 1

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter the Jailer and his Friend
JAILER	Hear you no more? Was nothing said of me Concerning the escape of Palamon? Good sir, remember.
FRIEND	Nothing that I heard, For I came home before the business Was fully ended. Yet I might perceive, Ere I departed, a great likelihood Of both their pardons: for Hippolyta And fair-eyed Emily upon their knees Begged with such handsome pity that the Duke, Methought, stood staggering whether he should follow His rash oath or the sweet compassion Of those two ladies; and to second them That truly noble prince, Pirithous— Half his own heart—set in too, that I hope All shall be well. Neither heard I one question Of your name or his scape.
(didascalia)	Enter the Second Friend
JAILER	Pray heaven it hold so.
SECOND FRIEND	Be of good comfort, man. I bring you news, Good news.
JAILER	They are welcome.
SECOND FRIEND	Palamon has cleared you, And got your pardon, and discovered how And by whose means he scaped—which was your daughter’s, Whose pardon is procured too; and the prisoner, Not to be held ungrateful to her goodness, Has given a sum of money to her marriage— A large one, I’ll assure you.
JAILER	Ye are a good man, And ever bring good news.
FIRST FRIEND	How was it ended?
SECOND FRIEND	Why, as it should be: they that ne’er begged, But they prevailed, had their suits fairly granted— The prisoners have their lives.
FIRST FRIEND	I knew ’twould be so.
SECOND FRIEND	But there be new conditions which you’ll hear of At better time.
JAILER	I hope they are good.
SECOND FRIEND	They are honourable— How good they’ll prove I know not.
(didascalia)	Enter the Wooer
EIRST ERIEND	’Twill be known.
WOOER	Alas, sir, where’s your daughter?
JAILER	Why do you ask?
WOOER	O, sir, when did you see her?
SECOND FRIEND	How he looks!
JAILER	This morning.
WOOER	Was she well? Was she in health? Sir, when did she sleep?
FIRST FRIEND	These are strange questions.
JAILER	I do not think she was very well: for now You make me mind her, but this very day I asked her questions and she answered me So far from what she was, so childishly, So sillily, as if she were a fool, An innocent—and I was very angry. But what of her, sir?
WOOER	Nothing, but my pity But you must know it, and as good by me As by another that less loves her—
JAILER	Well, sir?
FIRST FRIEND	Not right?
WOOER	No, sir, not well.
SECOND FRIEND	Not Well?
WOOER	’Tis too true—she is mad.
FIRST FRIEND	It cannot be.
WOOER	Believe, you’ll find it so.
JAILER	I half suspected What you told me—the gods comfort her! Either this was her love to Palamon, Or fear of my miscarrying on his scape, Or both.
WOOER	’Tis likely.
JAILER	But why all this haste, sir?
WOOER	I’ll tell you quickly. As I late was angling In the great lake that lies behind the palace, From the far shore, thick set with reeds and sedges, As patiently I was attending sport, I heard a voice—a shrill one—and attentive I gave my ear, when I might well perceive ’Twas one that sung, and by the smallness of it A boy or woman. I then left my angle To his own skill, came near, but yet perceived not Who made the sound, the rushes and the reeds Had so encompassed it. I laid me down And listened to the words she sung, for then, Through a small glade cut by the fishermen, I saw it was your daughter.
JAILER	Pray go on, sir.
WOOER	She sung much, but no sense; only I heard her Repeat this often—‘Palamon is gone, Is gone to th’ wood to gather mulberries; I’ll find him out tomorrow.’
FIRST FRIEND	Pretty soul!
WOOER	‘His shackles will betray him—he’ll be taken, And what shall I do then? I’ll bring a bevy, A hundred black-eyed maids that love as I do, With chaplets on their heads of daffodillies, With cherry lips and cheeks of damask roses, And all we’ll dance an antic fore the Duke And beg his pardon.’ Then she talked of you, sir— That you must lose your head tomorrow morning, And she must gather flowers to bury you, And see the house made handsome. Then she sung Nothing but ‘willow, willow, willow’, and between Ever was ‘Palamon, fair Palamon’, And ‘Palamon was a tall young man’. The place Was knee-deep where she sat; her careless tresses A wreath of bull-rush rounded; about her stuck Thousand freshwater flowers of several colours— That she appeared, methought, like the fair nymph That feeds the lake with waters, or as Iris Newly dropped down from heaven. Rings she made Of rushes that grew by, and to ‘em spoke The prettiest posies—‘Thus our true love’s tied’, ‘This you may lose, not me’, and many a one. And then she wept, and sung again, and sighed— And with the same breath smiled and kissed her hand.
SECOND FRIEND	Alas, what pity it is!
WOOER	I made in to her: She saw me and straight sought the flood—I saved her, And set her safe to land, when presently She slipped away and to the city made, With such a cry and swiftness that, believe me, She left me far behind her. Three or four I saw from far off cross her—one of ’em I knew to be your brother, where she stayed And fell, scarce to be got away. I left them with her,
(didascalia)	Enter the Jailer’s Brother, the Jailer’s Daughter, and others
WOOER	And hither came to tell you—here they are.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	(sings) ‘May you never more enjoy the light …’— Is not this a fine song?
JAILER’S BROTHER	O, a very fine one.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	I can sing twenty more.
JAILER’S BROTHER	I think you can.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Yes, truly can I—I can sing ‘The Broom’ And ‘Bonny Robin’—are not you a tailor?
JAILER’S BROTHER	Yes.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Where’s my wedding gown? JAILER’s BROTHER I’ll bring it tomorrow.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Do, very rarely—I must be abroad else, To call the maids and pay the minstrels, For I must lose my maidenhead by cocklight, ‘Twill never thrive else. (Sings) ‘O fair, O sweet …’
(didascalia)	JAILER’S BROTHER to the jailer
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	You must e’en take it patiently.
JAILER	’Tis true.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Good ev’n, good men. Pray, did you ever hear Of one young Palamon?
JAILER	Yes, wench, we know him.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Is’t not a fine young gentleman?
JAILER	’Tis, love.
JAILER’S BROTHER	By no mean cross her, she is then distempered Far worse than now she shows.
FIRST FRIEND	(to the Jailer’s Daughter) Yes, he’s a fine man.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	O, is he so? You have a sister.
FIRST FRIEND	Yes.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	But she shall never have him, tell her so, For a trick that I know. You’d best look to her, For if she see him once, she’s gone—she’s done And undone in an hour. All the young maids Of our town are in love with him, but I laugh at ’em And let ’em all alone. Is’t not a wise course?
FIRST FRIEND	Yes.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	There is at least two hundred now with child by him, There must be four; yet I keep close for all this, Close as a cockle; and all these must be boys— He has the trick on’t—and at ten years old They must be all gelt for musicians And sing the wars of Theseus.
SECOND FRIEND	This is strange.
(didascalia)	JAILER’S BROTHER
SECOND FRIEND	As ever you heard, but say nothing.
FIRST FRIEND	No.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	They come from all parts of the dukedom to him. I’ll warrant ye, he had not so few last night As twenty to dispatch. He’ll tickle’t up In two hours, if his hand be in.
JAILER	She’s lost Past all cure.
JAILER’S BROTHER	Heaven forbid, man!
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	(to the Jailer) Come hither—you are a wise man.
FIRST FRIEND	Does she know him?
SECOND FRIEND	No—would she did.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	You are master of a ship?
JAILER	Yes.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Where’s your compass?
JAILER	Here.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Set it to th’ north. And now direct your course to th’ wood where Palamon Lies longing for me. For the tackling, Let me alone. Come, weigh, my hearts, cheerly all. Uff, uff, uff! ’Tis up. The wind’s fair. Top the bowline. Out with the mainsail. Where’s your whistle, master?
JAILER’S BROTHER	Let’s get her in.
JAILER	Up to the top, boy!
JAILER’S BROTHER	Where’s the pilot?
FIRST FRIEND	Here.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	What kenn’st thou?
SECOND FRIEND	A fair wood.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Bear for it, master. Tack about! (Sings) ‘When Cynthia with her borrowed light …’
(didascalia)	Exeunt
(didascalia)	4.2 Enter Emilia, with two pictures
EMILIA	Yet I may bind those wounds up that must open And bleed to death for my sake else—I’ll choose, And end their strife. Two such young handsome men Shall never fall for me; their weeping mothers Following the dead cold ashes of their sons, Shall never curse my cruelty. Good heaven, What a sweet face has Arcitel If wise nature, With all her best endowments, all those beauties She sows into the births of noble bodies, Were here a mortal woman and had in her The coy denials of young maids, yet doubtless She would run mad for this man. What an eye, Of what a fiery sparkle and quick sweetness Has this young prince! Here love himself sits smiling! Just such another wanton Ganymede Set Jove afire once, and enforced the god Snatch up the goodly boy and set him by him, A shining constellation. What a brow, Of what a spacious majesty, he carries! Arched like the great-eyed Juno’s, but far sweeter, Smoother than Pelops’ shoulder! Fame and honour, Methinks, from hence, as from a promontory Pointed in heaven, should clap their wings and sing To all the under world the loves and fights Of gods, and such men near ’em. Palamon Is but his foil; to him a mere dull shadow; He’s swart and meagre, of an eye as heavy As if he had lost his mother; a still temper, No stirring in him, no alacrity, Of all this sprightly sharpness, not a smile. Yet these that we count errors may become him: Narcissus was a sad boy, but a heavenly. O, who can find the bent of woman’s fancy? I am a fool, my reason is lost in me, I have no choice, and I have lied so lewdly That women ought to beat me. On my knees I ask thy pardon, Palamon, thou art alone And only beautiful, and these the eyes, These the bright lamps of beauty, that command And threaten love—and what young maid dare cross ’em? What a bold gravity, and yet inviting, Has this brown manly face? O, love, this only From this hour is complexion. Lie there, Arcite, Thou art a changeling to him, a mere gypsy, And this the noble body. I am sotted, Utterly lost—my virgin’s faith has fled me. For if my brother, but even now, had asked me Whether I loved, I had run mad for Arcite; Now if my sister, more for Palamon. Stand both together. Now come ask me, brother— Alas, I know not; ask me now, sweet sister— I may go look. What a mere child is fancy, That having two fair gauds of equal sweetness, Cannot distinguish, but must cry for both!
(didascalia)	Enter a Gentlemanl
EMILIA	How now, sir?
GENTLEMAN	From the noble Duke your brother, Madam, I bring you news. The knights are come.
EMILIA	To end the quarrel?
GENTLEMAN	Yes.
EMILIA	Would I might end first! What sins have I committed, chaste Diana, That my unspotted youth must now be soiled With blood of princes, and my chastity Be made the altar where the lives of lovers— Two greater and two better never yet Made mothers joy—must be the sacrifice To my unhappy beauty?
(didascalia)	Enter Theseus, Hippolyta, Pirithous, and attendants
THESEUS	Bring ’em in Quickly, by any means, I long to see ’em.
(didascalia)	Exit one or more
THESEUS	(To Emilia) Your two contending lovers are returned, And with them their fair knights. Now, my fair sister, You must love one of them.
EMILIA	I had rather both, So neither for my sake should fall untimely.
(didascalia)	Enter a Messenger
THESEUS	Who saw ’em?
PIRITHOUS	I a while.
GENTLEMAN	And I.
THESEUS	(to the Messenger) From whence come you, sir?
MESSENGER	From the knights.
THESEUS	Pray speak, You that have seen them, what they are.
MESSENGER	I will, sir, And truly what I think. Six braver spirits Than these they have brought, if we judge by the outside, I never saw nor read of. He that stands In the first place with Arcite, by his seeming, Should be a stout man; by his face, a prince. His very looks so say him: his complexion, Nearer a brown than black, stern and yet noble, Which shows him hardy, fearless, proud of dangers. The circles of his eyes show fire within him, And, as a heated lion, so he looks. His hair hangs long behind him, black and shining, Like ravens’ wings. His shoulders, broad and strong; Armed long and round; and on his thigh a sword Hung by a curious baldric, when he frowns To seal his will with. Better, o’ my conscience, Was never soldier’s friend.
THESEUS	Thou hast well described him.
PIRITHOUS	Yet a great deal short, Methinks, of him that’s first with Palamon.
THESEUS	Pray speak him, friend.
PIRITHOUS	I guess he is a prince too, And, if it may be, greater—for his show Has all the ornament of honour in’t. He’s somewhat bigger than the knight he spoke of, But of a face far sweeter. His complexion Is as a ripe grape, ruddy. He has felt, Without doubt, what he fights for, and so apter To make this cause his own. In’s face appears All the fair hopes of what he undertakes, And when he’s angry, then a settled valour, Not tainted with extremes, runs through his body And guides his arm to brave things. Fear he cannot— He shows no such soft temper. His head’s yellow, Hard-haired and curled, thick twined: like ivy tods, Not to undo with thunder. In his face The livery of the warlike maid appears, Pure red and white—for yet no beard has blessed him— And in his rolling eyes sits victory, As if she ever meant to court his valour. His nose stands high, a character of honour; His red lips, after fights, are fit for ladies.
EMILIA	Must these men die too?
PIRITHOUS	When he speaks, his tongue
(didascalia)	Sounds like a trumpet. All his lineaments
PIRITHOUS	Are as a man would wish ’em—strong and clean. He wears a well-steeled axe, the staff of gold. His age, some five-and-twenty.
MESSENGER	There’s another— A little man, but of a tough soul, seeming As great as any. Fairer promises In such a body yet I never looked on.
PIRITHOUS	O, he that’s freckle-faced?
MESSENGER	The same, my lord. Are they not sweet ones?
PIRITHOUS	Yes, they are well.
MESSENGER	Methinks, Being so few and well disposed, they show Great and fine art in nature. He’s white-haired— Not wanton white, but such a manly colour Next to an auburn, tough and nimble set, Which shows an active soul. His arms are brawny, Lined with strong sinews—to the shoulder piece Gently they swell, like women new-conceived, Which speaks him prone to labour, never fainting Under the weight of arms; stout-hearted, still, But when he stirs, a tiger. He’s grey-eyed, Which yields compassion where he conquers; sharp To spy advantages, and where he finds ’em, He’s swift to make ’em his. He does no wrongs, Nor takes none. He’s round-faced, and when he smiles He shows a lover; when he frowns, a soldier. About his head he wears the winner’s oak, And in it stuck the favour of his lady. His age, some six-and-thirty. In his hand He bears a charging staff embossed with silver.
THESEUS	Are they all thus?
PIRITHOUS	They are all the sons of honour.
THESEUS	Now as I have a soul, I long to see ’em. (To Hippolyta) Lady, you shall see men fight now.
HIPPOLYTA	I Wish it, But not the cause, my lord. They would show Bravely about the titles of two kingdoms— ’Tis pity love should be so tyrannous. (To Emilia) O my soft-hearted sister, what think you? Weep not till they weep blood. Wench, it must be.
THESEUS	(to Emilia) You have steeled ’em with your beauty. (To Pirithous) Honoured friend, To you I give the field: pray order it Fitting the persons that must use it.
PIRITHOUS	Yes, sir.
THESEUS	Come, I’ll go visit ’em—I cannot stay, Their fame has fired me so. Till they appear, Good friend, be royal.
PIRITHOUS	There shall want no bravery.
(didascalia)	EMILIA aside
PIRITHOUS	Poor wench, go weep—for whosoever wins Loses a noble cousin for thy sins.
(didascalia)	Exeunt

Atto 4, Scena 3

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter the Jailer, the Wooer, and the Doctor
DOCTOR	Her distraction is more at some time of the moon than at other some, is it not?
JAILER	She is continually in a harmless distemper: sleeps little; altogether without appetite, save often drinking; dreaming of another world, and a better; and what broken piece of matter soe’er she’s about, the name ’Palamon’ lards it, that she farces every business
(didascalia)	Enter the Jailer’s Daughter
JAILER	withal, fits it to every question. Look where she comes—you shall perceive her behaviour. They stand apart
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	I have forgot it quite—the burden on’t was ‘Down-a, down-a’, and penned by no worse man than Giraldo, Emilia’s schoolmaster. He’s as fantastical, too, as ever he may go upon’s legs—for in the next world will Dido see Palamon, and then will she be out of love with Aeneas.
DOCTOR	What stuff’s here? Poor soul.
JAILER	E’en thus all day long.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Now for this charm that I told you of—you must bring a piece of silver on the tip of your tongue, or no ferry: then, if it be your chance to come where the blessed spirits are—there’s a sight now! We maids that have our livers perished, cracked to pieces with love, we shall come there and do nothing all day long but pick flowers with Proserpine. Then will I make Palamon a nosegay, then let him mark me, then—
DOCTOR	How prettily she’s amiss! Note her a little further.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Faith, I’ll tell you: sometime we go to barley-break, we of the blessed. Alas, ’tis a sore life they have i’th’ other place—such burning, frying, boiling, hissing, howling, chattering, cursing—O they have shrewd measure—take heed! If one be mad or hang or drown themselves, thither they go, Jupiter bless us, and there shall we be put in a cauldron of lead and usurers’ grease, amongst a whole million of cutpurses, and there boil like a gammon of bacon that will never be enough.
DOCTOR	How her brain coins!
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Lords and courtiers that have got maids with child—they are in this place. They shall stand in fire up to the navel and in ice up to th’ heart, and there th’offending part burns, and the deceiving part freezes—in truth a very grievous punishment as one would think for such a trifle. Believe me, one would marry a leprous witch to be rid on’t, I’ll assure you.
DOCTOR	How she continues this fancy! ’Tis not an engrafted madness, but a most thick and profound melancholy.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	To hear there a proud lady and a proud city wife howl together! I were a beast an I’d call it good sport. One cries, ‘O this smoke!’, th‘other, ‘This fire!’; one cries, ‘O that ever I did it behind the arras!’, and then howls—th’other curses a suing fellow and her garden-house. (Sings) ‘I will be true, my stars, my fate …’
(didascalia)	Exit Daughter
JAILER	(to the Doctor) What think you of her, sir?
DOCTOR	I think she has a perturbed mind, which I cannot minister to.
JAILER	Alas, what then?
DOCTOR	Understand you she ever affected any man ere she beheld Palamon?
JAILER	I was once, sir, in great hope she had fixed her liking on this gentleman, my friend.
WOOER	I did think so too, and would account I had a great penn’orth on’t to give half my state that both she and I, at this present, stood unfeignedly on the same terms. 66
DOCTOR	That intemperate surfeit of her eye hath distempered the other senses. They may return and settle again to execute their preordained faculties, but they are now in a most extravagant vagary. This you must do: confine her to a place where the light may rather seem to steal in than be permitted; take upon you, young sir her friend, the name of Palamon; say you come to eat with her and to commune of love. This will catch her attention, for this her mind beats upon—other objects that are inserted ’tween her mind and eye become the pranks and friskins of her madness. Sing to her such green songs of love as she says Palamon hath sung in prison; come to her stuck in as sweet flowers as the season is mistress of, and thereto make an addition of some other compounded odours which are grateful to the sense. All this shall become Palamon, for Palamon can sing, and Palamon is sweet and every good thing. Desire to eat with her, carve her, drink to her, and still among intermingle your petition of grace and acceptance into her favour. Learn what maids have been her companions and playferes, and let them repair to her, with Palamon in their mouths, and appear with tokens as if they suggested for him. It is a falsehood she is in, which is with falsehoods to be combated. This may bring her to eat, to sleep, and reduce what’s now out of square in her into their former law and regiment. I have seen it approved, how many times I know not, but to make the number more I have great hope in this. I will between the passages of this project come in with my appliance. Let us put it in execution, and hasten the success, which doubt not will bring forth comfort.
(didascalia)	Exeunt
(didascalia)	5.1 An altar prepared. Flourish. Enter Theseus, Pirithous, Hippolyta, attendants
THESEUS	Now let ’em enter and before the gods Tender their holy prayers. Let the temples Burn bright with sacred fires, and the altars In hallowed clouds commend their swelling incense To those above us. Let no due be wanting.
(didascalia)	Flourish of cornetts
THESEUS	They have a noble work in hand, will honour The very powers that love ’em.
(didascalia)	Enter Palamon with his three Knights at one door, and Arcite with his three Knights at the other door
PIRITHOUS	Sir, they enter.
THESEUS	You valiant and strong-hearted enemies, You royal german foes that this day come To blow that nearness out that flames between ye, Lay by your anger for an hour and, dove-like, Before the holy altars of your helpers, The all-feared gods, bow down your stubborn bodies. Your ire is more than mortal—so your help be; And as the gods regard ye, fight with justice. I’ll leave you to your prayers, and betwixt ye I part my wishes.
PIRITHOUS	Honour crown the worthiest.
(didascalia)	Exit Theseus and his train
PALAMON	(to Arcite) The glass is running now that cannot finish Till one of us expire. Think you but thus, That were there aught in me which strove to show Mine enemy in this business, were’t one eye Against another, arm oppressed by arm, I would destroy th’offender—coz, I would, Though parcel of myself. Then from this gather How I should tender you.
ARCITE	I am in labour To push your name, your ancient love, our kindred, Out of my memory, and i’th’ selfsame place To seat something I would confound. So hoist we The sails that must these vessels port even where The heavenly limiter pleases.
PALAMON	You speak well. Before I turn, let me embrace thee, cousin— This I shall never do again.
ARCITE	One farewell.
PALAMON	Why, let it be so—farewell, coz.
ARCITE	Farewell, sir.
(didascalia)	Exeunt Palamon and his three Knights
ARCITE	Knights, kinsmen, lovers—yea, my sacrifices, True worshippers of Mars, whose spirit in you Expels the seeds of fear and th’apprehension Which still is father of it, go with me Before the god of our profession. There Require of him the hearts of lions and The breath of tigers, yea, the fierceness too, Yea, the speed also—to go on, I mean, Else wish we to be snails. You know my prize Must be dragged out of blood—force and great feat Must put my garland on me, where she sticks, The queen of flowers. Our intercession, then, Must be to him that makes the camp a cistern Brimmed with the blood of men—give me your aid, And bend your spirits towards him.
(didascalia)	They kneel before the altar, fall on their faces, then on their knees again
ARCITE	(Praying to Mars) Thou mighty one, That with thy power hast turned green Neptune into purple; Whose havoc in vast field comets prewarn, Unearthed skulls proclaim; whose breath blows down The teeming Ceres’ foison; who dost pluck With hand armipotent from forth blue clouds The masoned turrets, that both mak’st and break’st The stony girths of cities; me thy pupil, Youngest follower of thy drum, instruct this day With military skill, that to thy laud I may advance my streamer, and by thee Be styled the lord o’th’ day. Give me, great Mars, Some token of thy pleasure. Here they fall on their faces, as formerly, and there is heard clanging of armour, with a short thunder, as the burst of a battle, whereupon they all rise and bow to the altar O great corrector of enormous times, Shaker of o’er-rank states, thou grand decider Of dusty and old titles, that heal’st with blood The earth when it is sick, and cur’st the world O’th’ plurisy of people, I do take Thy signs auspiciously, and in thy name, To my design, march boldly. (To his Knights) Let us go.
(didascalia)	Exeunt

Atto 5, Scena 2

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter
(didascalia)	Palamon and his Knights with the former observance
PALAMON	(to his Knights) Our stars must glister with new fire, or be Today extinct. Our argument is love, Which if the goddess of it grant, she gives Victory too. Then blend your spirits with mine, You whose free nobleness do make my cause Your personal hazard. To the goddess Venus Commend we our proceeding, and implore Her power unto our party. Here they kneel before the altar, fall on’their faces then on their knees again (Praying to Venus) Hail, sovereign queen of secrets, who hast power To call the fiercest tyrant from his rage And weep unto a girl; that hast the might, Even with an eye-glance, to choke Mars’s drum And turn th‘alarum to whispers; that canst make A cripple flourish with his crutch, and cure him Before Apollo; that mayst force the king To be his subject’s vassal, and induce Stale gravity to dance; the polled bachelor Whose youth, like wanton boys through bonfires, Have skipped thy flame, at seventy thou canst catch And make him to the scorn of his hoarse throat Abuse young lays of love. What godlike power Hast thou not power upon? To Phoebus thou Add’st flames hotter than his—the heavenly fires Did scorch his mortal son, thine him. The huntress, All moist and cold, some say, began to throw Her bow away and sigh. Take to thy grace Me, thy vowed soldier, who do bear thy yoke As ’twere a wreath of roses, yet is heavier Than lead itself, stings more than nettles. I have never been foul-mouthed against thy law; Ne’er revealed secret, for I knew none; would not, Had I kenned all that were. I never practised Upon man’s wife, nor would the libels read Of liberal wits. I never at great feasts Sought to betray a beauty, but have blushed At simp’ring sirs that did. I have been harsh To large confessors, and have hotly asked them If they had mothers—I had one, a woman, And women ’twere they wronged. I knew a man Of eighty winters, this I told them, who A lass of fourteen brided—’twas thy power To put life into dust. The aged cramp Had screwed his square foot round, The gout had knit his fingers into knots, Torturing convulsions from his globy eyes Had almost drawn their spheres, that what was life In him seemed torture. This anatomy Had by his young fair fere a boy, and I Believed it was his, for she swore it was, And who would not believe her? Brief—I am To those that prate and have done, no companion; To those that boast and have not, a defier; To those that would and cannot, a rejoicer. Yea, him I do not love that tells close offices The foulest way, nor names concealments in The boldest language. Such a one I am, And vow that lover never yet made sigh Truer than I. O, then, most soft sweet goddess, Give me the victory of this question, which Is true love’s merit, and bless me with a sign Of thy great pleasure. Here music is heard, doves are seen to flutter. They fall again upon their faces, then on their knees O thou that from eleven to ninety reign’st In mortal bosoms, whose chase is this world And we in herds thy game, I give thee thanks For this fair token, which, being laid unto Mine innocent true heart, arms in assurance My body to this business. (To his Knights) Let us rise And bow before the goddess. They rise and bow Time comes on.
(didascalia)	Exeunt

