The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated)
Page 604
[Striking her] Devil!
You devil!
DESDEMONA
I have not deserved this.
I haven’t done anything to deserve this.
LODOVICO
My lord, this would not be believed in Venice,
My lord, no one in Venice would believe this,
Though I should swear I saw't: 'tis very much:
Even if I swore that I saw it. This is too much.
Make her amends; she weeps.
Apologize, she is crying.
OTHELLO
O devil, devil!
O she is the debil!
If that the earth could teem with woman's tears,
The whole earth could be filled with this woman’s tears
Each drop she falls would prove a crocodile.
And I would still believe she is falsely crying.
Out of my sight!
Get out of my sight!
DESDEMONA
I will not stay to offend you.
I will not stay here to upset you then.
Going
LODOVICO
Truly, an obedient lady:
She is truly an obedient woman.
I do beseech your lordship, call her back.
I beg you, Othello, call her back.
OTHELLO
Mistress!
Madam!
DESDEMONA
My lord?
Yes, my lord?
OTHELLO
What would you with her, sir?
What do you want with her, sir?
LODOVICO
Who, I, my lord?
What do I want?
OTHELLO
Ay; you did wish that I would make her turn:
Yes, you asked me to have her come back.
Sir, she can turn, and turn, and yet go on,
She can turn around and around and
And turn again; and she can weep, sir, weep;
Keep turning. She can cry and cry.
And she's obedient, as you say, obedient,
And she is so obedient, just as you say,
Very obedient. Proceed you in your tears.
Very obedient. Go on and cry.
Concerning this, sir,--O well-painted passion!--
Now about this letter – O what fake crying! –
I am commanded home. Get you away;
It commands me to return home. Get away from me,
I'll send for you anon. Sir, I obey the mandate,
I will send for you to return soon. Sir, I will obey this order
And will return to Venice. Hence, avaunt!
And return to Venice. Away, go away!
Exit DESDEMONA
Cassio shall have my place. And, sir, tonight,
Cassio will take my spot and, sir, tonight,
I do entreat that we may sup together:
Please come and eat with me.
You are welcome, sir, to Cyprus.--Goats and monkeys!
You are welcome to Cyprus. –Horny animals everywhere!
Exit
LODOVICO
Is this the noble Moor whom our full senate
Is this the same noble Moor whom everyone in the government
Call all in all sufficient? Is this the nature
Calls the most able of the soldiers? Is this the same character
Whom passion could not shake? whose solid virtue
That passion could never shake? Whose goodness
The shot of accident, nor dart of chance,
No accident or chance misfortune
Could neither graze nor pierce?
Could destroy?
IAGO
He is much changed.
He has changed a lot.
LODOVICO
Are his wits safe? is he not light of brain?
Is he still sane? Or has he lost his mind?
IAGO
He's that he is: I may not breathe my censure
He is what he is. I will not voice any criticism
What he might be: if what he might he is not,
About what he might be – if he is not what he should be,
I would to heaven he were!
Than I wish he were!
LODOVICO
What, strike his wife!
He struck his wife!
IAGO
'Faith, that was not so well; yet would I knew
Yes, that was not very good. But I wish I knew
That stroke would prove the worst!
That that was the worst thing he could do!
LODOVICO
Is it his use?
Does he usually do things like that?
Or did the letters work upon his blood,
Or did the letters make him angry
And new-create this fault?
And lead him to this new sin?
IAGO
Alas, alas!
Oh it’s so bad!
It is not honesty in me to speak
It is not honest for me to say
What I have seen and known. You shall observe him,
What I have seen and known before. You watch him
And his own courses will denote him so
And his actions will tell you all you need to know so
That I may save my speech: do but go after,
That I do not have to say anything. But follow him,
And mark how he continues.
And watch his lifestyle.
LODOVICO
I am sorry that I am deceived in him.
I am very sad that I was wrong about him.
Exeunt
Enter OTHELLO and EMILIA
OTHELLO
You have seen nothing then?
So you have not seen anything?
EMILIA
Nor ever heard, nor ever did suspect.
No, and I didn’t hear or suspect anything either.
OTHELLO
Yes, you have seen Cassio and she together.
But you did see Cassio with her.
EMILIA
But then I saw no harm, and then I heard
But there was nothing wrong there, and I heard
Each syllable that breath made up between them.
