The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated)
Page 645
The wand'ring prince and Dido once enjoyed,
When with a happy storm they were surpris'd,
And curtain'd with a counsel-keeping cave-
We may, each wreathed in the other's arms,
Our pastimes done, possess a golden slumber,
Whiles hounds and horns and sweet melodious birds
Be unto us as is a nurse's song
Of lullaby to bring her babe asleep.
My lovelyAaron, why do you look sad
when everything around is so happy?
The birds are singing on every bush,
the snakes lie coiled up in the warming sun,
the green leaves rustle in the cool breeze
and make a dappled shadow on the ground.
Let's sit under their sweet shade, Aaron,
and while the warbling echo copies the hounds,
replying shrilly to be well tuned horns
as if two hunts were going on at the same time,
let's sit down and listen to their racket;
and after we've enjoyed such a bout together
as Aeneas and Dido were supposed to have once enjoyed,
when they were caught out by a fortuitous storm
which kept them hidden in a secret cave,
we may, wrapped in each other's arms,
our fun over, have a delicious sleep,
while the hounds and horns and sweet singing birds
will be like the song of a nurse to us,
a lullaby to get her baby to sleep.
AARON.
Madam, though Venus govern your desires,
Saturn is dominator over mine.
What signifies my deadly-standing eye,
My silence and my cloudy melancholy,
My fleece of woolly hair that now uncurls
Even as an adder when she doth unroll
To do some fatal execution?
No, madam, these are no venereal signs.
Vengeance is in my heart, death in my hand,
Blood and revenge are hammering in my head.
Hark, Tamora, the empress of my soul,
Which never hopes more heaven than rests in thee-
This is the day of doom for Bassianus;
His Philomel must lose her tongue to-day,
Thy sons make pillage of her chastity,
And wash their hands in Bassianus' blood.
Seest thou this letter? Take it up, I pray thee,
And give the King this fatal-plotted scroll.
Now question me no more; we are espied.
Here comes a parcel of our hopeful booty,
Which dreads not yet their lives' destruction.
Madam, although your desires are ruled by Venus,
Saturn is ruling over mine.
What does my deathdealing eye signify,
my silence and my dark brooding,
my fleece of woolly hair that now uncurls
like an adder when she uncoils herself
to make a fatal attack?
No, madam, these are not signs of love;
I have vengeance in my heart, my hand is ready to kill,
blood and revenge are pounding in my head.
Listen, Tamora, the Empress of my soul,
which never hopes to find anything better than you,
this must be Bassianus' last day,
Lavinia must have her tongue cut out today,
your sons must rape her
and wash their hands in his blood.
Do you see this letter? Take it, please,
and give the King this scroll, which plots death.
Ask me no more questions: we have been spotted.
Here come our intended victims,
who are not yet in fear of their lives.
Enter BASSIANUS and LAVINIA
TAMORA. Ah, my sweet Moor, sweeter to me than life!
Oh, my sweet Moor, you are sweeter to me than life itself!
AARON.
No more, great Empress: Bassianus comes.
Be cross with him; and I'll go fetch thy sons
To back thy quarrels, whatsoe'er they be.
Exit
No more, great Empress: Bassianus is coming.
Be quarrelsome with him; and I'll go and bring your sons
to back you up in your arguments, whatever they are.
BASSIANUS.
Who have we here? Rome's royal Emperess,
Unfurnish'd of her well-beseeming troop?
Or is it Dian, habited like her,
Who hath abandoned her holy groves
To see the general hunting in this forest?
Who've we got here? The royal Empress of Rome,
without her suitable bodyguard?
Or is it Diana, dressed like her,
who has left her holy woods
to see everybody hunting in this forest?
TAMORA.
Saucy controller of my private steps!
Had I the pow'r that some say Dian had,
Thy temples should be planted presently
With horns, as was Actaeon's; and the hounds
Should drive upon thy new-transformed limbs,
Unmannerly intruder as thou art!
Insolentsteward of my private affairs!
If I had the power that some say Diana had
you would shortly have horns on your
forehead, like Actaeon had; and the hounds
would attack your newly changed body,
ill mannered intruder that you are!
LAVINIA.
Under your patience, gentle Emperess,
'Tis thought you have a goodly gift in horning,
And to be doubted that your Moor and you
Are singled forth to try thy experiments.
Jove shield your husband from his hounds to-day!
'Tis pity they should take him for a stag.