Atto 5, Scena 3

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Still music of recorders. Enter Emilia in white, her hair about her shoulders, with a wheaten wreath; one in white holding up her train, her hair stuck with flowers; one before her carrying a silver hind in which is conveyed incense and sweet odours, which being set upon the altar, her maids standing apart, she sets fire to it. Then they curtsy and kneel
EMILIA	(praying to Diana) O sacred, shadowy, cold, and constant queen, Abandoner of revels, mute contemplative, Sweet, solitary, white as chaste, and pure As wind-fanned snow, who to thy female knights Allow’st no more blood than will make a blush, Which is their order’s robe: I here, thy priest, Am humbled fore thine altar. O, vouchsafe With that thy rare green eye, which never yet Beheld thing maculate, look on thy virgin; And, sacred silver mistress, lend thine ear— Which ne’er heard scurril term, into whose port Ne‘er entered wanton sound—to my petition, Seasoned with holy fear. This is my last Of vestal office. I am bride-habited, But maiden-hearted. A husband I have ’pointed, But do not know him. Out of two, I should Choose one and pray for his success, but I Am guiltless of election. Of mine eyes Were I to lose one, they are equal precious— I could doom neither: that which perished should Go to’t unsentenced. Therefore, most modest queen, He of the two pretenders that best loves me And has the truest title in’t, let him Take off my wheaten garland, or else grant The file and quality I hold I may Continue in thy band. Here the hind vanishes under the altar and in the place ascends a rose tree having one rose upon it (To her women) See what our general of ebbs and flows Out from the bowels of her holy altar, With sacred act, advances—but one rose! If well inspired, this battle shall confound Both these brave knights, and I a virgin flower Must grow alone, unplucked. Here is heard a sudden twang of instruments and the rose falls from the tree The flower is fall’n, the tree descends. (To Diana) O mistress, Thou here dischargest me—I shall be gathered. I think so, but I know not thine own will.
(didascalia)	Unclasp thy mystery. To her women I hope she’s
EMILIA	pleased; Her signs were gracious. They curtsy and exeunt

Atto 5, Scena 4

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter the Doctor, the jailer, and the Wooer in the habit of Palamon
DOCTOR	Has this advice I told you done any good upon her?
WOOER	O, very much. The maids that kept her company have half persuaded her that I am Palamon. Within this half-hour she came smiling to me, and asked me what I would eat, and when I would kiss her. I told her presently, and kissed her twice.
DOCTOR	’Twas well done—twenty times had been far better, For there the cure lies mainly.
WOOER	Then she told me She would watch with me tonight, for well she knew What hour my fit would take me.
DOCTOR	Let her do so, 11 And when your fit comes, fit her home, And presently.
WOOER	She would have me sing.
DOCTOR	You did so?
WOOER	No.
DOCTOR	’Twas very ill done, then. You should observe her every way.
WOOER	Alas, I have no voice, sir, to confirm her that way.
DOCTOR	That’s all one, if ye make a noise. If she entreat again, do anything— Lie with her if she ask you.
JAILER	Ho there, Doctor.
DOCTOR	Yes, in the way of cure.
JAILER	But first, by your leave, I’th’ way of honesty.
DOCTOR	That’s but a niceness— Ne’er cast your child away for honesty. Cure her first this way, then if she will be honest, She has the path before her.
JAILER	Thank ye, Doctor.
DOCTOR	Pray bring her in and let’s see how she is.
JAILER	I will, and tell her her Palamon stays for her. But, Doctor, methinks you are i’th’ wrong still.
(didascalia)	Exit Jailer
DOCTOR	Go, go. You fathers are fine fools—her honesty? An we should give her physic till we find that—
WOOER	Why, do you think she is not honest, sir?
DOCTOR	How old is she?
WOOER	She’s eighteen.
DOCTOR	She may be— But that’s all one. ’Tis nothing to our purpose. Whate’er her father says, if you perceive Her mood inclining that way that I spoke of, Videlicet, the way of flesh—you have me?
WOOER	Yes, very well, sir.
DOCTOR	Please her appetite, And do it home—it cures her, ipso facto, The melancholy humour that infects her.
WOOER	I am of your mind, Doctor.
(didascalia)	Enter the Jailer and his Daughter,
WOOER	mad
DOCTOR	You’ll find it so—she comes: pray humour her.
(didascalia)	The Doctor and the Wooer stand apart
JAILER	(to his Daughter) Come, your love Palamon stays for you, child, And has done this long hour, to visit you.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	I thank him for his gentle patience. He’s a kind gentleman, and I am much bound to him. Did you ne’er see the horse he gave me?
JAILER	Yes.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	How do you like him?
JAILER	He’s a very fair one.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	You never saw him dance?
JAILER	No.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	I have, often. He dances very finely, very comely, And, for a jig, come cut and long-tail to him, He turns ye like a top.
JAILER	That’s fine, indeed.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	He’ll dance the morris twenty mile an hour, And that will founder the best hobbyhorse, If I have any skill, in all the parish— And gallops to the tune of ‘Light o’ love’. What think you of this horse?
JAILER	Having these virtues I think he might be brought to play at tennis.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Alas, that’s nothing.
JAILER	Can he write and read too?
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	A very fair hand, and casts himself th’accounts Of all his hay and provender. That ostler Must rise betime that cozens him. You know The chestnut mare the Duke has?
JAILER	Very well.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	She is horribly in love with him, poor beast, But he is like his master—coy and scornful.
JAILER	What dowry has she?
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Some two hundred bottles And twenty strike of oats, but he’ll ne’er have her. He lisps in’s neighing, able to entice A miller’s mare. He’ll be the death of her.
DOCTOR	What stuff she utters!
JAILER	Make curtsy—here your love comes.
WOOER	(coming forward) Pretty soul, How do ye? She curtsies That’s a fine maid, there’s a curtsy.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Yours to command, i’th’ way of honesty— How far is’t now to th’ end o’th’ world, my masters?
DOCTOR	Why, a day’s journey, wench.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	(to Wooer) Will you go with me?
WOOER	What shall we do there, wench?
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Why, play at stool-ball— What is there else to do?
WOOER	I am content If we shall keep our wedding there.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	’Tis true— For there, I will assure you, we shall find Some blind priest for the purpose that will venture To marry us, for here they are nice, and foolish. Besides, my father must be hanged tomorrow, And that would be a blot i’th’ business. Are not you Palamon?
WOOER	Do not you know me?
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Yes, but you care not for me. I have nothing But this poor petticoat and two coarse smocks.
WOOER	That’s all one—I will have you.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Will you surely?
WOOER	Yes, by this fair hand, will I.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	We’ll to bed then.
WOOER	E’en when you will. He kisses her
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	(rubbing off the kiss) O, sir, you would fain be nibbling.
WOOER	Why do you rub my kiss off?
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	’Tis a sweet one, And will perfume me finely against the wedding. 90 (Indicating the Doctor) Is not this your cousin Arcite?
DOCTOR	Yes, sweetheart, And I am glad my cousin Palamon Has made so fair a choice.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Do you think he’ll have me?
DOCTOR	Yes, without doubt.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	(to the Jailer) Do you think so too?
JAILER	Yes.
(didascalia)	We shall have many children. To the Doctor Lord,
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	how you’re grown! My Palamon, I hope, will grow too, finely, Now he’s at liberty. Alas, poor chicken, He was kept down with hard meat and ill lodging, But I’ll kiss him up again.
(didascalia)	Enter a
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	Messenger
MESSENGER	What do you here? You’ll lose the noblest sight That e’er was seen.
JAILER	Are they i’th’ field?
MESSENGER	They are— You bear a charge there too.
JAILER	I’ll away straight.
(didascalia)	To the others I must e’en leave you here.
DOCTOR	Nay, we’ll go with you— I will not lose the sight.
JAILER	How did you like her?
DOCTOR	I’ll warrant you, within these three or four days I’ll make her right again.
(didascalia)	Exit the Jailer with the Messenger
DOCTOR	(To the Wooer) You must not from her, But still preserve her in this way.
WOOER	I will.
DOCTOR	Let’s get her in.
WOOER	(to the Jailer’s Daughter) Come, sweet, we’ll go to dinner, And then we’ll play at cards.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	And shall we kiss too?
WOOER	A hundred times.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	And twenty.
WOOER	Ay, and twenty. no
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	And then we’ll sleep together.
DOCTOR	(to the Wooer) Take her offer.
WOOER	(to the Jailer’s Daughter) Yes, marry, will we.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	But you shall not hurt me.
WOOER	I will not, sweet.
JAILER’S DAUGHTER	If you do, love, I’ll cry.
(didascalia)	Exeunt

Atto 5, Scena 5

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Flourish. Enter Theseus, Hippolyta, Emilia, Pirithous, and some attendants
EMILIA	I’ll no step further.
PIRITHOUS	Will you lose this sight?
EMILIA	I had rather see a wren hawk at a fly Than this decision. Every blow that falls Threats a brave life; each stroke laments The place whereon it falls, and sounds more like A bell than blade. I will stay here. It is enough my hearing shall be punished With what shall happen, ’gainst the which there is No deafing, but to hear; not taint mine eye With dread sights it may shun.
PIRITHOUS	(to Theseus) Sir, my good lord, Your sister will no further.
THESEUS	O she must. She shall see deeds of honour in their kind, Which sometime show well pencilled. Nature now Shall make and act the story, the belief Both sealed with eye and ear. (To Emilia) You must be present— You are the victor’s meed, the price and garland To crown the question’s title.
EMILIA	Pardon me, If I were there I’d wink.
THESEUS	You must be there— This trial is, as ’twere, i’th’ night, and you The only star to shine.
EMILIA	I am extinct. There is but envy in that light which shows The one the other. Darkness, which ever was The dam of horror, who does stand accursed Of many mortal millions, may even now, By casting her black mantle over both, That neither could find other, get herself Some part of a good name, and many a murder Set off whereto she’s guilty.
HIPPOLYTA	You must go.
EMILIA	In faith, I will not.
THESEUS	Why, the knights must kindle Their valour at your eye. Know, of this war You are the treasure, and must needs be by To give the service pay.
EMILIA	Sir, pardon me— The title of a kingdom may be tried Out of itself.
THESEUS	Well, well—then at your pleasure. Those that remain with you could wish their office To any of their enemies.
HIPPOLYTA	Farewell, sister. I am like to know your husband fore yourself, By some small start of time. He whom the gods Do of the two know best, I pray them he Be made your lot.
(didascalia)	Exeunt all but Emilia
(didascalia)	Emilia takes out two pictures, one from her right side, and one from her left
EMILIA	Arcite is gently visaged, yet his eye Is like an engine bent or a sharp weapon In a soft sheath. Mercy and manly courage Are bedfellows in his visage. Palamon Has a most menacing aspect. His brow Is graved and seems to bury what it frowns on, Yet sometime ’tis not so, but alters to The quality of his thoughts. Long time his eye Will dwell upon his object. Melancholy Becomes him nobly—so does Arcite’s mirth. But Palamon’s sadness is a kind of mirth, So mingled as if mirth did make him sad And sadness merry. Those darker humours that Stick misbecomingly on others, on them Live in fair dwelling. Cornetts. Trumpets sound as to a charge Hark, how yon spurs to spirit do incite The princes to their proof. Arcite may win me, And yet may Palamon wound Arcite to The spoiling of his figure. O, what pity Enough for such a chance! If I were by I might do hurt, for they would glance their eyes Toward my seat, and in that motion might Omit a ward or forfeit an offence Which craved that very time. It is much better Cornetts. A great cry and noise within, crying, ‘A Palamon’ I am not there. O better never born, Than minister to such harm.
(didascalia)	Enter Servant
EMILIA	What is the chance?
SERVANT	The cry’s ‘A Palamon’.
EMILIA	Then he has won. ’Twas ever likely— He looked all grace and success, and he is Doubtless the prim’st of men. I prithee run And tell me how it goes.
(didascalia)	Shout and cornetts, crying,
EMILIA	‘A Palamon’
SERVANT	Still ‘Palamon’.
EMILIA	Run and enquire.
(didascalia)	Exit Servant
(didascalia)	She speaks to the picture in her right hand
EMILIA	Poor servant, thou hast lost. Upon my right side still I wore thy picture, Palamon’s on the left. Why so, I know not. I had no end in’t, else chance would have it so. Another cry and shout within and cornetts On the sinister side the heart lies—Palamon Had the best-boding chance. This burst of clamour Is sure the end o’th’ combat.
(didascalia)	Enter Servant
SERVANT	They said that Palamon had Arcite’s body
(didascalia)	Within an inch o‘th’ pyramid—that the cry
SERVANT	Was general ‘A Palamon’. But anon Th’assistants made a brave redemption, and The two bold titlers at this instant are Hand to hand at it.
EMILIA	Were they metamorphosed Both into one! O why? There were no woman Worth so composed a man: their single share, Their nobleness peculiar to them, gives The prejudice of disparity, value’s shortness, To any lady breathing— Cornetts. Cry within, ‘Arcite, Arcite’ More exulting? ‘Palamon’ still?
SERVANT	Nay, now the sound is ‘Arcite’.
EMILIA	I prithee, lay attention to the cry. Cornetts. A great shout and cry, ‘Arcite, victory!’ Set both thine ears to th’ business.
SERVANT	The cry is ‘Arcite’ and ‘Victory’—hark, ‘Arcite, victory!’ The combat’s consummation is proclaimed By the wind instruments.
EMILIA	Half sights saw That Arcite was no babe. God’s lid, his richness And costliness of spirit looked through him—it could No more be hid in him than fire in flax, Than humble banks can go to law with waters That drift winds force to raging. I did think Good Palamon would miscarry, yet I knew not Why I did think so. Our reasons are not prophets When oft our fancies are. They are coming off— Alas, poor Palamon. She puts away the pictures. Cornetts. Enter Theseus, Hippolyta, Pirithous, Arcite as victor, and attendants
THESEUS	Lo, where our sister is in expectation, Yet quaking and unsettled. Fairest Emily, The gods by their divine arbitrament Have given you this knight. He is a good one
(didascalia)	As ever struck at head. To Arcite and Emilia Give me
THESEUS	your hands. (To Arcite) Receive you her, (to Emilia) you him: (to both) be plighted with A love that grows as you decay.
ARCITE	Emilia, To buy you I have lost what’s dearest to me Save what is bought, and yet I purchase cheaply As I do rate your value.
THESEUS	(to Emilia) O lovèd sister, He speaks now of as brave a knight as e’er Did spur a noble steed. Surely the gods Would have him die a bachelor lest his race Should show i’th’ world too godlike. His behaviour So charmed me that, methought, Alcides was To him a sow of lead. If I could praise Each part of him to th‘all I have spoke, your Arcite Did not lose by’t; for he that was thus good, Encountered yet his better. I have heard Two emulous Philomels beat the ear o’th’ night With their contentious throats, now one the higher, Anon the other, then again the first, And by and by out-breasted, that the sense Could not be judge between ’em—so it fared Good space between these kinsmen, till heavens did Make hardly one the winner. (To Arcite) Wear the garland With joy that you have won.—For the subdued, Give them our present justice, since I know Their lives but pinch ’em. Let it here be done. The scene’s not for our seeing; go we hence Right joyful, with some sorrow. (To Arcite) Arm your prize; I know you will not lose her. Hippolyta, I see one eye of yours conceives a tear, The which it will deliver.
(didascalia)	Flourish
EMILIA	Is this winning? O all you heavenly powers, where is your mercy? But that your wills have said it must be so, And charge me live to comfort this unfriended, This miserable prince, that cuts away A life more worthy from him than all women, I should and would die too.
HFPPOLYTA	Infinite pity That four such eyes should be so fixed on one That two must needs be blind for’t.
THESEUS	So it is.
(didascalia)	Exeunt