Every word they said between them
OTHELLO
What, did they never whisper?
They never whispered?
EMILIA
Never, my lord.
Never, my lord.
OTHELLO
Nor send you out o' the way?
And never sent you away?
EMILIA
Never.
Never.
OTHELLO
To fetch her fan, her gloves, her mask, nor nothing?
Not to get her fan or gloves or hat or anything?
EMILIA
Never, my lord.
Never, my lord.
OTHELLO
That's strange.
That is very strange.
EMILIA
I durst, my lord, to wager she is honest,
My lord, I think she is very honest
Lay down my soul at stake: if you think other,
And would bet my soul on it. If you think otherwise,
Remove your thought; it doth abuse your bosom.
Please rethink it – it ruins your credibility.
If any wretch have put this in your head,
Whoever has put this into your head,
Let heaven requite it with the serpent's curse!
May heaven curse his head!
For, if she be not honest, chaste, and true,
If Desdemona is not honest, pure, and true,
There's no man happy; the purest of their wives
Than no man may ever be happy. The purest of their wives
Is foul as slander.
Are then evil.
OTHELLO
Bid her come hither: go.
Please ask her to come to me.
Exit EMILIA
She says enough; yet she's a simple bawd
She speaks well for Desdemona – though one would be a stupid prostitute
That cannot say as much. This is a subtle whore,
Who could not lie as well as that. Desdemona is a tricky whore,
A closet lock and key of villanous secrets
She is full of evil secrets that are locked in her,
And yet she'll kneel and pray; I have seen her do't.
And all the while she will kneel and pray. I’ve seen it.
Enter DESDEMONA with EMILIA
DESDEMONA
My lord, what is your will?
My lord, what do you want?
OTHELLO
Pray, chuck, come hither.
Please, darling, come here.
DESDEMONA
What is your pleasure?
What would you like?
OTHELLO
Let me see your eyes;
Let me see your eyes,
Look in my face.
Look at me.
DESDEMONA
What horrible fancy's this?
What awful game is this.
OTHELLO
[To EMILIA] Some of your function, mistress;
Go to your work, mistress.
Leave procreants alone and shut the door;
Leave us alone to have sex, and shut the door.
Cough, or cry 'hem,' if any body come:
Cough or cry out if anyone comes,
Your mystery, your mystery: nay, dispatch.
Since that is your job. Now, go.
Exit EMILIA
DESDEMONA
Upon my knees, what doth your speech import?
I beg you, what do you mean?
I understand a fury in your words.
There is anger in your words,
But not the words.
But not in the words themselves.
OTHELLO
Why, what art thou?
Who are you?
DESDEMONA
Your wife, my lord; your true
Your wife, lord, your honest
And loyal wife.
And loyal wife.
OTHELLO
Come, swear it, damn thyself
Come and swear it to me. Damn yourself by lying
Lest, being like one of heaven, the devils themselves
So that the devils will not confuse you for an angel
Should fear to seize thee: therefore be double damn'd:
And thus fail to take you. Be double-damned
Swear thou art honest.
And swear your honesty.
DESDEMONA
Heaven doth truly know it.
God knows I am.
OTHELLO
Heaven truly knows that thou art false as hell.
God knows that you have been as evil as hell.
DESDEMONA
To whom, my lord? with whom? how am I false?
To whom, my lord? With whom? How have I been unfaithful?
OTHELLO
O Desdemona! away! away! away!
O Desdemona go away!
DESDEMONA
Alas the heavy day! Why do you weep?
This is such a sad day! Why do you weep?
Am I the motive of these tears, my lord?
Did I force you to cry, my lord?
If haply you my father do suspect
If you suspect that my father
An instrument of this your calling back,
Is the reason you have been called back,
Lay not your blame on me: If you have lost him,
Then do not blame me. If he hates you,
Why, I have lost him too.
Then I hate him too.
OTHELLO
Had it pleased heaven
If heaven wanted
To try me with affliction; had they rain'd
To test me through pain, if they had placed
All kinds of sores and shames on my bare head,
All kinds of sores and illnesses on my body,
Steep'd me in poverty to the very lips,
Or had made me incredibly poor,
Given to captivity me and my utmost hopes,
Or had given me to slavery so that I could not even hope for freedom,
I should have found in some place of my soul
I would have found in my soul
A drop of patience: but, alas, to make me
An ability to be patient. But instead, He has made me
A fixed figure for the time of scorn
Into a man built for being mocked
To point his slow unmoving finger at!
