The Tempest
1612
by William Shakespeare
Dramatis personae
ALONSO,
King of Naples
SEBASTIAN,
his brother
PROSPERO,
the right Duke of Milan
ANTONIO,
his brother, the usurping Duke of Milan
FERDINAND,
son to the King of Naples
GONZALO, an
honest old counsellor
ADRIAN,
FRANCISCO, Lords
CALIBAN, a
savage and deformed slave
TRINCULO, a
jester
STEPHANO, a
drunken butler
MASTER OF A
SHIP
BOATSWAIN
MARINERS
MIRANDA,
daughter to Prospero
ARIEL, an
airy spirit
IRIS,
CERES, JUNO, NYMPHS, REAPERS, spirits
Other
Spirits attending on Prospero
Scene :
A ship at sea ; afterwards an uninhabited island
Act I.
@Scene 1
On a ship at sea ; a tempestuous noise of thunder and
lightning heard
Enter a SHIPMASTER and a BOATSWAIN
MASTER
Boatswain !
BOATSWAIN
Here, master ; what cheer ?
MASTER
Good ! Speak to th' mariners ; fall to't yarely, or
we run ourselves aground ; bestir, bestir. Exit
Enter MARINERS
BOATSWAIN
Heigh, my hearts ! cheerly, cheerly, my hearts !
yare, yare ! Take in the topsail. Tend to th' master's
whistle. Blow till thou burst thy wind, if room
enough.
Enter
ALONSO, SEBASTIAN, ANTONIO, FERDINAND, GONZALO, and OTHERS
ALONSO
Good boatswain,
have care. Where's the master ?
Play
the men.
BOATSWAIN
I pray
now, keep below.
ANTONIO
Where
is the master, boson ?
BOATSWAIN
Do you
not hear him ? You mar our labour ;
keep
your cabins ; you do assist the storm.
GONZALO
Nay,
good, be patient.
BOATSWAIN
When
the sea is. Hence ! What cares these
roarers
for the name of king ? To cabin ! silence ! Trouble
us not.
GONZALO
Good,
yet remember whom thou hast aboard.
BOATSWAIN
None
that I more love than myself. You are
counsellor
; if you can command these elements to
silence,
and work the peace of the present, we will not
hand a
rope more. Use your authority ; if you cannot, give
thanks
you have liv'd so long, and make yourself ready
in your
cabin for the mischance of the hour, if it so
hap.-Cheerly,
good hearts !-Out of our way, I say.
Exit
GONZALO
I have
great comfort from this fellow. Methinks
he hath
no drowning mark upon him ; his complexion is
perfect
gallows. Stand fast, good Fate, to his hanging ;
make
the rope of his destiny our cable, for our own doth
little
advantage. If he be not born to be hang'd, our
case is
miserable.
Exeunt
Re-enter BOATSWAIN
BOATSWAIN
Down
with the topmast. Yare, lower, lower !
Bring
her to try wi' th' maincourse. [A cry
within] A
plague
upon this howling ! They are louder than the
weather
or our office.
Re-enter SEBASTIAN, ANTONIO, and GONZALO
Yet
again ! What do you here ? Shall we give o'er, and
drown ?
Have you a mind to sink ?
SEBASTIAN
A pox
o' your throat, you bawling, blasphemous,
incharitable
dog !
BOATSWAIN
Work
you, then.
ANTONIO
Hang,
cur ; hang, you whoreson, insolent noisemaker ;
we are
less afraid to be drown'd than thou art.
GONZALO
I'll
warrant him for drowning, though the ship were
no
stronger than a nutshell, and as leaky as an unstanched
wench.
BOATSWAIN
Lay her
a-hold, a-hold ; set her two courses ; off
to sea
again ; lay her off.
Enter MARINERS, Wet
MARINERS
All
lost ! to prayers, to prayers ! all lost !
Exeunt
BOATSWAIN
What,
must our mouths be cold ?
GONZALO
The
King and Prince at prayers !
Let's
assist them,
For our
case is as theirs.
SEBASTIAN
I am
out of patience.
ANTONIO
We are
merely cheated of our lives by drunkards.
This
wide-chopp'd rascal-would thou mightst lie drowning
The
washing of ten tides !
GONZALO
He'll be
hang'd yet,
Though
every drop of water swear against it,
And
gape at wid'st to glut him.
[A
confused noise within : Mercy on us !
We
split, we split ! Farewell, my wife and children !
Farewell,
brother ! We split, we split, we split !]
ANTONIO
Let's
all sink wi' th' King.
SEBASTIAN
Let's
take leave of him.
Exeunt ANTONIO
and SEBASTIAN
GONZALO
Now
would I give a thousand furlongs of sea for
an acre
of barren ground-long heath, brown furze, any
thing.
The wills above be done, but I would fain die
dry
death. Exeunt
@Scene
2
The
Island. Before PROSPERO'S cell
Enter
PROSPERO and MIRANDA
MIRANDA
If by
your art, my dearest father, you have
Put the
wild waters in this roar, allay them.
The
sky, it seems, would pour down stinking pitch,
But
that the sea, mounting to th' welkin's cheek,
Dashes
the fire out. O, I have suffered
With
those that I saw suffer ! A brave vessel,
Who had
no doubt some noble creature in her,
Dash'd
all to pieces ! O, the cry did knock
Against
my very heart ! Poor souls, they perish'd.
Had I
been any god of power, I would
Have
sunk the sea within the earth or ere
It
should the good ship so have swallow'd and
The
fraughting souls within her.
PROSPERO
Be
conected ;
No more
amazement ; tell your piteous heart
There's
no harm done.
MIRANDA
O, woe
the day !
PROSPERO
No
harm.
I have
done nothing but in care of thee,
Of
thee, my dear one, thee, my daughter, who
Art
ignorant of what thou art, nought knowing
Of
whence I am, nor that I am more better
Than
Prospero, master of a full poor cell,
And thy
no greater father.
MIRANDA
More to
know
Did
never meddle with my thoughts.
PROSPERO
'Tis
time
I
should inform thee farther. Lend thy hand,
And
pluck my magic garment from me. So,
[Lays
down his mantle]
Lie
there my art. Wipe thou thine eyes ; have comfort.
The
direful spectacle of the wreck, which touch'd
The
very virtue of compassion in thee,
I have
with such provision in mine art
So
safely ordered that there is no soul-
No, not
so much perdition as an hair
Betid
to any creature in the vessel
Which
thou heard'st cry, which thou saw'st sink.
Sit down,
for thou must now know farther.
MIRANDA
You
have often
Begun
to tell me what I am ; but stopp'd,
And
left me to a bootless inquisition,
Concluding
'Stay ; not yet.'
PROSPERO
The
hour's now come ;
The
very minute bids thee ope thine ear.
Obey,
and be attentive. Canst thou remember
A time
before we came unto this cell ?
I do
not think thou canst ; for then thou wast not
Out
three years old.
MIRANDA
Certainly,
sir, I can.
PROSPERO
By what
? By any other house, or person ?
Of any
thing the image, tell me, that
Hath
kept with thy remembrance ?
MIRANDA
'Tis
far off,
And
rather like a dream than an assurance
That my
remembrance warrants. Had I not
Four,
or five, women once, that tended me ?
PROSPERO
Thou
hadst, and more, Miranda. But how is it
That
this lives in thy mind ? What seest thou else
In the
dark backward and abysm of time ?
If thou
rememb'rest aught, ere thou cam'st here,
How
thou cam'st here thou mayst.
MIRANDA
But
that I do not.
PROSPERO
Twelve
year since, Miranda, twelve year since,
Thy
father was the Duke of Milan, and
A
prince of power.
MIRANDA
Sir,
are not you my father ?
PROSPERO
Thy
mother was a piece of virtue, and
She
said thou wast my daughter ; and thy father
Was
Duke of Milan, and his only heir
And
princess no worse issued.
MIRANDA
O, the
heavens !
What
foul play had we that we came from thence ?
Or
blessed was't we did ?
PROSPERO
Both,
both, my girl.
By foul
play, as thou say'st, were we heav'd thence ;
But
blessedly holp hither.
MIRANDA
O, my
heart bleeds
To
think o' th' teen that I have turn'd you to,
Which
is from my remembrance. Please you, farther.
PROSPERO
My
brother and thy uncle, call'd Antonio-
I pray
thee, mark me that a brother should
Be so
perfidious. He, whom next thyself
Of all
the world I lov'd, and to him put
The
manage of my state ; as at that time
Through
all the signories it was the first,
And
Prospero the prime duke, being so reputed
In
dignity, and for the liberal arts
Without
a parallel, those being all my study-
The
government I cast upon my brother
And to
my state grew stranger, being transported
And
rapt in secret studies. Thy false uncle-
Dost
thou attend me ?
MIRANDA
Sir,
most heedfully.
PROSPERO
Being
once perfected how to grant suits,
How to
deny them, who t' advance, and who
To
trash for over-topping, new created
The
creatures that were mine, I say, or chang'd 'em,
Or else
new form'd 'em ; having both the key
Of
officer and office, set all hearts i' th' state
To what
tune pleas'd his ear ; that now he was
The ivy
which had hid my princely trunk
And
suck'd my verdure out on't. Thou attend'st not.
MIRANDA
O, good
sir, I do !
PROSPERO
I pray
thee, mark me.
I thus
neglecting worldly ends, all dedicated
To
closeness and the bettering of my mind
With
that which, but by being so retir'd,
O'er-priz'd
all popular rate, in my false brother
Awak'd
an evil nature ; and my trust,
Like a
good parent, did beget of him
A falsehood,
in its contrary as great
As my
trust was ; which had indeed no limit,
A
confidence sans bound. He being thus lorded,
Not
only with what my revenue yielded,
But
what my power might else exact, like one
Who
having into truth, by telling of it,
Made
such a sinner of his memory,
To
credit his own lie-he did believe
He was
indeed the Duke ; out o' th' substitution,
And
executing th' outward face of royalty
With
all prerogative. Hence his ambition growing-
Dost
thou hear ?
MIRANDA
Your tale,
sir, would cure deafness.
PROSPERO
To have
no screen between this part he play'd
And him
he play'd it for, he needs will be
Absolute
Milan. Me, poor man-my library
Was
dukedom large enough-of temporal royalties
He
thinks me now incapable ; confederates,
So dry
he was for sway, wi' th' King of Naples,
To give
him annual tribute, do him homage,
Subject
his coronet to his crown, and bend
The
dukedom, yet unbow'd-alas, poor Milan !-
To most
ignoble stooping.
MIRANDA
O the
heavens !
PROSPERO
Mark
his condition, and th' event, then tell me
If this
might be a brother.
MIRANDA
I
should sin
To
think but nobly of my grandmother :
Good
wombs have borne bad sons.
PROSPERO
Now the
condition :
This
King of Naples, being an enemy
To me
inveterate, hearkens my brother's suit ;
Which
was, that he, in lieu o' th' premises,
Of
homage, and I know not how much tribute,
Should
presently extirpate me and mine
Out of
the dukedom, and confer fair Milan
With
all the honours on my brother. Whereon,
A
treacherous army levied, one midnight
Fated
to th' purpose, did Antonio open
The
gates of Milan ; and, i' th' dead of darkness,
The
ministers for th' purpose hurried thence
Me and
thy crying self.
MIRANDA
Alack,
for pity !
I, not
rememb'ring how I cried out then,
Will
cry it o'er again ; it is a hint
That
wrings mine eyes to't.
PROSPERO
Hear a
little further,
And
then I'll bring thee to the present busines
Which
now's upon 's ; without the which this story
Were
most impertinent.
MIRANDA
Wherefore
did they not
That
hour destroy us ?
PROSPERO
Well
demanded, wench !
My tale
provokes that question. Dear, they durst not,
So dear
the love my people bore me ; nor set
A mark
so bloody on the business ; but
With
colours fairer painted their foul ends.
