The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated)
Page 512
as my brother.I don't know why
I love this youth, and I have heard you say
there's no logic to love.If the funeral cart was at the door
and they asked who should die, I'd say,
'My father, not this youth.'
BELARIUS.
[Aside] O noble strain!
O worthiness of nature! breed of greatness!
Cowards father cowards and base things sire base.
Nature hath meal and bran, contempt and grace.
I'm not their father; yet who this should be
Doth miracle itself, lov'd before me.-
'Tis the ninth hour o' th' morn.
What noble ancestry!
What wonders of nature!What a great breed!
Cowards father cowards and low people low children.
Nature has both good and bad.
I'm not their father; but who is this
whom they miraculously love ahead of me? -
It's nine o'clock.
ARVIRAGUS.
Brother, farewell.
Brother, farewell.
IMOGEN.
I wish ye sport.
Good hunting.
ARVIRAGUS.
Your health. [To BELARIUS] So please you, sir.
Good health.[To Belarius]If you please, sir.
IMOGEN.
[Aside] These are kind creatures. Gods, what lies I
have
heard!
Our courtiers say all's savage but at court.
Experience, O, thou disprov'st report!
Th' imperious seas breed monsters; for the dish,
Poor tributary rivers as sweet fish.
I am sick still; heart-sick. Pisanio,
I'll now taste of thy drug. [Swallows some]
These are kind folk.By the gods, what lies I've heard!
Our courtiers say that everyone outside the court are savages.
Experience has showed that's wrong!
There are monsters in the royal seas, and humble streams
produce fish that are just as good to eat.
I am still sick; sick in my heart.Pisanio,
I'll now taste your drug.
GUIDERIUS.
I could not stir him.
He said he was gentle, but unfortunate;
Dishonestly afflicted, but yet honest.
I couldn't get anything from him.
He said he was noble, but unlucky;
Hurt by lies, but honest himself.
ARVIRAGUS.
Thus did he answer me; yet said hereafter
I might know more.
That's what he said to me; but he said that later
I might know more.
BELARIUS.
To th' field, to th' field!
We'll leave you for this time. Go in and rest.
Come on, we need to hunt!
We'll leave you for now.Go in and rest.
ARVIRAGUS.
We'll not be long away.
We won't be gone long.
BELARIUS.
Pray be not sick,
For you must be our huswife.
Please don't be sick,
for you must be our housewife.
IMOGEN.
Well, or ill,
I am bound to you.
Well, or ill,
I am bound to you.
BELARIUS.
And shalt be ever.
Exit IMOGEN into the cave
This youth, howe'er distress'd, appears he hath had
Good ancestors.
And always shall be.
This youth, however low he's been bought, appears
to have had good ancestors.
ARVIRAGUS.
How angel-like he sings!
How angelic his singing is!
GUIDERIUS.
But his neat cookery! He cut our roots in
characters,
And sauc'd our broths as Juno had been sick,
And he her dieter.
And his wonderful cooking!He cut our vegetables
into designs,
and flavoured our soup as if Juno was sick
and he was her cook.
ARVIRAGUS.
Nobly he yokes
A smiling with a sigh, as if the sigh
Was that it was for not being such a smile;
The smile mocking the sigh that it would fly
From so divine a temple to commix
With winds that sailors rail at.
He nobly smiles
and sighs at the same time, as if the sigh
was sighing for not being such a smile;
the smile so mocks the sigh that it flies
out of such a divine temple
to mingle with the rough winds.
GUIDERIUS.
I do note
That grief and patience, rooted in him both,
Mingle their spurs together.
I have noticed
that he has grief and calm as part of his nature,
both driving him on.
ARVIRAGUS.
Grow patience!
And let the stinking elder, grief, untwine
His perishing root with the increasing vine!
Let the calm grow!
And let the stinking elder, grief, unwrap
its choking roots from the growing vine!
BELARIUS.
It is great morning. Come, away! Who's there?
Enter CLOTEN
It is high morning.Come, let's go!Who's there?
CLOTEN.
I cannot find those runagates; that villain
Hath mock'd me. I am faint.
I can't find those runaways; that villain
has tricked me.I am faint.
BELARIUS.
Those runagates?