If you'll excuse me, gentle Empress,
it's thought that you are good at putting the horns on people,
and I suspect that your Moor and you
have sneaked off to experiment in the matter.
May Jove protect your husband from his dogs today!
It would be a shame if they mistook him for a stag.
BASSIANUS.
Believe me, Queen, your swarth Cimmerian
Doth make your honour of his body's hue,
Spotted, detested, and abominable.
Why are you sequest'red from all your train,
Dismounted from your snow-white goodly steed,
And wand'red hither to an obscure plot,
Accompanied but with a barbarous Moor,
If foul desire had not conducted you?
Believe me, Queen, your dark friend
makes your honour the same colour as his body,
stained, hated and revolting.
Why are you separated from all your entourage,
dismounted from your splendid snow white horse,
and wandering here in this secret place,
only accompanied by a savage Moor,
if it isn't for the fact that foul desire led you here?
LAVINIA.
And, being intercepted in your sport,
Great reason that my noble lord be rated
For sauciness. I pray you let us hence,
And let her joy her raven-coloured love;
This valley fits the purpose passing well.
And, being interrupted in your games,
that's the reason that my noble Lord is chastised
for impertinence. Please, let's go away,
and let her get her fill of her dark lover;
this valley is pretty suitable for the purpose.
BASSIANUS.
The King my brother shall have notice of this.
My brother the King shall be told about this.
LAVINIA.
Ay, for these slips have made him noted long.
Good king, to be so mightily abused!
Yes, for this immorality has disgraced h
im for a long time.
What a good king, that he should be so dreadfully abused!
TAMORA.
Why, I have patience to endure all this.
Enter CHIRON and DEMETRIUS
Well, I can put up with this.
DEMETRIUS.
How now, dear sovereign, and our gracious mother!
Why doth your Highness look so pale and wan?
Hello, dear Queen, and our gracious mother!
Why does your Highness look so pale and sickly?
TAMORA.
Have I not reason, think you, to look pale?
These two have 'ticed me hither to this place.
A barren detested vale you see it is:
The trees, though summer, yet forlorn and lean,
Overcome with moss and baleful mistletoe;
Here never shines the sun; here nothing breeds,
Unless the nightly owl or fatal raven.
And when they show'd me this abhorred pit,
They told me, here, at dead time of the night,
A thousand fiends, a thousand hissing snakes,
Ten thousand swelling toads, as many urchins,
Would make such fearful and confused cries
As any mortal body hearing it
Should straight fall mad or else die suddenly.
No sooner had they told this hellish tale
But straight they told me they would bind me here
Unto the body of a dismal yew,
And leave me to this miserable death.
And then they call'd me foul adulteress,
Lascivious Goth, and all the bitterest terms
That ever ear did hear to such effect;
And had you not by wondrous fortune come,
This vengeance on me had they executed.
Revenge it, as you love your mother's life,
Or be ye not henceforth call'd my children.
Don't you think I have good reason to look pale?
These two have tricked me to this place:
you can see it's a horrible barren valley;
even though it's summer the trees are wasted and thin,
overrun by moss and evil mistletoe;
the sun never shines here, nothing breeds here
unless it is the night owl and the ominous raven.
And when they showed me this revolting pit,
they told me that here at the dead of night
a thousand daemons, a thousand hissing snakes,
ten thousand swelling toads, the same number of goblins,
would make such a devilish cacophony
that any mortal person hearing it
would become mad at once, or else suddenly die.
No sooner had they told me this awful tale
then they told me that they would tie me here
to the trunk of a dismal yew tree
and leave me to this miserable death.
And then they called me a foul adulteress,
a lecherous Goth, and all themost horrible things
that you could possibly imagine.
If you hadn't so luckily arrived
they would have carried out this vengeance on me.
Revenge it out of love for your mother
or you won't be called my children from now on.
DEMETRIUS.
This is a witness that I am thy son.
[Stabs BASSIANUS]
This proves that I am your son.
CHIRON.
And this for me, struck home to show my strength.
[Also stabs]
And the same for me, I strike to prove the strength of my love.
LAVINIA.
Ay, come, Semiramis- nay, barbarous Tamora,
For no name fits thy nature but thy own!
Yes, come, Semiramis–no, savage Tamora,
no name suits your evil but your own!
TAMORA.
Give me the poniard; you shall know, my boys,
Your mother's hand shall right your mother's wrong.