In few,
they hurried us aboard a bark ;
Bore us
some leagues to sea, where they prepared
A
rotten carcass of a butt, not rigg'd,
Nor
tackle, sail, nor mast ; the very rats
Instinctively
have quit it. There they hoist us,
To cry
to th' sea, that roar'd to us ; to sigh
To th'
winds, whose pity, sighing back again,
Did us
but loving wrong.
MIRANDA
Alack,
what trouble
Was I
then to you !
PROSPERO
O, a
cherubin
Thou
wast that did preserve me ! Thou didst smile,
Infused
with a fortitude from heaven,
When I
have deck'd the sea with drops full salt,
Under
my burden groan'd ; which rais'd in me
An
undergoing stomach, to bear up
Against
what should ensue.
MIRANDA
How
came we ashore ?
PROSPERO
By
Providence divine.
Some
food we had and some fresh water that
A noble
Neapolitan, Gonzalo,
Out of
his charity, who being then appointed
Master
of this design, did give us, with
Rich
garments, linens, stuffs, and necessaries,
Which
since have steaded much ; so, of his gentleness,
Knowing
I lov'd my books, he furnish'd me
From
mine own library with volumes that
I prize
above my dukedom.
MIRANDA
Would I
might
But
ever see that man !
PROSPERO
Now I
arise. [Puts on his
mantle]
Sit
still, and hear the last of our sea-sorrow.
Here in
this island we arriv'd ; and here
Have I,
thy schoolmaster, made thee more profit
Than
other princess' can, that have more time
For
vainer hours, and tutors not so careful.
MIRANDA
Heavens
thank you for't ! And now, I pray you,
sir,
For
still 'tis beating in my mind, your reason
For
raising this sea-storm ?
PROSPERO
Know
thus far forth :
By
accident most strange, bountiful Fortune,
Now my
dear lady, hath mine enemies
Brought
to this shore ; and by my prescience
I find
my zenith doth depend upon
A most
auspicious star, whose influence
If now
I court not, but omit, my fortunes
Will
ever after droop. Here cease more questions ;
Thou
art inclin'd to sleep ; 'tis a good dullness,
And
give it way. I know thou canst not choose.
[MIRANDA sleeps]
Come
away, servant ; come ; I am ready now.
Approach,
my Ariel. Come.
Enter ARIEL
ARIEL
All
hail, great master ! grave sir, hail ! I come
To
answer thy best pleasure ; be't to fly,
To
swim, to dive into the fire, to ride
On the
curl'd clouds. To thy strong bidding task
Ariel
and all his quality.
PROSPERO
Hast
thou, spirit,
Perform'd
to point the tempest that I bade thee ?
ARIEL
To
every article.
I
boarded the King's ship ; now on the beak,
Now in
the waist, the deck, in every cabin,
I
flam'd amazement. Sometime I'd divide,
And
burn in many places ; on the topmast,
The
yards, and bowsprit, would I flame distinctly,
Then
meet and join Jove's lightning, the precursors
O' th'
dreadful thunder-claps, more momentary
And
sight-outrunning were not ; the fire and cracks
Of
sulphurous roaring the most mighty Neptune
Seem to
besiege, and make his bold waves tremble,
Yea,
his dread trident shake.
PROSPERO
My
brave spirit !
Who was
so firm, so constant, that this coil
Would
not infect his reason ?
ARIEL
Not a
soul
But
felt a fever of the mad, and play'd
Some
tricks of desperation. All but mariners
Plung'd
in the foaming brine, and quit the vessel,
Then
all afire with me ; the King's son, Ferdinand,
With
hair up-staring-then like reeds, not hair-
Was the
first man that leapt ; cried 'Hell is empty,
And all
the devils are here.'
PROSPERO
Why,
that's my spirit !
But was
not this nigh shore ?
ARIEL
Close
by, my master.
PROSPERO
But are
they, Ariel, safe ?
ARIEL
Not a
hair perish'd ;
On
their sustaining garments not a blemish,
But
fresher than before ; and, as thou bad'st me,
In
troops I have dispers'd them 'bout the isle.
The
King's son have I landed by himself,
Whom I
left cooling of the air with sighs
In an
odd angle of the isle, and sitting,
His
arms in this sad knot.
PROSPERO
Of the
King's ship,
The
mariners, say how thou hast dispos'd,
And all
the rest o' th' fleet ?
ARIEL
Safely
in harbour
Is the
King's ship ; in the deep nook, where once
Thou
call'dst me up at midnight to fetch dew
From
the still-vex'd Bermoothes, there she's hid ;
The
mariners all under hatches stowed,
Who,
with a charm join'd to their suff'red labour,
I have
left asleep ; and for the rest o' th' fleet,
Which I
dispers'd, they all have met again,
And are
upon the Mediterranean flote
Bound
sadly home for Naples,
Supposing
that they saw the King's ship wreck'd,
And his
great person perish.
PROSPERO
Ariel,
thy charge
Exactly
is perform'd ; but there's more work.
What is
the time o' th' day ?
ARIEL
Past
the mid season.
PROSPERO
At
least two glasses. The time 'twixt six and now
Must by
us both be spent most preciously.
ARIEL
Is
there more toil ? Since thou dost give me pains,
Let me
remember thee what thou hast promis'd,
Which
is not yet perform'd me.
PROSPERO
How
now, moody ?
What
is't thou canst demand ?
ARIEL
My
liberty.
PROSPERO
Before
the time be out ? No more !
ARIEL
I
prithee,
Remember
I have done thee worthy service,
Told
thee no lies, made thee no mistakings, serv'd
Without
or grudge or grumblings. Thou didst promise
To bate
me a full year.
PROSPERO
Dost
thou forget
From
what a torment I did free thee ?
ARIEL
No.
PROSPERO
Thou
dost ; and think'st it much to tread the ooze
Of the
salt deep,
To run
upon the sharp wind of the north,
To do
me business in the veins o' th' earth
When it
is bak'd with frost.
ARIEL
I do
not, sir.
PROSPERO
Thou
liest, malignant thing. Hast thou forgot
The
foul witch Sycorax, who with age and envy
Was
grown into a hoop ? Hast thou forgot her ?
ARIEL
No,
sir.
PROSPERO
Thou
hast. Where was she born ?
Speak ;
tell me.
ARIEL
Sir, in
Argier.
PROSPERO
O, was
she so ? I must
Once in
a month recount what thou hast been,
Which
thou forget'st. This damn'd witch Sycorax,
For
mischiefs manifold, and sorceries terrible
To
enter human hearing, from Argier
Thou
know'st was banish'd ; for one thing she did
They
would not take her life. Is not this true ?
ARIEL
Ay,
sir.
PROSPERO
This
blue-ey'd hag was hither brought with child,
And
here was left by th'sailors. Thou, my slave,
As thou
report'st thyself, wast then her servant ;
And,
for thou wast a spirit too delicate
To act
her earthy and abhorr'd commands,
Refusing
her grand hests, she did confine thee,
By help
of her more potent ministers,
And in
her most unmitigable rage,
Into a
cloven pine ; within which rift
Imprison'd
thou didst painfully remain
A dozen
years ; within which space she died,
And
left thee there, where thou didst vent thy groans
As fast
as mill-wheels strike. Then was this island-
Save
for the son that she did litter here,
A
freckl'd whelp, hag-born-not honour'd with
A human
shape.
ARIEL
Yes,
Caliban her son.
PROSPERO
Dull
thing, I say so ; he, that Caliban
Whom
now I keep in service. Thou best know'st
What
torment I did find thee in ; thy groans
Did
make wolves howl, and penetrate the breasts
Of
ever-angry bears ; it was a torment
To lay
upon the damn'd, which Sycorax
Could
not again undo. It was mine art,
When I
arriv'd and heard thee, that made gape
The
pine, and let thee out.
ARIEL
I thank
thee, master.
PROSPERO
If thou
more murmur'st, I will rend an oak
And peg
thee in his knotty entrails, till
Thou
hast howl'd away twelve winters.
ARIEL
Pardon,
master ;
I will
be correspondent to command,
And do
my spriting gently.
PROSPERO
Do so ;
and after two days
I will
discharge thee.
ARIEL
That's
my noble master !
What
shall I do ? Say what. What shall I do ?
PROSPERO
Go make
thyself like a nymph o' th' sea ; be subject
To no
sight but thine and mine, invisible
To
every eyeball else. Go take this shape,
And
hither come in 't. Go, hence with diligence !
Exit ARIEL
Awake,
dear heart, awake ; thou hast slept well ;
Awake.
MIRANDA
The
strangeness of your story put
Heaviness
in me.
PROSPERO
Shake
it off. Come on,
We'll
visit Caliban, my slave, who never
Yields
us kind answer.
MIRANDA
'Tis a
villain, sir,
I do not
love to look on.
PROSPERO
But as
'tis,
We
cannot miss him : he does make our fire,
Fetch
in our wood, and serves in offices
That
profit us. What ho ! slave ! Caliban !
Thou
earth, thou ! Speak.
CALIBAN
[
Within] There's wood enough within.
PROSPERO
Come
forth, I say ; there's other business for thee.
Come,
thou tortoise ! when ?
Re-enter ARIEL like a water-nymph
Fine
apparition ! My quaint Ariel,
Hark in
thine ear.
ARIEL
My
lord, it shall be done. Exit
PROSPERO
Thou
poisonous slave, got by the devil himself
Upon
thy wicked dam, come forth !
Enter CALIBAN
CALIBAN
As
wicked dew as e'er my mother brush'd
With
raven's feather from unwholesome fen
Drop on
you both ! A south-west blow on ye
And
blister you all o'er !
PROSPERO
For
this, be sure, to-night thou shalt have cramps,
Side-stitches
that shall pen thy breath up ; urchins
Shall,
for that vast of night that they may work,
All
exercise on thee ; thou shalt be pinch'd
As
thick as honeycomb, each pinch more stinging
Than
bees that made 'em.
CALIBAN
I must
eat my dinner.
This
island's mine, by Sycorax my mother,
Which
thou tak'st from me. When thou cam'st first,
Thou
strok'st me and made much of me, wouldst give me
Water
with berries in't, and teach me how
To name
the bigger light, and how the less,
That
burn by day and night ; and then I lov'd thee,
And
show'd thee all the qualities o' th' isle,
The
fresh springs, brine-pits, barren place and fertile.
Curs'd
be I that did so ! All the charms
Of
Sycorax, toads, beetles, bats, light on you !
For I
am all the subjects that you have,
Which
first was mine own king ; and here you sty me
In this
hard rock, whiles you do keep from me
The
rest o' th' island.
PROSPERO
Thou
most lying slave,
Whom
stripes may move, not kindness ! I have us'd thee,
Filth
as thou art, with human care, and lodg'd thee
In mine
own cell, till thou didst seek to violate
The
honour of my child.
CALIBAN
O ho, O
ho ! Would't had been done.
Thou
didst prevent me ; I had peopl'd else
This
isle with Calibans.
MIRANDA
Abhorred
slave,
Which
any print of goodness wilt not take,
Being
capable of all ill ! I pitied thee,
Took
pains to make thee speak, taught thee each hour
One
thing or other. When thou didst not, savage,
Know
thine own meaning, but wouldst gabble like
A thing
most brutish, I endow'd thy purposes
With
words that made them known. But thy vile race,
Though
thou didst learn, had that in't which good natures
Could
not abide to be with ; therefore wast thou
Deservedly
confin'd into this rock, who hadst
Deserv'd
more than a prison.
CALIBAN
You
taught me language, and my profit on't
Is, I
know how to curse. The red plague rid you
For
learning me your language !
PROSPERO
Hag-seed,
hence !
Fetch
us in fuel. And be quick, thou 'rt best,
To
answer other business. Shrug'st thou, malice ?
If thou
neglect'st, or dost unwillingly
What I
command, I'll rack thee with old cramps,
Fill
all thy bones with aches, make thee roar,
That
beasts shall tremble at thy din.