Means he not us? I partly know him; 'tis
Cloten, the son o' th' Queen. I fear some ambush.
I saw him not these many years, and yet
I know 'tis he. We are held as outlaws. Hence!
Those runaways?
He doesn't mean us?I vaguely know him; it's
Cloten, the son of the Queen.I fear some ambush.
I haven't seen him for many years, but
I know it's him.We are counted as outlaws.Let's get away!
GUIDERIUS.
He is but one; you and my brother search
What companies are near. Pray you away;
Let me alone with him.
Exeunt BELARIUS and ARVIRAGUS
He's alone; you and my brother search
to see what men he has with him.Please go;
leave me alone with him.
CLOTEN.
Soft! What are you
That fly me thus? Some villain mountaineers?
I have heard of such. What slave art thou?
Hello!Who are you that
run away from me like this?Some villainous mountain bandits?
I have heard of them.What slave are you?
GUIDERIUS.
A thing
More slavish did I ne'er than answering
'A slave' without a knock.
I never did anything more slavish
that letting someone call me slave
without giving them a clout.
CLOTEN.
Thou art a robber,
A law-breaker, a villain. Yield thee, thief.
You are a robber,
a law breaker, a villain.Surrender, thief.
GUIDERIUS.
To who? To thee? What art thou? Have not I
An arm as big as thine, a heart as big?
Thy words, I grant, are bigger, for I wear not
My dagger in my mouth. Say what thou art;
Why I should yield to thee.
To who?To you?Who are you?Haven't I got
arms as big as yours, and a heart as big too?
I'll grant that your words are bigger, because I don't
use words instead of weapons.Say who you are,
and why I
should surrender to you.
CLOTEN.
Thou villain base,
Know'st me not by my clothes?
You low villain,
don't you know me from my clothes?
GUIDERIUS.
No, nor thy tailor, rascal,
Who is thy grandfather; he made those clothes,
Which, as it seems, make thee.
No, nor do I know your tailor, rascal,
who is your grandfather; he made those clothes,
which, it appears, are all you have.
CLOTEN.
Thou precious varlet,
My tailor made them not.
You damned rascal,
my tailor didn't make them.
GUIDERIUS.
Hence, then, and thank
The man that gave them thee. Thou art some fool;
I am loath to beat thee.
Get away then and thank
the man that gave them to you.You're such a fool
I can't bring myself to beat you.
CLOTEN.
Thou injurious thief,
Hear but my name, and tremble.
You foul thief,
just hear my name and tremble.
GUIDERIUS.
What's thy name?
What's your name?
CLOTEN.
Cloten, thou villain.
Cloten, you villain.
GUIDERIUS.
Cloten, thou double villain, be thy name,
I cannot tremble at it. Were it toad, or adder, spider,
'Twould move me sooner.
Cloten, you double villain, if that's your name,
I can't tremble at it.If it was toad, or adder, spider,
I'd be more scared.
CLOTEN.
To thy further fear,
Nay, to thy mere confusion, thou shalt know
I am son to th' Queen.
To make you more afraid,
in fact to completely confound you, you should know
that I am the Queen's son.
GUIDERIUS.
I'm sorry for't; not seeming
So worthy as thy birth.
I'm sorry to hear it;
you don't live up to your ancestry.
CLOTEN.
Art not afeard?
Aren't you afraid?
GUIDERIUS.
Those that I reverence, those I fear- the wise:
At fools I laugh, not fear them.
I respect and fear wise men:
I laugh at fools, I don't fear them.
CLOTEN.
Die the death.
When I have slain thee with my proper hand,
I'll follow those that even now fled hence,
And on the gates of Lud's Town set your heads.
Yield, rustic mountaineer.
Exeunt, fighting
Re-enter BELARIUS and ARVIRAGUS
You're going to die.
When I have killed you with my own hands
I'll follow those who ran from here
and I'll impale your heads on the gates of London.
Surrender, you mountain peasant.
BELARIUS.
No company's abroad.
There's nobody around.
ARVIRAGUS.
None in the world; you did mistake him, sure.
Nobody at all; you have mistaken him for someone else.
BELARIUS.