Atto 5, Scena 6

Chi parla	Battuta
(didascalia)	Enter, guarded, Palamon and his three Knights pinioned; enter with them the Jailer and an executioner with block and axe
PALAMON	There’s many a man alive that hath outlived The love o’th’ people; yea, i’th’ selfsame state Stands many a father with his child: some comfort We have by so considering. We expire, And not without men’s pity; to live still, Have their good wishes. We prevent The loathsome misery of age, beguile The gout and rheum that in lag hours attend For grey approachers; we come towards the gods Young and unwappered, not halting under crimes Many and state—that sure shall please the gods Sooner than such, to give us nectar with ’em, For we are more clear spirits. My dear kinsmen, Whose lives for this poor comfort are laid down, You have sold ’em too too cheap.
FIRST KNIGHT	What ending could be Of more content? O’er us the victors have Fortune, whose title is as momentary As to us death is certain—a grain of honour They not o’erweigh us.
SECOND KNIGHT	Let us bid farewell, And with our patience anger tott’ring fortune, Who at her certain’st reels.
THIRD KNIGHT	Come, who begins?
PALAMON	E’en he that led you to this banquet shall Taste to you all. (To the jailer) Aha, my friend, my friend, Your gentle daughter gave me freedom once; You’ll see’t done now for ever. Pray, how does she? I heard she was not well; her kind of ill Gave me some sorrow.
JAILER	Sir, she’s well restored And to be married shortly.
PALAMON	By my short life, I am most glad on’t. ’Tis the latest thing I shall be glad of. Prithee, tell her so; Commend me to her, and to piece her portion Tender her this. He gives his purse
FIRST KNIGHT	Nay, let’s be offerers all.
SECOND KNIGHT	Is it a maid?
PALAMON	Verily, I think so— A right good creature more to me deserving Than I can quit or speak of.
ALL THREE KNIGHTS	Commend us to her. They give their purses
JAILER	The gods requite you all, and make her thankful.
PALAMON	Adieu, and let my life be now as short As my leave-taking. He lies on the block
FIRST KNIGHT	Lead, courageous cousin.
SECOND	and THIRD KNIGHTS We’ll follow cheerfully. A great noise within: crying, ‘Run! Save! Hold!’
(didascalia)	Enter in haste a Messenger
MESSENGER	Hold! Hold! O, hold! Hold! Hold!
(didascalia)	Enter Pirithous in haste
PIRITHOUS	Hold, ho! It is a cursèd haste you made If you have done so quickly! Noble Palamon, The gods will show their glory in a life That thou art yet to lead.
PALAMON	Can that be, When Venus, I have said, is false? How do things fare?
PIRITHOUS	Arise, great sir, and give the tidings ear That are most rarely sweet and bitter.
PALAMON	What Hath waked us from our dream?
PIRITHOUS	List, then: your cousin, Mounted upon a steed that Emily Did first bestow on him, a black one owing Not a hair-worth of white—which some will say Weakens his price and many will not buy His goodness with this note; which superstition Here finds allowance—on this horse is Arcite Trotting the stones of Athens, which the calkins Did rather tell than trample; for the horse Would make his length a mile, if’t pleased his rider To put pride in him. As he thus went counting The flinty pavement, dancing, as ‘twere, to th’ music His own hooves made—for, as they say, from iron Came music’s origin—what envious flint, Cold as old Saturn and like him possessed With fire malevolent, darted a spark, Or what fierce sulphur else, to this end made, I comment not—the hot horse, hot as fire, Took toy at this and fell to what disorder His power could give his will; bounds; comes on end; Forgets school-doing, being therein trained And of kind manège; pig-like he whines At the sharp rowel, which he frets at rather Than any jot obeys; seeks all foul means Of boist’rous and rough jad’ry to disseat His lord, that kept it bravely. When naught served, When neither curb would crack, girth break, nor diff’ring plunges Disroot his rider whence he grew, but that He kept him ‘tween his legs, on his hind hooves— On end he stands— That Arcite’s legs, being higher than his head, Seemed with strange art to hang. His victor’s wreath Even then fell off his head; and presently Backward the jade comes o’er and his full poise Becomes the rider’s load. Yet is he living; But such a vessel ’tis that floats but for The surge that next approaches. He much desires To have some speech with you—lo, he appears.
(didascalia)	Enter Theseus, Hippolyta, Emilia, and Arcite in a chair borne by attendants
PALAMON	O miserable end of our alliance! The gods are mighty. Arcite, if thy heart, Thy worthy manly heart, be yet unbroken, Give me thy last words. I am Palamon, One that yet loves thee dying.
ARCITE	Take Emilia, And with her all the world’s joy. Reach thy hand— Farewell—I have told my last hour. I was false, Yet never treacherous. Forgive me, cousin— One kiss from fair Emilia—(they kiss) ’tis done. Take her; I die. He dies
PALAMON	Thy brave soul seek Elysium.
EMILIA	(to Arcite’s body) I’ll close thine eyes, Prince. Blessed souls be with thee. Thou art a right good man, and, while I live, This day I give to tears.
PALAMON	And I to honour.
THESEUS	In this place first you fought, e’en very here I sundered you. Acknowledge to the gods Our thanks that you are living. His part is played, and, though it were too short, He did it well. Your day is lengthened and The blissful dew of heaven does arrouse you. The powerful Venus well hath graced her altar, And given you your love; our master, Mars, Hath vouched his oracle, and to Arcite gave The grace of the contention. So the deities Have showed due justice.—Bear this hence.
(didascalia)	Exeunt attendants with Arcite’s body
PALAMON	cousin, That we should things desire which do cost us The loss of our desire! That naught could buy Dear love, but loss of dear love!
THESEUS	Never fortune Did play a subtler game—the conquered triumphs, The victor has the loss. Yet in the passage The gods have been most equal. Palamon, Your kinsman hath confessed the right o’th’ lady Did lie in you, for you first saw her and Even then proclaimed your fancy. He restored her As your stol’n jewel, and desired your spirit To send him hence forgiven. The gods my justice Take from my hand, and they themselves become The executioners. Lead your lady off, And call your lovers from the stage of death, Whom I adopt my friends. A day or two Let us look sadly and give grace unto The funeral of Arcite, in whose end The visages of bridegrooms we’ll put on And smile with Palamon, for whom an hour, But one hour since, I was as dearly sorry As glad of Arcite, and am now as glad As for him sorry. O you heavenly charmers, What things you make of us! For what we lack We laugh, for what we have, are sorry; still Are children in some kind. Let us be thankful For that which is, and with you leave dispute That are above our question. Let’s go off And bear us like the time.
(didascalia)	Flourish. Exeunt
THESEUS	Epilogue
(didascalia)	Enter Epilogue
EPILOGUE	I would now ask ye how ye like the play, But, as it is with schoolboys, cannot say. I am cruel fearful. Pray yet stay awhile, And let me look upon ye. No man smile? Then it goes hard, I see. He that has Loved a young handsome wench, then, show his face— ’Tis strange if none be here—and, if he will, Against his conscience let him hiss and kill Our market. ’Tis in vain, I see, to stay ye. Have at the worst can come, then! Now, what say ye? And yet mistake me not—I am not bold— We have no such cause. If the tale we have totd— For ’tis no other—any way content ye, For to that honest purpose it was meant ye, We have our end; and ye shall have ere long, I dare say, many a better to prolong Your old loves to us. We and all our might Rest at your service. Gentlemen, good night.
(didascalia)	Flourish. Exit
FURTHER READING	by SUSAN BROCK
WORKS	on individual plays are listed in that section regardless of subject. UK publication details are supplied where available. Editions of Shakespeare Single volumes Shakespeare’s Plays in Quarto: A Facsimile Edition of Copies Primarily from the Henry E. Huntington Library, eds. Michael J. B. Allen and Kenneth Muir (Berkeley CA: University of California Press, 1981) A one-volume collection of early quartos. The First Folio of Shakespeare: The Norton Facsimile, ed. Charlton Hinman, with a new introduction by Peter W. M. Blayney, 2nd edn. (New York and London: W. W. Norton, I996) A facsimile of the First Folio, with a valuable introduction. The Norton Shakespeare, gen. ed. Stephen Greenblatt, eds. Walter Cohen, Jean E. Howard, Katharine Eisaman Maus, with an essay on the Shakespearean stage by Andrew Gurr (New York: W. W. Norton, 1997) Based on the Oxford edition with a general introduction and separate introductions to each play. Commentary and glossarial notes on the page. The Complete Works of Shakespeare, ed. David Bevington, updated th edn. (New York: Longman, 1997) Uses work from the Bantam Shakespeare series (1988). The Riverside Shakespeare, ed. G. Blakemore Evans with the assistance of J. M. M. Tobin, 2nd edn. (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1997) A mixture of original and modern spelling with through-line numbering. Text used in the Harvard Concordance. The Complete Pelican Shakespeare, gen. eds. Stephen 0rgel and A. L. Braunmuller (New York: Penguin, 2002). Newly edited texts in modern American spelling, together with introductions and commentary. Multi-volume series New Variorum Shakespeare, ed. H. H. Furness (Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1871―); rev. series (New York: MLA, 1977―) Revised editions are Measure for Measure, Antony and Cleopatra, and As You Like It. Provides historical readings from a wide range of editions and critics. Shakespeare Quarto Facsimiles, 16 vols (London: Shakespeare Association, Sidgwick & Jackson, 1939―52; Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1957―75) Includes only a selection of the quartos judged to be the most important. The New Penguin Shakespeare, gen. ed. T. J. B. Spencer, associate ed. Stanley Wells (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1964―2001) To be reissued from 2005 with new introductions and other editorial material. The Oxford Shakespeare, gen. ed. Stanley Wells (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1982―) Texts independent of the one-volume Oxford edition. Also published in paperback in the World’s Classics series. The New Cambridge Shakespeare, founding ed. Philip Brockbank, gen. ed. Brian Gibbons (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1984―) Not yet complete but early volumes being updated. The Arden Shakespeare, 3rd series, gen. eds. Richard Proudfoot, Ann Thompson and David Scott Kastan (London: Arden Shakespeare, 1995―) Gradually replacing the Arden 2nd series (1951―82). Shakespeare Folios (London: Nick Hern Books, 2001―) Parallel First Folio and modern texts. General Reference Berger, Thomas, L., William C. Bradford and Sidney L. Sondergard (eds.), An Index of Characters in Early Modern English Drama: Printed Plays, 1500―166o, rev. edn. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998) Dobson, Michael, and Stanley Wells (eds.), The Oxford Companion to Shakespeare (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001) Harner, James L. (ed.), World Shakespeare Bibliography Online 1966―2004 (Johns Hopkins University Press in Association with the Folger Shakespeare Library, 2004) (〈http://www.worldshakesbib.org) by subscription) Kastan, David Scott (ed.), A Companion to Shakespeare (Oxford: Blackwell, 1999) Munro, John (ed.), The Shakspere Allusion Book: A Collection of Allusions to Shakspere from 1591―1700, originally compiled by C. M. Ingleby, Miss L. Toulmin Smith and Dr F. J. Furnivall, with a preface by Sir Edmund Chambers, 2 vols (London: Oxford University Press, 1932) Wells, Stanley, and Lena Cowen Orlin (eds.), Shakespeare: An Oxford Guide (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003) Spevack, Marvin, The Harvard Concordance to Shakespeare (Cambridge MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1973) Wells, Stanley, with James Shaw, A Dictionary of Shakespeare (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998) Periodicals Only the last or current publisher is listed. Shakespeare, I―, 1996― (Washington DC: Georgetown University Press) Shakespeare Bulletin (since 1992 incorporating Shakespeare on Film Newsletter), I―, 1983― (Carrollton GA: State University of West Georgia) Shakespeare Newsletter, I―, 1951― (New Rochelle NY: Iona College, Dept. of English) Shakespeare on Film Newsletter, 1―16, 1976―92 (Burlington VT: University of Vermont, Dept. of English) Shakespeare Quarterly, I―, 1951― (Baltimore MD: Johns Hopkins Press for the Folger Shakespeare Library in association with the George Washington University) Shakespeare Studies, I―, 1965― (London: Associated University Presses) Shakespeare Survey, I―, 1948― (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press) Life Chambers, E. K., William Shakespeare: A Study of Facts and Problems, 2 vols (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1930) Duncan-Jones, Katherine, Ungentle Shakespeare: Scenes from His Life (London: Arden Shakespeare, 2001) Dutton, Richard, William Shakespeare: A Literary Life (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1989) Eccles, Mark, Shakespeare in Warwickshire (Madison WI: University of Wisconsin Press, 1961) Fraser, Russell, Young Shakespeare (New York: Columbia University Press, 1988) —Shakespeare: The Later Years (New York: Columbia University Press, 1992) Fripp, Edgar I., Shakespeare, Man and Artist, 2 vols (London: Oxford University Press, 1938) Greenblatt, Stephen, Will in the World: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare (London: Jonathan Cape, 2004) Honan, Park, Shakespeare, a Life (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998) Honigmann, E. A. J., The Lost Years, 2nd edn. (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1998) Schoenbaum, S., William Shakespeare: A Compact Documentary Life (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1977) —William Shakespeare: A Documentary Life (Oxford: Clarendon Press in association with The Scolar Press, 1975) —William Shakespeare: Records and Images (London: Scolar Press, 1981) —Shakespeare’s Lives, 2nd edn. (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1991) Wells, Stanley, Shakespeare: A Dramatic Life (London: Sinclair-Stevenson, 1994) Authorship Gibson, H. N., The Shakespeare Claimants: A Critical Survey of the Four Principal Theories Concerning the Authorship of Shakespearean Plays (London: Methuen, 1962) Hope, Jonathan, The Authorship of Shakespeare’s Plays: A Sociolinguistic Study (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994) Matus, Irvin Leigh, Shakespeare, in Fact (New York: Continuum, 1994) Michell, John, Who Wrote Shakespeare (London: Thames and Hudson, 1996) Vickers, Brian, Shakespeare, Co-author: A Historical Study of Five Collaborative Plays (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002) Language Abbott, E. A., A Shakespearian Grammar: An Attempt to Illustrate Some of the Differences between Elizabethan and Modern English, 3rd edn. ([London]: Macmillan, 1870; repr. New York: Dover, 1966) Adamson, Sylvia, and others (eds.), Reading Shakespeare’s Dramatic Language: A Guide (London: Arden Shakespeare, 2001) Blake, N. F., Shakespeare’s Language: An Introduction (London: Macmillan, 1983) Brook, G. L., The Language of Shakespeare (London: Deutsch, 1976) Cercignani, Fausto, Shakespeare’s Works and Elizabethan Pronunciation (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1981) Clemen, Wolfgang, The Development of Shakespeare’s Imagery, 2nd edn. (London: Methuen, 1977) Crystal, David, and Ben Crystal, Shakespeare’s Words: A Glossary and Language Companion (London: Penguin, 2002) Dent, R. W., Shakespeare’s Proverbial Language: An Index (Berkeley CA: University of California Press, 1981) Donawerth, Jane, Shakespeare and the Sixteenth-Century Study of Language (Urbana IL: University of Illinois Press, 1984) Doran, Madeleine, Shakespeare’s Dramatic Language: Essays (Madison WI: University of Wisconsin Press, 1976) Hulme, Hilda M., Explorations in Shakespeare’s Language: Some Problems of Lexical Meaning in the Dramatic Text (London: Longman, 1962) Hussey, S. S., The Literary Language of Shakespeare, 2nd edn. (London: Longman, 1992) Joseph, Sister Miriam, Shakespeare’s Use of the Arts of Language (New York: Columbia University Press, 1947) Kermode, Frank, Shakespeare’s Language (London: Allen Lane, 2000) Kökeritz, Helge, Shakespeare’s Pronunciation (New Haven CT: Yale University Press, 1953) —Shakespeare’s Names: A Pronouncing Dictionary (New Haven CT: Yale University Press, 1959; repr. 1985) McDonald, Russ, Shakespeare and the Arts of Language (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001) Magnusson, Lynne, Shakespeare and Social Dialogue: Dramatic Language and Elizabethan Letters (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999) Mahood, M. M., Shakespeare’s Wordplay (London: Methuen, 1957) Onions, C. T., A Shakespeare Glossary, enlarged and revised throughout by Robert D. Eagleson (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1986) Parker, Patricia, Shakespeare from the Margins: Language, Culture, Context (Chicago IL: University of Chicago Press, I996) Partridge, Eric, Shakespeare’s Bawdy: A Literary and Pyschological Essay and a Comprehensive Glossary, 3rd edn. (London : Routledge, 1991) Quirk, Randolph, ‘Shakespeare and the English Language’, in his The Linguist and the English Language (London: Edward Arnold, 1974) Salmon, Vivian, and Edwina Burness (eds.), A Reader in the Language of Shakespearean Drama (Amsterdam: Benjamins, 1987) Schmidt, Alexander, Shakespeare Lexicon, 3rd edn., rev. and enlarged by Gregor Sarrazin, 2 vols (Berlin: Reimer, 1902; repr. New York: Dover, 1971) Sipe, Dorothy L., Shakespeare’s Metrics (New Haven CT: Yale University Press, 1968) Spurgeon, Caroline F. E., Shakespeare’s Imagery and What It Tells Us (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993) (First published 1935) Trousdale, Marion, Shakespeare and the Rhetoricians (London: Scolar Press, 1982) Vickers, Brian, The Artistry of Shakespeare’s Prose (London: Methuen, 1968) Williams, Gordon, A Glossary of Shakespeare’s Sexual Language (London: Athlone, 1997) Wright, George T., Shakespeare’s Metrical Art (Berkeley CA: University of California Press, 1988) —Hearing the Measures: Shakespearean and Other Inflections (Madison WI: University of Wisconsin Press, 2002) Sources Baldwin, T. W., William Shakspere’s Petty School (Urbana IL: University of Illinois Press, 1943) —William Shakspere’s Small Latine and Lesse Greeke, 2 vols (Urbana IL: University of Illinois Press, 1944) Bate, Jonathan, Shakespeare and Ovid (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1993) Bullough, Geoffrey (ed.), Narrative and Dramatic Sources of Shakespeare, 8 vols (London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1957―73) Donaldson, E. Talbot, The Swan at the Well: Shakespeare Reading Chaucer (New Haven CT: Yale University Press, 1985) Gillespie, Stuart, Shakespeare’s Books: A Dictionary of Shakespeare Sources (London: Athlone, 2001) Hart, Alfred, Shakespeare and the Homilies and Other Pieces of Research into the Elizabethan Drama (Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 1934; repr. New York: Octagon Books, 1977) Lennox, Charlotte, Shakespear Illustrated: Or, The Novels and Histories, on which the Plays of Shakespear Are Founded, 3 vols (London: Miller, 1753―4; repr. New York: AMS Press, 1973) Lynch, Stephen J., Shakespearean Intertextuality: Studies in Selected Sources and Plays (Westport CT: Greenwood Press, 1998) Milward, Peter, Shakespeare’s Religious Background (London: Sidgwick and Jackson, 1973) Miola, Robert S., Shakespeare and Classical Tragedy: The Influence of Seneca (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1992) —Shakespeare and Classical Comedy: The Influence of Plautus and Terence (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1994) —Shakespeare’s Reading (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000) Muir, Kenneth, The Sources of Shakespeare’s Plays (London: Methuen, 1977) Noble, Richmond, Shakespeare’s Biblical Knowledge and Use of ‘The Book of Common Prayer’ as Exemplified in the Plays of the First Folio (London: SPCK, 1935; repr. New York: Gordon Press Publishers, 1972) Patterson, Annabel, Reading Holinshed’s Chronicles (Chicago IL: University of Chicago Press, 1994) Roe, John, Shakespeare and Machiavelli (Cambridge: D. S. Brewer, 2002) Salingar, Leo, Shakespeare and the Traditions of Comedy (London: Cambridge University Press, 1974) Scragg, Leah, Shakespeare’s Mouldy Tales (London: Longman, 1992) —Shakespeare’s Alternative Tales (London: Longman, 1996) Shaheen, Naseeb, Biblical References in Shakespeare’s Plays (London: Associated University Presses, 1999) Spencer, T. J. B., Shakespeare’s Plutarch (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1964) Thompson, Ann, Shakespeare’s Chaucer: A Study in Literary Origins (Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 1978) Thompson, J. A. K., Shakespeare and the Classics (London: Allen & Unwin, 1952) Whitaker, Virgil K., Shakespeare’s Use of Learning: An Inquiry into the Growth of his Mind and Art (San Marino CA: Huntington Library, 1953) Text Blayney, Peter W. M., The First Folio of Shakespeare (Washington DC: Folger Library Publications, 1991) —‘The Publication of Playbooks’, in John D. 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(New York: Theatre Arts Books, 1969) Salgado, Gamini, Eyewitnesses of Shakespeare: First-Hand Accounts of Performances 1590-1890 (London: University of Sussex Press for Chatto & Windus, 1975) Shattuck, Charles H., The Shakespeare Promptbooks: A Descriptive Catalogue (Urbana IL: University of Illinois Press, 1965) Shaughnessy, Robert (ed.), Shakespeare in Performance, New Casebooks (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 2000) Speaight, Robert, Shakespeare on the Stage: An Illustrated History of Shakespearian Performance (London: Collins, 1973) Sprague, A. C., The Doubling of Parts in Shakespeare’s Plays (London: Society for Theatre Research, 1966) Stern, Tiffany, Making Shakespeare from Stage to Page (London: Routledge, 2004) Styan, J. L., Shakespeare’s Stagecraft (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1967) Wells, Stanley (ed.), Shakespeare in the Theatre: An Anthology of Criticism (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1997) —and Sarah Stanton (eds.), The Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare on Stage (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002) Williams, Simon, Shakespeare on the German Stage, Vol. I: 1586-1914 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990) Shakespeare’s playhouse Baldwin, T. W., The Organisation and Personnel of the Company (Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press, 1927; repr. New York: Russell and Russell, 1961) Barroll, J. Leeds, Politics, Plague and Shakespeare’s Theater: The Stuart Years (Ithaca NY: Cornell University Press, rpp r) Beckerman, Bernard, Shakespeare at the Globe, 1599-1609 (New York: Macmillan, 1962) Bentley, G. E., The Jacobean and Caroline Stage, 7 vols (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1941-68) —The Profession of Dramatist in Shakespeare’s Time, 1590-1642 (Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press, 1971) —The Profession of Player in Shakespeare’s Time, 1590-1642 (Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press, 1984) Berry, Herbert, Shakespeare’s Playhouses (New York: AMS, 1987) Chambers, E. K., The Elizabethan Stage, 4 vols (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1923) Cook, Ann Jennalie, The Privileged Playgoers of Shakespeare’s London, 1576-1642 (Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press, 1981) Dessen, Alan C., Recovering Shakespeare’s Theatrical Vocabulary (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995) —and Leslie Thomson, A Dictionary of Stage Directions in English Drama, 1580-1642 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999) Gurr, Andrew, The Shakespearean Stage 1574-1642, 3rd edn. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992) —Playgoing in Shakespeare’s London, 3rd edn. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004) —The Shakespearian Playing Companies (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1996) —The Shakespeare Company 1594-1642 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004) —with John Orrell, Rebuilding Shakespeare’s Globe (London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1989) Hodges, C. Walter, Shakespeare’s Second Globe, the Missing Monument (London: Oxford University Press, 1973) King, T. J., Shakespearian Staging, 1599-1642 (Cambridge MA: Harvard University Press, 1971) —Casting Shakespeare’s Plays: London Actors and Their Roles 1590-1642 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992) Knutson, Roslyn Lander, The Repertory of Shakespeare’s Company 1594-1613 (Fayetteville AR: University of Arkansas Press, 1991) Linthicum, M. Channing, Costume in the Drama of Shakespeare and His Contemporaries (Oxford: Clarendon Press, I936) Montrose, Louis Adrian, The Purpose of Playing: Shakespeare and the Cultural Politics of the Elizabethan Theatre (Chicago IL: University of Chicago Press, 1996) Mulryne, J. R., and Margaret Shewring (eds.), Shakespeare’s Globe Rebuilt (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997) Nungezer, Edwin, A Dictionary of Actors and Other Persons Associated with the Public Presentation of Plays in England before 1642 (New Haven CT: Yale University Press, 1929) Orrell, John, The Quest for Shakespeare’s Globe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983) Thomson, Peter, Shakespeare’s Professional Career (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992) —Shakespeare’s Theatre, 2nd edn. (London: Routledge, 1992) Wiles, David, Shakespeare’s Clown: Actor and Text in the Elizabethan Playhouse (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987) 1700-1900 Foulkes, Richard (ed.), Shakespeare and the Victorian Stage (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1986) Hogan, Charles Beecher, Shakespeare in the Theatre, 1701- 1800, 2 vols (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1952-7) Hughes, Alan, Henry Irving, Shakespearean (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1981) Odell, George C. D., Shakespeare from Betterton to Irving, 2 vols (New York: Scribner, 1920) Shattuck, Charles H., Shakespeare on the American Stage [Vol. I]: From the Hallams to Edwin Booth (Washington DC: Folger Shakespeare Library, 1976) —Shakespeare on the American Stage, Vol. 2: From Booth and Barrett to Sothern and Marlowe (London: Associated University Presses, 1987) Sprague, A. C., Shakespeare and the Actors: The Stage Business in his Plays, 1660-1905 (Cambridge MA: Harvard University Press, 1945; repr. New York: Russell and Russell, 1963) From 1900 Barton, John, Playing Shakespeare (London: Methuen, 1984) Berry, Ralph, On Directing Shakespeare: Interviews with Contemporary Directors (London: Hamish Hamilton, 1989) Brockbank, J. P., Russell Jackson, R. L. Smallwood (eds.), Players of Shakespeare (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1985-) Brown, John Russell, Shakespeare’s Plays in Performance (London: Edward Arnold, 1966) —Free Shakespeare (London: Heinemann International, 1974) —New Sites for Shakespeare: Theatre, the Audience and Asia (London: Routledge, 1999) Coursen, H. R., Shakespearean Performance as Interpretation (London: Associated University Presses, 1992) David, Richard, Shakespeare in the Theatre (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1978) Holland, Peter, English Shakespeares: Shakespeare on the English Stage in the 1990s (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997) Hortmann, Wilhelm, Shakespeare on the German Stage: The Twentieth Century (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998) Kennedy, Dennis, Looking at Shakespeare: A Visual History of Twentieth-Century Performance, 2nd edn. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001) —(ed.), Foreign Shakespeare: Contemporary Performance (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993) Kerr, Heather, Robin Eaden and Madge Mitton (eds.), Shakespeare: World Views (London: Associated University Presses, 1996) Li, Ruru, Shashibiya: Staging Shakespeare in China (London: Eurospan, 2003) Mazer, Cary M., Shakespeare Refashioned: Elizabethan Plays on Edwardian Stages (Ann Arbor MI: UMI Research Press, 1981) Minami, Ryuta, Ian Carruthers and John Gillies (eds.), Performing Shakespeare in Japan (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001) Quince, Rohan, Shakespeare in South Africa: Stage Productions During the Apartheid Era (New York: Peter Lang, 2000) Rutter, Carol, Clamorous Voices: Shakespeare’s Women Today, ed. Faith Evans (London: The Women’s Press, 1988) Sasayama, Takashi, J. R. Mulryne and Margaret Shewring (eds.), Shakespeare and the Japanese Stage (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998) Sprague, Arthur Colby, and J. C. Trewin, Shakespeare’s Plays Today: Some Customs and Conventions of the Stage (London: Sidgwick & Jackson, 1970) Styan, J. L., The Shakespeare Revolution: Criticism and Performance in the Twentieth Century (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1977) Trewin, J. C., Shakespeare on the English Stage 1900-1964 (London: Barrie and Rockliff, 1964) Worthen, W. B., Shakespeare and the Authority of Performance (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997)