CALIBAN
No,
pray thee.
[Aside] I must obey. His art is of such pow'r,
It
would control my dam's god, Setebos,
And
make a vassal of him.
PROSPERO
So, slave
; hence ! Exit
CALIBAN
Re-enter ARIEL invisible, playing ad
singing ; FERDINAND following
ARIEL'S SONG.
Come unto these yellow sands,
And then take hands ;
Curtsied when you have and kiss'd,
The wild waves whist,
Foot it featly here and there,
And, sweet sprites, the burden bear.
Hark, hark !
[Burden dispersedly : Bow-wow.]
The watch dogs bark.
[Burden dispersedly : Bow-wow.]
Hark, hark ! I hear
The strain of strutting chanticleer
Cry, Cock-a-diddle-dow.
FERDINAND
Where
should this music be ? I' th' air or th'
earth ?
It
sounds no more ; and sure it waits upon
Some
god o' th' island. Sitting on a bank,
Weeping
again the King my father's wreck,
This
music crept by me upon the waters,
Allaying
both their fury and my passion
With
its sweet air ; thence I have follow'd it,
Or it
hath drawn me rather. But 'tis gone.
No, it
begins again.
ARIEL'S SONG
Full fathom five thy father lies ;
Of his bones are coral made ;
Those are pearls that were his eyes ;
Nothing of him that doth fade
But doth suffer a sea-change
Into something rich and strange.
Sea-nymphs hourly ring his knell :
[Burden : Ding-dong.]
Hark ! now I hear them-Ding-dong bell.
FERDINAND
The
ditty does remember my drown'd father.
This is
no mortal business, nor no sound
That
the earth owes. I hear it now above me.
PROSPERO
The
fringed curtains of thine eye advance,
And say
what thou seest yond.
MIRANDA
What
is't ? a spirit ?
Lord,
how it looks about ! Believe me, sir,
It
carries a brave form. But 'tis a spirit.
PROSPERO
No,
wench ; it eats and sleeps and hath such senses
As we
have, such. This gallant which thou seest
Was in
the wreck ; and but he's something stain'd
With
grief, that's beauty's canker, thou mightst call him
A
goodly person. He hath lost his fellows,
And
strays about to find 'em.
MIRANDA
I might
call him
A thing
divine ; for nothing natural
I ever
saw so noble.
PROSPERO
[Aside] It goes on, I see,
As my
soul prompts it. Spirit, fine spirit ! I'll free thee
Within
two days for this.
FERDINAND
Most
sure, the goddess
On whom
these airs attend ! Vouchsafe my pray'r
May
know if you remain upon this island ;
And
that you will some good instruction give
How I
may bear me here. My prime request,
Which I
do last pronounce, is, O you wonder !
If you
be maid or no ?
MIRANDA
No
wonder, sir ;
But
certainly a maid.
FERDINAND
My
language ? Heavens !
I am
the best of them that speak this speech,
Were I
but where 'tis spoken.
PROSPERO
How ?
the best ?
What
wert thou, if the King of Naples heard thee ?
FERDINAND
A
single thing, as I am now, that wonders
To hear
thee speak of Naples. He does hear me ;
And
that he does I weep. Myself am Naples,
Who
with mine eyes, never since at ebb, beheld
The
King my father wreck'd.
MIRANDA
Alack,
for mercy !
FERDINAND
Yes,
faith, and all his lords, the Duke of Milan
And his
brave son being twain.
PROSPERO
[Aside] The Duke of Milan
And his
more braver daughter could control thee,
If now
'twere fit to do't. At the first sight
They
have chang'd eyes. Delicate Ariel,
I'll
set thee free for this. [To
FERDINAND] A word, good
sir ;
I fear
you have done yourself some wrong ; a word.
MIRANDA
Why
speaks my father so ungently ? This
Is the
third man that e'er I saw ; the first
That
e'er I sigh'd for. Pity move my father
To be
inclin'd my way !
FERDINAND
O, if a
virgin,
And
your affection not gone forth, I'll make you
The
Queen of Naples.
PROSPERO
Soft,
Sir ! one word more.
[Aside] They are both in either's pow'rs ; but this
swift
busines
I must
uneasy make, lest too light winning
Make
the prize light. [To FERDINAND] One word more ; I
charge
thee
That
thou attend me ; thou dost here usurp
The
name thou ow'st not ; and hast put thyself
Upon this
island as a spy, to win it
From
me, the lord on't.
FERDINAND
No, as
I am a man.
MIRANDA
There's
nothing ill can dwell in such a temple.
If the
ill spirit have so fair a house,
Good
things will strive to dwell with't.
PROSPERO
Follow
me.
Speak
not you for him ; he's a traitor. Come ;
I'll
manacle thy neck and feet together.
Sea-water
shalt thou drink ; thy food shall be
The
fresh-brook mussels, wither'd roots, and husks
Wherein
the acorn cradled. Follow.
FERDINAND
No ;
I will
resist such entertainment till
Mine
enemy has more power.
[He draws, and is charmed
from moving]
MIRANDA
O dear
father,
Make
not too rash a trial of him, for
He's
gentle, and not fearful.
PROSPERO
What, I
say,
My foot
my tutor ? Put thy sword up, traitor ;
Who
mak'st a show but dar'st not strike, thy conscience
Is so
possess'd with guilt. Come from thy ward ;
For I
can here disarm thee with this stick
And
make thy weapon drop.
MIRANDA
Beseech
you, father !
PROSPERO
Hence !
Hang not on my garments.
MIRANDA
Sir,
have pity ;
I'll be
his surety.
PROSPERO
Silence
! One word more
Shall
make me chide thee, if not hate thee. What !
An
advocate for an impostor ! hush !
Thou
think'st there is no more such shapes as he,
Having
seen but him and Caliban. Foolish wench !
To th'
most of men this is a Caliban,
And
they to him are angels.
MIRANDA
My
affections
Are
then most humble ; I have no ambition
To see
a goodlier man.
PROSPERO
Come on
; obey.
Thy
nerves are in their infancy again,
And
have no vigour in them.
FERDINAND
So they
are ;
My
spirits, as in a dream, are all bound up.
My
father's loss, the weakness which I feel,
The
wreck of all my friends, nor this man's threats
To whom
I am subdu'd, are but light to me,
Might I
but through my prison once a day
Behold
this maid. All corners else o' th' earth
Let
liberty make use of ; space enough
Have I
in such a prison.
PROSPERO
[Aside] It works.
[To FERDINAND] Come on.-
Thou
hast done well, fine Ariel ! [To
FERDINAND] Follow
me.
[To
ARIEL] Hark what thou else shalt do me.
MIRANDA
Be of
comfort ;
My
father's of a better nature, sir,
Than he
appears by speech ; this is unwonted
Which
now came from him.
PROSPERO
[To
ARIEL] Thou shalt be as free
As
mountain winds ; but then exactly do
All
points of my command.
ARIEL
To th'
syllable.
PROSPERO
[To
FERDINAND] Come, follow. [To MIRANDA]
Speak
not for him.
Exeunt
Act II.
@Scene
1
Another
part of the island
Enter
ALONSO, SEBASTIAN, ANTONIO, GONZALO, ADRIAN, FRANCISCO, and OTHERS
GONZALO
Beseech
you, sir, be merry ; you have cause,
So have
we all, of joy ; for our escape
Is much
beyond our loss. Our hint of woe
Is
common ; every day, some sailor's wife,
The
masters of some merchant, and the merchant,
Have
just our theme of woe ; but for the miracle,
I mean
our preservation, few in millions
Can
speak like us. Then wisely, good sir, weigh
Our
sorrow with our comfort.
ALONSO
Prithee,
peace.
SEBASTIAN
He
receives comfort like cold porridge.
ANTONIO
The
visitor will not give him o'er so.
SEBASTIAN
Look,
he's winding up the watch of his wit ; by
and by
it will strike.
GONZALO
Sir-
SEBASTIAN
One-Tell.
GONZALO
When
every grief is entertain'd that's offer'd,
Comes
to th' entertainer-
SEBASTIAN
A
dollar.
GONZALO
Dolour
comes to him, indeed ; you have spoken
truer
than you purpos'd.
SEBASTIAN
You
have taken it wiselier than I meant you
should.
GONZALO
Therefore,
my lord-
ANTONIO
Fie,
what a spendthrift is he of his tongue !
ALONSO
I
prithee, spare.
GONZALO
Well, I
have done ; but yet-
SEBASTIAN
He will
be talking.
ANTONIO
Which,
of he or Adrian, for a good wager, first
begins
to crow ?
SEBASTIAN
The old
cock.
ANTONIO
The
cock'rel.
SEBASTIAN
Done.
The wager ?
ANTONIO
A
laughter.
SEBASTIAN
A match
!
ADRIAN
Though
this island seem to be desert-
ANTONIO
Ha, ha,
ha !
SEBASTIAN
So,
you're paid.
ADRIAN
Uninhabitable,
and almost inaccessible-
SEBASTIAN
Yet-
ADRIAN
Yet-
ANTONIO
He
could not miss't.
ADRIAN
It must
needs be of subtle, tender, and delicate
temperance.
ANTONIO
Temperance
was a delicate wench.
SEBASTIAN
Ay, and
a subtle ; as he most learnedly
deliver'd.
ADRIAN
The air
breathes upon us here most sweetly.
SEBASTIAN
As if
it had lungs, and rotten ones.
ANTONIO
Or, as
'twere perfum'd by a fen.
GONZALO
Here is
everything advantageous to life.
ANTONIO
True ;
save means to live.
SEBASTIAN
Of that
there's none, or little.
GONZALO
How
lush and lusty the grass looks ! how green !
ANTONIO
The
ground indeed is tawny.
SEBASTIAN
With an
eye of green in't.
ANTONIO
He
misses not much.
SEBASTIAN
No ; he
doth but mistake the truth totally.
GONZALO
But the
rarity of it is, which is indeed almost
beyond
credit-
SEBASTIAN
As many
vouch'd rarities are.
GONZALO
That
our garments, being, as they were, drench'd
in the
sea, hold, notwithstanding, their freshness and
glosses,
being rather new-dy'd, than stain'd with salt
water.
ANTONIO
If but
one of his pockets could speak, would it
not say
he lies ?
SEBASTIAN
Ay, or
very falsely pocket up his report.
GONZALO
Methinks
our garments are now as fresh as when
we put
them on first in Afric, at the marriage of the
King's
fair daughter Claribel to the King of Tunis.
SEBASTIAN
'Twas a
sweet marriage, and we prosper well in
our
return.
ADRIAN
Tunis
was never grac'd before with such a paragon
to
their queen.
GONZALO
Not
since widow Dido's time.
ANTONIO
Widow !
a pox o' that ! How came that 'widow'
in ?
Widow Dido !
SEBASTIAN
What if
he had said 'widower Aeneas' too ?
Good
Lord, how you take it !
ADRIAN
'Widow
Dido' said you ? You make me study of
that.
She was of Carthage, not of Tunis.
GONZALO
This
Tunis, sir, was Carthage.
ADRIAN
Carthage
?
GONZALO
I
assure you, Carthage.
ANTONIO
His
word is more than the miraculous harp.
SEBASTIAN
He hath
rais'd the wall, and houses too.
ANTONIO
What
impossible matter will he make easy next ?
SEBASTIAN
I think
he will carry this island home in his
pocket,
and give it his son for an apple.
ANTONIO
And,
sowing the kernels of it in the sea, bring
forth
more islands.
GONZALO
Ay.
ANTONIO
Why, in
good time.
GONZALO
Sir, we
were talking that our garments seem now
as
fresh as when we were at Tunis at the marriage of
your
daughter, who is now Queen.
ANTONIO
And the
rarest that e'er came there.
SEBASTIAN
Bate, I
beseech you, widow Dido.
ANTONIO
O,
widow Dido ! Ay, widow Dido.
GONZALO
Is not,
sir, my doublet as fresh as the first day I
wore it
? I mean, in a sort.