I cannot tell; long is it since I saw him,
But time hath nothing blurr'd those lines of favour
Which then he wore; the snatches in his voice,
And burst of speaking, were as his. I am absolute
'Twas very Cloten.
I can't tell; it's a long time since I saw him,
But time hasn't changed the family likeness
which he had before; the tone of voice
and the way of speaking were all his.I'm positive
it was Cloten.
ARVIRAGUS.
In this place we left them.
I wish my brother make good time with him,
You say he is so fell.
We left them here.
I hope my brother managed to deal with him,
you say he is so evil.
BELARIUS.
Being scarce made up,
I mean to man, he had not apprehension
Of roaring terrors; for defect of judgment
Is oft the cease of fear.
Re-enter GUIDERIUS with CLOTEN'S head
But, see, thy brother.
Being little more than an idiot
he didn't have much idea of fear;
defective judgement
often causes fear.
But look, there's your brother.
GUIDERIUS.
This Cloten was a fool, an empty purse;
There was no money in't. Not Hercules
Could have knock'd out his brains, for he had none;
Yet I not doing this, the fool had borne
My head as I do his.
This Cloten was a fool, an empty purse;
there was no money in it.Not even Hercules
could have knocked out his brains, for he had none;
but if I hadn't done this, the fool would be carrying
my head like I'm carrying his.
BELARIUS.
What hast thou done?
What have you done?
GUIDERIUS.
I am perfect what: cut off one Cloten's head,
Son to the Queen, after his own report;
Who call'd me traitor, mountaineer, and swore
With his own single hand he'd take us in,
Displace our heads where- thank the gods!- they grow,
And set them on Lud's Town.
I know very well what: I have cut off one Cloten's head,
the son of the Queen, as he told me;
he called me a traitor, a mountain bandit, and swore
he would capture us single handed,
and rip our heads from where - thank the gods! - they grow,
and display them in London.
BELARIUS.
We are all undone.
We are all lost.
GUIDERIUS.
Why, worthy father, what have we to lose
But that he swore to take, our lives? The law
Protects not us; then why should we be tender
To let an arrogant piece of flesh threat us,
Play judge and executioner all himself,
For do we fear the law? What company
Discover you abroad?
Why, good father, what have we got to lose
except the thing he swore to take from us, our lives?The law
doesn't protect us; so why should we allow
some arrogant fellow to threaten us,
playing the judge and executioner himself,
do we fear the law?What did you see
of his associates?
BELARIUS.
No single soul
Can we set eye on, but in an safe reason
He must have some attendants. Though his humour
Was nothing but mutation- ay, and that
From one bad thing to worse- not frenzy, not
Absolute madness could so far have rav'd,
To bring him here alone. Although perhaps
It may be heard at court that such as we
Cave here, hunt here, are outlaws, and in time
May make some stronger head- the which he hearing,
As it is like him, might break out and swear
He'd fetch us in; yet is't not probable
To come alone, either he so undertaking
Or they so suffering. Then on good ground we fear,
If we do fear this body hath a tail
More perilous than the head.
We haven't seen a single soul,
but it stands to reason that he must
have had company.Although he was
always changeable - yes, and going
<
br /> from bad to worse - no fit, not
complete madness could have driven him
to get her on his own.It's possible
it is said at court that people like us
shelter here, hunt here, are outlaws, and might one day
be more threatening - and hearing this
it would be like him to boast that he would
capture us; but it's unlikely he'd
come alone, either that he would do it
or that they would allow it.So we have good reason to be afraid,
if we fear that this body has a tail
more dangerous than the head.
ARVIRAGUS.
Let ordinance
Come as the gods foresay it. Howsoe'er,
My brother hath done well.
Let it all happen
as the gods have ordained.Whatever,
my brother has done well.
BELARIUS.
I had no mind
To hunt this day; the boy Fidele's sickness
Did make my way long forth.
I didn't feel like
hunting today; the boy Fidele's sickness
made my journey tedious.
GUIDERIUS.
With his own sword,
Which he did wave against my throat, I have ta'en
His head from him. I'll throw't into the creek
Behind our rock, and let it to the sea
And tell the fishes he's the Queen's son, Cloten.
That's all I reck.
Exit
I have taken his head from him with
his own sword, which he waved at my throat.
I'll throw it in the creek