The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated)

by William Shakespeare

  we have not come to add to your sorrows,

  but to relieve them;

  these ships of ours, which you probably think

  are like the Trojan horse, filled with

  bloodthirsty men lusting for victory,

  are in fact full of corn to make the bread you need,

  and to give life to those who are almost starved to death.

  All

  The gods of Greece protect you!

  And we'll pray for you.

  May the gods of Greece protect you!

  We shall pray for you.

  PERICLES

  Arise, I pray you, rise:

  We do not look for reverence, but to love,

  And harbourage for ourself, our ships, and men.

  Get up, please, get up:

  we are not looking for worship but for love,

  and a safe harbour for myself, my ships and my men.

  CLEON

  The which when any shall not gratify,

  Or pay you with unthankfulness in thought,

  Be it our wives, our children, or ourselves,

  The curse of heaven and men succeed their evils!

  Till when,--the which I hope shall ne'er be seen,--

  Your grace is welcome to our town and us.

  If anyone fails to provide this for you,

  or does not feel the proper gratitude they should,

  whether it's our wives, our children or ourselves,

  may the curses of heaven and men fall upon them!

  Until then–and I hope that will never happen–

  your grace is welcome to our town, and welcomed by us.

  PERICLES

  Which welcome we'll accept; feast here awhile,

  Until our stars that frown lend us a smile.

  Exeunt

  We'll accept your welcome; eat with us now,

  until sadness turns to happiness.

  Enter GOWER

  GOWER

  Here have you seen a mighty king

  His child, I wis, to incest bring;

  A better prince and benign lord,

  That will prove awful both in deed and word

  Be quiet then as men should be,

  Till he hath pass'd necessity.

  I'll show you those in troubles reign,

  Losing a mite, a mountain gain.

  The good in conversation,

  To whom I give my benison,

  Is still at Tarsus, where each man

  Thinks all is writ he speken can;

  And, to remember what he does,

  Build his statue to make him glorious:

  But tidings to the contrary

  Are brought your eyes; what need speak I?

  DUMB SHOW.

  Enter at one door PERICLES talking with CLEON; all the train with them. Enter at another door a Gentleman, with a letter to PERICLES; PERICLES shows the letter to CLEON; gives the Messenger a reward, and knights him. Exit PERICLES at one door, and CLEON at another

  Good Helicane, that stay'd at home,

  Not to eat honey like a drone

  From others' labours; for though he strive

  To killen bad, keep good alive;

  And to fulfil his prince' desire,

  Sends word of all that haps in Tyre:

  How Thaliard came full bent with sin

  And had intent to murder him;

  And that in Tarsus was not best

  Longer for him to make his rest.

  He, doing so, put forth to seas,

  Where when men been, there's seldom ease;

  For now the wind begins to blow;

  Thunder above and deeps below

  Make such unquiet, that the ship

  Should house him safe is wreck'd and split;

  And he, good prince, having all lost,

  By waves from coast to coast is tost:

  All perishen of man, of pelf,

  Ne aught escapen but himself;

  Till fortune, tired with doing bad,

  Threw him ashore, to give him glad:

  And here he comes. What shall be next,

  Pardon old Gower,--this longs the text.

  Exit

  Here you have seen the mighty King

  persuade his child to incest;

  and a better prince and kindly lord

  who will prove himself awesome in deeds and words,

  keep quiet then, as one should be

  until he has survived his hardships.

  I'll show you those who have troubles,

  who lose a pebble and gain a mountain.

  The one whose conduct is good,

  whom I bless,

  is still at Tarsus, where each man

  thinks he has the skill to speak holy writ;

  and in commemoration of himself,

  builds his statue to glorify himself. But news of other things

  is brought before your eyes; why do I need to speak?

  DUMB SHOW.

  Enter at one door PERICLES talking with CLEON; all the train with them. Enter at another door a Gentleman, with a letter to PERICLES; PERICLES shows the letter to CLEON; gives the Messenger a reward, and knights him. Exit PERICLES at one door, and CLEON at another

  Good Helicanus has stayed home,

  not to exploit the work

  of others; he works

  to kill the bad, to save the good;

  following his prince's orders

  he sends word of all that happens in Tyre:

  how Thaliard came with sinful purpose

  and hidden plans to murder him;

  he told him that it was no longer

  advisable for him to stay in Tarsus.