TV	and Film Ball, Robert Hamilton, Shakespeare on Silent Film: A Strange Eventful History (London: George Allen & Unwin, 1968) Boose, Lynda E., and Richard Burt (eds.), Shakespeare the Movie: Popularizing the Plays on Film, TV and Video (London: Routledge, 1997) —Shakespeare the Movie II: Popularizing the Plays on Film, TV, Video and DVD (London: Routledge, 2003) Buchman, Lorne M., Still in Movement: Shakespeare on Screen (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991) Bulman, J. C., and H. R. Coursen (eds.), Shakespeare on Television: An Anthology of Essays and Reviews (London: University Press of New England, 1988) Burnett, Mark Thornton, and Ramona Wray (eds.), Shakespeare, Film, Fin de Siècle (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 2000) Burt, Richard, Unspeakable Shaxxxspeares: Queer Theory and American Kiddie Culture (New York: St Martin’s Press, 1998) Collick, John, Shakespeare, Cinema and Society (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1989) Coursen, H. R., Shakespeare in Production: Whose History? (Athens OH: University of Ohio Press, 1996) Crowl, Samuel, Shakespeare Observed: Studies in Performance on Stage and Screen (Athens OH: University of Ohio Press, 1992) Davies, Anthony, Filming Shakespeare’s Plays: The Adaptations of Laurence Olivier, Orson Welles, Peter Brook and (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988) —and Stanley Wells (eds.), Shakespeare and the Moving Image: The Plays on Film and Television (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994) Donaldson, Peter S., Shakespearean Films/Shakespearean Directors (Boston MA: Unwin Hyman, 1990) Jackson, Russell (ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare on Film (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000) Jorgens, Jack J., Shakespeare on Film (Bloomington IN: Indiana University Press, 1977) McKernan, Luke, and Olwen Terris (eds.), Walking Shadows: Shakespeare in the National Film and Television Archive (London: British Film Institute, 1994) Manvell, Roger, Shakespeare and the Film (London: Dent, 1971) Pilkington, Ace G., Screening Shakespeare: From ‘Richard II’ to ‘Henry V’ (London: Associated University Presses, 1991) Rosenthal, Daniel, Shakespeare on Screen (London: Hamlyn, 2000) Rothwell, Kenneth S., A History of Shakespeare on Screen: A Century of Film and Television, 2nd edn. (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004) —and Annabelle Henkin Melzer (eds.), Shakespeare on Screen: An International Filmography and Videography (London: Mansell, 1990) Shaughnessy, Robert (ed.), Shakespeare on Film, New Casebooks (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1998) Criticism History of Criticism Bate, Jonathan, Shakespeare and the English Romantic Imagination (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1986) —(ed.). The Romantics on Shakespeare (London: Penguin, 1992) Bristol, Michael, Shakespeare’s America/America’s Shakespeare (London: Routledge, 1990) Dunn, Esther Cloudman, Shakespeare in America (New York: Macmillan, 1939) Eastman, Arthur M., A Short History of Shakespearean Criticism (New York: Random House, 1968) Foakes, R.A., Hamlet versus Lear: Cultural Politics and Shakespeare’s Art (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993) Grady, Hugh, The Modernist Shakespeare: Critical Texts in a Material World (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1991) Haines, C. M., Shakespeare in France: Criticism, Voltaire to Victor Hugo (London: for the Shakespeare Association by H. Milford, Oxford University Press, 1925) Halpern, Richard, Shakespeare Among the Moderns (Ithaca NY: Cornell University Press, 1997) Hattaway, Michael, Boika Sokolova and Derek Roper (eds.), Shakespeare in the New Europe (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1994) Kolin, Philip C. (ed.), Shakespeare and Feminist Criticism: An Annotated Bibliography and Commentary (New York: Garland, 1991) LeWinter, Oswald (ed.), Shakespeare in Europe (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1970) Pascal, R. (ed.), Shakespeare in Germany: 1740-1815 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1937) Pechter, Edward, What Was Shakespeare? Renaissance Plays and Changing Critical Practice (Ithaca NY: Cornell University Press, 1995) Stavisky, A. Y., Shakespeare and the Victorians: Roots of Modern Criticism (Norman OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 1969) Stříbrný, Zděnek, Shakespeare and Eastern Europe (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000) Taylor, Michael, Shakespeare Criticism in the Twentieth Century (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001) Thompson, Ann, and Sasha Roberts (eds.), Women Reading Shakespeare, 1660-1900; An Anthology of Criticism (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1997) Vickers, Brian, Appropriating Shakespeare: Contemporary Critical Quarrels (New Haven CT: Yale University Press, 1993) —(ed.), Shakespeare: The Critical Heritage, 6 vols (London: Routledge, 1974-81) Zhang, Xiao Yang, Shakespeare in China: A Comparative Study of Two Traditions and Cultures (London: Associated University Presses, 1996) General Alexander, Catherine M. S., and Stanley Wells (eds.), Shakespeare and Race (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000) —Shakespeare and Sexuality (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001) Atkins, G. Douglas, and David M. Bergeron, Shakespeare and Deconstruction (New York: Peter Lang, 1988) Berger, Harry, Imaginary Audition: Shakespeare on Stage and Page (Berkeley CA: University of California Press, 1989) —Making Trifles of Terrors: Redistributing Complicities in Shakespeare, ed. Peter Erickson (Stanford CA: Stanford University Press, 1997) Bristol, Michael D., Big-time Shakespeare (London: Routledge, 1996) Cavell, Stanley, Disowning Knowledge in Six Plays of Shakespeare (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987) Coleridge, Samuel Taylor, Coleridge’s Criticism of Shakespeare: A Selection, ed. R. A. Foakes (London: Athlone, 1989) Danson, Lawrence, Shakespeare’s Dramatic Genres (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000) De Grazia, Margreta, and Stanley Wells (eds.), The Cambridge Companion to Shakespeare (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001) Desmet, Christy, Reading Shakespeare’s Characters: Rhetoric, Ethics, and Identity (Amherst MA: University of Massachusetts Press, 1992) Dollimore, Jonathan, and Alan Sinfield (eds.), Political Shakespeare: Essays in Cultural Materialism, 2nd edn. (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1994) Drakakis, John (ed.), Alternative Shakespeares I (London: Methuen, 1985) Eagleton, Terry, William Shakespeare (Oxford: Blackwell, 1986) Evans, Malcolm, Signifying Nothing: Truth’s True Contents in Shakespeare’s Text, 2nd edn. (Hemel Hempstead: Harvester Wheatsheaf, 1989) Frye, Northrop, Northrop Frye on Shakespeare, ed. Robert Sandler (New Haven CT: Yale University Press, 1986) Garber, Marjorie, Shakespeare’s Ghost Writers: Literature as Uncanny Causality (London: Methuen, 1987) Gillies, John, Shakespeare and the Geography of Difference (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994) Greenblatt, Stephen, Renaissance Self-fashioning: From More to Shakespeare (Chicago IL: University of Chicago Press, 1980) —Shakespearean Negotiations: The Circulation of Social Energy in Renaissance England (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1988) Hawkes, Terence, That Shakespeherian Rag: Essays on a Critical Process (London: Methuen, 1986) —(ed.), Alternative Shakespeares 2 (London: Routledge, 1996) Hazlitt, William, Characters of Shakespeare’s Plays, with an introduction by Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch, World’s Classics (London: Oxford University Press, 1952) (First published 1817) Howard, Jean E., and Marion F. O’Connor (eds.), Shakespeare Reproduced: The Text in History and Ideology (London: Methuen, 1987) Howard, Jean E., and Scott Cutler Shershow (eds.), Marxist Shakespeares (New York and London: Routledge, 2001) Jardine, Lisa, Reading Shakespeare Historically (London: Routledge, 1996) Johnson, Samuel, Samuel Johnson on Shakespeare, ed. with an introduction and notes by Henry Woudhuysen (London: Penguin, 1989) Jones, Emrys, Scenic Form in Shakespeare (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1971) Kastan, David Scott, Shakespeare and the Shapes of Time (London: Macmillan, 1982) Kernan, Alvin B., The Playwright as Magician: Shakespeare’s Image of the Poet in the English Public Theater (New Haven CT: Yale University Press, 1979) Knapp, Robert S., Shakespeare: The Theater and the Book (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1989) Knights, L. C., ‘How Many Children Had Lady Macbeth? An Essay in the Theory and Practice of Shakespeare Criticism’, in his Explorations: Essays in Criticism, Mainly on the Literature of the Seventeenth Century (London: Chatto and Windus, 1946) Kott, Jan, Shakespeare Our Contemporary, trans. Boleslaw Taborski, 2ndedn. (London: Methuen, 1967) Loomba, Ania, and Martin Orkin (eds.), Post-Colonial Shakespeares (London: Routledge, 1998) Marcus, Leah, Puzzling Shakespeare: Local Reading and its Discontents (Berkeley CA: University of California Press, 1988) Neely, Carol Thomas, Broken Nuptials in Shakespeare’s Plays (New Haven CT: Yale University Press, 1985) Parker, Patricia, and Geoffrey Hartman (eds.), Shakespeare and the Question of Theory (London: Methuen, 1985) Patterson, Annabel, Shakespeare and the Popular Voice (Oxford: Blackwell, 1989) Rabkin, Norman, Shakespeare and the Problem of Meaning (Chicago IL: Chicago University Press, 1981) Rossiter, A. P., Angel with Horns: Fifteen Lectures on Shakespeare, ed. Graham Storey; reissued with an introduction by Peter Holland (London: Longman, 1989) Schwartz, Murray M., and Coppélia Kahn (eds.), Representing Shakespeare: New Psychoanalytic Essays (Baltimore MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1980) Shapiro, James, Shakespeare and the Jews (New York: Columbia University Press, 1996) Shaw, George Bernard, Shaw on Shakespeare, ed. with an introduction by Edwin Wilson (Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1969) Taylor, Gary, Moment by Moment by Shakespeare (London: Macmillan, 1985) Weimann, Robert, Shakespeare and the Popular Tradition in the Theater: Studies in the Social Dimension of Dramatic Form and Function, trans. Robert Schwartz (Baltimore MD: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1978) Gender Adelman, Janet, Suffocating Mothers: Fantasies of Maternal Origin in Shakespeare’s Plays, ‘Hamlet’ to ’The Tempest’ (London: Routledge, 1992) Barker, Deborah, and Ivo Kamps (eds.), Shakespeare and Gender: A History (London: Verso, 1995) Dusinberre, Juliet, Shakespeare and the Nature of Women, 2nd edn. (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1996) Erickson, Peter, Patriarchal Structures in Shakespeare Drama (Berkeley CA: University of California Press, 1985) Kahn, Coppélia, Man’s Estate: Masculine Identity in Shakespeare (Berkeley CA: University of California, 1981) Lenz, Carolyn Ruth Swift, Gayle Greene and Carol Thomas Neely, The Woman’s Part: Feminist Criticism of Shakespeare (Urbana IL: University of Illinois Press, 1980) Orgel, Stephen, Impersonations: The Performance of Gender in Shakespeare’s England (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996) Traub, Valerie, Desire and Anxiety: Circulations of Sexuality in Shakespearean Drama (London: Routledge, 1992) Wayne, Valerie (ed.), The Matter of Difference: Materialist Feminist Criticism of Shakespeare (Hemel Hempstead: Harvester Wheatsheaf, 1991) Comedy Barber, C. L., Shakespeare’s Festive Comedy: A Study of Dramatic Form and its Relation to Social Custom (Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press, 1959) Carroll, William C., The Metamorphoses of Shakespearean Comedy (Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press, 1985) Evans, Bertrand, Shakespeare’s Comedies (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1960) Freedman, Barbara, Staging the Gaze: Postmodernism, Psychoanalysis and Shakespearean Comedy (Ithaca NY: Cornell University Press, 1991) Frye, Northrop, The Myth of Deliverance: Reflections on Shakespeare’s Problem Comedies, introduction by A.C. Hamilton (Toronto: Toronto University Press, 1993) (First published 1983) Mowat, Barbara A., The Dramaturgy of Shakespeare’s Romances (Athens GA: University of Georgia Press, 1976) Tillyard, E. M. W., Shakespeare’s Early Comedies (London: Chatto & Windus, 1965) Wheeler, Richard P., Shakespeare’s Development and the Problem Comedies: Turn and Counterturn (Berkeley CA: University of California Press, 1981) History Charney, Maurice, Shakespeare’s Roman Plays: The Function of Imagery in the Drama (Cambridge MA: Harvard University Press, 1963) Howard, Jean E., and Phyllis Rackin, Engendering a Nation: A Feminist Account of Shakespeare’s English Histories (London: Routledge, 1997) Kahn, Coppélia, Roman Shakespeare: Warriors, Wounds and Women (London: Routledge, 1997) Rackin, Phyllis, Stages of History: Shakespeare’s English Chronicles (London: Routledge, 1991) Saccio, Peter, Shakespeare’s English Kings: History, Chronicle and Drama, 2nd edn. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000) Siegel, Paul N., Shakespeare’s English and Roman History Plays: A Marxist Approach (London: Associated University Presses, 1986) Tillyard, E. M. W., Shakespeare’s History Plays (London: Chatto and Windus, 1944) Tragedy Bradley, A. C., Shakespearean Tragedy: Lectures on ‘Hamlet’, ‘Othello’, ‘King Lear’, ‘Macbeth’, with a foreword by John Bayley (London: Penguin, 1991) (First published 1904) Garner, Shirley Nelson, and Madelon Sprengnether (eds.), Shakespearean Tragedy and Gender (Bloomington IN: Indiana University Press, 1996) Snyder, Susan, The Comic Matrix of Shakespeare’s Tragedies: ‘Romeo and Juliet’, ‘Hamlet’, ‘Othello’, and ‘King Lear’ (Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press, 1979) Whitaker, Virgil K., The Mirror Up to Nature: The Technique of Shakespeare’s Tragedies (San Marino CA: Huntington Library, 1965) Poems and Sonnets Akrigg, G. P. V., Shakespeare and the Earl of Southampton (London: Hamish Hamilton, 1968) Booth, Stephen, An Essay on Shakespeare’s Sonnets (New Haven CT: Yale University Press, 1969) Donaldson, Ian, The Rapes of Lucretia: A Myth and Its Transformations (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1982) Dubrow, Heather, Captive Victors: Shakespeare’s Narrative Poems and Sonnets (Ithaca NY: Cornell University Press, 1987) Edmondson, Paul, and Stanley Wells, Shakespeare’s Sonnets (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004) Fineman, Joel, Shakespeare’s Perjured Eye: The Invention of Poetic Subjectivity in the Sonnets (Berkeley CA: University of California Press, 1986) Jones, Peter (ed.), Shakespeare, ‘The Sonnets’, A Casebook (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1977) Kerrigan, John (ed.), Motives of Woe: Shakespeare and ‘Female Complaint’, A Critical Anthology (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1991) Knight, G. Wilson, The Mutual Flame: On Shakespeare’s ‘Sonnets’ and ‘The Phoenix and the Turtle’, G. Wilson Knight Collected Works, 5 (London: Routledge, 2002) (First published 1955) Pequigney, Joseph, Such Is My Love: A Study of Shakespeare’s Sonnets (Chicago IL: University of Chicago Press, 1985) Smith, Hallett, The Tension of the Lyre: Poetry in Shakespeare’s Sonnets (San Marino CA: Huntington Library, 1981) Vendler, Helen, The Art of Shakespeare’s Sonnets (Cambridge MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1997) Individual Plays The Early Comedies: The Comedy of Errors, Love’s Labour’s Lost, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Taming of the Shrew, The Two Gentlemen of Verona Carroll, William C., The Great Feast of Language in ‘Love’s Labour’s Lost’ (Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press, 1976) Dolan, Frances E. (ed.), ‘The Taming of the Shrew’: Texts and Contexts (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1996) Gilbert, Miriam, Love’s Labour’s Lost, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1993) Griffiths, Trevor R. (ed.), A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Shakespeare in Production (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996) Halio, Jay L., A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1994) Haring-Smith, Tori, From Farce to Metadrama: A Stage History of ‘The Taming of the Shrew’ 1594-1983 (Westport CT: Greenwood Press, 1985) Holderness, Graham, The Taming of the Shrew, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1989) Kennedy, Judith M., and Richard F. Kennedy (eds.), A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Shakespeare: the Critical Tradition (London: Athlone, 1999) Miola, Robert S. (ed.), ‘The Comedy of Errors’: Critical Essays (New York: Garland, 1997) Paster, Gail Kern (ed.), A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Texts and Contexts (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1999) Riehle, Wolfgang, Shakespeare, Plautus and the Humanist Tradition (Cambridge: D. S. Brewer, 1990) Schafer, Elizabeth (ed.), The Taming of the Shrew, Shakespeare in Production (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002) Schlueter, June (ed.), ‘Two Gentlemen of Verona’: Critical Essays (New York: Garland, 1996) Selbourne, David, The Making of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’: An Eye-witness Account of Peter Brook’s Production from First Rehearsal to First Night, with an introductory essay by Simon Trussler (London: Methuen, 1982) Warren, Roger, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Text and Performance (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1983) Wiles, David, Shakespeare’s Almanac: ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’, Marriage and the Elizabethan Calendar (Cambridge: D. S. Brewer, 1993) Williams, Gary Jay, Our Moonlight Revels: ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ in the Theatre (Iowa City IA: University of Iowa Press, 1997) Yates, Frances A., A Study of ‘Love’s Labour’s Lost’ (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1936) Young, David P., Something of Great Constancy: The Art of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ (New Haven CT: Yale University Press, 1966) The Middle Comedies: As You Like It, The Merchant of Venice, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Much Ado About Nothing, Twelfth Night Billington, Michael (ed.), Directors’ Shakespeare: Approaches to ‘Twelfth Night’ by Bill Alexander, John Barton, John Caird, Terry Hands (London: Nick Hern, 1990) Cerasano, S. P. (ed.), A Routledge Literary Sourcebook on William Shakespeare’s ‘The Merchant of Venice’ (London: Routledge, 2004) Cox, John F. (ed.), Much Ado About Nothing, Shakespeare in Production (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997) Danson, Lawrence, The Harmonies of ‘The Merchant of Venice’ (New Haven CT: Yale University Press, 1978) Draper, John W., The ‘Twelfth Night’ of Shakespeare’s Audience (Stanford CA: Stanford University Press, 1950) Edelman, Charles (ed.), The Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare in Production (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002) Gay, Penny, William Shakespeare, ‘As You Like It’, Writers and Their Work (Plymouth: Northcote House in Association with the British Council, 1999) Gilbert, Miriam, The Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare at Stratford (London: Arden Shakespeare, 2002) Gross, John J., Shylock: Four Hundred Years in the Life of a Legend (London: Chatto and Windus, 1992) Hotson, Leslie, The First Night of ‘Twelfth Night’ (London: Hart Davis, 1954) Marshall, Cynthia (ed.), As You Like It, Shakespeare in Production (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004) Mason, Pamela, Much Ado about Nothing, Text and Performance (Basingstoke: Macmillan Education, 1992) Osbourne, Laurie E., The Trick of Singularity: ‘Twelfth Night’ and the Performance Editions (Iowa City IA: University of Iowa Press, 1996) Overton, Bill, The Merchant of Venice, Text and Performance (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1987) Pennington, Michael, ‘Twelfth Night’: A User’s Guide (London: Nick Hern, 2000) Potter, Lois, Twelfth Night, Text and Performance (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1985) Prouty, Charles T., The Sources of ‘Much Ado about Nothing’: A Critical Study together with the Text of Peter Beverley’s ‘Ariodante and Ieneura’ (New Haven CT: Yale University Press, 1950) Roberts, Jeanne Addison, Shakespeare’s English Comedy: ‘The Merry Wives of Windsor’ in Context (Lincoln NE: University of Nebraska Press, 1979) Smallwood, Robert, As You Like It, Shakespeare at Stratford (London: Arden Shakespeare, 2003) Smith, Bruce R. (ed.), ‘Twelfth Night or, What You Will’: Texts and Contexts (Basingstoke: Palgrave, 2001) Wells, Stanley, ‘Editorial Treatment of Foul-Paper Texts: Much Ado about Nothing as Test Case’, Review of English Studies, 31 (1980), 1-16 White, R. S. (ed.), Twelfth Night, New Casebooks (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1996) Wynne-Davies, Marion (ed.), ‘Much Ado about Nothing’ and ‘The Taming of the Shrew’, New Casebooks (Basingstoke: Palgrave, 2001) The Problem Plays: All’s Well That Ends Well, Measure for Measure, Troilus and Cressida Adamson, Janet, Troilus and Cressida, Harvester New Critical Introductions to Shakespeare (Brighton: Harvester, I987) Bennett, Josephine Waters, ‘Measure for Measure’ as Royal Entertainment (New York: Columbia University Press, 1966) Cole, Howard C., The ‘All’s Well’ Story from Boccaccio to Shakespeare (Urbana IL: University of Illinois Press, 1981) Geckle, George L. (ed.), Measure for Measure, Shakespeare: the Critical Tradition (London: Athlone, 2001) Gless, Darryl J., ‘Measure for Measure’: The Law and the Convent (Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press, 1979) Hawkins, Harriett, Measure for Measure, Harvester New Critical Introductions to Shakespeare (Brighton: Harvester, 1987) Jowett, John, ‘The Audacity of Measure for Measure in 1621’, Ben Jonson Journal, 8 (2001), 229-47 Kimbrough, Robert, Shakespeare’s ‘Troilus and Cressida’ and its Setting (Cambridge MA: Harvard University Press, 1964) Nicholls, Graham, Measure for Measure, Text and Performance (Basingstoke: Macmillan Education, 1986) Price, Joseph G., The Unfortunate Comedy: A Study of ‘All’s Well That Ends Well’ and Its Critics (Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 1968) Rollins, Hyder E., The Troilus-Cressida Story from Chaucer to Shakespeare (New York: Haskell House, 1972) (Reprinted from PMLA, 32.3 (1917)) Shuger, Debora K., Political Theologies in Shakespeare’s England: The Sacred and the State in ‘Measure for Measure’ (Basingstoke: Palgrave, 2001) Styan, J. L., All’s Well That Ends Well, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1984) Taylor, Gary, ‘Shakespeare’s Mediterranean Measure for Measure’, in Shakespeare and the Mediterranean, eds. Tom Clayton, Susan Brock, Vicente Fores (Newark DE: University of Delaware Press, 2004) Zitner, Sheldon P., All’s Well That Ends Well, Harvester New Critical Introductions to Shakespeare (Hemel Hempstead: Harvester Wheatsheaf, 1989) The Late Plays: All is True (Henry VIII), Cymbeline, Pericles, The Tempest, The Two Noble Kinsmen, The Winter’s Tale Bartholomeusz, Dennis, ‘The Winter’s Tale’ in Performance in England and America, 1611-1976 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1982) Bertram, Paul, Shakespeare and ‘The Two Noble Kinsmen’ (New Brunswick NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1965) Draper, R. P., The Winter’s Tale, Text and Performance (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1985) Dymkowski, Christine (ed.), The Tempest, Shakespeare in Production (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000) Frey, Charles H., Shakespeare’s Vast Romance: A Study of ‘The Winter’s Tale’ (Columbia MO: University of Missouri Press, 1980) Goldberg, Jonathan, Tempest in the Caribbean (Minneapolis MI: University of Minnesota Press, 2004) Graff, Gerald, and James Phelan (eds.), ‘The Tempest’: A Case Study in Critical Controversy (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 2000) Hamilton, Donna B., Virgil and ‘The Tempest’: The Politics of Imitation (Columbus OH: Ohio State University Press, 1990) Hirst, David L., The Tempest, Text and Performance (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1984) Jackson, MacD. P., Defining Shakespeare: ‘Pericles’ as Test Case (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003) Law, Ernest, Shakespeare’s ‘Tempest’ as Originally Produced at Court (London: For the Shakespeare Association [by] Chatto and Windus, 1920) Lindley, David, The Tempest, Shakespeare at Stratford (London: Arden Shakespeare, 2003) Marsh, Derick R. C., The Recurring Miracle: A Study of ‘Cymbeline’ and the Last Plays (Pietermaritzburg: University of Natal Press, 1962) Potter, Lois, ‘The Two Noble Kinsmen: Spectacle and Narrative’, in The Show Within: Dramatic and Other Insets (English Renaissance Drama) 1550-1642, ed. François Laroque (Montpellier: Publications de l’Université Paul-Valéry-Montpellier III, 1992) Richmond, Hugh M., King Henry VIII, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1994) Skeele, David, Thwarting the Wayward Seas: A Critical and Theatrical History of Shakespeare’s ‘Pericles’ in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries (London: Associated University Presses, 1998) Tatspaugh, Patricia E., The Winter’s Tale, Shakespeare at Stratford (London: Arden Shakespeare, 2002) Vaughan, Alden T., and Virginia Mason Vaughan, Shakespeare’s Caliban: A Cultural History (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991) Warren, Roger, Cymbeline, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1989) White, R. S. (ed.), The Tempest: William Shakespeare, New Casebooks (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1999) Zabus, Chantal, Tempests after Shakespeare (Basingstoke: Palgrave, 2002) The Roman Plays: Antony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus, Julius Caesar, Titus Andronicus Adelman, Janet, The Common Liar: An Essay on ‘Antony and Cleopatra’ (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1973) Barroll, J. Leeds, Shakespearean Tragedy: Genre, Tradition and Change in ‘Antony and Cleopatra’ (London: Associated University Presses, 1984) Dessen, Alan C., Titus Andronicus, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1989) Drakakis, John (ed.), Antony and Cleopatra: William Shakespeare, New Casebooks (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1994) Lamb, Margaret, ‘Antony and Cleopatra’ on the English Stage (London: Associated University Presses, 1980) Madelaine, Richard (ed.), Antony and Cleopatra, Shakespeare in Production (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998) Metz, G. Harold, Shakespeare’s Earliest Tragedy: Studies in ‘Titus Andronicus’ (London: Associated University Presses, 1996) Poole, Adrian, Coriolanus, Harvester New Critical Introductions to Shakespeare (Hemel Hempstead: Harvester Wheatsheaf, 1988) Ripley, John, ‘Julius Caesar’ on Stage in England and America 1599-1973 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1980) —‘Coriolanus’ on Stage in England and America 1609-1994 (London: Associated University Presses, 1998) Scott, Michael, Antony and Cleopatra, Text and Performance (London: Macmillan, 1983) Steppat, Michael, The Critical Reception of Shakespeare’s ‘Antony and Cleopatra’ from 1607-1905, Bochumer anglistische Studien 9 (Amsterdam: Grüner, 1980) Wilson, Richard, William Shakespeare: ‘Julius Caesar’, Penguin Critical Studies (London: Penguin, 1992) Hamlet Calderwood, James L., To Be and Not to Be: Negation and Metadrama in ‘Hamlet’ (New York: Columbia University Press, 1983) Clayton, Thomas (ed.), The ‘Hamlet’ First Published (QI, 1603): Origins, Form, Intertextualities (London: Associated University Presses, 1992) Dawson, Anthony B., Hamlet, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1995) Farley-Hills, David (ed.), Critical Responses to ‘Hamlet’ 1600- 1900, Vols I- (New York: AMS Press, 1996-) Frye, Roland Mushat, The Renaissance ‘Hamlet’: Issues and Responses in 1600 (Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press, 1984) Greenblatt, Stephen, Hamlet in Purgatory (Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press, 2001) Jones, Ernest, Hamlet and Oedipus (London: Gollancz, 1949) Kliman, Bernice W., ‘Hamlet’: Film, Television, and Audio Performance (London: Associated University Presses, 1988) Pennington, Michael, ‘Hamlet’: A User’s Guide (London: Nick Hern, 1996) Prosser, Eleanor, Hamlet and Revenge, 2nd edn. (Stanford CA: Stanford University Press, 1971) Rosenberg, Marvin, The Masks of ‘Hamlet’ (London: Associated University Presses, 1992) Shakespeare, William, The Three-Text ‘Hamlet’: Parallel Texts of the First and Second Quartos and First Folio, eds. Paul Bertram and Bernice W. Kliman (New York: AMS Press, 1991) Taylor, Gary, ‘Hamlet in Africa 1607’, in Ivo Kamps and Jyotsna Singh (eds.), Travel Knowledge: European ‘Discoveries’ in the Early Modern Period (Basingstoke: Palgrave, 2001) Weitz, Morris, ‘Hamlet’ and the Philosophy of Literary Criticism (London: Faber and Faber, 1965) King Lear Blayney, Peter W. M., The Texts of ‘King Lear’ and their Origins, Vol. I: Nicholas Okes and the First Quarto (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1982) Bratton, J. S. (ed.), ‘King Lear’, William Shakespeare, Plays in Performance (Bristol: Bristol Classical Press, 1987) Carson, Christie, and Jacky Bratton (eds.), The Cambridge ‘King Lear’ CD-ROM: Text and Performance Archive (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000) Hawkes, Terence, William Shakespeare, ‘King Lear’, Writers and their Work (Plymouth: Northcote House in Association with the British Council, 1995) Leggatt, Alexander, King Lear, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1991) Lusardi, James P., and June Schlueter, Reading Shakespeare in Performance: ‘King Lear’ (London: Associated University Presses, 1991) Mack, Maynard, ‘King Lear’ in Our Time (London: Methuen, 1966) Reibetanz, John, The ‘Lear’ World: A Study of ‘King Lear’ in its Dramatic Context (London: Heinemann, 1977) Rosenberg, Marvin, The Masks of ‘King Lear’ (Berkeley CA: University of California Press, 1972) Ryan, Kiernan (ed.), ‘King Lear’: William Shakespeare, New Casebooks (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1993) Salgado, Gamini, King Lear, Text and Performance (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1984) Stone, P. W. K., The Textual History of ‘King Lear’ (London: Scolar Press, 1980) Taylor, Gary, ‘The War in King Lear’, Shakespeare Survey, 33 (1980), 27-34 —and Michael Warren (eds.), The Division of the Kingdoms: Shakespeare’s Two Versions of ‘King Lear’ (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1983) Urkowitz, Steven, Shakespeare’s Revision of ‘King Lear’ (Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press, 1980) Macbeth Bartholomeusz, Dennis, ‘Macbeth’ and the Players (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1969) Berger, Harry, Text against Performance: The Example of ‘Macbeth’ (Norman OK: University of Oklahoma, 1982) Calderwood, James L., If It Were Done: ‘Macbeth’ and Tragic Action (Amherst MA: University of Massachusetts Press, 1986) Carroll, William C. (ed.), William Shakespeare, ‘Macbeth’: Texts and Contexts (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1999) Kliman, Bernice, Macbeth, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1992) Rosenberg, Marvin, The Masks of ‘Macbeth’ (Berkeley CA: University of California, 1978) Wain, John (ed.), Shakespeare, ‘Macbeth’, A Casebook, 2nd edn. (Basingstoke, Macmillan, 1994) Williams, Gordon, Macbeth, Text and Performance (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1985) Othello Adamson, Jane, ‘Othello’ as Tragedy: Some Problems of Judgement and Feeling (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1980) Hadfield, Andrew (ed.), A Routledge Literary Sourcebook on Shakespeare’s ‘Othello’ (London: Routledge, 2003) Hankey, Julie (ed.), ‘Othello’, William Shakespeare, Plays in Performance (Bristol: Bristol Classical Press, 1987) Honigmann, E. A. J., The Texts of ‘Othello’ and Shakespearian Revision (London: Routledge, 1966) Orlin, Lena Cowen (ed.), ‘Othello’: William Shakespeare, New Casebooks (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004) Pechter, Edward, ‘Othello’ and Interpretive Traditions (Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 1999) Potter, Lois, Othello, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2002) Rosenberg, Marvin, The Masks of ‘Othello’: The Search for the Identity of Othello, Iago and Desdemona by Three Centuries of Actors and Critics (Berkeley CA: California University Press, 1961) Vaughan, Virginia Mason, ‘Othello’: A Contextual History (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994) Wain, John (ed.), Shakespeare: ‘Othello’, A Casebook, rev. edn. (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1994) Wine, Martin L., Othello, Text and Performance (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1984) Romeo and Juliet Evans, Robert O., The Osier Cage: Rhetorical Devices in ‘Romeo and Juliet’ (Lexington KY: University of Kentucky Press, 1966) Holding, Peter, Romeo and Juliet, Text and Performance (Basingstoke: Macmillan Education, 1992) Jackson, Russell, Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare at Stratford (London: Arden Shakespeare, 2003) Levenson, Jill, Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1987) Loehlin, James N., Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare in Production (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002) Porter, J. A., Shakespeare’s Mercutio: His History and Drama (Chapel Hill NC: University of North Carolina Press, 1988) White, R. S. (ed.), ‘Romeo and Juliet’: William Shakespeare, New Casebooks (Basingstoke: Palgrave, 2001) The First Tetralogy and King John: Henry VI Parts 1―3, Richard III Clemen, Wolfgang, A Commentary on Shakespeare’s ‘Richard III’, English version by Jean Bonheim (London: Methuen, 1968) (First published in German 1957) Colley, Scott, Richard’s Himself Again: A Stage History of ‘Richard III’ (New York: Greenwood Press, 1992) Cousin, Geraldine, King John, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1994) Curren-Aquino, Deborah T. (ed.), ‘King John’: New Perspectives (London: Associated University Presses, 1989) Day, Gillian, King Richard III, Shakespeare at Stratford (London: Arden Shakespeare, 2002) Hankey, Julie (ed.), ‘Richard III’ by William Shakespeare, 2nd edn., Plays in Performance (Bristol: Bristol Classical Press, 1988) Hassel, R. Chris, Songs of Death: Performance, Interpretation and the Text of ‘Richard III’ (Lincoln NE: University of Nebraska Press, 1987) Montgomery, William, ‘The Original Staging of the First Part of the Contention (1594)’, Shakespeare Survey, 41 (1989), 13-22 Pendleton, Thomas A. (ed.), Henry VI: Critical Essays (London: Routledge, 2001) Richmond, Hugh M., King Richard III, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1989) Riggs, David, Shakespeare’s Heroical Histories: ‘Henry VI’ and Its Literary Tradition (Cambridge MA: Harvard University Press, 1971) Shakespeare, William, The Tragedy of King Richard the Third: Parallel Texts of the First Quarto and First Folio with Variants of the Early Quartos, ed. Kristian Smidt (Oslo: Universitetsforlaget, 1969) Taylor, Gary, ‘Shakespeare and Others: The Authorship of Henry the Sixth, Part One’, Medieval and Renaissance Drama in England, 7 (1995), 145―205 Walton, J. K., Copy for the Folio Text of ‘Richard III’ with a Note on the Copy of the Folio Text of ‘King Lear’ (Auckland NZ: Auckland University College, 1955) The Second Tetralogy: Richard II, Henry IV Parts 1 and 2, Henry V Brennan, Anthony, Henry V, Harvester New Critical Introductions to Shakespeare (Hemel Hempstead: Harvester Wheatsheaf, 1992) Campbell, Lily B., Shakespeare’s ‘Histories’: Mirrors of Elizabethan Policy (San Marino CA: Huntington Library, 1968) (First published 1947) Hodgdon, Barbara, Henry IV, Part Two, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1993) —(ed.), ‘The First Part of King Henry the Fourth’: Texts and Contexts (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1997) Loehlin, James N., Henry V, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1996) McAlindon, Tom, Shakespeare’s Tudor History: A Study of ‘Henry IV, Parts 1 and 2’ (Aldershot: Ashgate, 2001) McMillin, Scott, Henry IV, Part One, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1991) Meron, Theodor, Henry’s Wars and Shakespeare’s Laws: Perspectives on the Law of War in the Later Middle Ages (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1993) Page, Malcolm, Richard II, Text and Performance (Basingstoke: Macmillan Education, 1987) Prosser, Eleanor, Shakespeare’s Anonymous Editors: Scribe and Compositor in the Folio Text of ‘2 Henry IV’ (Stanford CA: Stanford University Press, 1981) Shewring, Margaret, King Richard II, Shakespeare in Performance (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1996) Smith, Emma (ed.), King Henry V, Shakespeare in Production (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002) Taylor, Gary, ‘The Fortunes of Oldcastle’, Shakespeare Survey, 38 (1985), 85―100 —‘Three Studies in the Text of Henry V’. in Stanley Wells and Gary Taylor, Modernizing Shakespeare’s Spelling, with Three Studies in the Text of ‘Henry V’ (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1979) Wharton, T. F., Henry the Fourth, Parts 1 and 2, Text and Performance (London: Macmillan, 1983) Edward III and Sir Thomas More The Book of Sir Thomas Moore, Tudor Facsimile Texts (London: issued for subscribers by the editor of the Tudor Facsimile Texts, 1910) Howard-Hill, T. H. (ed.), Shakespeare and ‘Sir Thomas More’: Essays on the Play and its Shakespearian Interest (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1989) McMillin, Scott, The Elizabethan Theatre and ‘The Book of Sir Thomas More’ (Ithaca NY: Cornell University Press, 1987) Metz, G. Harold, Four Plays Ascribed to Shakespeare, An Annotated Bibliography: ‘The Reign of King Edward III’, ‘Sir Thomas More’, ‘The History of Cardenio’, and ‘The Two Noble Kinsmen’ (New York: Garland, 1982) Pollard, Alfred, and others, Shakespeare’s Hand in ‘The Play of Sir Thomas More’: Papers by Alfred W. Pollard, W. W. Greg, E. Maunde Thompson, J. Dover Wilson and R. W. Chambers, with the text of the III May Day Scenes, edited by W. W. Greg (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1923) Proudfoot, Richard, ‘The Reign of King Edward the Third (1596) and Shakespeare’, in British Academy Shakespeare Lectures 1980―89, introduced by E. A. J. Honigmann (Oxford: Oxford University Press for The British Academy, 1993) Timon of Athens Butler, Francelia, The Strange Critical Fortunes of Shakespeare’s ‘Timon of Athens’ (Ames IA: Iowa State University Press, 1966) Nuttall, A. D., Timon of Athens, Harvester Critical Introductions to Shakespeare (Hemel Hempstead: Harvester Wheatsheaf, 1989) Soellner, Rolf, ‘Timon of Athens’: Shakespeare’s Pessimistic Tragedy, with a Stage History by Gary J. Williams (Columbus OH: Ohio State University Press, 1979) Afterlife Bate, Jonathan, The Genius of Shakespeare (London: Picador, 1997) Cohn, Ruby, Modern Shakespeare Offshoots (Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press, 1976) Dobson, Michael, The Making of the National Poet: Shakespeare, Adaptation, and Authorship 1660―1769 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1992) Gager, Valerie L., Shakespeare and Dickens: The Dynamics of Influence (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996) Gross, John (ed.), After Shakespeare: An Anthology (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002) Hartnoll, Phyllis (ed.), Shakespeare in Music (London: Macmillan, 1964) Holderness, Graham (ed.), The Shakespeare Myth (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1988) Merchant, Moelwyn W., Shakespeare and the Artist (London: Oxford University Press, 1959) Schmidgall, Gary, Shakespeare and Opera (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1990) Shutte, William M., Joyce and Shakespeare: A Study in the Meaning of ‘Ulysses’ (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1957) Taylor, Gary, Reinventing Shakespeare: A Cultural History from the Restoration to the Present (London: Hogarth, 1989) Wells, Stanley, Shakespeare: For All Time (London: Macmillan, 2002) A SELECT GLOSSARY a, (as pronoun) familiar, unstressed form of ‘he’ abate, to shorten, take from, deprive, except, blunt abatement, reduction, depreciation abhor, disgust, protest against abide, await the issue of, pay the penalty for able, to vouch for abode, delay, stay; to foretell about, irregularly, indirectly; be on the move abram, auburn abridgement, reduction, pastime abroad, away, apart, on foot, current, at large, outside abrogate, abstain from abruption, breaking off absolute, complete, certain, positive, beyond doubt Absyrtus, see MEDEA abuse, wrong, ill-usage, deception; to deceive, dishonour aby, pay the penalty for accident, occurrence, event, incident accite, summon, induce accommodate, equip, adapt itself to accommodation, comfort, entertainment accomplish, equip, obtain accountant, accountable accoutred, dressed, equipped acerb, bitter Acheron, river of the underworld achieve, make an end, finish; win, obtain Achilles’ spear, a mythical spear: rust scraped from it cured a wound that it had inflicted acknow, acknowledge acknown, be acknown, confess knowledge aconitum, poison acquit, atone for, repay, release Actaeon. Diana turned him into a stag because he saw her bathing; he was torn to pieces by his dogs acture, action adamant, impenetrably hard stone; magnet addition mark of distinction, title admiration, wonder, astonishment, marvel admire, wonder, marvel admittance, fashion, reception adoptious christendoms, fond nicknames advantage, opportunity, interest on money; to profit adventure, chance, hazard, to risk advertise, inform advertisement, information, advice advice, consideration, forethought advised, cautious, aware, carefully considered Aeneas, a Trojan prince who carried his father, Anchises, from the blazing city. Dido, Queen of Carthage, received him and his son, Ascanius. She fell in love with him, but he left Carthage at the gods’ command, and Dido committed suicide. Aeolus, god of the winds Aesculapius, god of medicine affect, affection, tendency, disposition; love, like, imitate affected, disposed, in love affection, passion, desire, disposition, affectation affeer, confirm affiance, confidence affined, related, obliged affront, meet, confront affy, trust, betroth aflaunt, with a swagger alter, according to, at the rate of against, in expectation of, in preparation for the time when, in time for Agenor, father of EUROPA aglet-baby, tag in shape of a tiny figure agnize, confess, acknowledge aim, target, guess Ajax, a strong, dim-witted Greek hero; mad with anger at not being given the arms of the dead Achilles he slaughtered a flock of sheep as if they were human enemies and killed himself alarum, call to arms, assault Alcides, HERCULES alder-liefest, dearest of all Alecto, one of the furies; her head was wreathed with serpents allay, relief; to qualify All-hallond eve, Halloween, the eve of All Saints’ Day Allhallowmas, All Saints’ Day (I November) All-hallown summer, fine weather in late autumn allowance, admission of a claim, reputation alter, exchange Althaea. Her son, Meleager, was fated to live until a brand of fire burned away. After he killed her brothers she burned it. amerce, punish with a fine ames ace, two aces, lowest possible throw at dice amort, spiritless, dejected an, if, though, whether, as if anatomize, dissect, lay bare anatomy, skeleton Anchises, see AENEAS anchor, hermit angel, gold coin Anna, sister of Dido of Carthage (see AENEAS) anon, soon, ‘coming’ Anthropophagi, cannibals antic, grotesque pageant, clown; fantastic antre, cave ape, to lead apes in hell, an old maid’s function Apollo, god of the sun, music and poetry. Daphne, escaping from his pursuit, was changed to a laurel. appaid, contented, satisfied apparently, openly appeach, inform against appeal, accusation; to accuse apple-john, apple eaten when shrivelled appliance, service, remedy, treatment appointment, equipment, instruction apprehensive, lively, quick-witted approof, proof, trial, approval appropriate, make specially approve, prove, show to be true, confirm, put to the proof, test, convict apt, willing, impressionable Aquilon, north wind Arabian bird, phoenix argosy, large merchant ship argue, prove, show argument, proof, subject of debate, subject matter, summary Ariadne, deserted by her lover, Theseus Arion, a singer carried ashore by a dolphin arm, reach, take in one’s arms arm-jaunced, jolted by armour armipotent, powerful in arms aroint thee, be gone arras, wall-tapestry articulate, arrange terms, specify artificial, made by art, skilled, skilful artist, scholar, doctor Ascanius, see AENEAS asnico, ass aspect, look, glance, position and influence of a planet, sight aspersion, sprinkling assay, trial, attempt assubjugate, debase assurance, pledge, deed of conveyance, guarantee assure, betroth, convey property Astraca, goddess of justice Atalanta, maiden huntress who killed the suitors she outraced Ate, goddess of mischief and destruction atomy, atom, mote atone, reconcile, unite, agree atonement, reconciliation Atropos, one of the three fates; her duty was to cut the thread of life attach, arrest, seize attachment, arrest, stop attaint, conviction, infection; infect, convict of treason, disgrace attribute, reputation, credit attribution, praise aught, anything aunt, old woman, bawd, girl friend austringer, falconer avoid, get rid of, get out of awkward, oblique, not straightforward back friend, pretended friend back-sword, sword with only one cutting edge baffle, disgrace bait, set dogs on, worry, persecute, entice with bait, feed, feast balk, let slip, quibble, heap ballow, cudgel ban, to curse Banbury cheese, proverbially thin bandog, fierce chained dog banquet, dessert, light meal of fruit and sweetmeats barge, large ornamental vessel used on state occasions barque, ship bases, skirt-like garment worn by a knight Basilisco-like, like Basilisco, a braggart knight in the play Soliman and Perseda basilisk, fabulous reptile whose look was fatal, large cannon basta, enough! bastard, sweet Spanish wine baste, beat bastinado, beating bate, trouble; beat wings ready for flight, blunt, reduce, grow less, deduct bateless, not to be blunted bat-fowling, catching birds at night batlet, bat used in washing clothes bauble, jester’s stick bavin, brush-wood bawd, procurer (male or female) beadle, parish officer with power to punish beadsman, one who prays for another bearherd, bear-keeper bearing cloth, christening garment beaver, visor, helmet bedlam, lunatic hospital, lunatic beetle, heavy hammer-like tool; overhang beldam, grandmother, hag bell-wether, castrated ram with a bell round its neck be-mete, measure bemoiled, covered with mud Bench, King’s Bench (a high court) bench, raise to authority, sit as judge bench-hole, privy bend, look, glance; to turn, incline, direct, strain, submit bent, inclination, direction, tension, force, range, aim berayed, defiled bergamask, a rustic dance besonian, beggar, scoundrel besort, suitable company; to suit beteem, pour over, grant bewray, reveal bias, in bowls, weight which makes a bowl swerve; natural bent, inclination, compelling influence bigamy, marriage with widow(er) biggin, nightcap bilbo, finely-tempered sword bilboes, shackles bill, halberd, pike, note, catalogue, label birdbolt, blunt-headed arrow for shooting birds bisson, partly blind, blinding blank, blank page or charter, white mark in centre of target, aim, range; to make pale blazon, coat of arms, description, proclamation; to proclaim, praise blood-baltered, stained with clots of blood blow, swell, blossom, (of flies) deposit eggs (on), defile blowse, chubby girl bluecap, Scotsman blunt, make light of board, to address, make advances to, mount sexually bob, taunt, mock, cheat, get by trickery, pummel bodkin, dagger, hair-pin or ornament boll’n, swollen bolt, broad-headed arrow, shackle; to sieve, fetter bolter, sieve bolting-hutch, sifting-bin bombard, leather jug or bottle bombast, cotton-wool padding for clothes, bombastic bona-roba, well dressed prostitute bone-ache, syphilis boot, booty, profit, advantage, help, use, avail, addition; to be of use, profit, present in addition Boreas, north wind borrow, receive, assume, counterfeit bosky, wooded botchy, ulcerous bots, disease of horses caused by worms bottom, ship, valley, bobbin; to wind on a bobbin bounce, bang boy, rogue brabble, brawl brace, suit of armour, readiness brach, hound, bitch braid, deceitful; to reproach branched, patterned as with branches brave, finely dressed, splendid, excellent; bravado or threat; to adorn, challenge, defy, swagger, taunt bravery, bravado, finery, splendour, ostentation, defiance brawl, French dance; quarrel break-neck, ruinous course of action breast, voice, stomach breathe, speak, exercise, rest breathed, exercised, valiant, inspired breese, gadfly brewis, bread soaked in broth Briareus, hundred-handed giant brief, letter, summary broke, bargain broken, (of music) in parts, scored for different instruments broker, agent, go-between, pawnbroker Brownist, member of a Puritan sect founded by Robert Browne bruised, crushed, battered bruit, rumour, report; to announce bubuncle, facial eruption buck, washing, dirty clothes for washing buckler, shield Bucklersbury, street of apothecaries’ and druggists’ shops off Cheapside budget, wallet, bag buff, strong leather used for coats of bailiffs and legal officers bug, bogey, terror bugle, bead, hunting-horn bulk, body, stall in front of a shop bully, friend, fine fellow bumbaste, thrash the backside bung, pickpocket burgonet, helmet burn, infect with venereal disease buss, kiss cabin, den cabinet, dwelling cacodemon, evil spirit caddis, woollen tape cade, barrel caduceus, Mercury’s magic wand entwined by two serpents caitiff, wretch, miserable person caliver, light musket callet, whore Cambyses, hero of a bombastic tragedy can, to know, be skilled in canary, lively dance, light sweet wine cantle, segment canvass, toss (as in a blanket) capable, able to receive, feel, or understand capacity, understanding cap-à-pie, from head to foot capitulate, specify terms captious, capacious carbonado, meat scored across for cooking carcanet, necklace card, playing card, compass card; mix, debase carl, carlot, peasant carnation, flesh-colour carrack, galleon carriage, ability to bear carve, cut, shape, invite with look and gesture case, vagina cast, throw of dice, tinge, founding; to throw, vomit; reckon, add casual, accidental, subject to accident cataplasm, poultice catastrophe, outcome, end, rear cater, purchaser of household supplies caterpillar, extortioner, parasite cates, food, delicacies catling, catgut string cautel, trick, deceit cautelous, deceitful censure, judgement, blame; judge, estimate centre, centre of the earth or the universe Cerberus, three-headed dog of the underworld cerecloth, cerements, winding-sheet ceremonious, punctilious about ritual Ceres, goddess of agriculture certain, fixed cess, death; out of all cess, beyond all measure challenge, claim, accuse chamber-lye, urine chamblet, light fabric champaign, open country changeling, waverer chape, sheath chapman, merchant, customer chaps, jaws character, writing, hand-writing; to write charactery, writing charneco, Portuguese wine Charon, ferryman of the underworld chaudron, entrails cheapen, bargain, bid for cheater, officer appointed to look after property forfeited to the king check, rebuke cheerly, cheerfully cherry-pit, game of throwing cherry stones into a little hole cheverel, kid leather, pliant and easily stretched child, baby girl, youth of noble birth childing, fertile chopine, shoe with high platform-sole cicatrice, scar, impression cinquepace, lively dance cipher, zero, nought; to express, decipher cittern, wire-stringed instrument civil, of the city, well-ordered clack-dish, begging bowl clapperclaw, maul, thrash cleave, attach themselves clepe, call clerk, scholar clew, ball of thread climate, region, dwell cling, shrivel clinquant, glittering clip, embrace closure, bound, enelnaure, conclusion clown, rustic, jester clyster, enema cockney, milksop, squeamish or affected woman cod, testicle codpiece, bag-shaped flap on breeches, covering the genitals, tied with laces, often embroidered and padded coffin, pastry case cog, cheat, flatter coign, corner-stone, corner coil, noisy disturbance, fuss, trouble Colbrand, legendary Danish giant collection, inference, understanding collied, darkened collop, slice, offspring colour, pretext, excuse colours, military ensigns colt, young fool; to make a fool of; to have sexual intercourse with co-mart, agreement, bargain commodity, commercial privileges, expediency, advantage, consignment companion, knave comparative, proportionate, full of comparisons; one who assumes equality competitor, associate, partner complexion, bodily habit or constitution, temperament, appearance, colour complot, conspiracy composition, consistency, agreement con, learn by heart conceit, idea, device, apprehension, understanding, opinion, judgement, fancy, imagination, fancy trifle; to think, estimate conceited, full of imagination, ingenious, having a certain opinion conclusion, experiment, riddle condolement, mourning conference, conversation, talk, discussion confiner, inhabitant congree, harmonize conscience, knowledge, understanding, scruple conscionable, ruled by conscience consign, agree, yield up possession consist, insist conspectuity, sight contain, keep continent, container, sum; restrained, temperate controller, detractor convenience, fitness, advantage convent, convene, summon conversation, intercourse, behaviour convert, turn, change convey, lead away, carry conveyance, underhand dealing convince, overcome convive, feast together convoy, means of conveyance cony, rabbit cony-catch, cheat copatain, highcrowned cope, sky; have to do with, encounter, recompense copped, peaked copy, original; subject matter, copyholdtenure coranto, a dance Corinthian, reveller corky, withered Cornelia, mother of the Gracchi, model of Roman motherhood cornett, a brass instrument, capable of great brilliance cornuto, cuckold, deceived husband corollary, surplus costard, an apple; the head cote, cottage; pass by cotquean, ‘old woman’, man who interferes in housekeeping couch, hide, lie hidden, make crouch counsel, secret, secret purpose or thought Counter, debtors’ prison