The Arden Shakespeare Complete Works
Page 517
or my heart will be blown up by the root.
Exit.
CRESSIDA I must, then, to the Grecians?
TROILUS No remedy.
CRESSIDA A woeful Cressid ’mongst the merry Greeks!
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When shall we see again?
TROILUS Hear me, my love. Be thou but true of heart –
CRESSIDA I true? How now, what wicked deem is this?
TROILUS Nay, we must use expostulation kindly,
For it is parting from us.
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I speak not ‘Be thou true’ as fearing thee,
For I will throw my glove to Death himself
That there’s no maculation in thy heart;
But ‘Be thou true’, say I, to fashion in
My sequent protestation: Be thou true,
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And I will see thee.
CRESSIDA O, you shall be exposed, my lord, to dangers
As infinite as imminent! But I’ll be true.
TROILUS
And I’ll grow friend with danger. Wear this sleeve.
CRESSIDA [as they exchange favours]
And you this glove. When shall I see you?
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TROILUS I will corrupt the Grecian sentinels,
To give thee nightly visitation.
But yet, be true.
CRESSIDA O heavens! ‘Be true’ again?
TROILUS Hear why I speak it, love.
The Grecian youths are full of quality;
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Their loving well composed with gifts of nature,
And flowing o’er with arts and exercise.
How novelty may move and parts with person,
Alas, a kind of godly jealousy –
Which, I beseech you, call a virtuous sin –
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Makes me afeard.
CRESSIDA O heavens, you love me not!
TROILUS Die I a villain then!
In this I do not call your faith in question
So mainly as my merit. I cannot sing,
Nor heel the high lavolt, nor sweeten talk,
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Nor play at subtle games – fair virtues all,
To which the Grecians are most prompt and
pregnant.
But I can tell that in each grace of these
There lurks a still and dumb-discoursive devil
That tempts most cunningly. But be not tempted.
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CRESSIDA Do you think I will?
TROILUS No.
But something may be done that we will not;
And sometimes we are devils to ourselves,
When we will tempt the frailty of our powers,
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Presuming on their changeful potency.
AENEAS [within] Nay, good my lord –
TROILUS Come, kiss, and let us part.
PARIS [within] Brother Troilus!
TROILUS [Calls out.] Good brother, come you hither,
And bring Aeneas and the Grecian with you.
CRESSIDA My lord, will you be true?
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TROILUS Who, I? Alas, it is my vice, my fault.
Whiles others fish with craft for great opinion,
I with great truth catch mere simplicity;
Whilst some with cunning gild their copper crowns,
With truth and plainness I do wear mine bare.
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Enter AENEAS, PARIS, Antenor, DEIPHOBUS and DIOMEDES.
Fear not my truth. The moral of my wit
Is ‘plain and true’; there’s all the reach of it. –
Welcome, Sir Diomed. Here is the lady
Which for Antenor we deliver you.
At the port, lord, I’ll give her to thy hand
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And by the way possess thee what she is.
Entreat her fair and, by my soul, fair Greek,
If e’er thou stand at mercy of my sword,
Name Cressid, and thy life shall be as safe
As Priam is in Ilium.
DIOMEDES Fair Lady Cressid,
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So please you, save the thanks this prince expects.
The lustre in your eye, heaven in your cheek,
Pleads your fair usage; and to Diomed
You shall be mistress and command him wholly.
TROILUS Grecian, thou dost not use me courteously,
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To shame the zeal of my petition to thee
In praising her. I tell thee, lord of Greece,
She is as far high-soaring o’er thy praises
As thou unworthy to be called her servant.
I charge thee use her well, even for my charge;
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For, by the dreadful Pluto, if thou dost not,
Though the great bulk Achilles be thy guard,
I’ll cut thy throat.
DIOMEDES O, be not moved, Prince Troilus.
Let me be privileged by my place and message
To be a speaker free. When I am hence,
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I’ll answer to my lust. And know you, lord,
I’ll nothing do on charge. To her own worth
She shall be prized; but that you say ‘Be’t so’,
I’ll speak it in my spirit and honour: ‘No’.
TROILUS Come, to the port. – I’ll tell thee, Diomed,
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This brave shall oft make thee to hide thy head. –
Lady, give me your hand and, as we walk,
To our own selves bend we our needful talk.
Exeunt Troilus, Cressida and Diomedes.
Sound trumpet within.
PARIS Hark, Hector’s trumpet!
AENEAS How have we spent this morning!
The prince must think me tardy and remiss,
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That swore to ride before him in the field.
PARIS
’Tis Troilus’ fault. Come, come, to field with him.
DEIPHOBUS Let us make ready straight.
AENEAS Yea, with a bridegroom’s fresh alacrity,
Let us address to tend on Hector’s heels.
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The glory of our Troy doth this day lie
On his fair worth and single chivalry. Exeunt.
4.5 Enter AJAX, armed, ACHILLES, PATROCLUS, AGAMEMNON, MENELAUS, ULYSSES, NESTOR, etc. and trumpeter.
AGAMEMNON [to Ajax]
Here art thou in appointment fresh and fair,
Anticipating time with starting courage.