ANTONIO
That
'sort' was well fish'd for.
GONZALO
When I
wore it at your daughter's marriage ?
ALONSO
You cram
these words into mine ears against
The
stomach of my sense. Would I had never
Married
my daughter there ; for, coming thence,
My son
is lost ; and, in my rate, she too,
Who is
so far from Italy removed
I ne'er
again shall see her. O thou mine heir
Of
Naples and of Milan, what strange fish
Hath
made his meal on thee ?
FRANCISCO
Sir, he
may live ;
I saw
him beat the surges under him,
And
ride upon their backs ; he trod the water,
Whose
enmity he flung aside, and breasted
The
surge most swoln that met him ; his bold head
'Bove
the contentious waves he kept, and oared
Himself
with his good arms in lusty stroke
To th'
shore, that o'er his wave-worn basis bowed,
As
stooping to relieve him. I not doubt
He came
alive to land.
ALONSO
No, no,
he's gone.
SEBASTIAN
Sir,
you may thank yourself for this great loss,
That
would not bless our Europe with your daughter,
But
rather lose her to an African ;
Where
she, at least, is banish'd from your eye,
Who
hath cause to wet the grief on't.
ALONSO
Prithee,
peace.
SEBASTIAN
You
were kneel'd to, and importun'd otherwise
By all
of us ; and the fair soul herself
Weigh'd
between loathness and obedience at
Which
end o' th' beam should bow. We have lost your son,
I fear,
for ever. Milan and Naples have
Moe
widows in them of this business' making,
Than we
bring men to comfort them ;
The
fault's your own.
ALONSO
So is
the dear'st o' th' loss.
GONZALO
My lord
Sebastian,
The
truth you speak doth lack some gentleness,
And
time to speak it in ; you rub the sore,
When
you should bring the plaster.
SEBASTIAN
Very
well.
ANTONIO
And
most chirurgeonly.
GONZALO
It is
foul weather in us all, good sir,
When
you are cloudy.
SEBASTIAN
Foul
weather ?
ANTONIO
Very
foul.
GONZALO
Had I
plantation of this isle, my lord-
ANTONIO
He'd
sow 't with nettle-seed.
SEBASTIAN
Or
docks, or mallows.
GONZALO
And
were the king on't, what would I do ?
SEBASTIAN
Scape
being drunk for want of wine.
GONZALO
I' th'
commonwealth I would by contraries
Execute
all things ; for no kind of traffic
Would I
admit ; no name of magistrate ;
Letters
should not be known ; riches, poverty,
And use
of service, none ; contract, succession,
Bourn,
bound of land, tilth, vineyard, none ;
No use
of metal, corn, or wine, or oil ;
No
occupation ; all men idle, all ;
And
women too, but innocent and pure ;
No
sovereignty-
SEBASTIAN
Yet he
would be king on't.
ANTONIO
The
latter end of his commonwealth forgets the
beginning.
GONZALO
All
things in common nature should produce
Without
sweat or endeavour. Treason, felony,
Sword,
pike, knife, gun, or need of any engine,
Would I
not have ; but nature should bring forth,
Of it
own kind, all foison, all abundance,
To feed
my innocent people.
SEBASTIAN
No
marrying 'mong his subjects ?
ANTONIO
None,
man ; all idle ; whores and knaves.
GONZALO
I would
with such perfection govern, sir,
T'
excel the golden age.
SEBASTIAN
Save
his Majesty !
ANTONIO
Long
live Gonzalo !
GONZALO
And-do
you mark me, sir ?
ALONSO
Prithee,
no more ; thou dost talk nothing to me.
GONZALO
I do
well believe your Highness ; and did it to
minister
occasion to these gentlemen, who are of such
sensible
and nimble lungs that they always use to laugh
at
nothing.
ANTONIO
'Twas
you we laugh'd at.
GONZALO
Who in
this kind of merry fooling am nothing to
you ;
so you may continue, and laugh at nothing still.
ANTONIO
What a
blow was there given !
SEBASTIAN
An it
had not fall'n flat-long.
GONZALO
You are
gentlemen of brave mettle ; you would
lift
the moon out of her sphere, if she would continue
in it
five weeks without changing.
Enter ARIEL, invisible, playing solemn
music
SEBASTIAN
We
would so, and then go a-bat-fowling.
ANTONIO
Nay,
good my lord, be not angry.
GONZALO
No, I
warrant you ; I will not adventure my
discretion
so weakly. Will you laugh me asleep, for I am
very
heavy ?
ANTONIO
Go
sleep, and hear us.
[All sleep but ALONSO, SEBASTIAN
and ANTONIO]
ALONSO
What,
all so soon asleep ! I wish mine eyes
Would,
with themselves, shut up my thoughts ; I find
They
are inclin'd to do so.
SEBASTIAN
Please
you, sir,
Do not
omit the heavy offer of it :
It
seldom visits sorrow ; when it doth,
It is a
comforter.
ANTONIO
We two,
my lord,
Will
guard your person while you take your rest,
And
watch your safety.
ALONSO
Thank
you-wondrous heavy !
[ALONSO
sleeps. Exit ARIEL]
SEBASTIAN
What a
strange drowsiness possesses them !
ANTONIO
It is
the quality o' th' climate.
SEBASTIAN
Why
Doth it
not then our eyelids sink ? I find not
Myself
dispos'd to sleep.
ANTONIO
Nor I ;
my spirits are nimble.
They
fell together all, as by consent ;
They
dropp'd, as by a thunder-stroke. What might,
Worthy
Sebastian ? O, what might ! No more !
And yet
methinks I see it in thy face,
What
thou shouldst be ; th' occasion speaks thee ; and
My
strong imagination sees a crown
Dropping
upon thy head.
SEBASTIAN
What,
art thou waking ?
ANTONIO
Do you
not hear me speak ?
SEBASTIAN
I do ;
and surely
It is a
sleepy language, and thou speak'st
Out of
thy sleep. What is it thou didst say ?
This is
a strange repose, to be asleep
With
eyes wide open ; standing, speaking, moving,
And yet
so fast asleep.
ANTONIO
Noble
Sebastian,
Thou
let'st thy fortune sleep-die rather ; wink'st
Whiles
thou art waking.
SEBASTIAN
Thou
dost snore distinctly ;
There's
meaning in thy snores.
ANTONIO
I am
more serious than my custom ; you
Must be
so too, if heed me ; which to do
Trebles
thee o'er.
SEBASTIAN
Well, I
am standing water.
ANTONIO
I'll
teach you how to flow.
SEBASTIAN
Do so :
to ebb,
Hereditary
sloth instructs me.
ANTONIO
O,
If you
but knew how you the purpose cherish,
Whiles
thus you mock it ! how, in stripping it,
You
more invest it ! Ebbing men indeed,
Most
often, do so near the bottom run
By
their own fear or sloth.
SEBASTIAN
Prithee
say on.
The
setting of thine eye and cheek proclaim
A
matter from thee ; and a birth, indeed,
Which
throes thee much to yield.
ANTONIO
Thus,
sir :
Although
this lord of weak remembrance, this
Who
shall be of as little memory
When he
is earth'd, hath here almost persuaded-
For
he's a spirit of persuasion, only
Professes
to persuade-the King his son's alive,
'Tis as
impossible that he's undrown'd
As he
that sleeps here swims.
SEBASTIAN
I have
no hope
That
he's undrown'd.
ANTONIO
O, out
of that 'no hope'
What
great hope have you ! No hope that way is
Another
way so high a hope, that even
Ambition
cannot pierce a wink beyond,
But
doubt discovery there. Will you grant with me
That
Ferdinand is drown'd ?
SEBASTIAN
He's
gone.
ANTONIO
Then
tell me,
Who's
the next heir of Naples ?
SEBASTIAN
Claribel.
ANTONIO
She
that is Queen of Tunis ; she that dwells
Ten
leagues beyond man's life ; she that from Naples
Can
have no note, unless the sun were post,
The Man
i' th' Moon's too slow, till newborn chins
Be
rough and razorable ; she that from whom
We all
were sea-swallow'd, though some cast again,
And by
that destiny, to perform an act
Whereof
what's past is prologue, what to come
In
yours and my discharge.
SEBASTIAN
What
stuff is this ! How say you ?
'Tis
true, my brother's daughter's Queen of Tunis ;
So is
she heir of Naples ; 'twixt which regions
There
is some space.
ANTONIO
A space
whose ev'ry cubit
Seems
to cry out 'How shall that Claribel
Measure
us back to Naples ? Keep in Tunis,
And let
Sebastian wake.' Say this were death
That
now hath seiz'd them ; why, they were no worse
Than
now they are. There be that can rule Naples
As well
as he that sleeps ; lords that can prate
As
amply and unnecessarily
As this
Gonzalo ; I myself could make
A
chough of as deep chat. O, that you bore
The
mind that I do ! What a sleep were this
For
your advancement ! Do you understand me ?
SEBASTIAN
Methinks
I do.
ANTONIO
And how
does your content
Tender
your own good fortune ?
SEBASTIAN
I
remember
You did
supplant your brother Prospero.
ANTONIO
True.
And
look how well my garments sit upon me,
Much
feater than before. My brother's servants
Were
then my fellows ; now they are my men.
SEBASTIAN
But,
for your conscience-
ANTONIO
Ay, sir
; where lies that ? If 'twere a kibe,
'Twould
put me to my slipper ; but I feel not
This deity
in my bosom ; twenty consciences
That
stand 'twixt me and Milan, candied be they
And
melt, ere they molest ! Here lies your brother,
No
better than the earth he lies upon,
If he
were that which now he's like-that's dead ;
Whom I
with this obedient steel, three inches of it,
Can lay
to bed for ever ; whiles you, doing thus,
To the
perpetual wink for aye might put
This
ancient morsel, this Sir Prudence, who
Should
not upbraid our course. For all the rest,
They'll
take suggestion as a cat laps milk ;
They'll
tell the clock to any business that
We say
befits the hour.
SEBASTIAN
Thy
case, dear friend,
Shall
be my precedent ; as thou got'st Milan,
I'll
come by Naples. Draw thy sword. One stroke
Shall
free thee from the tribute which thou payest ;
And I
the King shall love thee.
ANTONIO
Draw
together ;
And
when I rear my hand, do you the like,
To fall
it on Gonzalo.
SEBASTIAN
O, but
one word. [They talk
apart]
Re-enter ARIEL, invisible, with music and
song
ARIEL
My
master through his art foresees the danger
That
you, his friend, are in ; and sends me forth-
For
else his project dies-to keep them living.
[Sings in
GONZALO'S ear]
While
you here do snoring lie,
Open-ey'd
conspiracy
His
time doth take.
If of
life you keep a care,
Shake
off slumber, and beware.
Awake,
awake !
ANTONIO
Then
let us both be sudden.
GONZALO
Now,
good angels
Preserve
the King !
[They wake]
ALONSO
Why,
how now ?-Ho, awake !-Why are you drawn ?
Wherefore
this ghastly looking ?
GONZALO
What's
the matter ?
SEBASTIAN
Whiles
we stood here securing your repose,
Even
now, we heard a hollow burst of bellowing
Like
bulls, or rather lions ; did't not wake you ?
It
struck mine ear most terribly.
ALONSO
I heard
nothing.
ANTONIO
O,
'twas a din to fright a monster's ear,
To make
an earthquake ! Sure it was the roar
Of a
whole herd of lions.
ALONSO
Heard
you this, Gonzalo ?
GONZALO
Upon
mine honour, sir, I heard a humming,
And
that a strange one too, which did awake me ;
I
shak'd you, sir, and cried ; as mine eyes open'd,
I saw
their weapons drawn-there was a noise,
That's
verily. 'Tis best we stand upon our guard,
Or that
we quit this place. Let's draw our weapons.
ALONSO
Lead
off this ground ; and let's make further
search
For my
poor son.
GONZALO
Heavens
keep him from these beasts !