counterpoint, quilt, counterpane countervail, equal, counter-balance court-cupboard, sideboard cousin, nephew, kinsman, relative cowl-staff, pole on which a ‘cowl’ (or basket) is carried coxcomb, fool’s cap, fool, head coy, scorn, stroke cozen, cheat cozier, cobbler crackhemp, gallows-bird, one born (or deserving) to be hanged crank, twist; wind crant, wreath crare, small trading vessel crave, require craze, break credent, believing, credible credit, credibility, reputation, report crestfallen, humbled, abased cresset, fire-basket, torch cricket, low stool crow-keeper, one employed to drive away crows crusado, Portuguese coin cry, pack of hounds; yelp in following scent cubiculo, bedroom cullion, testicle (term of abuse) culverin, large cannon cunning, knowledge, skill; ingenious Cupid, god of love, son of Venus and Mars (or Mercury), usually thought of as a boy armed with bow and arrows curate, parish priest curiosity, exactness, over-scrupulousness, delicacy curious, anxious, needing care, fastidious, difficult to please, delicate, beautifully made; delicately curst, shrewish, cross, cantankerous, malignant, fierce curtal, having the tail docked curtal-axe, cutlass customer, prostitute cut, docked or gelded horse; vulva Cyclops, one of a race of one-eyed giants, workmen for Vulcan the smith. cyme, medicinal plant Cynthia, goddess of the moon cypress, fine lawn fabric Cytherea, Venus, goddess of love Daedalus, with his son Icarus, escaped from imprisonment on home-made wings. Icarus flew too high, the sun melted the wax, and he was drowned. Daedalus escaped. danger, harm, injury, power to harm, range (of a weapon), debt Daphne, see APOLLO dare, dazzle date, time, term, term of life, end daub, cover with false show; daub it, pretend dear, important, energetic, dire debile, weak Deborah, prophetess who inspired Israel to victory decimation, execution of every tenth man decoct, heat defeat, destruction; to ruin, destroy, disfigure, defraud defeature, disfigurement defend, forbid defunction, death defunctive, funereal delightsome, delightful, delighted demerit, merit, sin denier, copper coin of little value denunciation, formal declaration deplore, tell with grief depose, swear, examine on oath deprave, defame deputation, office of deputy deracinate, uproot derive, inherit, descend, bring down on, draw dern, dark, drear desperately, recklessly determinate, fix; ended, decisive, intended determination, ending, decision, intention determine, end, settle, decide Deucalion, the Greek Noah dexter, right dey-woman, dairy-woman Diana, goddess of hunting, the moon, and chastity diaper, table napkin dich, attach to Dido, see AENEAS diffidence, distrust, suspicion diffused, confused, disordered dilate, relate, express at length dildo, penis, phallus; used in ballad refrains dime, tenth man Dis, god of the underworld disable, impair, disparage disappointed, unprepared discase, undress discourse, reasoning, talk, conversational power, familiarity discover, uncover, reveal, make known, recognize, spy out, reconnoitre disease, trouble, annoyance; to disturb disedge, dull the appetite, sate disgrace, insult; disfigurement, disfavour disgracious, disliked, out of favour dishabit, dislodge dishonest, dishonourable, unchaste, immoral dishonesty, dishonour, immorality dislike, disagreement, disapproval; to displease disliken, disguise dismiss, forgive dismission, dismissal dismount, lower, draw from sheath dispiteous, pitiless displeased, angry dispose, disposal, control, disposition, temperament, manner; to control, direct, incline, come to terms disputable, argumentative distain, stain, defile distemper, ill humour, illness of mind or body, intoxication; disturb, disorder distemperature, intemperateness of weather, illness, ailment, disturbance of mind distinction, discrimination distinctly, separately, individually distract, divide, perplex, drive mad distrain, seize distressful, hard-earned dive-dapper, dabchick, little grebe division, variation, modulation, disposition divulge, proclaim do, copulate (with) doctrine, lesson, learning document, lesson dogged, cruel doit, coin worth half a farthing, a minute sum dole, portion, share, grief, sorrow domineer, feast riotously dominical, red-printed letter in calendar marking the Sundays doom, judgement double, false, deceitful; wraith doubt, suspicion, fear; to suspect, fear dout, extinguish dowlas, coarse linen dowle, downy feather doxy, beggar’s wench draff, pigwash draught, cesspool, privy draw, withdraw, empty, search for game, track by scent drawer, tapster dress, train, groom dressing, trimming dribbling, falling short or wide of the mark drift, purpose, plot, shower drollery, puppet-show, comic picture drumble, move slowly drybeat, beat soundly dudgeon, hilt of a dagger duello, duelling code dump, mournful tune or song dun, dark; dun horse dup, open durance, durability, strong and durable cloth, imprisonment eager, sour, bitter ean, to bring forth (lambs) eanling, young lamb ear, plough ecstasy, excitement, trance, madness edge, appetite, desire effectual, pertinent, to the point eftest, easiest eftsoons, soon egg, epitome of worthlessness; take eggs for money, accept injury tamely eisel, vinegar eld, old age, ancient time elder gun, pop-gun made from elder wood element, sky, pl, atmospheric powers elf, tangle embarquement, embargo, prohibition emboss, to drive (a hunted animal) to extremity embossed, swollen, foaming at the mouth embowel, disembowel empiric, quack emulation, ambitious rivalry, grudge, envy emulator, disparager encompassment, winding course, ‘talking round’ a subject enew, drive into water engine, artifice, plot, mechanical contrivance, rack engross, write out in a fair hand; collect, monopolize, fallen enlarge, set free enlargement, release, liberty enormous, disordered, irregular ensconce, shelter, hide enseamed, defiled with sweat ensear, dry up enshield, concealed, emblazoned ensteeped, lying under water entertainment, employment entreat, treat, negotiate, intercede entreatment, entering into negotiation envy, malice, enmity; show malice towards Ephesian, boon companion epicurism, luxury, excess equally, justly, impartially Erebus, place of darkness, hell erected, active, attentive ergo, therefore eringo, aphrodisiac sweetmeat erne, grieve erst, formerly escot, support financially espial, spy estimable, appraising estimate, valuation, value, repute estimation, value, thing of value, esteem, reputation, conjecture estridge, goshawk Europa, carried away by Jupiter who had taken the form of a bull event, outcome, issue, result evidence, evidential documents, title-deeds evitate, avoid exception, objection, dissatisfaction exclamation, loud reproach excrement, growth (of hair) excursion, rush, passage of arms exempt, cut off exhalation, meteor exhale, draw forth exhaust, draw out exhibit, to submit, present exhibition, allowance of money, gift expectancy, hope expedience, speed, expedition expedient, speedy, direct expeditious, immediate, urgent experimental, of experience expiate, end extemp’rically, with skill in improvisation extend, be lavish in praise, exaggerate the worth of, take by force extent, seizure of property in execution of a writ, attack extirp, root out extracting, distracting extravagancy, wandering extravagant, straying, vagrant eyas, young hawk eyas-musket, young sparrow-hawk eye-glass, retina, eye’s lens eyestrings, muscles or nerves of eye face, appearance, appearance of right; to put on a false appearance, brave, bully, brazen, trim facinorous, vile fact, deed, crime factious, seditious factor, agent faculty, disposition, quality fadge, be suitable, succeed fading, refrain of a song fail, failure, fault; to offend, die fain, glad, obliged fairing, gift faithed, believed faitor, cheat, rogue falchion, sword, scimitar falling sickness, epilepsy falsing, deceptive fame, rumour, report, reputation; make famous familiar, attendant spirit fancy, love, whimsicality; to love, fall in love with fang, seize fangled, foppish fantastic, imaginary, fanciful, extravagant fantasy, delusion, imagination, fancy, whim fap, drunk farce, to cram, stuff farced, stuffed out fardel, bundle, burden farm, lease farthingale, hooped petticoat fashions, disease of horses fault, lack, (in hunting) break in the scent favour, leniency, something given as a mark of favour, badge, charm, appearance, look, face, feature feat, dexterous, graceful; show to advantage; deed feature, shape, form, comeliness fedary, federary, confederate, accomplice feed, pasture feeder, servant, parasite, shepherd fee-farm, fixed rent for perpetual tenancy fee-grief, individual sorrow fee-simple, estate belonging to owner and his heirs for ever, absolute possession felicitate, happy fell, fierce, cruel, enraged; skin, covering of hair or wool, fleece felly, section of rim of wooden wheel fence, art of fencing, defence; to defend fere, spouse fern seed, believed to be invisible and to confer invisibility ferret, worry festinate, hasty fetch, stratagem, trick; to draw, derive, strike a blow fettle, make ready fig, to insult with a ‘figo’ fig of Spain, figo, fico, scornful gesture made by thrusting the thumb between two of the closed fingers or into the mouth. fight, screen for protection of crew in sea battle file, catalogue, list, roll, rank, number; to smooth, polish, defile fill, fulfil fill-horse, shaft horse film, fine mesh fine, end; to end, pay, fix as sum payable, punish fire-drake, fiery dragon, meteor firk, thrash fitchew, polecat fitment, fit equipment, fitting office fives, strangles (a horse disease) flap-dragon a raisin in burning brandy; to swallow as a flap-dragon flapjack, pancake flatness, completeness flaw, flake of snow, gust, fragment, fault, outburst; to crack, break fleckled, dappled fledge, fledged, covered with down fleer, mock, sneer; to gibe flesh, initiate in bloodshed, inflame, gratify fleshment, excitement resulting from a first success flewed, having large chaps flight, fleet, swiftly moving flirt-jill, woman of loose character float, sea flourish, gloss, embellishment, florid decoration, fanfare of trumpets flush, full, lusty flux, discharge, flowing, stream fob, cheat, trick foin, thrust foison, harvest, plentiful crop fond, foolish, silly, trivial, eager, desirous fool, professional jester, term of endearment or pity, plaything foot, see FOUTRE footcloth, saddle cloth fop, to dupe, fool foppery, folly, deceit foppish, foolish forage, preying forbid, cursed fordo, kill, destroy fordone, exhausted forecast, foresight forehorse, first in team forespent, previously spent, past forestall, condemn in advance forgetive, inventive fork, forked tongue, barbed arrow-head forked, horned formal, traditional, dignified, sane formality, decorum, regularity former, foremost forsake, refuse, reject, renounce forslow, delay forspent, exhausted fortitude, strength forwhy, because foutre, strong expression of contempt, a fuck (French) fox, kind of sword fracted, broken fraction, discord, quarrel, fragment frame, contriving, structure, plan; to prepare, go, bring to pass, perform frampold, disagreeable franchise, freedom, privilege franchised, free frank, unrestrained, generous, free; sty; to pen up in a sty franklin, yeoman fray, affray, skirmish; to frighten free, generous, magnanimous, innocent, untroubled; to absolve, banish French crown, French coin, baldness produced by venereal disease frequent, addicted, familiar friend, lover, mistress, relative frieze, coarse woollen cloth frippery, old-clothes’ shop front, forehead; face, foremost line of battle, beginning; to confront, oppose frontlet, band worn on forehead froward, perverse, wilful, rebellious frush, smash fullam, false dice fulsome, pregnant, loathsome, filthy furnishings, externals furniture, equipment, harness fury, rage, passion, poetic passion, goddess of vengeance fustian, coarse cloth, bombastic gibberish gaberdine, loose-fitting coat or cloak gag, prop open, or jerk open gage, pledge; to stake, bind, engage gain-giving, misgiving Galen, famous physician of second century gall, resentment, bitterness; to rub sore, chafe, graze, wound, harass, scoff galliard, lively dance galliass, large, heavy ship galloglasses, heavily-armed foot-soldiers of Ireland or the Western Isles gallow, frighten gallows, gallows-bird, one born (or deserving) to be hanged gamut, musical scale garboil, disturbance, quarrel Gargantua, large-mouthed giant in Rabelais garland, royal crown, glory garnish, dress; to adorn, equip gaskins, breeches gaud, plaything, showy ornament; to ornament gear, stuff, talk, matter, business geck, dupe gender, kind, sort, offspring; engender generosity, high birth generous, high-born genius, spirit, good or bad angel, embodied spirit gentle, of noble birth; to ennoble gentry, rank by birth, good breeding, courtesy George, jewel bearing figure of the saint, part of insignia of Order of the Garter germen, seed gest, deed, time allotted to stage of journey gesture, bearing ghasted, frightened ghastness, terror ghastly, spiritual gig, whipping-top giglet, wanton gimmaled, jointed, hinged ging, gang gird, gibe; taunt, besiege glance (at), hint at, cast a slight on glass, mirror, sand-glass glaze, stare gleek, gibe; to gibe, jest glib, castrate gloss, lustre glut, swallow go, walk God-a-mercy, thank God God’s me, God bless me go to! expression of disapproval, protest, or disbelief goatish, lustful good, financially sound, rich good-brother, brother-in-law goodman, husband, yeoman, master goose, smoothing iron goose of Winchester, prostitute gorbellied, fat-bellied gore, to defile, wound gorge, what has been swallowed gorget, piece of armour for the throat Gorgon, woman whose look turned the beholder to stone gossip, god-father or -mother, sponsor; make merry gourd, kind of false dice gout, drop government, control, self-command, evenness of temper grained, ingrained, showing grain of the wood, lined, forked gramercy, thank you grange, outlying farmhouse gratify, thank, reward, pay, do honour to gratulate, pleasing; greet, express joy at gravel, urinary crystals greasily, obscenely grece, step, stair, degree gree, agree grief, grievances grieve, vex, taunt groat, fourpenny piece groundlings, those who stood in the cheapest part of the theatre grow, be or become due guard, caution, border, trimming; to ornament guidon, pennant guiled, treacherous guinea-hen, prostitute guise, custom, habit gules, red (heraldry) gull, unfledged bird, dupe, fool, trick; to cheat gummed, stiffened with gum gust, taste, relish Guy, Guy of Warwick, slayer of the giant Colbrand gyve, fetter habit, dress, appearance habitude, temperament hackney, prostitute haggard, wild hawk haggle, to hack, gash hag-seed, child of a witch hai, home-thrust in fencing hair, kind, character halcyon, kingfisher half, partner half-blooded, of noble blood by one parent only half-cheek, profile half-cheeked, with a piece missing or broken on one side half-face, thin face half-faced, showing half the face half-sword, half a sword’s length halidom, holy relic Hallowmas, All Saints’ Day, I November handfast, firm hold, marriage contract handicrafts, artisans, workmen handy-dandy, choose which you please (in a children’s game) haply, perhaps, by chance happiness, handsomeness, appropriateness, opportunity hardiment, bold exploit hardness, difficult, hardship harlot, man or woman of promiscuous life harlotry, harlot, silly wench hatch, engrave, inlay, lower half of a divided door hatchment, memorial tablet with coat of arms hautboy, shawm, woodwind instrument, ancestor of the oboe havoc, devastation; cry havoc, give the signal to an army to plunder hazard, game at dice, chance, venture head, headland, topic, army head borough, parish officer heap, crowd heavy, important, dull, sluggish, sleepy, grievous hectic, wasting fever Hector, Trojan hero Hecuba, Queen of Troy, wife of Priam and mother of Hector hedge-pig, hedgehog Helen, most beautiful woman of her world, wife of the Greek Menelaus, carried off to Troy by Paris Helicon, mountain of Greece sacred to the Muses hemp-seed, gallows-bird, one born (or deserving) to be hanged Hercules, as a baby strangled two serpents; performed twelve great labours, including the obtaining of the golden apples of the Hesperides and the overcoming of Cerberus, the three-headed dog of the underworld Hero, see LEANDER Hesperus, the evening star hest, command heyday, excitement high-crested, proud high-lone, quite alone, without support high-proof, in the highest degree high-stomached, haughty hight, called hilding, contemptible, good-for-nothing, baggage him, male (dog) hint, occasion, reason, opportunity hipped, lame in the hip hit, succeed, agree hive, hive-shaped hat hoar, grow mouldy hobby-horse, figure of a horse used in morris dances, etc., buffoon, prostitute holding, consistency, burden of a song holp, helped honest, worthy, virtuous, chaste honesty, honour, decency, chastity honour, chastity hoodman-blind, blind man’s buff horn, the mark of a cuckold horn-book, child’s first reader horn-mad, ready to gore the enemy, enraged at being cuckolded hose, stockings, breeches host, lodge hot-house, brothel housekeeper, householder, watch-dog, stay-at-home housekeeping, hospitable running of the household hox, hamstring hoy, a small vessel hugger-mugger, secrecy hull, float, drift with sails furled humorous, moist, capricious, moody humour, moisture; bodily fluid supposedly composed of blood, phlegm, choler, and melancholy, the proportions determining personal temperament; temperament, mood, whim, caprice, inclination Hungarian, hungry, needy hunt’s-up, morning-song to arouse huntsmen hurly, commotion, uproar hurricano, waterspout hurry, commotion, disorder hurtless, harmless, unhurting husband, one who keeps house; to farm, till husbandry, management, thrift Hybla, mountain in Sicily famous for fragrant flowers and honey Hydra, many-headed snake whose heads grew again as they were cut off Hymen, god ofmarriage Hyperion, sun god Icarus, see DAEDALUS idea, image Ides of March, according to the old Roman calendar, 15 March idle, empty, trifling, worthless, useless, foolish, out of one’s mind ignis fatuus, will-o’-the-wisp Ilion, Ilium, citadel of Troy image, likeness, copy, representation, sign, embodiment, idea imbecility, weakness imbrue, pierce, shed blood of immanity, cruelty imminence, impending evil immodest, arrogant, immoderate immoment, insignificant imp, young shoot, child; to engraft feathers into a bird’s wing impart, afford, make known impartment, communication impeach, accusation, reproach; to accuse, challenge, discredit impeachment, accusation, detriment, hindrance impertinency, irrelevancy, ramblings impertinent, irrelevant imply, involve import, involve, imply, express, be important, concern, portend importable, unbearable importance, matter, meaning, importunity importancy, significance important, importunate, urgent importless, meaningless, trivial imposition, imputation, accusation, command impostume, abscess impress, impression, to stamp imputation, reputation incapable, unable to receive or realize incident, about to happen inclining, compliant; party, inclination incomprehensible, boundless incontinently, immediately incorpsed, made one body incorrect, unchastened, rebellious incredulous, incredible index, table of contents, preface indifferency, impartiality, moderate size indifferent, impartial, ordinary; tolerably, fairly indigest, unformed, unformed mass indign, unworthy indirection, roundabout method, dishonest practice indirectly, wrongfully, evasively, by suggestion, inattentively indiscreet, lacking judgement indiscretion, want of judgement indisposition, disinclination indistinguishable, mongrel indrenched, waterlogged infect, affect with some feeling influence, supposed flowing from the heavens of an ethereal fluid acting on human character and destiny, inspiration inform, take shape, inspire, instruct infuse, shed, imbue ingenious, talented, intelligent, discerning, skilfully contrived ingling, engaging in sexual play inhabitable, uninhabitable inherit, possess inhibit, prohibit inhibition, prohibition injurious, insulting, malicious inkle, linen tape, thread, or yarn inland, of the central, more cultured, part of a country innocent, idiot, half-wit innovation, insurrection inoculate, engraft by budding insensible, imperceptible to senses insinuate, ingratiate, suggest insinuation, ingratiation, hint instance, cause, detail, proof, mark, presence intellect, meaning, content intelligence, communication, information, news, obtaining of secret information, spy; to pass information intelligencer, agent intelligencing, informative intelligent, giving information, open, informative intemperature, wildness, intemperance intenable, unretentive intendment, purpose, intention intercept, interrupt intercourse, commerce, business interest, right, title, share interressed, invested right or share interlude, entertainment, play intrenchant, invulnerable intrinse, intrinsicate, closely entwined investments, vestments, clothes irreconciled, unexpiated irregular, irregulous, lawless iterance, repetition iwis, indeed, certainly Jack, jack, fellow, scoundrel, figure striking the hall on a clock; key of a virginal, smaller bowl aimed at, quarter of a pint Jack-a-lent, puppet set up as target during Lent jade, horse of poor condition or vicious temper, term of contempt; to wear out, make a fool of jakes, privy jaunce, prance, trudge up and down jay, a flashy whore jealous, suspicious, afraid, apprehensive, doubtful jealousy, suspicion, apprehension, mistrust jennet, small Spanish horse jess, strap attached to the leg of a trained hawk jet, strut, encroach jig, quick lively dance, short lively comic entertainment jointress, dowager jollity, finery jolthead, block-head jordan, chamber-pot journal, daily journey-bated, exhausted with travel Jove, poetic form of JUPITER jowl, strike, knock jump, just, precisely; hazard; to hazard, agree, coincide junket, sweetmeat, delicacy Juno, queen of the gods and wife of Jupiter; goddess ofmarriage Jupiter, ruler of the gods. He was thought to hurl thunderbolts at mortals who displeased him, but otherwise was best known for his many amorous adventures. just, true, honourable, exact justicer, judge justify, maintain the innocence of, vindicate, prove, corroborate justly, with good reason jut, encroach keech, fat of slaughtered animal rolled into a lump keel, skim ken, range of sight; to see, recognize, know kennel, pack, gutter kern, light-armed Irish foot-soldier kersey, homely; coarse woollen material kibe, chilblain kind, natural, tender, courteous, affectionate; nature, way, race, sort kindle, bring forth kindly, naturally, properly, exactly knack, trifle, knick-knack knap, nibble, strike knot, fancifully laid-out flower bed or garden plot laager, camp label, slip of paper, strip of paper or parchment by which a seal is attached; to add as a codicil laboured, worn out, highly finished laboursome, elaborate lace, to ornament lading, cargo, merchandise lag, last, late lampass, disease of the horse in which flesh swells behind front teeth land-damn, damn in this world lank, become thin lantern, window-turret lard, fatten, garnish large, generous, lavish, free, improper latch, strike, catch, receive, bewitch laund, glade lavolt, lavolta, high-leaping dance lay, wager lazar, leper, sick beggar leading, command, direction, generalship leaguer, camp lean, depend Leander, lover of Hero of Sestos, he swam the Hellespont nightly to visit her in her tower, and was drowned in a storm learn, teach leasing, lying leather-coat, russet apple lecture, lesson, instruction leer, appearance, complexion leese, lose leet, court held by lord of the manor leman, sweetheart, lover lengthen, delay, postpone lenity, gentleness leno, pimp, pander lenten, meagre let, hindrance; to binder, forbear, cause Lethe, river in Hades; to drink its waters gave forgetfulness level, aim, line of fire, range; to aim, guess liable, subject, suitable liberal, accomplished, humane, abundant, free in speech, unrestrained, gross lie, to lodge, stay, be still, in prison or in defensive posture lief, dear liege, sovereign lord light, frivolous, unchaste, swift, easy, merry, trivial, delirious like, please, be in good condition liking, bodily condition limbeck, distilling vessel limber, flexible lime, cement, catch with birdlime limit, prescribed time, time of rest after childbearing, region; to appoint limitation, allotted time line, rank, Equator, cord for taking measurements; copulate with linger, prolong, defer link, torch, lamp-black linsey-woolsey, woven material of wool and flax, hence medley, nonsense linstock, forked stick holding a gunner’s match list, limit, bound, barriers enclosing tilting ground, desire; to please, choose lither, yielding livelihood, liveliness, animation liver, supposedly the seat of love and strong emotion lob, bumpkin lockram, linen cloth lodge, flatten, beat down loggats, game of aiming small logs at a fixed stake long, belong loose, unattached, negligent; moment of arrow a discharge, last moment lose, to ruin, forget lover, friend, mistress luce, pike as heraldic device luggage, baggage of an army lune, fit of temper, of frenzy lurch, lurk, rob lure, dummy bird for recalling hawk lust, pleasure, desire lustihood, vigour lusty, merry, lustful, insolent, boisterous luxurious, lustful, lecherous luxury, lust lyam, leash maculate, stained, impure maculation, stain, impurity mainly, with force, greatly, perfectly majority, pre-eminence make, mate, husband or wife making, form, appearance malapert, saucy malkin, servant wench, slut mammer, hesitate mammock, tear to bits manège, art of horsemanship mandrake, poisonous plant believed to shriek when pulled up mankind, resembling a man, violent, ferocious manner, stolen goods found on a thief mansionry, dwelling-place map, picture, embodiment mappery, map-making marches, border country next to Scotland or Wales marry, (as an exclamation) by (the Virgin) Mary Mars, god of war and patron of soldiers mate, rival, checkmate, destroy, stupefy material, important, forming the substance, full of sense maugre, in spite of maund, basket mazzard, head maw, gullet, stomach meacock, coward, weakling meal, spot, stain mean, something between or intervening, middle, medium position, tenor, alto; to lament; humble, moderate measurable, suitable measure, a stately dance; tune; to measure mechanic, labourer; practical, manual mechanical, mean, vulgar; labourer Medea, escaping with Jason she tore to pieces her brother Absyrtus, scattering his limbs in her father’s path to delay him; restored the youth of Jason’s father, Aeson medicinable, healing, medicinal medlar, fruit eaten soft and pulpy; prostitute meed, reward, gift, merit meiny, company of retainers, multitude mell, to meddle memorize, make memorable memory, memorial, memento, remembrance Mercury, messenger of the gods mere, sure, absolute, unqualified, only merely, simply, entirely merit, reward mess, dish, portion, group originally of four persons eating together, set of four metaphysical, supernatural mete, measure, aim metheglin, spiced mead methinks, it seems to me method, table of contents micher, truant mickle, great microcosm, little world, man considered as epitome of the universe milch, in milk, tearful mince, to extenuate, moderate, affect mineral, mine Minerva, goddess of wisdom minimus, creature of tiniest size minion, favourite, darling, harlot, saucy creature Minotaur, devouring monster dwelling in labyrinth of Crete mirable, wonderful mirror, model, pattern mischief, misfortune, injury, disease misdread, fear of evil miser, miserable wretch misgoverned, unruly misgovernment, misconduct misgrafted, badly matched misprision, contempt, mistake, misunderstanding misproud, arrogant missive, messenger mistake, take, undertake or deliver wrongly, misjudge, blunder, feel misgiving about misthink, think evil of mistress, the jack at bowls mobled, muffled mockery, imitation, futile action model, architect’s plan, mould, copy modern, everyday, commonplace modest, moderate, satisfactory, becoming modestly, without exaggeration modesty, moderation, avoidance of exaggeration moiety, half, share, small part moldwarp, mole mome, blockhead moment, cause monster, make a monster of, show as