Give with thy trumpet a loud note to Troy,
Thou dreadful Ajax, that the appalled air
May pierce the head of the great combatant
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And hale him hither.
AJAX [Gives money.] Thou, trumpet, there’s my purse.
Now crack thy lungs and split thy brazen pipe.
Blow, villain, till thy sphered bias cheek
Outswell the colic of puffed Aquilon.
Come, stretch thy chest, and let thy eyes spout blood;
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Thou blowest for Hector. [Trumpet sounds.]
ULYSSES No trumpet answers.
ACHILLES ’Tis but early days.
Enter DIOMEDES with CRESSIDA.
AGAMEMNON
Is not yond Diomed, with Calchas’ daughter?
ULYSSES ’Tis he. I ken the manner of his gait;
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He rises on the toe. That spirit of his
In aspiration lifts him from the earth.
AGAMEMNON Is this the Lady Cressid?
DIOMEDES Even she.
AGAMEMNON
Most dearly welcome to the Greeks, sweet lady.
[Kisses her.]
NESTOR Our general doth salute you with a kiss.
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ULYSSES Yet is the kindness but particular;
’Twere better she were kissed in general.
NESTOR
And very courtly counsel. I’ll begin. [Kisses her.]
So much for Nesto
r.
ACHILLES I’ll take that winter from your lips, fair lady.
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ACHILLES bids you welcome. [Kisses her.]
MENELAUS I had good argument for kissing once.
PATROCLUS But that’s no argument for kissing now;
For thus popped Paris in his hardiment,
And parted thus you and your argument. [Kisses her.]
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ULYSSES O deadly gall and theme of all our scorns,
For which we lose our heads to gild his horns!
PATROCLUS The first was Menelaus’ kiss; this, mine.
PATROCLUS kisses you. [Kisses her again.]
MENELAUS O, this is trim!
PATROCLUS Paris and I kiss evermore for him.
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MENELAUS I’ll have my kiss, sir. – Lady, by your leave.
CRESSIDA In kissing, do you render or receive?
MENELAUS Both take and give.
CRESSIDA I’ll make my match to live,
The kiss you take is better than you give;
Therefore no kiss.
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MENELAUS
I’ll give you boot; I’ll give you three for one.
CRESSIDA You are an odd man; give even, or give none.
MENELAUS An odd man, lady? Every man is odd.
CRESSIDA No, Paris is not, for you know ’tis true
That you are odd, and he is even with you.
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MENELAUS You fillip me o’th’ head.
CRESSIDA No, I’ll be sworn.
ULYSSES It were no match, your nail against his horn.
May I, sweet lady, beg a kiss of you?
CRESSIDA You may.
ULYSSES I do desire it.
CRESSIDA Why, beg too.
ULYSSES Why then, for Venus’ sake, give me a kiss,
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When Helen is a maid again, and his –
CRESSIDA I am your debtor; claim it when ’tis due.
ULYSSES Never’s my day, and then a kiss of you.
DIOMEDES
Lady, a word. I’ll bring you to your father.
[They talk apart.]
NESTOR A woman of quick sense.
ULYSSES Fie, fie upon her!
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There’s language in her eye, her cheek, her lip,
Nay, her foot speaks; her wanton spirits look out
At every joint and motive of her body.
O, these encounterers, so glib of tongue,
That give accosting welcome ere it comes,
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And wide unclasp the tables of their thoughts
To every tickling reader! Set them down
For sluttish spoils of opportunity
And daughters of the game.
Exeunt Diomedes and Cressida.
Flourish. Enter all of Troy: HECTOR armed, PARIS, AENEAS, HELENUS, TROILUS and attendants.
ALL The Trojan’s trumpet.
AGAMEMNON Yonder comes the troop.
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AENEAS
Hail, all you state of Greece! What shall be done
To him that victory commands? Or do you purpose
A victor shall be known? Will you the knights
Shall to the edge of all extremity
Pursue each other, or shall they be divided
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By any voice or order of the field?
HECTOR bade ask.
AGAMEMNON Which way would Hector have it?
AENEAS He cares not; he’ll obey conditions.
AGAMEMNON ’Tis done like Hector.
ACHILLES But securely done,
A little proudly, and great deal disprizing
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The knight opposed.
AENEAS If not Achilles, sir,
What is your name?
ACHILLES If not Achilles, nothing.
AENEAS Therefore Achilles. But whate’er, know this:
In the extremity of great and little,
Valour and pride excel themselves in Hector,
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The one almost as infinite as all,
The other blank as nothing. Weigh him well,
And that which looks like pride is courtesy.
This Ajax is half made of Hector’s blood,
In love whereof half Hector stays at home;
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Half heart, half hand, half Hector comes to seek
This blended knight, half Trojan and half Greek.
ACHILLES A maiden battle, then? O, I perceive you.
Enter DIOMEDES.
AGAMEMNON Here is Sir Diomed. – Go, gentle knight;
Stand by our Ajax. As you and Lord Aeneas
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Consent upon the order of their fight,
So be it, either to the uttermost
Or else a breath. The combatants being kin