For he
is, sure, i' th' island.
ALONSO
Lead
away.
ARIEL
Prospero
my lord shall know what I have done ;
So,
King, go safely on to seek thy son. Exeunt
@Scene
2
Another
part of the island
Enter
CALIBAN, with a burden of wood. A noise of thunder heard
CALIBAN
All the
infections that the sun sucks up
From
bogs, fens, flats, on Prosper fall, and make him
By
inch-meal a disease ! His spirits hear me,
And yet
I needs must curse. But they'll nor pinch,
Fright
me with urchin-shows, pitch me i' th' mire,
Nor
lead me, like a firebrand, in the dark
Out of
my way, unless he bid 'em ; but
For
every trifle are they set upon me ;
Sometime
like apes that mow and chatter at me,
And
after bite me ; then like hedgehogs which
Lie
tumbling in my barefoot way, and mount
Their
pricks at my footfall ; sometime am I
All
wound with adders, who with cloven tongues
Do hiss
me into madness.
Enter TRINCULO
Lo,
now, lo !
Here
comes a spirit of his, and to torment me
For
bringing wood in slowly. I'll fall flat ;
Perchance
he will not mind me.
TRINCULO
Here's
neither bush nor shrub to bear off any
weather
at all, and another storm brewing ; I hear it
sing i'
th' wind. Yond same black cloud, yond huge one,
looks
like a foul bombard that would shed his liquor. If
it
should thunder as it did before, I know not where to
hide my
head. Yond same cloud cannot choose but fall by
pailfuls.
What have we here ? a man or a fish ? dead or
alive ?
A fish : he smells like a fish ; a very ancient and
fish-like
smell ; kind of not-of-the-newest Poor-John. A
strange
fish ! Were I in England now, as once I was, and
had but
this fish painted, not a holiday fool there but
would
give a piece of silver. There would this monster
make a
man ; any strange beast there makes a man ; when
they
will not give a doit to relieve a lame beggar, they
will
lay out ten to see a dead Indian. Legg'd like a
man,
and his fins like arms ! Warm, o' my troth ! I do now
let
loose my opinion ; hold it no longer : this is no
fish,
but an islander, that hath lately suffered by
thunderbolt. [Thunder]
Alas, the storm is come again ! My
best
way is to creep under his gaberdine ; there is no
other
shelter hereabout. Misery acquaints a man with
strange
bed-fellows. I will here shroud till the dregs
of the
storm be past.
Enter STEPHANO singing ; a bottle in
his hand
STEPHANO
I shall
no more to sea, to sea,
Here
shall I die ashore-
This is
a very scurvy tune to sing at a man's funeral ;
well,
here's my comfort. [Drinks]
The
master, the swabber, the boatswain, and I,
The
gunner, and his mate,
Lov'd
Mall, Meg, and Marian, and Margery,
But
none of us car'd for Kate ;
For she
had a tongue with a tang,
Would
cry to a sailor 'Go hang !'
She
lov'd not the savour of tar nor of pitch,
Yet a
tailor might scratch her where'er she did itch.
Then to
sea, boys, and let her go hang !
This is
a scurvy tune too ; but here's my comfort.
[Drinks]
CALIBAN
Do not
torment me. O !
STEPHANO
What's
the matter ? Have we devils here ? Do you
put
tricks upon 's with savages and men of Ind ? Ha ! I
have
not scap'd drowning to be afeard now of your four
legs ;
for it hath been said : As proper a man as ever
went on
four legs cannot make him give ground ; and it
shall
be said so again, while Stephano breathes at
nostrils.
CALIBAN
The
spirit torments me. O !
STEPHANO
This is
some monster of the isle with four legs,
who
hath got, as I take it, an ague. Where the devil
should
he learn our language ? I will give him some
relief,
if it be but for that. If I can recover him, and
keep
him tame, and get to Naples with him, he's a
present
for any emperor that ever trod on neat's
leather.
CALIBAN
Do not
torment me, prithee ; I'll bring my wood
home
faster.
STEPHANO
He's in
his fit now, and does not talk after the
wisest.
He shall taste of my bottle ; if he have never
drunk
wine afore, it will go near to remove his fit. If
I can
recover him, and keep him tame, I will not take
too
much for him ; he shall pay for him that hath him,
and
that soundly.
CALIBAN
Thou
dost me yet but little hurt ; thou wilt anon,
I know
it by thy trembling ; now Prosper works upon thee.
STEPHANO
Come on
your ways ; open your mouth ; here is
that
which will give language to you, cat. Open your
mouth ;
this will shake your shaking, I can tell you, and
that
soundly ; you cannot tell who's your friend. Open
your
chaps again.
TRINCULO
I should
know that voice ; it should be-but he is
drown'd
; and these are devils. O, defend me !
STEPHANO
Four
legs and two voices ; a most delicate monster !
His
forward voice, now, is to speak well of his
friend
; his backward voice is to utter foul speeches and
to
detract. If all the wine in my bottle will recover
him, I
will help his ague. Come-Amen ! I will pour some
in thy
other mouth.
TRINCULO
Stephano
!
STEPHANO
Doth
thy other mouth call me ? Mercy, mercy !
This is
a devil, and no monster ; I will leave him ; I
have no
long spoon.
TRINCULO
Stephano
! If thou beest Stephano, touch me, and
speak
to me ; for I am Trinculo-be not afeard-thy good
friend
Trinculo.
STEPHANO
If thou
beest Trinculo, come forth ; I'll pull
the by
the lesser legs ; if any be Trinculo's legs, these
are
they. Thou art very Trinculo indeed ! How cam'st thou
to be
the siege of this moon-calf ? Can he vent
Trinculos
?
TRINCULO
I took
him to be kill'd with a thunderstroke.
But art
thou not drown'd, Stephano ? I hope now thou are
not
drown'd. Is the storm overblown ? I hid me under the
dead
moon-calf's gaberdine for fear of the storm. And
art
thou living, Stephano ? O Stephano, two Neapolitans
scap'd
!
STEPHANO
Prithee,
do not turn me about ; my stomach is not
constant.
CALIBAN
[Aside] These be fine things, an if they be not
sprites.
That's
a brave god, and bears celestial liquor.
I will
kneel to him.
STEPHANO
How
didst thou scape ? How cam'st thou hither ?
Swear by
this bottle how thou cam'st hither-I escap'd
upon a
butt of sack, which the sailors heaved o'erboard-
by this
bottle, which I made of the bark of a tree, with
mine
own hands, since I was cast ashore.
CALIBAN
I'll
swear upon that bottle to be thy true
subject,
for the liquor is not earthly.
STEPHANO
Here ;
swear then how thou escap'dst.
TRINCULO
Swum
ashore, man, like a duck ; I can swim like
a duck,
I'll be sworn.
STEPHANO
[Passing
the bottle] Here, kiss the book. Though
thou
canst swim like a duck, thou art made like a
goose.
TRINCULO
O
Stephano, hast any more of this ?
STEPHANO
The
whole butt, man ; my cellar is in a rock by
th'
seaside, where my wine is hid. How now, moon-calf !
How
does thine ague ?
CALIBAN
Hast
thou not dropp'd from heaven ?
STEPHANO
Out o'
th' moon, I do assure thee ; I was the Man
i' th'
Moon, when time was.
CALIBAN
I have
seen thee in her, and I do adore thee. My
mistress
show'd me thee, and thy dog and thy bush.
STEPHANO
Come,
swear to that ; kiss the book. I will
furnish
it anon with new contents. Swear.
[CALIBAN drinks]
TRINCULO
By this
good light, this is a very shallow
monster
!
I
afeard of him ! A very weak monster ! The Man i' th'
Moon !
A most poor credulous monster ! Well drawn,
monster,
in good sooth !
CALIBAN
I'll
show thee every fertile inch o' th' island ;
and
will kiss thy foot. I prithee be my god.
TRINCULO
By this
light, a most perfidious and drunken
monster
! When's god's asleep he'll rob his bottle.
CALIBAN
I'll
kiss thy foot ; I'll swear myself thy
subject.
STEPHANO
Come
on, then ; down, and swear.
TRINCULO
I shall
laugh myself to death at this puppy-
headed
monster. A most scurvy monster ! I could find in
my
heart to beat him-
STEPHANO
Come,
kiss.
TRINCULO
But
that the poor monster's in drink. An
abominable
monster !
CALIBAN
I'll
show thee the best springs ; I'll pluck thee
berries
;
I'll
fish for thee, and get thee wood enough.
A
plague upon the tyrant that I serve !
I'll
bear him no more sticks, but follow thee,
Thou
wondrous man.
TRINCULO
A most
ridiculous monster, to make a wonder of
a poor
drunkard !
CALIBAN
I
prithee let me bring thee where crabs grow ;
And I
with my long nails will dig thee pig-nuts ;
Show
thee a jay's nest, and instruct thee how
To
snare the nimble marmoset ; I'll bring thee
To
clust'ring filberts, and sometimes I'll get thee
Young
scamels from the rock. Wilt thou go with me ?
STEPHANO
I
prithee now, lead the way without any more
talking.
Trinculo, the King and all our company else
being
drown'd, we will inherit here. Here, bear my bottle.
Fellow
Trinculo, we'll fill him by and by again.
CALIBAN
[Sings
drunkenly] Farewell, master ; farewell,
farewell
!
TRINCULO
A
howling monster ; a drunken monster !
CALIBAN
No more
dams I'll make for fish ;
Nor
fetch in firing
At
requiring,
Nor
scrape trenchering, nor wash dish.
'Ban
'Ban, Ca-Caliban,
Has a
new master-Get a new man.
Freedom,
high-day ! high-day, freedom ! freedom, high-
day,
freedom !
STEPHANO
O brave
monster ! Lead the way.
Exeunt
Act
III.
@Scene
1
Before
PROSPERO'S cell
Enter
FERDINAND, hearing a log
FERDINAND
There
be some sports are painful, and their
labour
Delight
in them sets off ; some kinds of baseness
Are
nobly undergone, and most poor matters
Point
to rich ends. This my mean task
Would
be as heavy to me as odious, but
The
mistress which I serve quickens what's dead,
And
makes my labours pleasures. O, she is
Ten
times more gentle than her father's crabbed ;
And
he's compos'd of harshness. I must remove
Some
thousands of these logs, and pile them up,
Upon a
sore injunction ; my sweet mistress
Weeps
when she sees me work, and says such baseness
Had
never like executor. I forget ;
But
these sweet thoughts do even refresh my labours,
Most
busy, least when I do it.
Enter MIRANDA ; and PROSPERO at a distance,
unseen
MIRANDA
Alas,
now ; pray you,
Work
not so hard ; I would the lightning had
Burnt
up those logs that you are enjoin'd to pile.
Pray,
set it down and rest you ; when this burns,
'Twill
weep for having wearied you. My father
Is hard
at study ; pray, now, rest yourself ;
He's
safe for these three hours.
FERDINAND
O most
dear mistress,
The sun
will set before I shall discharge
What I
must strive to do.
MIRANDA
If
you'll sit down,
I'll
bear your logs the while ; pray give me that ;
I'll
carry it to the pile.
FERDINAND
No,
precious creature ;
I had
rather crack my sinews, break my back,
Than
you should such dishonour undergo,
While I
sit lazy by.
MIRANDA
It
would become me
As well
as it does you ; and I should do it
With
much more ease ; for my good will is to it,
And
yours it is against.
PROSPERO
[Aside] Poor worm, thou art infected !
This
visitation shows it.
MIRANDA
You
look wearily.
FERDINAND
No,
noble mistress ; 'tis fresh morning with me
When
you are by at night. I do beseech you,
Chiefly
that I might set it in my prayers,
What is
your name ?
MIRANDA
Miranda-O
my father,
I have
broke your hest to say so !
FERDINAND
Admir'd
Miranda !