  Hearing this he set out to sea,

  which is seldom a restful place for men;

  now the wind begins to blow;

  thunder above and depths below

  causes such disruption that the ship

  which should have protected him is wrecked and sunk;

  and he, good prince, having lost everything,

  is tossed from coast to coast by the waves.

  All the men and cargo were lost,

  nobody escaped but himself;

  until fate, tired with treating him badly,

  cast him ashore, to make him happy:

  and here he comes. As to what happens next,

  excuse old Gower–you'll see from the text.

  Enter PERICLES, wet

  PERICLES

  Yet cease your ire, you angry stars of heaven!

  Wind, rain, and thunder, remember, earthly man

  Is but a substance that must yield to you;

  And I, as fits my nature, do obey you:

  Alas, the sea hath cast me on the rocks,

  Wash'd me from shore to shore, and left me breath

  Nothing to think on but ensuing death:

  Let it suffice the greatness of your powers

  To have bereft a prince of all his fortunes;

  And having thrown him from your watery grave,

  Here to have death in peace is all he'll crave.

  Enter three FISHERMEN

  Now stop your anger, you furious stars of heaven!

  Remember, wind, rain and thunder, earthly man

  is only a substance that must give in to you;

  as is appropriate for my nature, I obey you:

  alas the sea has thrown me on the rocks,

  washed me from shore to shore, and left me so breathless

  all I can think of is my oncoming death:

  be satisfied that your great powers

  have stripped a prince of all his fortunes;

  now you've thrown him out of your watery grave,

  all he wants is to have a peaceful death here.

  First Fisherman

  What, ho, Pilch!

  Hello there, Pilch!

  Second Fisherman

  Ha, come and bring away the nets!

  Hey, bring the nets over here!

  First Fisherman

  Wha
t, Patch-breech, I say!

  Hey there, Patch-breech, hey!

  Third Fisherman

  What say you, master?

  What are you saying, master?

  First Fisherman

  Look how thou stirrest now! come away, or I'll

  fetch thee with a wanion.

  Aren't you moving yet! You get a move on, or I'll

  give you such a smack!

  Third Fisherman

  Faith, master, I am thinking of the poor men that

  were cast away before us even now.

  I swear, master, I am thinking of the poor men who

  were shipwrecked in front of us recently.

  First Fisherman

  Alas, poor souls, it grieved my heart to hear what

  pitiful cries they made to us to help them, when,

  well-a-day, we could scarce help ourselves.

  Alas, poor souls, it broke my heart to hear their

  pitiful cries for help, when, alas,

  we could hardly help ourselves.

  Third Fisherman

  Nay, master, said not I as much when I saw the

  porpus how he bounced and tumbled? they say

  they're half fish, half flesh: a plague on them,

  they ne'er come but I look to be washed. Master, I

  marvel how the fishes live in the sea.

  Now, master, didn't I say trouble was coming

  when I saw how the porpoises were jumping? They say

  they're half fish, half man: damn them,

  every time they appear I expect the boat to be swamped.

  Master, I am amazed how the fish manage to live in the sea.

  First Fisherman

  Why, as men do a-land; the great ones eat up the

  little ones: I can compare our rich misers to

  nothing so fitly as to a whale; a' plays and

  tumbles, driving the poor fry before him, and at

  last devours them all at a mouthful: such whales

  have I heard on o' the land, who never leave gaping

  till they've swallowed the whole parish, church,

  steeple, bells, and all.

  Why, just as men do on land; the great ones eat up the

  little ones: the best comparison for our rich misers

  is a whale; he plays and

  tumbles, driving the minnows ahead of him, and at last

  swallows them all in one mouthful: I have heard of

  such whales on the land, who never close their mouths

  until they've swallowed the whole parish, church,

  steeple, bells and all.

  PERICLES

  [Aside] A pretty moral.

  A nice little parable.

  Third Fisherman

  But, master, if I had been the sexton, I would have

  been that day in the belfry.

  But, master, if I had been the church keeper, I would have

  made sure I was in the belfry that day.

  Second Fisherman

  Why, man?

  Why, man?

  Third Fisherman

  Because he should have swallowed me too: and when I

  had been in his belly, I would have kept such a

  jangling of the bells, that he should never have

  left, till he cast bells, steeple, church, and

  parish up again. But if the good King Simonides

  were of my mind,--

  Because he would have swallowed me too: and when I

  was in his belly, I would have kept up such a

  racket with the bells that he would have no rest

  until he had vomited up the bells, steeple, church and

  parish again. But if the good King Simonides

  thought like me–

  PERICLES

  [Aside] Simonides!