Give me the dagger; you shall see, my boys,
your mother shall revenge her wrongs with her own hands.
DEMETRIUS.
Stay, madam, here is more belongs to her;
First thrash the corn, then after burn the straw.
This minion stood upon her chastity,
Upon her nuptial vow, her loyalty,
And with that quaint hope braves your mightiness;
And shall she carry this unto her grave?
Wait, madam, there is more to her than just her life;
first we thresh the corn, then we burn the straw.
This hussy was proud of her chastity,
her wedding vow, her loyalty,
and with that old-fashioned nonsense tried to face down your magnificence;
are we going to let her take that to her grave?
CHIRON.
An if she do, I would I were an eunuch.
Drag hence her husband to some secret hole,
And make his dead trunk pillow to our lust.
May I be a eunuch if she does.
Drag her husband to some secret hollow,
and his body can be the bed for our games.
TAMORA.
But when ye have the honey we desire,
Let not this wasp outlive, us both to sting.
But when you have the honey you want
don't let this wasp stay alive to sting us both.
CHIRON.
I warrant you, madam, we will make that sure.
Come, mistress, now perforce we will enjoy
That nice-preserved honesty of yours.
I promise you, madam, will make certain of that.
Come, mistress, we shall now enjoy by force
that chastity you were so proud of.
LAVINIA.
O Tamora! thou bearest a woman's face-
Oh Tamora! You have a woman's face–
TAMORA.
I will not hear her speak; away with her!
I won't listen to her; take away!
LAVINIA.
Sweet lords, entreat her hear me but a word.
Sweet lords, please ask her to just listen to a word from me.
DEMETRIUS.
Listen, fair madam: let it be your glory
To see her tears; but be your heart to them
As unrelenting flint to drops of rain.
Listen, fair madam: take pride
in causing her tears; but let them affect your heart
no more than the hard flint is affected by raindrops.
LAVINIA.
When did the tiger's young ones teach the dam?
O, do not learn her wrath- she taught it thee;
The milk thou suck'dst from her did turn to marble,
Even at thy teat thou hadst thy tyranny.
Yet every mother breeds not sons alike:
[To CHIRON] Do thou entreat her show a woman's pity.
When did the tiger cubs teach their mother?
Don't teach her hatred–she taught it to you;
the milk you sucked from her turned to marble,
even in your infancy you became evil.
But not every son is like his mother:
ask her to show a woman's pity.
CHIRON.
What, wouldst thou have me prove myself a bastard?
What, you want me to show that I am a bastard?
LAVINIA.
'Tis true, the raven doth not hatch a lark.
Yet have I heard- O, could I find it now!-
The lion, mov'd with pity, did endure
To have his princely paws par'd all away.
Some say that ravens foster forlorn children,
The whilst their own birds famish in their nests;
O, be to me, though thy hard heart say no,
Nothing so kind, but something pitiful!
Its true, ravens don't give birth to larks.
But I have heard–oh if it could happen now!–
; That the lion, when moved by pity, allowed
himself to put away his princely claws.
Some say the ravens raise lost children,
while their own chicks starve in their nests;
you don't have to be as kind to me, but please show me pity,
even if your hard heart is telling you not to.
TAMORA.
I know not what it means; away with her!
I don't know what she's talking about; take her away!
LAVINIA.
O, let me teach thee! For my father's sake,
That gave thee life when well he might have slain thee,
Be not obdurate, open thy deaf ears.
Oh, let me teach you! For the sake of my father,
who let you live when he could have killed you,
don't be stubborn, open your deaf ears.
TAMORA.
Hadst thou in person ne'er offended me,
Even for his sake am I pitiless.
Remember, boys, I pour'd forth tears in vain
To save your brother from the sacrifice;
But fierce Andronicus would not relent.
Therefore away with her, and use her as you will;
The worse to her the better lov'd of me.
If you personally had never offended me,
I am pitiless for his sake.
Remember, boys, I cried floods of tears
in a vain attempt to save your brother from being sacrificed;
But savage Andronicus would not relent.
So take away, and do what you want with her;
the worse you treat her the better I'll like it.
LAVINIA.
O Tamora, be call'd a gentle queen,
And with thine own hands kill me in this place!
For 'tis not life that I have begg'd so long;
Poor I was slain when Bassianus died.
Oh Tamora, be called a kind Queen,
and kill me here with your own hands!
It's not life I have been begging for for so long;
I was as good as dead when Bassianus died.