What's
dearest to the world ! Full many a lady
I have
ey'd with best regard ; and many a time
Th'
harmony of their tongues hath into bondage
Brought
my too diligent ear ; for several virtues
Have I
lik'd several women, never any
With so
full soul, but some defect in her
Did
quarrel with the noblest grace she ow'd,
And put
it to the foil ; but you, O you,
So
perfect and so peerless, are created
Of
every creature's best !
MIRANDA
I do
not know
One of
my sex ; no woman's face remember,
Save,
from my glass, mine own ; nor have I seen
More
that I may call men than you, good friend,
And my
dear father. How features are abroad,
I am
skilless of ; but, by my modesty,
The
jewel in my dower, I would not wish
Any
companion in the world but you ;
Nor can
imagination form a shape,
Besides
yourself, to like of. But I prattle
Something
too wildly, and my father's precepts
I
therein do forget.
FERDINAND
I am,
in my condition,
A
prince, Miranda ; I do think, a king-
I would
not so !-and would no more endure
This
wooden slavery than to suffer
The
flesh-fly blow my mouth. Hear my soul speak :
The
very instant that I saw you, did
My
heart fly to your service ; there resides
To make
me slave to it ; and for your sake
Am I
this patient log-man.
MIRANDA
Do you
love me ?
FERDINAND
O
heaven, O earth, bear witness to this sound,
And
crown what I profess with kind event,
If I
speak true ! If hollowly, invert
What
best is boded me to mischief ! I,
Beyond
all limit of what else i' th' world,
Do
love, prize, honour you.
MIRANDA
I am a
fool
To weep
at what I am glad of.
PROSPERO
[Aside] Fair encounter
Of two
most rare affections ! Heavens rain grace
On that
which breeds between 'em !
FERDINAND
Wherefore
weep you ?
MIRANDA
At mine
unworthiness, that dare not offer
What I
desire to give, and much less take
What I
shall die to want. But this is trifling ;
And all
the more it seeks to hide itself,
The
bigger bulk it shows. Hence, bashful cunning !
And
prompt me, plain and holy innocence !
I am
your wife, if you will marry me ;
If not,
I'll die your maid. To be your fellow
You may
deny me ; but I'll be your servant,
Whether
you will or no.
FERDINAND
My
mistress, dearest ;
And I
thus humble ever.
MIRANDA
My
husband, then ?
FERDINAND
Ay,
with a heart as willing
As
bondage e'er of freedom. Here's my hand.
MIRANDA
And
mine, with my heart in't. And now farewell
Till
half an hour hence.
FERDINAND
A
thousand thousand !
Exeunt FERDINAND and MIRANDA
severally
PROSPERO
So glad
of this as they I cannot be,
Who are
surpris'd withal ; but my rejoicing
At
nothing can be more. I'll to my book ;
For yet
ere supper time must I perform
Much
business appertaining. Exit
@Scene
2
Another
part of the island
Enter
CALIBAN, STEPHANO, and TRINCULO
STEPHANO
Tell
not me-when the butt is out we will drink
water,
not a drop before ; therefore bear up, and board
'em.
Servant-monster, drink to me.
TRINCULO
Servant-monster
! The folly of this island ! They
say
there's but five upon this isle : we are three of
them ;
if th' other two be brain'd like us, the state
totters.
STEPHANO
Drink,
servant-monster, when I bid thee ; thy
eyes
are almost set in thy head.
TRINCULO
Where
should they be set else ? He were a brave
monster
indeed, if they were set in his tail.
STEPHANO
My
man-monster hath drown'd his tongue in
sack.
For my part, the sea cannot drown me ; I swam, ere
I could
recover the shore, five and thirty leagues, off
and on.
By this light, thou shalt be my lieutenant,
monster,
or my standard.
TRINCULO
Your
lieutenant, if you list ; he's no standard.
STEPHANO
We'll
not run, Monsieur Monster.
TRINCULO
Nor go
neither ; but you'll lie like dogs, and
yet say
nothing neither.
STEPHANO
Moon-calf,
speak once in thy life, if thou beest
a good
moon-calf.
CALIBAN
How
does thy honour ? Let me lick thy shoe.
I'll
not serve him ; he is not valiant.
TRINCULO
Thou
liest, most ignorant monster : I am in case
to
justle a constable. Why, thou debosh'd fish, thou,
was
there ever man a coward that hath drunk so much sack
as I
to-day ? Wilt thou tell a monstrous lie, being but
half
fish and half a monster ?
CALIBAN
Lo, how
he mocks me ! Wilt thou let him, my
lord ?
TRINCULO
'Lord'
quoth he ! That a monster should be such
a
natural !
CALIBAN
Lo, lo
again ! Bite him to death, I prithee.
STEPHANO
Trinculo,
keep a good tongue in your head ; if
you
prove a mutineer-the next tree ! The poor monster's
my
subject, and he shall not suffer indignity.
CALIBAN
I thank
my noble lord. Wilt thou be pleas'd to
hearken
once again to the suit I made to thee ?
STEPHANO
Marry
will I ; kneel and repeat it ; I will stand,
and so
shall Trinculo.
Enter ARIEL, invisible
CALIBAN
As I
told thee before, I am subject to a tyrant,
sorcerer,
that by his cunning hath cheated me of the
island.
ARIEL
Thou
liest.
CALIBAN
Thou
liest, thou jesting monkey, thou ;
I would
my valiant master would destroy thee.
I do
not lie.
STEPHANO
Trinculo,
if you trouble him any more in's tale,
by this
hand, I will supplant some of your teeth.
TRINCULO
Why, I
said nothing.
STEPHANO
Mum,
then, and no more. Proceed.
CALIBAN
I say,
by sorcery he got this isle ;
From me
he got it. If thy greatness will
Revenge
it on him-for I know thou dar'st,
But
this thing dare not-
STEPHANO
That's
most certain.
CALIBAN
Thou
shalt be lord of it, and I'll serve thee.
STEPHANO
How now
shall this be compass'd ? Canst thou
bring
me to the party ?
CALIBAN
Yea,
yea, my lord ; I'll yield him thee asleep,
Where
thou mayst knock a nail into his head.
ARIEL
Thou
liest ; thou canst not.
CALIBAN
What a
pied ninny's this ! Thou scurvy patch !
I do
beseech thy greatness, give him blows,
And
take his bottle from him. When that's gone
He
shall drink nought but brine ; for I'll not show him
Where
the quick freshes are.
STEPHANO
Trinculo,
run into no further danger ; interrupt
the
monster one word further and, by this hand, I'll turn
my
mercy out o' doors, and make a stock-fish of thee.
TRINCULO
Why,
what did I ? I did nothing. I'll go farther
off.
STEPHANO
Didst
thou not say he lied ?
ARIEL
Thou
liest.
STEPHANO
Do I so
? Take thou that. [Beats him] As you like
this,
give me the lie another time.
TRINCULO
I did
not give the lie. Out o' your wits and
hearing
too ? A pox o' your bottle ! This can sack and
drinking
do. A murrain on your monster, and the devil
take
your fingers !
CALIBAN
Ha, ha,
ha !
STEPHANO
Now,
forward with your tale.-Prithee stand
further
off.
CALIBAN
Beat
him enough ; after a little time, I'll beat
him
too.
STEPHANO
Stand
farther. Come, proceed.
CALIBAN
Why, as
I told thee, 'tis a custom with him
I' th'
afternoon to sleep ; there thou mayst brain him,
Having
first seiz'd his books ; or with a log
Batter
his skull, or paunch him with a stake,
Or cut
his wezand with thy knife. Remember
First
to possess his books ; for without them
He's
but a sot, as I am, nor hath not
One
spirit to command ; they all do hate him
As
rootedly as I. Burn but his books.
He has
brave utensils-for so he calls them-
Which,
when he has a house, he'll deck withal.
And
that most deeply to consider is
The
beauty of his daughter ; he himself
Calls
her a nonpareil. I never saw a woman
But
only Sycorax my dam and she ;
But she
as far surpasseth Sycorax
As
great'st does least.
STEPHANO
Is it
so brave a lass ?
CALIBAN
Ay,
lord ; she will become thy bed, I warrant,
And
bring thee forth brave brood.
STEPHANO
Monster,
I will kill this man ; his daughter and I
will be
King and Queen-save our Graces !-and Trinculo
and
thyself shall be viceroys. Dost thou like the plot,
Trinculo
?
TRINCULO
Excellent.
STEPHANO
Give me
thy hand ; I am sorry I beat thee ; but
while
thou liv'st, keep a good tongue in thy head.
CALIBAN
Within
this half hour will he be asleep.
Wilt
thou destroy him then ?
STEPHANO
Ay, on
mine honour.
ARIEL
This
will I tell my master.
CALIBAN
Thou
mak'st me merry ; I am full of pleasure.
Let us
be jocund ; will you troll the catch
You
taught me but while-ere ?
STEPHANO
At thy
request, monster, I will do reason, any
reason.
Come on, Trinculo, let us sing.
[Sings]
Flout
'em and scout 'em,
And
scout 'em and flout 'em ;
Thought
is free.
CALIBAN
That's
not the tune.
[ARIEL plays the tune on a
tabor and pipe]
STEPHANO
What is
this same ?
TRINCULO
This is
the tune of our catch, play'd by the
picture
of Nobody.
STEPHANO
If thou
beest a man, show thyself in thy
likeness
; if thou beest a devil, take't as thou list.
TRINCULO
O,
forgive me my sins !
STEPHANO
He that
dies pays all debts. I defy thee. Mercy
upon us
!
CALIBAN
Art
thou afeard ?
STEPHANO
No,
monster, not I.
CALIBAN
Be not
afeard. The isle is full of noises,
Sounds,
and sweet airs, that give delight, and hurt not.
Sometimes
a thousand twangling instruments
Will
hum about mine ears ; and sometimes voices,
That,
if I then had wak'd after long sleep,
Will
make me sleep again ; and then, in dreaming,
The
clouds methought would open and show riches
Ready
to drop upon me, that, when I wak'd,
I cried
to dream again.
STEPHANO
This
will prove a brave kingdom to me, where I
shall
have my music for nothing.
CALIBAN
When
Prospero is destroy'd.
STEPHANO
That
shall be by and by ; I remember the story.
TRINCULO
The
sound is going away ; let's follow it, and
after
do our work.
STEPHANO
Lead,
monster ; we'll follow. I would I could see
this
taborer ; he lays it on.
TRINCULO
Wilt
come ? I'll follow, Stephano.
Exeunt
@Scene
3
Another
part of the island
Enter
ALONSO, SEBASTIAN, ANTONIO, GONZALO, ADRIAN, FRANCISCO, and OTHERS
GONZALO
By'r
lakin, I can go no further, sir ;
My old
bones ache. Here's a maze trod, indeed,
Through
forth-rights and meanders ! By your patience,
I needs
must rest me.
ALONSO
Old
lord, I cannot blame thee,
Who am
myself attach'd with weariness
To th'
dulling of my spirits ; sit down and rest.
Even
here I will put off my hope, and keep it
No
longer for my flatterer ; he is drown'd
Whom
thus we stray to find, and the sea mocks
Our
frustrate search on land. Well, let him go.
ANTONIO
[Aside
to SEBASTIAN] I am right glad that he's
so out
of hope.
Do not,
for one repulse, forgo the purpose
That
you resolv'd t' effect.
SEBASTIAN
[Aside
to ANTONIO] The next advantage
Will we
take throughly.
ANTONIO
[Aside
to SEBASTIAN] Let it be to-night ;
For,
now they are oppress'd with travel, they
Will
not, nor cannot, use such vigilance
As when
they are fresh.
SEBASTIAN
[Aside
to ANTONIO] I say, to-night ; no more.
Solemn and strange music ; and PROSPERO
on the top, invisible. Enter several strange SHAPES, bringing in a banquet ;
and dance about it with gentle actions of salutations ; and inviting the KING,
etc., to eat, they depart
ALONSO
What
harmony is this ? My good friends, hark !
GONZALO
Marvellous
sweet music !