And for others to point their fingers at!
Yet could I bear that too; well, very well:
I could even handle that, though,
But there, where I have garner'd up my heart,
If it did not have to do with my heart’s foundations, my wife,
Where either I must live, or bear no life;
The person whom I depend on,
The fountain from the which my current runs,
And the fountain my lineage must come from,
Or else dries up; to be discarded thence!
Or it dries up and is ruined!
Or keep it as a cistern for foul toads
Now this fountain is a container for ugly toads
To knot and gender in! Turn thy complexion there,
To copulate in! Turn your gaze to this,
Patience, thou young and rose-lipp'd cherubin,--
O Patience, you young and rose-lipped angel,
Ay, there, look grim as hell!
Look how awful it is!
DESDEMONA
I hope my noble lord esteems me honest.
I wish my noble lord would know that I am honest.
OTHELLO
O, ay; as summer flies are in the shambles,
O yes, you are as honest as the summer flies in the woods
That quicken even with blowing. O thou weed,
That leave each time the wind blows. O you weed,
Who art so lovely fair and smell'st so sweet
Who is so beautiful and smell so good,
That the sense aches at thee, would thou hadst
That one aches to see and smell you – it would be better if
ne'er been born!
you were never born!
DESDEMONA
Alas, what ignorant sin have I committed?
Please, what sin that I do not know about have I committed?
OTHELLO
Was this fair paper, this most goodly book,
Was this beautiful woman, like a good and holy book,
Made to write 'whore' upon? What committed!
Created in order for someone to write “whore” on it? What you committed!
Committed! O thou public commoner!
Committed! O you public prostitute!
I should make very forges of my cheeks,
My cheeks would burn like ovens
That would to cinders burn up modesty,
And devour all modesty in their flames
Did I but speak thy deeds. What committed!
If I spoke aloud what you did. What you did!
Heaven stops the nose at it and the moon winks,
Heaven holds its nose at you, and the moon closes its eyes,
The bawdy wind that kisses all it meets
And the playful wind that kisses everything
Is hush'd within the hollow mine of earth,
Has been calmed and quieted into the earth,
And will not hear it. What committed!
And refuses to hear it. What you did!
Impudent strumpet!
Bold whore!
DESDEMONA
By heaven, you do me wrong.
By God, you are treating me wrongly.
OTHELLO
Are you not a strumpet?
Aren’t you a whore?
DESDEMONA
No, as I am a Christian:
No, I am a Christian,
If to prese
rve this vessel for my lord
If I keep my body only for you
From any other foul unlawful touch
And do not allow any evil touch,
Be not to be a strumpet, I am none.
If that is the definition of someone who is not a whore, then I am not one.
OTHELLO
What, not a whore?
You aren’t a whore?
DESDEMONA
No, as I shall be saved.
No, by my own salvation I swear.
OTHELLO
Is't possible?
Is it possible?
DESDEMONA
O, heaven forgive us!
God forgive us!
OTHELLO
I cry you mercy, then:
I ask for your forgiveness then:
I took you for that cunning whore of Venice
I mistook you for the tricky whore from Venice
That married with Othello.
Who married Othello.
Raising his voice
You, mistress,
You, mistress,
That have the office opposite to Saint Peter,
That have watched the gates of this room like Saint Peter’s opposite,
And keep the gate of hell!
Watching the gates of hell!
Re-enter EMILIA
You, you, ay, you!
You, yes, you!
We have done our course; there's money for your pains:
We have finished. Here is money for your work.
I pray you, turn the key and keep our counsel.
Please, lock the door and keep silent about our conversation.
Exit
EMILIA
Alas, what does this gentleman conceive?
What is Othello thinking?
How do you, madam? how do you, my good lady?
Madam, how are you, my lady?
DESDEMONA
'Faith, half asleep.
I am dazed.
EMILIA
Good madam, what's the matter with my lord?
O madam, what is the matter with Othello?
DESDEMONA
With who?
With who?
EMILIA
Why, with my lord, madam.
With your lord, madam.