monstrous monument, sepulchre, effigy, portent monumental, memorial, commemorating mood, anger, outward appearance, mode mooncalf, misshapen creature moonish, changeable mop, grimace mope, move blindly and stupidly, be bewildered moral, morally fabled moralize, interpret, explain mort, note on a horn at the death of the deer mortified, dead to the world, deadened, destroyed morifying, mortal mose in the chine, suffer from glanders (a horse disease) mot, motto mother, hysteria motion, motive, puppet show, puppet; to propose motive, cause, instigator, instrument, moving limb or organ mould, earth mountainish, barbarous mouse, tear, bite mouse-hunt, woman-chaser mow, grimace mulled, thick, heavy mummy, dead flesh, medicinal or magical preparation from this muniments, furnishings mure, wall murrain, plague muse, wonder muset, gap muss, scramble mutine, mutineer; rebel mutinies, riots, civil disturbances mutiny, strife, quarrel mutual, common, intimate mutually, in return, together mystery, trade, profession, skill nails, by God’s nails naked, unarmed, plain Naso, family name of the poet Ovid native, source, origin; natural, kindred, closely related, rightful natural, that is so by birth, related by blood, kind, tender; half-wit naturalize, familiarize naught, wickedness, wicked, ruined, ruin naughty, bad, wicked, good-for-nothing nave, nub, navel neaf, fist neat, animal of the ox kind, cattle neb, mouth Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, driven out to eat grass like cattle needsly, necessarily neglect, cause of neglect nephew, cousin, grandson Neptune, god of the sea Nereides, sea-nymphs Nero, Roman emperor, responsible for the assassination of his mother; believed to have played on the lyre and recited while watching the burning of the city set on fire by his orders nerve, sinew nervy, sinewy Nessus, centaur killed by Hercules for trying to rape Deianira; a tunic dyed with his blood poisoned Hercules Nestor, oldest and wisest of the Greeks at the siege of Troy netherland, underworld, lower world new-cut, a card game next, nearest, quickest nice, wanton, delicate, shy, difficult to please, fastidious, scrupulous, subtle, needing precision, delicately balanced, intricate, exact, skilful, trivial nicely, elegantly, scrupulously, sophistically, exactly niceness, coyness, fastidiousness nicety, coyness Nicholas, patron saint of scholars; Saint Nicholas’ clerks, highwaymen nickname, name wrongly niggard, to act in a miserly way, supply sparingly night-gown, dressing gown night-rule, disorder by night nine-men’s morris, cutting in turf for game played with nine pegs or discs Niobe, overboastful of her children, who were slain; she was herself turned to stone nittical, nit-infested noise, rumour, strife, music, band of musicians; clamour, spread by rumour noll, head nonsuit, to refuse to listen to or grant the suit of nook-shotten, having a very uneven outline notch, cut with notches, slash notedly, precisely nothing, vulva notion, understanding, mind nourish, bring up, nurture novum, dice-game in which chief throws are nine and five noyance, injury, harm nuncio, messenger nursery, nursing, care nut-hook, beadle, constable oathable, fit to take an oath ob., abbreviation of ‘obolus’, halfpenny objection, charge, accusation obligation, contract obliged, pledged obsequious, dutiful, dutiful in funeral rites observant, obsequious servant observe, humour occasion, opportunity, pretext, cause, course of events occulted, hidden occupation, business, handicraft, trade occupy, have to do with sexually occurrent, event oddly, unevenly oeillade, inviting glance, ogling o’erblow, blow away o’ercount, outnumber o’ercrow, triumph over o’erdyed, dyed with a second colour o’ereaten, left after most has been eaten o’erflourished, decorated on the outside o’erlook, examine, bewitch, despise o’ermaster, possess o’erparted, having too difficult a part o’er-peer, rise above o’erpost, get over easily o’er-raught, overtook o’er-teemed, worn out by child-bearing o’er-watch, stay awake too long o’erwhelm, overhang o’erwrested, strained offend, harm, hurt offer, act on the offensive, venture office, function, service offices, parts of a house devoted to household matters omit, neglect, disregard, lay aside omittance, postponement open-arse, medlar (fruit) operant, effecting, effective operation, effect, efficacy opinion, censure, public judgement, self-conceit, self-confidence opposeless, irresistible opposite, antagonist, opponent; hostile, adverse oppress, suppress, distress oppression, burden, distress oppugnancy, conflict orb, circle, sphere, sphere in which a star moves, heavenly body, earth ordinance, what is ordained, established rule, decree, rank ordinary, fixed-price tavern meal, ‘ordinary run’ orgulous, proud orifex, aperture orison, prayer ort, fragment, scrap ostent, appearance, show ostentation, appearance, show, spectacle othergates, in another way otherwhiles, at times ouch, jewel ounce, lynx ouph, elf ousel, blackbird outbrave, to surpass in beauty or valour outlandish, foreign outlive, survive outpeer, surpass outrageous, violent, volatile outsell, exceed in value outside, outer garment outward, outward appearance overdrip, drip over, overshadow overhear, hear over again overhold, overestimate overlook, overtop, look down on from above, read through overpeer, rise above, look down on overscutched, made haggard with beating, worn out overture, disclosure; formal opening, first indication Ovid, Roman poet who was sent into exile owe, own, possess pace, train (a horse) to pace pack, gang; conspire, shuffle (cards), to cheat, be off packing, plotting paddock, toad pageant, show, spectacle pain, trouble, punishment painful, laborious, toilsome pale, fence, enclosure; enclose, encircle palisado, staked fence pall, fail palliament, white robe of a candidate for the Roman consulship palmer, pilgrim palsy, tremors palter, equivocate, use trickery pander, go-between in a love affair, pimp Pandion, see PHILOMEL pantaloon, foolish old man pantler, servant in charge of the pantry paper, notice specifying offence committed; write down paragon, compare, excel, show as a model Parca, one of the three fates who prepared and cut the thread of human life parcel, part, item, group parcel-gilt, partly gilded pard, panther or leopard pardie, certainly, indeed Paris ball, tennis ball paritor, official who summoned offenders to an ecclesiastical court parlous, perilous, cunning, dreadful, shrewd, clever part, action, side partage, freight, cargo partake, impart, take sides partaker, confederate, supporter parted, divided, gifted partialize, make partial particular, detail, individual, personal interest, intimacy; private, personal partisan, footsoldier’s weapon, a long-handled spear with a blade parts, qualities, accomplishments pash, head; to strike violently, smash passado, a forward thrust in fencing passant, heraldic term of beast stepping; surpassing passenger, traveller on foot passing, excessively passion, suffering, affliction, fit of disease, overpowering emotion, passionate speech, sorrow; feel deep emotion passionate, express with passion; compassionate, sorrowful patch, fool patchery, trickery paten, thin circular metal plate patent, title, privilege, authority patience, permission, leave patronage, uphold, defend pattern, precedent, model; to give an example, be a pattern or precedent for pax, tablet kissed by priest and congregation in celebration of mass peach, denounce, turn informer peat, spoilt girl peck, pitch peculiar, individual, private, belonging to one person pedant, schoolmaster peeled, tonsured Pegasus, winged horse peise, balance, weight, suspend pelf, property, possessions pelican, believed to feed its young with its own blood pelt, rage, scold pelting, paltry, worthless pencil, paintbrush pendulous, impending, suspended pensioners, royal bodyguard Penthesilea, Amazon queen peradventure, by chance, perhaps perdition, ruin, loss, damnation perdurable, everlasting peregrinate, travelled, foreign in style perfect, fully informed, equipped, ready; accomplish, instruct perfection, performance, completion periapt, amulet period, end, goal, highest point, full pause, full stop; to end perjure, perjurer; corrupt perniciously, to destruction perpend, consider persistive, steadfast perspective, optical device for producing fantastic images; picture of figure producing a distorted or unexpected effect pert, lively pervert, turn aside pester, throng, obstruct pestiferous, pernicious phantasim, fantastic being Philomel, Philomela, daughter of Pandion, raped by Tereus (husband of her sister Progne), who cut out her tongue; she wove her story into a tapestry. Progne feasted Tereus on their murdered son; Philomela was changed into a nightingale. Phoebe, Diana, goddess of the moon Phoebus, Apollo, god of the sun phoenix, unique Arabian bird which, dying, is recreated from its own ashes phraseless, inexpressible phthisic, consumptive cough physic dose with medicine physical, beneficial to health pia mater, brain picked, refined, fastidious Pickt-hatch, London district noted for brothels pie, magpie piece, cask of liquor, masterpiece; add to, augment pied, parti-coloured pike, spike in centre of buckler pill, plunder, rob, strip (of bark), make bald pillicock, penis pin and web, disease of the eye pinch, bite, pang; to bite, harass, distress pismire, ant pitch, high point of a falcon’s flight place position, office placket, petticoat, opening, slit planched, made of boards plant, sole of the foot plantage, plants plash, pool plausible, pleasing plausibly, with applause plausive, deserving of applause Plautus, Roman writer of comedy pleached, formed by intertwined overarched boughs, folded pleasant, merry, jokey pleurisy, abundance, excess plight, pledge Pluto, ruler of the underworld Plutus, god of riches poach, to thrust, stab point, highest point, conclusion, lace with tags (for attaching hose to doublet, etc.), full stop poking-stick, rod used for pleating ruffs polecat, prostitute policy, government, administration, prudence in managing public or private affairs, cunning, craftiness, trick politic, dealing with government and administration, crafty politician, schemer, scheming statesman pomewater, large juicy kind of apple pomp, procession, pageant Pontic sea, Black Sea poop, swamp, overwhelm poor-john, salted fish popular, plebeian, vulgar popularity, common pledge porridge, porrage, soup porringer, basin port, gate, bearing, style of living portable, bearable, endurable portage, portholes portance, behaviour posied, inscribed with a motto possess, inform, acquaint posset, drink of hot milk curdled with ale or wine; curdle, thicken post, post set up for notices, etc., doorpost on which tavern reckoning was kept, courier, messenger, post-horse; to hasten, carry swiftly poster, swift traveller posy, motto inscribed inside a ring potable, able to be drunk potato, sweet potato, supposedly aphrodisiac potency, power, authority potent, potentate potential, powerful potting, tippling pouncet-box, small box for perfumes powder, preserve meat with salt or spice powdering-tub, pickling-tub, sweating-tub used in cure of venereal disease power, army pox, syphilis, venereal disease practice, trickery, conspiracy, plot practisant, one who carries out a trick practise, plot, conspire praemunire, writ for maintaining papal jurisdiction in England praetor, Roman magistrate praise, appraise, value prank, adorn prate, chatter, prattle precedent, former; original from which a copy is made, sign precisian, puritan precurrer, forerunner precurse, heralding predicament, situation prefer, present, advance, introduce, recommend preferment, advancement, promotion pregnancy, quickness of wit pregnant, clear, fertile, compelling, resourceful, receptive prejudicate, influence beforehand prejudice, injury; injure premise, aforesaid matter premised, sent before preparation, accomplishment preposterous, inverting the natural order of things, monstrous prerogative, precedence, pre-eminence, prior place presage, omen, prognostication, foreboding presence, presence-chamber, company, person present, immediate, instant; ready money, to show, represent, bring a charge against presently, immediately presentment, dedication press, crowd, crowding, printing-press, cupboard, authority to enlist men compulsorily; to crowd, oppress, force into military service pressure, impression, character impressed pretence, expressed aim, intention, pretext prevent, anticipate, escape, avoid prick, mark made by pricking, dot, point, spot in centre of target, prickle, penis; to mark by making a dot, etc., pierce, fix, point, spur pricket, buck in its second year prick-song, music sung from notes pride, magnificence, splendid adornment, highest state, mettle, sexual desire prig, thief prime, first, chief, sexually excited; springtime primogenitive, first-born’s right to inherit principal, superior, abettor, principal rafter princox, pert youth Priscian, Roman grammarian prithee, please private, private person privates, sexual organs prize, contest; to value, esteem prizer, prize-fighter, wrestler probal, to, able to bear the probe or examination of probation, trial, proof proceeder, one proceeding to a university degree procurator, proxy prodigious, ominous, portentous, monstrous, abnormal proditor, traitor proface, ‘may it do you good’, formula of welcome before a meal profited, proficient progeny, lineage, race progress, royal journey in state project, notion, idea; set forth, exhibit projection, plan prolixious, prolonged prolong, postpone Prometheus, stole fire from heaven and was chained to Mount Caucasus prone, ready, eager proof, test, trial, experience, issue, result propend, incline proper, (one’s) own, private, peculiar, excellent, handsome property, identity, particular quality, take possession of, endow with qualities, make a tool of proportion, portion, division, relative size, proportioning, rhythm propose, put forward, set before one’s mind, suppose, converse propriety, identity, proper state propugnation, defence prorogue, prolong, postpone prosecution, pursuit Proserpina, daughter of Ceres, carried away by Pluto to become queen of hell prosperous, favourable Proteus, a sea-god, able to assume different shapes protractive, consisting in delay proud, elated, giving cause for pride, lofty, splendid, spirited, swollen, over-luxuriant, sexually excited prove, try, test, find by experience, experience publish, make known, proclaim, denounce pucelle, virgin, maid, slut puck, pixy, mischievous spirit pudding, sausage, stuffing pudency, modesty puissance, strength, armed force puissant, strong, powerful pumpion, pumpkin punk, prostitute, harlot punto reverso, back-handed thrust in fencing puny, novice, person of small account purblind, quite blind, partially blind purchase, booty, prize, annual rent from land; to strive, gain, acquire otherwise than by inheritance purgation, clearing from accusation or suspicion purlieu, tract of land bordering on a forest purpose, proposal, conversation pursuivant, junior attendant on heralds, herald, messenger pursy, short-winded, fat purveyor, steward going ahead to make provision putter on, instigator puttock, bird of prey, kite, buzzard quail, prostitute; to fail, faint, overpower quaint, skilful, clever, dainty, line, beautiful, elaborate qualification, calm and controlled condition qualify, moderate, mitigate, appease, control, dilute quality, accomplishment, rank, profession, party, side, manner, cause quarry, heap of slaughtered game quarter, part, watch, relations with and conduct towards another quat, pimple quatch, word of unknown meaning quean, hussy, whore queasy, hazardous, squeamish quell, slaughter quest, jury, inquest, search party questant, seeker questionable, inviting question questrist, seeker quick, flowing, fresh, impatient, living quiddity, subtlety, equivocation quietus, clearing of accounts quintain, object or figure to practise tilting at quirk, quibble, clever expression, peculiarity of behaviour, fit, start quit, set free, rid, acquit, acquit oneself of, revenge, repay, requite quittal, requital quittance, discharge from debt, requital; requite quoif, close-fitting cap quondam, former quote, give marginal references to, set down in writing, note, observe, regard quoth, said quotidian, (of an intermittent fever) returning every day race, root (of ginger), lineage, breed, natural disposition rack, driving cloud; to torture, extend, stretch, strain rage, madness, angry disposition, sexual passion; to enrage ‘raigning arraigning, putting on trial ramp, loose woman rampallian, riotous woman rampire, barricade rank, growing too luxuriantly, swollen, grown too fat, rebellious, high, full, lustful, in heat, coarse, festering; closely rankle, cause a festering wound rankness, overflowing, insolence rare, splendid rascal, inferior deer rate, estimate, value, expense ravel, become entangled, disentangle raven, devour greedily rayed, bespattered, fouled read, teach, discover the meaning of, expound a riddle re-answer, compensate for reason, speech, remark; to talk, discuss, explain reasonable, needing the use of reason reave, deprive, take away rebate, make dull, blunt rebato, stiff collar receipt, what is received, receptacle, receiving, capacity, recipe receiving, understanding, reception recheat, notes sounded on a horn to call hounds together in stag-hunting reck, to care (for), mind reclaim, tame, subdue recognizance, bond, token recomfort, console, restore record, witness, memory; to witness, sing recordation, memorial, impression on the memory recourse, access, admission, flowing recover, reconcile, reach, rescue recovery, process by which entailed estate was transferred from one party to another rector, ruler, head rectorship, rule recure, restore, heal reduce, bring, bring back reechy, smoky, dirty, stinking reek, smoke, steam refel, refute reflect, shine regiment, authority, rule region, upper air, air regreet, greeting, contract reguerdon, reward rehearsal, account rehearse, describe, tell reins, kidneys rejoindure, reunion rejourn, adjourn relative, able to be related and believed religion, strict fidelity, religious duty religious, exact, conscientious, strict remember, mention, commemorate, remind remit, pardon, give up remonstrance, demonstration remorse, pity, tenderness, moderation, qualification, mitigation remorseful, compassionate remotion, departing removed, remote, secluded, separated by time or space removedness, absence remover, one who changes render, surrender, rendering of an account, statement; to give back, represent, describe as being, declare, state, surrender rendezvous, refuge, last resort renege, deny, renounce renown, make famous repair, restoring, coming; go, come, return repairing, able to renew the attack repasture, food repeal, recall from exile; recall as from banishment, call back into favour repetition, recital, mention repine, vexation replenished, perfect replication, reply, echo reprisal, prize reprobance, damnation, rejection by God reprobate, depraved reproof, disgrace, disproof, refutation reprove, disprove, refute repugn, oppose repugnancy, resistance repugnant, refractory rescue, freeing from legal custody by force resemblance, appearance, likelihood resist, affect with distaste resolve, dissolve, answer (a question), solve (a problem), convince, inform resolvedly, answering all questions respect, relationship, discrimination, consideration, esteem; to regard, care for, esteem respective, careful, worthy of being cared for, discriminating respectively, respectfully respite, delay, date to which something is postponed, limit responsive, suited rest, place to rest, restored strength, resolution, stakes kept in reserve restrain, draw tight, withhold resty, restive, sluggish retention, detention, reserve, power to hold or retain retentive, confining, restraining retire, return retort, to reflect (heat), reject (an appeal) retreat, recall of pursuing force retrograde, contrary, seeming to move in a backward course reverb, resound revolt, revulsion, change; rebel revolution, alteration, change produced by time revolve, consider rhapsody, confused medley rheum, mucus from nose or throat, cold in the head, rheumatism riggish, wanton rigol, ring, circle rim, belly, membrane lining the abdomen ring-carrier, go-between ringlet, little circle riot, loose living, debauchery rivage, shore rival, partner rive, split rivelled, wrinkled road, riding, period of riding, stage (of journey), roadstead, highway robustious, boisterous roguing, roaming roguish, vagrant roisting, blustering, bullying roll, household register rondure, circle ropery, knavery Roscius, famous Roman actor rote, fix by memory round, plain, plain-spoken, severe; round dance, roundabout way, rung of a ladder; surround, become round roundet, round dance rouse, full draught of liquor, drinking bout royal, gold coin of the value often shillings (fifty pence) royalty, prerogative enjoyed, or granted, by the sovereign roynish, scurvy rub, in bowls an obstacle hindering or turning aside the bowl, obstacle, hindrance, roughness, unevenness; to turn aside, hinder rubious, ruby-red ruddock, robin rude, ignorant, barbarous, violent, rough rudeness, violence, roughness rudesby, rough unmannerly brute ruffle, bustle; swagger, bear oneself proudly, bluster, be turbulent rugged, shaggy, frowning rug-headed, having shaggy hair ruinous, brought to ruin rumour, fame, tumult, uproar runagate, deserter, vagabond runnion, wretch (a term of abuse) russet, homely, simple sable, black sack, white wine sackbut, trumpet resembling a trombone sad, steadfast, grave, serious, dismal sadly, gravely, seriously sadness, seriousness safe, make safe safety, custody, safeguard sain, said salamander, lizard-like animal supposed to live in fire sale-work, ready-made goods not of the highest quality sallet, light helmet, something mixed or savoury salt, lecherous salute, touch, affect sample, example sanctimony, holiness, sanctity sanctuarize, give sanctuary to sand-blind, half-blind sanguine, red sans, without sapient, wise sarcenct, fine soft silk material sauce, over-charge, rebuke saucy, insolent, presumptuous, wanton savagery, wild growth savour, smell, perfume, style, character saw, saying, maxim, proverb say, finely woven cloth, taste, saying scab, rascal, scurvy fellow scald, scabby, mean scale, weigh scan, assess scandalize, disgrace scantling, specimen, sample scantly, slightingly scape, escapade, transgression; escape scarf, officer’s sash, sling, streamer; blindfold, deck with streamers scathe, harm; to injure schedule, document school, university, instruction, learning; reprimand, discipline science, knowledge scion, shoot, slip for grafting sconce, head, small fort or earthwork scope, object, aim, purpose, theme, liberty score, notch cut in stock or tally in keeping accounts, account; to notch scorn, taunt, insult, object of contempt scotch, cut, gash scour, hasten scrimer, fencer scrip, small bag, piece of paper with writing on scrippage, contents of scrip scripture, writing scrubbed, stunted scruple, tiny part, doubt, difficulty scurril, coarsely abusive scut, deer’s tail scutcheon, shield with coat of arms; tablet showing armorial bearings of a dead man seam, fat, grease sectary, dissenter, one who pursues a particular study secure, free from care, confident, unsuspicious; make confident or overconfident securely, confidently, without suspicion security, confidence, overconfidence seed, mature, run to seed seedness, sowing seeing, appearance seel, make blind, close (a person’s eyes) seely, foolish, innocent, harmless seen, skilled seld, seldom self, one’s own, same semblable, similar, like, equal semblative, like, resembling Seneca, Roman tragic dramatist sennight, week sense, physical feeling, sensuality, sexual desire, mental apprehension, mind, opinion senseless, without feeling or perception, free from sensual sin sensible, perceptible, tangible, substantial, having sensation, sensitive, endowed with feeling sensibly, having sensation, feelingly sentence, sententious saying, maxim septentrion, north sequel, series sequent, succeeding, following sequester, separation; to separate sequestration, separation, seclusion sere, dry, withered serpigo, a skin disease servanted, subject service, what is placed on the table for a meal setter, decoy several, distinct, different, individual, respective, various severally, separately, at different entrances or exits sewer, attendant in charge of service at a meal shadow, shade; to hide, shelter shame, to be ashamed shard, piece of broken pottery, patch of cow-dung shark, gather hastily together shaver, barber, extortioner shearman, one who shears woollen cloth sheaved, made of straw sheep-biter, sneaking rascal sheep-biting, sneaking shent, blamed, rebuked, reproved shift, expedient, resource, trick, set of clothes; for (a) shift, to serve a turn; make (a) shift, contrive, manage ship-tire, kind of head-dress shive, slice shoat, shallow, sand-bar shock, to meet with force shog, go, shift shoot, shooting movement shotten, that has spawned, lean shoulder-shotten, having a dislocated shoulder shove-groat, shovel-board shrewd, wicked, mischievous, bad-tempered, dangerous, evil, difficult shrewdly, sharply, grievously, intensely, very much shrieve, sheriff shrift, confession and absolution, penance shrill-gorged, shrill-throated shrive, to hear confession and absolve shroud, protection, sailropes; shelter, hide shuffle, use trickery, smuggle, shift siege, seat, rank, turd sight, visor sightless, unseen, unsightly silly, helpless, defenceless simple, medicinal herb, single ingredient in a compound simpleness, innocence, simplicity, foolishness simplicity, ignorance, silliness simular, pretended, plausible; counterfeiter sinfully, with sins unatoned for single, slight, trivial, sincere, simple singularity, eccentricity, own person sinister, left (hand), unfavourable, unjust sink, cause to fall, ruin; sewer, drain Sinon, a Greek who by guile persuaded the Trojans to take the Grecians’ wooden horse into Troy sirrah, form of address used mainly to inferiors sith, sithence, since size, allowance skill, judgement, reason, ability; to make a difference, matter skilless, ignorant skimble-skamble, confused, rubbishy skipper, flighty youth skirr, fly, scour slab, half-solid slander, ill-repute, disgrace, discredit; bring into disgrace, reproach slanderous, shameful, disgraceful slave, enslave, make subservient to oneself sleave, floss-silk, silk untwisted into line threads sleeve-hand, cuff sleided, (of silk) floss, untwisted into line threads sliding, slip slip, unleash slipper, shifty slippery, unstable, fickle slipshod, in slippers slobbery, sloppy, slovenly slops, wide breeches slovenly, nasty, disgusting slubber, sully, hurry over smatch, taste smatter, chatter smock, woman’s undergarment, woman smooth, flatter, gloss over smother suffocating smoke smug, trim, spruce sneap, snub, pinch with cold snuff, resentment sob, opportunity for a horse to recover his wind, respite sod, steeped, boiled soiled, fed with fresh-cut green fodder soilure, sullying, defilement sole, unique, mere, alone solely, alone, entirely solemnity, ceremony, festivity solicit, urging, entreaty; move, stir, bring something about sometime, at some time, sometimes, once, formerly sonance, sounding, signal sonties, saints sooth, truth, flattery soothe, humour, flatter soother, flatterer sop, bread or wafer dipped in wine, etc. sophister, one using false arguments sore, buck, deer, in its fourth year sorel, buck, deer, in its third year sort, lot, rank, company, group, way, state; allot, ordain, come about, turn out, be suitable, correspond, adapt, fit, classify, choose, contrive, go in company sortance, agreement, suitableness sound, utter, proclaim, keep sound souse, swoop on, pickle span-counter, game in which counters are thrown to lie within a hand’s span spavin, disease of horses consisting of swelling of joints, producing lameness specialty, special characteristic, possession, special contract under seal spectacles, organs of sight speculation, watcher, power of seeing, sight, looking on speculative, seeing speed, fortune, outcome, protection, assistance; to fare (well or ill), turn out, be