ALONSO
Give us
kind keepers, heavens ! What were these ?
SEBASTIAN
A
living drollery. Now I will believe
That
there are unicorns ; that in Arabia
There
is one tree, the phoenix' throne, one phoenix
At this
hour reigning-there.
ANTONIO
I'll
believe both ;
And
what does else want credit, come to me,
And
I'll be sworn 'tis true ; travellers ne'er did lie,
Though
fools at home condemn 'em.
GONZALO
If in
Naples
I
should report this now, would they believe me ?
If I
should say, I saw such islanders,
For
certes these are people of the island,
Who
though they are of monstrous shape yet, note,
Their
manners are more gentle-kind than of
Our
human generation you shall find
Many,
nay, almost any.
PROSPERO
[Aside] Honest lord,
Thou
hast said well ; for some of you there present
Are
worse than devils.
ALONSO
I
cannot too much muse
Such
shapes, such gesture, and such sound, expressing,
Although
they want the use of tongue, a kind
Of
excellent dumb discourse.
PROSPERO
[Aside] Praise in departing.
FRANCISCO
They
vanish'd strangely.
SEBASTIAN
No
matter, since
They
have left their viands behind ; for we have stomachs.
Will't
please you taste of what is here ?
ALONSO
Not I.
GONZALO
Faith,
sir, you need not fear. When we were boys,
Who
would believe that there were mountaineers,
Dewlapp'd
like bulls, whose throats had hanging at 'em
Wallets
of flesh ? or that there were such men
Whose
heads stood in their breasts ? which now we find
Each
putter-out of five for one will bring us
Good
warrant of.
ALONSO
I will
stand to, and feed,
Although
my last ; no matter, since I feel
The
best is past. Brother, my lord the Duke,
Stand
to, and do as we.
Thunder and lightning. Enter ARIEL, like a
harpy ; claps his wings upon the table ; and, with a quaint device, the banquet
vanishes
ARIEL
You are
three men of sin, whom Destiny,
That
hath to instrument this lower world
And
what is in't, the never-surfeited sea
Hath
caus'd to belch up you ; and on this island
Where
man doth not inhabit-you 'mongst men
Being
most unfit to live. I have made you mad ;
And
even with such-like valour men hang and drown
Their
proper selves.
[ALONSO, SEBASTIAN etc., draw
their swords]
You
fools ! I and my fellows
Are
ministers of Fate ; the elements
Of whom
your swords are temper'd may as well
Wound
the loud winds, or with bemock'd-at stabs
Kill
the still-closing waters, as diminish
One
dowle that's in my plume ; my fellow-ministers
Are
like invulnerable. If you could hurt,
Your swords
are now too massy for your strengths
And
will not be uplifted. But remember-
For
that's my business to you-that you three
From
Milan did supplant good Prospero ;
Expos'd
unto the sea, which hath requit it,
Him,
and his innocent child ; for which foul deed
The
pow'rs, delaying, not forgetting, have
Incens'd
the seas and shores, yea, all the creatures,
Against
your peace. Thee of thy son, Alonso,
They
have bereft ; and do pronounce by me
Ling'ring
perdition, worse than any death
Can be
at once, shall step by step attend
You and
your ways ; whose wraths to guard you from-
Which
here, in this most desolate isle, else falls
Upon
your heads-is nothing but heart's sorrow,
And a
clear life ensuing.
He vanishes in thunder ; then, to soft music,
enter the SHAPES again, and dance, with mocks and mows, and carrying out the
table
PROSPERO
Bravely
the figure of this harpy hast thou
Perform'd,
my Ariel ; a grace it had, devouring.
Of my
instruction hast thou nothing bated
In what
thou hadst to say ; so, with good life
And
observation strange, my meaner ministers
Their
several kinds have done. My high charms work,
And
these mine enemies are all knit up
In
their distractions. They now are in my pow'r ;
And in
these fits I leave them, while I visit
Young
Ferdinand, whom they suppose is drown'd,
And his
and mine lov'd darling.
Exit above
GONZALO
I' th'
name of something holy, sir, why stand you
In this
strange stare ?
ALONSO
O, it
is monstrous, monstrous !
Methought
the billows spoke, and told me of it ;
The
winds did sing it to me ; and the thunder,
That
deep and dreadful organ-pipe, pronounc'd
The
name of Prosper ; it did bass my trespass.
Therefore
my son i' th' ooze is bedded ; and
I'll
seek him deeper than e'er plummet sounded,
And
with him there lie mudded. Exit
SEBASTIAN
But one
fiend at a time,
I'll
fight their legions o'er.
ANTONIO
I'll be
thy second. Exeunt SEBASTIAN and
ANTONIO
GONZALO
All
three of them are desperate ; their great guilt,
Like
poison given to work a great time after,
Now
gins to bite the spirits. I do beseech you,
That
are of suppler joints, follow them swiftly,
And
hinder them from what this ecstasy
May now
provoke them to.
ADRIAN
Follow,
I pray you.
Exeunt
Act IV.
@Scene
1
Before
PROSPERO'S cell
Enter
PROSPERO, FERDINAND, and MIRANDA
PROSPERO
If I
have too austerely punish'd you,
Your
compensation makes amends ; for
Have
given you here a third of mine own life,
Or that
for which I live ; who once again
I
tender to thy hand. All thy vexations
Were
but my trials of thy love, and thou
Hast
strangely stood the test ; here, afore heaven,
I
ratify this my rich gift. O Ferdinand !
Do not
smile at me that I boast her off,
For
thou shalt find she will outstrip all praise,
And
make it halt behind her.
FERDINAND
I do
believe it
Against
an oracle.
PROSPERO
Then,
as my gift, and thine own acquisition
Wort'hily
purchas'd, take my daughter. But
If thou
dost break her virgin-knot before
All
sanctimonious ceremonies may
With
full and holy rite be minist'red,
No
sweet aspersion shall the heavens let fall
To make
this contract grow ; but barren hate,
Sour-ey'd
disdain, and discord, shall bestrew
The
union of your bed with weeds so loathly
That
you shall hate it both. Therefore take heed,
As
Hymen's lamps shall light you.
FERDINAND
As I
hope
For
quiet days, fair issue, and long life,
With
such love as 'tis now, the murkiest den,
The
most opportune place, the strong'st suggestion
Our
worser genius can, shall never melt
Mine
honour into lust, to take away
The
edge of that day's celebration,
When I
shall think or Phoebus' steeds are founder'd
Or
Night kept chain'd below.
PROSPERO
Fairly
spoke.
Sit,
then, and talk with her ; she is thine own.
What,
Ariel ! my industrious servant, Ariel !
Enter ARIEL
ARIEL
What
would my potent master ? Here I am.
PROSPERO
Thou and
thy meaner fellows your last service
Did
worthily perform ; and I must use you
In such
another trick. Go bring the rabble,
O'er
whom I give thee pow'r, here to this place.
Incite
them to quick motion ; for I must
Bestow
upon the eyes of this young couple
Some
vanity of mine art ; it is my promise,
And
they expect it from me.
ARIEL
Presently
?
PROSPERO
Ay,
with a twink.
ARIEL
Before
you can say 'come' and 'go,'
And
breathe twice, and cry 'so, so,'
Each
one, tripping on his toe,
Will be
here with mop and mow.
Do you
love me, master ? No ?
PROSPERO
Dearly,
my delicate Ariel. Do not approach
Till
thou dost hear me call.
ARIEL
Well !
I conceive.
Exit
PROSPERO
Look
thou be true ; do not give dalliance
Too
much the rein ; the strongest oaths are straw
To th'
fire i' th' blood. Be more abstemious,
Or else
good night your vow !
FERDINAND
I
warrant you, sir,
The
white cold virgin snow upon my heart
Abates
the ardour of my liver.
PROSPERO
Well !
Now
come, my Ariel, bring a corollary,
Rather
than want a spirit ; appear, and pertly.
No
tongue ! All eyes ! Be silent.
[Soft music]
Enter IRIS
IRIS
Ceres,
most bounteous lady, thy rich leas
Of
wheat, rye, barley, vetches, oats, and pease ;
Thy
turfy mountains, where live nibbling sheep,
And
flat meads thatch'd with stover, them to keep ;
Thy
banks with pioned and twilled brims,
Which
spongy April at thy hest betrims,
To make
cold nymphs chaste crowns ; and thy broom groves,
Whose
shadow the dismissed bachelor loves,
Being
lass-lorn ; thy pole-clipt vineyard ;
And thy
sea-marge, sterile and rocky hard,
Where
thou thyself dost air-the Queen o' th' sky,
Whose
wat'ry arch and messenger am I,
Bids
thee leave these ; and with her sovereign grace,
Here on
this grass-plot, in this very place,
To come
and sport. Her peacocks fly amain.
[JUNO
descends in her car]
Approach,
rich Ceres, her to entertain.
Enter CERES
CERES
Hail,
many-coloured messenger, that ne'er
Dost
disobey the wife of Jupiter ;
Who,
with thy saffron wings, upon my flow'rs
Diffusest
honey drops, refreshing show'rs ;
And
with each end of thy blue bow dost crown
My
bosky acres and my unshrubb'd down,
Rich
scarf to my proud earth-why hath thy Queen
Summon'd
me hither to this short-grass'd green ?
IRIS
A
contract of true love to celebrate,
And
some donation freely to estate
On the
blest lovers.
CERES
Tell
me, heavenly bow,
If
Venus or her son, as thou dost know,
Do now
attend the Queen ? Since they did plot
The
means that dusky Dis my daughter got,
Her and
her blind boy's scandal'd company
I have
forsworn.
IRIS
Of her
society
Be not
afraid. I met her Deity
Cutting
the clouds towards Paphos, and her son
Dove-drawn
with her. Here thought they to have done
Some
wanton charm upon this man and maid,
Whose
vows are that no bed-rite shall be paid
Till
Hymen's torch be lighted ; but in vain.
Mars's
hot minion is return'd again ;
Her
waspish-headed son has broke his arrows,
Swears
he will shoot no more, but play with sparrows,
And be
a boy right out.
[JUNO alights]
CERES
Highest
Queen of State,
Great Juno,
comes ; I know her by her gait.
JUNO
How
does my bounteous sister ? Go with me
To
bless this twain, that they may prosperous be,
And
honour'd in their issue.
[They sing]
JUNO
Honour,
riches, marriage-blessing,
Long continuance,
and increasing,
Hourly
joys be still upon you !
Juno
sings her blessings on you.
CERES
Earth's
increase, foison plenty,
Barns
and gamers never empty ;
Vines
with clust'ring bunches growing,
Plants
with goodly burden bowing ;
Spring
come to you at the farthest,
In the
very end of harvest !
Scarcity
and want shall shun you,
Ceres'
blessing so is on you.
FERDINAND
This is
a most majestic vision, and
Harmonious
charmingly. May I be bold
To
think these spirits ?
PROSPERO
Spirits,
which by mine art
I have
from their confines call'd to enact
My
present fancies.
FERDINAND
Let me
live here ever ;
So rare
a wond'red father and a wise
Makes
this place Paradise.
[JUNO and CERES whisper, and send IRIS
on employment]
PROSPERO
Sweet
now, silence ;
Juno
and Ceres whisper seriously.
There's
something else to do ; hush, and be mute,
Or else
our spell is marr'd.
IRIS
You
nymphs, call'd Naiads, of the wind'ring brooks,
With
your sedg'd crowns and ever harmless looks,
Leave
your crisp channels, and on this green land
Answer
your summons ; Juno does command.
Come,
temperate nymphs, and help to celebrate
A
contract of true love ; be not too late.
Enter certain NYMPHS
You
sun-burnt sicklemen, of August weary,
Come
hither from the furrow, and be merry ;
Make
holiday ; your rye-straw hats put on,
And
these fresh nymphs encounter every one
In
country footing.