  Simonides!

  Third Fisherman

  We would purge the land of these drones, that rob

  the bee of her honey.

  We would strip the land of these drones, that steal

  the honey from the bee.

  PERICLES

  [Aside] How from the finny subject of the sea

  These fishers tell the infirmities of men;

  And from their watery empire recollect

  All that may men approve or men detect!

  Peace be at your labour, honest fishermen.

  How well these fishermen describe the weaknesses of men

  in terms of the fish of the sea;

  from their watery empire they find examples

  of all the characteristics of men!

  Blessings on your work, honest fishermen.

  Second Fisherman

  Honest! good fellow, what's that? If it be a day

  fits you, search out of the calendar, and nobody

  look after it.

  Honest! Dear chap, what's that? If it's a day

  in the year that suits you, find it on the calendar,

  but nobody else will see it.

  PERICLES

  May see the sea hath cast upon your coast–

  You may have seen that the sea has washed up on your coast–

  Second Fisherman

  What a drunken knave was the sea to cast thee in our

  way!

  What a drunken scoundrel the sea was to throw you

  in our path!

  PERICLES

  A man whom both the waters and the wind,

  In that vast tennis-court, have made the ball

  For them to play upon, entreats you pity him:

  He asks of you, that never used to beg.

  I'm a man whom both the waters and the wind

  have made their tennis ball on that enormous

  court for them to play with, and I ask you to pity me:

  I'm asking you, I never used to beg.

  First Fisherman

  No, friend, cannot you beg? Here's them in our

  country Greece gets more with begging than we can do

  with working.

  Really, friend, you can't beg? There are those in our

  country of Greece who get more with begging than we do

  from working.

  Second Fisherman

  Canst thou catch any fishes, then?

  Can you catch fish, then?

  PERICLES

  I never practised it.

  I've never tried.

  Second Fisherman

  Nay, then thou wilt starve, sure; for here's nothing

  to be got now-a-days, unless thou canst fish for't.

  Well then you will starve, for sure; there's nothing

  else to eat in these parts, unless you fish for it.

  PERICLES

  What I have been I have forgot to know;

  But what I am, want teaches me to think on:

  A man throng'd up with cold: my veins are chill,

  And have no more of life than may suffice

  To give my tongue that heat to ask your help;

  Which if you shall refuse, when I am dead,

  For that I am a man, pray see me buried.

  I have forgotten what I used to be;

  but my need makes me think of what I am now:

  a man overwhelmed with cold: my blood is chilled

  and I have only just enough energy to let me

  move my tongue enough to ask you for help;

  if you refuse to help me, when I'm dead,

  out of humanity please see that I am buried.

  First Fisherman

  Die quoth-a? Now gods forbid! I have a gown here;

  come, put it on; keep thee warm. Now, afore me, a

  handsome fellow! Come, thou shalt go home, and

  we'll have flesh for holidays, fish for

  fasting-days, and moreo'er puddings and flap-jacks,

  and thou shalt be welcome.

  Is he talking about dying? Heaven forbid! I have a gown here;

  come on, put it on, keep yourself warm. Now, look at that,

  a handso
me fellow! Come on, you shall come home, and

  we'll have meat on holidays, fish on

  fasting days, and what's more we'll have puddings and flapjacks,

  and you will be welcome.

  PERICLES

  I thank you, sir.

  Thank you, sir.

  Second Fisherman

  Hark you, my friend; you said you could not beg.

  Listen here, my friend; you said you could not beg.

  PERICLES

  I did but crave.

  All I did was ask.

  Second Fisherman

  But crave! Then I'll turn craver too, and so I

  shall 'scape whipping.

  Just ask! Then I'll become an asker too, and so I

  won't get whipped.

  PERICLES

  Why, are all your beggars whipped, then?

  Why, do all your beggars get whipped, then?

  Second Fisherman

  O, not all, my friend, not all; for if all your

  beggars were whipped, I would wish no better office

  than to be beadle. But, master, I'll go draw up the

  net.

  Exit with Third Fisherman

  Oh, not all, my friend, not all; if all the

  beggars were whipped, I could wish for no better job

  than to be the beadle. But, master, I'll go and pull up

  the net.

  PERICLES

  [Aside] How well this honest mirth becomes their labour!

  How well this honest humour suits their work!

  First Fisherman

  Hark you, sir, do you know where ye are?

  Listen, sir, do you know where you are?

  PERICLES