successful, assist, favour speeding, successful, fruitful; lot, outcome, success spend, consume, exhaust sphere, orbit of a planet, one of the concentric globes supposed to revolve round the earth with a harmonious sound spherical, planetary spial, spy spigot, peg in faucet of a barrel spill, destroy spilth, spilling spin, spurt spinner, spider spinster, spinner spital, hospital spleen, bodily organ regarded as the seat of emotions; impetuosity, ill-humour spoil, plundering, prey, ruin; plunder, seize, destroy spot, stain, disgrace, embroidered pattern spring, fountain, source, shoot of a plant springe, snare for birds springhalt, disease of horse characterized by twitching and lameness spurn, kick, insult, blow; to kick, oppose scornfully square, fair, just; carpenter’s set-square, measure, rule; body of troops in square formation, square of material in bosom of a dress; to regulate, quarrel (among), be at variance squarer, quarreller squash, unripe peapod squiny, look asquint staff, shaft of lance, lance, stanza stagger, hesitate, waver staggers, giddiness stain, tinge, to eclipse, dim, be obscured stair, ladder stair-work, furtive love-making stale, decoy, bait, prostitute, laughing-stock, urine (of horses) stall, install, keep, dwell, bring (a hunted animal) to a stand stamp, stamping tool, coin, medal, distinguishing mark, imprint; to impress, mark with an impression, give approval to stanch, satisfy stanchless, insatiable stand, place where one stands in ambush or in hiding; confront, oppose, stand firm; stand at a guard with, be fully protected against; stand on, upon, insist on, persist in, depend on, rely on, concern, be the duty or interest of; stand to, have an erection, support, maintain, be firm in, persist in; stand to it, maintain a cause, take a stand standard, standard-bearer staniel, kestrel stare, (of hair) stand on end start, sudden invasion, sudden flight, impulse; to startle, rush starting-hole, refuge, loop-hole starve, die, die of cold, kill or benumb with cold state, condition, condition of health or prosperity, rank, dignity, chair of state, throne, nobles, ruling body, government station, way of standing, attitude statist, statesman statute, bond, mortgage statute-cap, woollen cap ordered in 1571 to be worn on Sundays and holy days by all below a certain rank stay, obstacle; detain, stand, stand firm, wait (for), attend on stead, to be of use to, help stell, to fix, portray stern, rudder stew, brothel, stewpan stick, stab, be fastened or fixed, hesitate stickler-like, like an umpire stigmatic, deformed person stigmatical, deformed still, always, continually stillitory, apparatus for distillation stilly, softly sting, sexual desire stint, stop stithy, forge stoccado, thrust with a rapier stock, block of wood, person without feeling, stocking, dowry; set in the stocks stockfish, dried cod or other fish, beaten before cooking stockish, blockish, unfeeling stomach, appetite, inclination, temper, courage, pride, anger; resent stomacher, ornamental front over which the bodice was laced stone, mirror, thunderbolt, testicle; turn to stone stone-bow, cross-bow used for shooting stones stoop, (of a bird of prey) swoop stop, hole in a wind-instrument, stopped to produce a difference in pitch, fingering of musical chords, fret of a lute; staunch, heal store, breeding, increase; to populate stout, bold, strong, proud stoutness, stubborn pride stover, fodder for cattle strain, race, character, kind, class, tune; clasp, force, constrain; urge strait, narrow, tight-fitting, strict, niggardly; narrow place, difficulty strange, foreign, new, not knowing, unfriendly, cold, shy strange-achieved, gained at a distance and for others strange-disposed, of unusual character strangely, coldly, without greeting, as a stranger, to an extraordinary degree, in an unusual way strangeness, behaving as a stranger, aloofness, reserve strappado, torture in which victim was hoisted up by his arms, which were tied behind his back, then let down halfway with a jerk stratagem, deed of violence straw, wisp of straw, mark of disgrace for a scolding woman stray, body of stragglers; lead astray strength, authority, legal power, body of troops strewment, strewing of flowers stricture, strictness strike, to lower (sail), blast, destroy, tap (a cask) strong-house, fortified residence, castle strossers, trousers stubborn, inflexible, stiff, rude, harsh, ruthless stuff, semen; cloth style, title subduement, conquest subjection, duty as, or of, a subject submission, confession of error subscribe, sign, write down, assent, acknowledge, admit, submit, yield up, answer subscribed, endorsed with signatures subscription, submission substantial, sturdy substractor, slanderer subtle, thin, fine, cunning, treacherous, tricky subtlety, illusion success, outcome, result, good or bad fortune, succession successfully, likely to succeed succession, following on, successors, success successive, hereditary, descending by succession successively, by inheritance sufferance, suffering, damage, patient endurance suffice, content, satisfy sufficient, able, able to meet liabilities, solvent suggest, tempt, prompt to evil, insinuate to suggestion, prompting to evil, temptation sumless, incalculable summoner, officer who summoned offenders to an ecclesiastical court sumpter, driver of pack-horse, pack-horse superflux, superabundance, surplus supernal, heavenly superscript, superscription, address or direction on letter superstitious, idolatrously devoted supervise, perusal; look over suppliance, pastime supply, help, reinforcements supposal, opinion suppose, supposition, expectation; believe, imagine, guess supposition, doubt surcease, cessation; cease sure, safe, beyond power of doing harm, reliable, united surety, confidence of safety, certainty, stability, warrant sur-reined, overridden suspect, suspicion suspire, breathe, draw breath sutler, one who sells provisions to soldiers swagger, rant, bluster, quarrel swaggerer, blusterer, quarreller swaggering, quarrelling swart, dark, swarthy swasher, blustering ruffian swashing, swaggering, slashing sway, direction, control, sovereignty; to rule, move swayed, curved in swear, swear out, forswear sweat, sweating sickness, sweating cure; take a sweating cure sweet, scented; scent sweet-gorged, crammed full with sweet foods sweeting, sweet variety of apple, term of endearment swim, float swinge, thrash swinge-buckler, roisterer sworder, cut-throat, gladiator ‘Swounds, by God’s wounds (a strong oath) sympathize, to be similarly affected, agree (with), match table, tablet for an inscription, writing-tablet, flat surface on which a picture is painted, quadrangular space between chief lines on palm of hand table-book, notebook tables, backgammon tabor, small drum tackled stair, rope ladder tag, tag-rag, rabble tailor, ? sex organ take, strike, strike with disease or enchantment, catch, take effect, reckon, measure, write down, accept as true, catch fire, perceive, understand, esteem, take away, conclude; take head, deviate, run off its course; take in, capture; take me with you, speak so that I can understand you; take it on, assume authority; take on, rage, show great distress, pretend; take out, make a copy of; take up, lift, enlist, arrest, buy on credit, rebuke, reprimand, oppose, encounter, make up (a quarrel) taking, blasting; state of great excitement or alarm, malignant influence tale, numbering one after another, talk, story, falsehood talent, measure for a large sum of money tall, long, lofty, goodly, line, brave tally, stick marked with notches for keeping accounts ’tame, broach (a cask) tang, ring out tardy, delay targe, light shield tarre, urge, incite tarriance, delay, waiting tarry, wait, await, remain, delay B, tax, impose a task on, occupy, put a strain on, put to proof tasking, challenge tassel-gentle, tercel, male hawk tawdry-lace, silk lace or ribbon for the neck tax, accusation; blame, accuse, charge taxation, claim, demand, slander teem, conceive, bring forth, bear children, be fruitful teen, affliction, grief, sorrow tell, count temper, disposition, temperament, mental balance, hardness and elasticity imparted to steel; to compound, mix, persuade temperance, mildness of temperature, calmness, chastity temperate, chaste, secular temporary, secular tempt, test, risk tenant, vassal tend, listen, watch over, attend on, wait (for) tendance, attending to, service, people in attendance tender, offer, thing offered, care; to exhibit, pay down, care for; sensitive, compassionate tender-hafted, tender-hested, gently framed tent, probe; to probe, cure (a wound), lodge Tereus, see PHILOMEL Termagant, violent character, supposedly god of the Mohammedans, in old miracle plays termination, expression, term termless, indescribable tertian, fever returning every third day tester, sixpenny piece tetter, skin disease text, capital letter thane, Scottish title or rank, somewhat lower than earl thankful, deserving thanks theoric, theory therefor, for that Thetis, a sea-goddess, the sea thews, bodily parts, strength thick, rapid, dim thills, shafts of a cart thing, sexual organ think, seem thought, anxiety, sorrow thrasonical, boastful three-farthings, thin silver coin, having a profile of Queen Elizabeth with a rose behind the ear three-nooked, three-cornered threne, threnos, dirge thrift, profit, gain, advantage thriftless, profitless thrum, thread left at end of a warp thunder-stone, thunderbolt tickle, unstable, precarious; please, provoke, vex, thrash, flatter tick-tack, game in which pegs were put into holes; fornication tide, time, course tidy, plump tight, sound, able tilt, thrust, fight, encounter timeless, untimely, premature timely, early, in due season tinct, colour, elixir of the alchemists tire, equipment, dress, head-dress; attire, prey (on), feed greedily tis, this (dialectal) tisick, consumptive cough Titan, god of the sun, the sun titely, quickly, speedily, swiftly tithe, tenth; to take the tenth part; tribute tithing, district tittle, dot to, in addition to, against, appropriate to, in comparison with, in respect of, as to tod, 28 1b. weight of wool; to yield this amount of wool tofore, previously toge, Roman toga toil, net, snare; to cause to work hard, weary with work token, spot of infection, plague-spot toll, exact toll or tribute tonight, last night tool, weapon, penis top, head, forelock, highest point; to surpass, copulate with top-gallant, highest mast, summit topless, supreme tortive, twisted toss, impale, toss on a pike tottering, ragged touch, touchstone, taint; sound, test, wound touse, pull out of joint trace, follow, pass (through) tract, trace, track, course trade, coming and going, path, habit, business traded, practised trade-fallen, out of work traditional, bound by tradition train, tail, troop, bait; draw, entice, lead astray traject, ferry trammel, bind with the corpse, entangle transfix, remove translate, change, transform transpose, change trash, check, hold in leash traverse, march, move from side to side treatise, tale, talk treble-dated, living three times as long as man tree, gallows trench, cut trencher, wooden plate trencher-friend, parasite trenchering, plates trencher-knight, hanger-on tribunal, dais trick, custom, way, knack, touch (of a disease), toy; to adorn, blazon tricking, adornment trill, trickle triple, third triple-turned, three times faithless tristful, sorrowful triumph, public festivity, tournament, trump card triumphant, triumphal, celebrating a triumph triumphantly, in celebration Trojan, good fellow troll, sing troll-my-dames, troll-madams, game resembling bagatelle trophy, token of victory, memorial, monument tropically, figuratively trot, bawd troth, truth, faith, word of honour trow, believe, think, know truepenny, honest fellow trull, prostitute, wench truncheon, staff carried as a symbol of office try, test; purify, reline, prove tub, sweating-tub used in the treatment of venereal disease tuck, rapier tucket, signal, flourish on a trumpet tun-dish, funnel turtle, turtle-dove, symbol of chaste and faithful love tushes, tusks twire, twinkle type, distinguishing sign, stamp tyrannically, vehemently tyranny, violence, outrage tyrant, usurper umbrage, shadow unaccommodated, unprovided unacquainted, unfamiliar unadvised, rash, without consideration or knowledge unagreeable, unsuited unaneled, not having received extreme unction unapproved, unconfirmed by proof unaptness, disinclination unattainted, without infection, unprejudiced unattempted, untempted unavoided, inevitable unbarbed, unarmed unbated, unabated, not blunted (with a button) unbent, with bow unbent, unprepared, unfrowning unbid, unexpected unbitted, unbridled unbolted, unsifted, coarse unbookish, unskilled, inexperienced unbreathed, unpractised uncase, strip, lay bare uncharge, acquit of guilt uncharged, unattacked unchary, carelessly unchecked, not contradicted unclasp, reveal unclew, undo, ruin uncomprehensive, unplumbable unconfirmed, uninstructed, ignorant uncovered, open, bare-headed uncrossed, not crossed through because bill still unpaid unction, salve, ointment uncurrent, not current, not permissible undercrest, wear as a device of honour undergo, undertake, come under, support, carry, bear underhand, unobtrusive underskinker, under-tapster, assistant barman undertake, take charge of, assume, have to do with, venture undertaker, one who takes on himself another’s quarrel, one who settles with underwrite, subscribe, submit to uneath, with difficulty, scarcely unexperient, inexperienced unexpressive, inexpressible unfair, rob of beauty unfashionable, badly formed unfenced, defenceless unfold, disclose, display, reveal, release from the fold unfurnished, unprovided, unprepared ungalled, uninjured ungenitured, impotent ungored, unwounded unhandsome, unskilled, nasty unhappily, unfavourably, evilly unhappiness, evil nature unhappy, ill-fated, wretched, mischievous unhouseled, not having received the sacrament union, pearl unkind, unnatural unluckily, with foreboding unmanned, not trained, not broken in unowed, having no owner unpaved, without testicles, castrated unphysicked, deprived of medical treatment unpitied, unmerciful unplausive, unapproving unpregnant, unapt unprevailing, unavailing unprizable, without value, invaluable unprized, not valued, beyond value unproper, not belonging to one person, indecent unprovide, make unprepared unquestionable, not inviting conversation unraked, not covered with fuel to keep it burning unrecalling, past recall unreclaimed, unturned unrecuring, past cure unrespective, heedless, held back by no consideration, undiscriminating unrolled, struck off the register unscanned, unconsidered unseasoned, ill-timed, inexperienced unseminared, without seed unsifted, untried unsorted, ill-chosen unspeakable, indescribable, inexpressible unspeaking, unable to speak unsquared, inappropriate unstanched, unquenchable, freely menstruating unstate, deprive of rank and state untainted, unaccused untempering, unwinning untented, unable to be treated, incurable untoward, perverse, unruly untowardly, unluckily untraded, not customary untrimmed, undressed untrussing, undoing hose, undressing unwarily, unexpectedly unweighed, hasty, unconsidered unwrung, not pinched or rubbed up, in arms, in rebellion, in prison; up and down, completely, exactly upon, because of, in consequence of urchin, hedgehog, goblin urinal, glass to hold urine, medical urine vessel usance, interest on money use, habit, custom, usual experience, advantage, profit, lending at interest, interest on something lent, need; to be accustomed, continue, make a practice of, deal with, treat, go often usher, assistant master usurp, take or hold what belongs to another, supplant, assume utterance, utmost extremity uttermost, latest vail, gratuity, tip, setting (of the sun); lower, let fall, do homage vain, foolish, silly, unreal valanced, fringed with hair validity, strength, value value, estimate, be worth valued, denoting the value vantage, advantage, gain, superiority, vantage-ground, opportunity varletry, rabble vastidity, immensity vaulty, arched, hollow vaunt, beginning vaunt-courier, herald, harbinger vengeance, harm, injury vent, emission, utterance, outlet for energy; let out, emit, utter, make known ventage, aperture, finger-hole ventricle, cavity of the brain Venus, goddess of love and beauty; wife of Vulcan, the smith-god, but more often associated with her lover Mars verge, compass, circle vexation, agitation, torment, grief via, away vice, character in a morality play representing a vice, jester, buffoon, gripping tool; to screw vicegerent, deputy, representative vicious, blameworthy, blemished vie, add one to another villein, peasant, servant vinewed’st, most mouldy violent, to rage, storm virginalling, fingering as on the virginals—a keyed musical instrument virtue, courage, merit, accomplishment, power, efficacy, essence, essential characteristic virtuous, powerful, beneficial visitor, one who visits to offer spiritual comfort voice, speech, words, common talk, rumour, report, expressed opinion, judgement, vote, approval, authority to be heard; to acclaim, vote voiding lobby, anteroom voluntary, volunteer votaress woman who has taken a vow votarist, votary one who has taken a vow vouch, assertion, testimony; affirm, guarantee, bear witness vulcan, the smith-god, whose wife, Venus, was unfaithful vulgar, of the common people, commonly known, common, public, mean; common people, vernacular waft, to convey by water, beckon, turn waftage, passage by water wafture, wave wage, to wager, hazard, attempt, carry on war, pay waist, girdle wake, remain awake, be up late for revelry or on guard, wear out with lack of sleep, arouse walk, tract of forest wall-eyed, white-eyed, having glaring eyes want, lack, miss wanton, frolicsome, lawless, capricious, luxurious, luxuriant, lustful, unchaste; spoilt child, pampered darling, roguish, sportful, unruly or lustful creature wappered, worn out ward, guard, custody, prison-cell, defensive position in fencing; guard, protect warden, kind of cooking pear warp, distort, deviate war-proof, war-tested, courage warrant, guarantee, assure warrantize, surety, authorization warranty, sanction, authorization warren, game enclosure for rabbits warrener, gamekeeper wassail, drinking, revelling, feast waste, spend, consume watch, wakefulness, sleeplessness, watchfulness; be awake, keep from sleep, catch in the act watchful, sleepless water, lustre water-gall, secondary rainbow watering, drinking water-standing, tearful wave, waver waxen, increase weal, welfare, commonwealth wear, fashion; carry, possess, be fashionable, weary weather, storm weed, garment, dress week, to be in by the, be caught, ensnared, deeply in love ween, expect, hope weet, know welkin, sky well-liking, plump well-respected, well-considered well to live, prosperous wharf, river bank wheel, spinning wheel, tread-wheel on which a dog was harnessed to turn a roasting-spit whelk, pimple where, whereas whiffler, officer who keeps the way clear for a procession while, whiles, whilst, till whipstock, whip-handle whist, become silent whiting-time, bleaching time whitster, bleacher whittle, small clasp-knife whoremonger, user of prostitutes wide, missing the mark, astray widgeon, to cheat wight, creature wild, reckless, distracted, (of sea) open wilderness, wildness of character, licentiousness wildly, without cultivation, naturally wildness, madness will, sexual desire, sexual organ (male or female) wimpled, hooded, blinkered wince, kick Winchester goose, sufferer from syphilis, prostitute windgall, soft tumour on horse’s leg windlass, circuit made to intercept game, crafty device wink, sleep, close one’s eyes wintered, used in winter wipe, scar wistly, intently, closely wit, mental power, mind, sense, wisdom, imagination, one who has such qualities; know withal, with this, with it, as well, at the same time, with without, beyond wittol, a man aware of and tolerating his wife’s adultery witty, wise, cunning woman-tired, henpecked wonder, admiration; admire, marvel wondered, performing wonders wondering, admiration wood, mad woodcock, dupe woodman, hunter woolward, wearing wool next to the skin world, to go to the, marry; a woman of the, married woman worm, serpent, snake worn, exhausted, past worship, dignity, honour, authority; to honour wort, vegetable, unfermented beer worthy, excellent, valuable, deserved, well-founded, fitting wot, know wrack, ruin, destruction wreak, vengeance, revenge wrest, tuning-key; take by force wring, wrest, force, writhe, press painfully on writ, document, writing, mandate, written command, scripture writhled, wrinkled wry, to swerve Xantippe, scolding wife of the philosopher Socrates yard, yard measure, penis yare, ready, quick, moving lightly yaw, sail out of course, lose direction yellowness, jealousy yellows, jaundice yerk, thrust suddenly youngly, youthfully, without experience younker, fine young man, novice, greenhorn zany, comic performer awkwardly imitating a clown or mountebank
INDEX OF FIRST LINES	OF SONNETS
THE	Sonnets are to be found on pp.. The numbers refer to their position in the sequence. A woman’s face with nature’s own hand painted Accuse me thus : that I have scanted all Against my love shall be as I am now Against that time—if ever that time come Ah, wherefore with infection should he live Alack, what poverty my muse brings forth Alas, ’tis true, I have gone here and there As a decrepit father takes delight As an unperfect actor on the stage As fast as thou shalt wane, so fast thou grow’st Be wise as thou art cruel; do not press Being your slave, what should I do but tend Beshrew that heart that makes my heart to groan Betwixt mine eye and heart a league is took But be contented when that fell arrest But do thy worst to steal thyself away But wherefore do not you a mightier way Canst thou, Ocruel, say I love thee not Cupid laid by his brand and fell asleep Devouring time, blunt thou the lion’s paws Farewell—thou art too dear for my possessing For shame deny that thou bear’st love to any From fairest creatures we desire increase From you have I been absent in the spring Full many a glorious morning have I seen How can I then return in happy plight How can my muse want subject to invent How careful was I when I took my way How heavy do I journey on the way How like a winter hath my absence been How oft, when thou, my music, music play’st How sweet and lovely dost thou make the shame I grant thou wert not married to my muse I never saw that youpainting need If my dear love were but the child of state If the dull substance of my flesh were thought If there be nothing new, but that which is If thou survive my well-contented day If thy soul check thee that I come so near In faith, I do not love thee with mine eyes In loving thee thou know’st I am forsworn In the old age black was not counted fair Is it for fear to wet a widow’s eye Is it thy will thy image should keep open Let me confess that we two must be twain Let me not to the marriage of true minds Let not my love be called idolatry Let those who are in favour with their stars Like as the waves make towards the pebbled shore Like as, to make our appetites more keen Lo, as a care-full housewife runs to catch Lo, in the orient when the gracious light Look in thy glass, and tell the face thou viewest Lord of my love, to whom in vassalage Love is my sin, and thy dear virtue hate Love is too young to know what conscience is I Mine eye and heart are at a mortal war Mine eye hath played the painter, and hath steeled
(didascalia)	Music to hear, why hear’st thou music sadly?
THE	My glass shall not persuade me I am old My love is as a fever, longing still My love is strengthened, though more weak in seeming My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun My tongue-tied muse in manners holds her still No longer mourn for me when I am dead No more be grieved at that which thou hast done No, time, thou shalt not boast that I do change! Not from the stars do I my judgement pluck Not marble nor the gilded monuments Not mine own fears nor the prophetic soul O, call not me to justify the wrong O, for my sake do you with fortune chide win O, from what power hast thou this powerful might O, how I faint when I of you do write O how much more doth beauty beauteous seem O, how thy worth with manners maysing O, lest the world should task you to recite O me, what eyes hath love put in my head O never say that I was false of heart O that you were yourself! But, love, you are O thou my lovely boy, who in thy power O truant muse, what shall be thy amends Or I shall live your epitaph to make Or whether doth my mind, being crowned with you Poor soul, the centre of my sinful earth Say that thou didst forsake me for some fault Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? Sin of self-love possesseth all mine eye Since brass, nor stone, nor earth, nor boundless sea Since I left you mine eye is in my mind So am I as the rich whose blessed key So are you to my thoughts as food to life So is it not with me as with that muse So, now I have confessed that he is thine So oft have I invoked thee for my muse So shall I live supposing thou art true Some glory in their birth, some in their skill Some say thy fault is youth, some wantonness Sweet love, renew thy force. Be it not said Take all my loves, my love, yea, take them all That god forbid, that made me first your slave That thou are blamed shall not be thy defect That thou hast her, it is not all my grief That time of year thou mayst in me behold That you were once unkind befriends me now The forward violet thus did I chide The little love-god lying once asleep The other two, slight air and purging fire Then hate me when thou wilt, if ever, now Then let not winter’s ragged hand deface Th’expense of spirit in a waste of shame They that have power to hurt and will do none Thine eyes I love, and they, as pitying me Those hours that with gentle work did frame Those lines that I before have writ do lie Those lips that love’s own hand did make Those parts of thee that the world’s eye doth view Those pretty wrongs that liberty commits Thou art as tyrannous so as thou art Thou blind fool love, what dost thou to mine eyes Thus can my love excuse the slow offence Thus is his cheek the map of days outworn Thy bosom is endeared with all hearts Thy gift, thy tables, are within my brain Thy glass will show thee how thy beauties wear Tired with all these, for restful death I cry ’Tis better to be vile than vile esteemed To me, fair friend, you never can be old Two loves I have, of comfort and despair Unthrifty loveliness, why dost thou spend Was it the proud full sail of his great verse Weary with toil I haste me to my bed Were’t aught to me I bore the canopy What is your substance, whereof are you made What potions have I drunk of siren tears What’s in the brain that ink may character When forty winters shall besiege thy brow When I consider every thing that grows When I do count the clock that tells the time When I have seen by time’s fell hand defaced When, in disgrace with fortune and men’s eyes When in the chronicle of wasted time When most I wink, then do mine eyes best see When my love swears that she is made of truth When thou shalt be disposed to set me light When to the sessions of sweet silent thought Where art thou, muse, that thou forget’st so long Whilst I alonecall upon thy aid Who is it that says most which can say more Who will believe my verse in time to come Whoever hath her wish, thou hast thy Will Why didst thou promise such a beauteous day Why is my verse so barren of new pride Your love and pity doth th‘impression fill

English Literature — A Knowledge Graph

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THE TWO NOBLE KINSMEN

Capitoli / Chapters

Connections

Testo integrale / Full text

Atto 1, Scena 2

Atto 1, Scena 3

Atto 1, Scena 4

Atto 1, Scena 5

Atto 2, Scena 1

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Atto 2, Scena 3

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Atto 3, Scena 1

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Atto 3, Scena 6

Atto 4, Scena 1

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Atto 5, Scena 6

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