Enter certain REAPERS, properly habited ;
they join with the NYMPHS in a graceful dance ; towards the end whereof
PROSPERO starts suddenly, and speaks, after which, to a strange, hollow, and
confused noise, they heavily vanish
PROSPERO
[Aside] I had forgot that foul conspiracy
Of the
beast Caliban and his confederates
Against
my life ; the minute of their plot
Is
almost come. [To the SPIRITS] Well done ; avoid ; no
more !
FERDINAND
This is
strange ; your father's in some passion
That
works him strongly.
MIRANDA
Never
till this day
Saw I
him touch'd with anger so distemper'd.
PROSPERO
You do
look, my son, in a mov'd sort,
As if
you were dismay'd ; be cheerful, sir.
Our
revels now are ended. These our actors,
As I
foretold you, were all spirits, and
Are
melted into air, into thin air ;
And,
like the baseless fabric of this vision,
The
cloud-capp'd towers, the gorgeous palaces,
The
solemn temples, the great globe itself,
Yea,
all which it inherit, shall dissolve,
And,
like this insubstantial pageant faded,
Leave
not a rack behind. We are such stuff
As
dreams are made on ; and our little life
Is
rounded with a sleep. Sir, I am vex'd ;
Bear
with my weakness ; my old brain is troubled ;
Be not
disturb'd with my infirmity.
If you
be pleas'd, retire into my cell
And
there repose ; a turn or two I'll walk
To
still my beating mind.
FERDINAND,
MIRANDA
We wish
your peace. Exeunt
PROSPERO
Come,
with a thought. I thank thee, Ariel ; come.
Enter ARIEL
ARIEL
Thy
thoughts I cleave to. What's thy pleasure ?
PROSPERO
Spirit,
We must
prepare to meet with Caliban.
ARIEL
Ay, my
commander. When I presented 'Ceres.'
I
thought to have told thee of it ; but I fear'd
Lest I
might anger thee.
PROSPERO
Say
again, where didst thou leave these varlets ?
ARIEL
I told
you, sir, they were red-hot with drinking ;
So full
of valour that they smote the air
For
breathing in their faces ; beat the ground
For
kissing of their feet ; yet always bending
Towards
their project. Then I beat my tabor,
At
which like unback'd colts they prick'd their ears,
Advanc'd
their eyelids, lifted up their noses
As they
smelt music ; so I charm'd their cars,
That
calf-like they my lowing follow'd through
Tooth'd
briers, sharp furzes, pricking goss, and thorns,
Which
ent'red their frail shins. At last I left them
I' th'
filthy mantled pool beyond your cell,
There
dancing up to th' chins, that the foul lake
O'erstunk
their feet.
PROSPERO
This
was well done, my bird.
Thy
shape invisible retain thou still.
The
trumpery in my house, go bring it hither
For
stale to catch these thieves.
ARIEL
I go, I
go.
Exit
PROSPERO
A
devil, a born devil, on whose nature
Nurture
can never stick ; on whom my pains,
Humanely
taken, all, all lost, quite lost ;
And as
with age his body uglier grows,
So his
mind cankers. I will plague them all,
Even to
roaring.
Re-enter ARIEL, loaden with glistering
apparel, &c.
Come,
hang them on this line.
[PROSPERO and ARIEL remain, invisible]
Enter CALIBAN, STEPHANO, and TRINCULO, all
wet
CALIBAN
Pray
you, tread softly, that the blind mole may not
Hear a
foot fall ; we now are near his cell.
STEPHANO
Monster,
your fairy, which you say is a harmless
fairy,
has done little better than play'd the Jack with us.
TRINCULO
Monster,
I do smell all horse-piss at which my
nose is
in great indignation.
STEPHANO
So is
mine. Do you hear, monster ? If I should
take a
displeasure against you, look you-
TRINCULO
Thou
wert but a lost monster.
CALIBAN
Good my
lord, give me thy favour still.
Be
patient, for the prize I'll bring thee to
Shall
hoodwink this mischance ; therefore speak softly.
All's
hush'd as midnight yet.
TRINCULO
Ay, but
to lose our bottles in the pool !
STEPHANO
There
is not only disgrace and dishonour in
that,
monster, but an infinite loss.
TRINCULO
That's
more to me than my wetting ; yet this is
your
harmless fairy, monster.
STEPHANO
I will
fetch off my bottle, though I be o'er
ears
for my labour.
CALIBAN
Prithee,
my king, be quiet. Seest thou here,
This is
the mouth o' th' cell ; no noise, and enter.
Do that
good mischief which may make this island
Thine
own for ever, and I, thy Caliban,
For aye
thy foot-licker.
STEPHANO
Give me
thy hand. I do begin to have bloody
thoughts.
TRINCULO
O King
Stephano ! O peer ! O worthy Stephano !
Look
what a wardrobe here is for thee !
CALIBAN
Let it
alone, thou fool ; it is but trash.
TRINCULO
O, ho,
monster ; we know what belongs to a
frippery.
O King Stephano !
STEPHANO
Put off
that gown, Trinculo ; by this hand, I'll
have
that gown.
TRINCULO
Thy
Grace shall have it.
CALIBAN
The
dropsy drown this fool ! What do you mean
To dote
thus on such luggage ? Let 't alone,
And do
the murder first. If he awake,
From
toe to crown he'll fill our skins with pinches ;
Make us
strange stuff.
STEPHANO
Be you
quiet, monster. Mistress line, is not
this my
jerkin ? Now is the jerkin under the line ; now,
jerkin,
you are like to lose your hair, and prove a bald
jerkin.
TRINCULO
Do, do.
We steal by line and level, an't like
your
Grace.
STEPHANO
I thank
thee for that jest ; here's a garment
for't.
Wit shall not go unrewarded while I am king of
this
country. 'Steal by line and level' is an excellent
pass of
pate ; there's another garmet for't.
TRINCULO
Monster,
come, put some lime upon your fingers,
and
away with the rest.
CALIBAN
I will
have none on't. We shall lose our time,
And all
be turn'd to barnacles, or to apes
With
foreheads villainous low.
STEPHANO
Monster,
lay-to your fingers ; help to bear this
away
where my hogshead of wine is, or I'll turn you out
of my
kingdom. Go to, carry this.
TRINCULO
And
this.
STEPHANO
Ay, and
this.
A noise of hunters beard. Enter divers
SPIRITS, in shape of dogs and hounds, bunting them about ; PROSPERO and ARIEL
setting them on
PROSPERO
Hey,
Mountain, hey !
ARIEL
Silver
! there it goes, Silver !
PROSPERO
Fury,
Fury ! There, Tyrant, there ! Hark, hark !
[CALIBAN, STEPHANO, and TRINCULO
are driven out]
Go
charge my goblins that they grind their joints
With
dry convulsions, shorten up their sinews
With
aged cramps, and more pinch-spotted make them
Than
pard or cat o' mountain.
ARIEL
Hark,
they roar.
PROSPERO
Let
them be hunted soundly. At this hour
Lies at
my mercy all mine enemies.
Shortly
shall all my labours end, and thou
Shalt
have the air at freedom ; for a little
Follow,
and do me service.
Exeunt
Act V.
@Scene
1
Before
PROSPERO'S cell
Enter
PROSPERO in his magic robes, and ARIEL
PROSPERO
Now
does my project gather to a head ;
My
charms crack not, my spirits obey ; and time
Goes
upright with his carriage. How's the day ?
ARIEL
On the
sixth hour ; at which time, my lord,
You
said our work should cease.
PROSPERO
I did
say so,
When
first I rais'd the tempest. Say, my spirit,
How
fares the King and 's followers ?
ARIEL
Confin'd
together
In the
same fashion as you gave in charge ;
Just as
you left them ; all prisoners, sir,
In the
line-grove which weather-fends your cell ;
They
cannot budge till your release. The King,
His
brother, and yours, abide all three distracted,
And the
remainder mourning over them,
Brim
full of sorrow and dismay ; but chiefly
Him you
term'd, sir, 'the good old lord, Gonzalo' ;
His
tears run down his beard, like winter's drops
From
eaves of reeds. Your charm so strongly works 'em
That if
you now beheld them your affections
Would
become tender.
PROSPERO
Dost
thou think so, spirit ?
ARIEL
Mine
would, sir, were I human.
PROSPERO
And
mine shall.
Hast
thou, which art but air, a touch, a feeling
Of
their afflictions, and shall not myself,
One of
their kind, that relish all as sharply,
Passion
as they, be kindlier mov'd than thou art ?
Though
with their high wrongs I am struck to th' quick,
Yet with
my nobler reason 'gainst my fury
Do I
take part ; the rarer action is
In
virtue than in vengeance ; they being penitent,
The
sole drift of my purpose doth extend
Not a
frown further. Go release them, Ariel ;
My
charms I'll break, their senses I'll restore,
And
they shall be themselves.
ARIEL
I'll
fetch them, sir.
Exit
PROSPERO
Ye
elves of hills, brooks, standing lakes, and
groves
;
And ye
that on the sands with printless foot
Do
chase the ebbing Neptune, and do fly him
When he
comes back ; you demi-puppets that
By
moonshine do the green sour ringlets make,
Whereof
the ewe not bites ; and you whose pastime
Is to
make midnight mushrooms, that rejoice
To hear
the solemn curfew ; by whose aid-
Weak
masters though ye be-I have be-dimm'd
The
noontide sun, call'd forth the mutinous winds,
And
'twixt the green sea and the azur'd vault
Set
roaring war. To the dread rattling thunder
Have I
given fire, and rifted Jove's stout oak
With
his own bolt ; the strong-bas'd promontory
Have I
made shake, and by the spurs pluck'd up
The
pine and cedar. Graves at my command
Have
wak'd their sleepers, op'd, and let 'em forth,
By my
so potent art. But this rough magic
I here
abjure ; and, when I have requir'd
Some heavenly
music-which even now I do-
To work
mine end upon their senses that
This
airy charm is for, I'll break my staff,
Bury it
certain fathoms in the earth,
And
deeper than did ever plummet sound
I'll
drown my book.
[Solem music]
Here enters ARIEL before ; then ALONSO,
with frantic gesture, attended by GONZALO ; SEBASTIAN and ANTONIO in like
manner, attended by ADRIAN and FRANCISCO. They all enter the circle which
PROSPERO had made, and there stand charm'd ; which PROSPERO observing, speaks
A
solemn air, and the best comforter
To an
unsettled fancy, cure thy brains,
Now
useless, boil'd within thy skull ! There stand,
For you
are spell-stopp'd.
Holy
Gonzalo, honourable man,
Mine
eyes, ev'n sociable to the show of thine,
Fall
fellowly drops. The charm dissolves apace,
And as
the morning steals upon the night,
Melting
the darkness, so their rising senses
Begin
to chase the ignorant fumes that mantle
Their
clearer reason. O good Gonzalo,
My true
preserver, and a loyal sir
To him
thou follow'st ! I will pay thy graces
Home
both in word and deed. Most cruelly
Didst
thou, Alonso, use me and my daughter ;
Thy
brother was a furtherer in the act.
Thou
art pinch'd for't now, Sebastian. Flesh and blood,
You, brother
mine, that entertain'd ambition,
Expell'd
remorse and nature, who, with Sebastian-
Whose
inward pinches therefore are most strong-
Would
here have kill'd your king, I do forgive thee,
Unnatural
though thou art. Their understanding
Begins
to swell, and the approaching tide
Will
shortly fill the reasonable shore
That
now lies foul and muddy. Not one of them
That
yet looks on me, or would know me. Ariel,
Fetch
me the hat and rapier in my cell ;
Exit ARIEL
I will
discase me, and myself present
As I
was sometime Milan. Quickly, spirit
Thou
shalt ere long be free.
ARIEL, on returning, sings and helps to
attire him
Where
the bee sucks, there suck I ;
In a
cowslip's bell I lie ;
There I
couch when owls do cry.
On the
bat's back I do fly
After
summer merrily.
Merrily,
merrily shall I live now
Under
the blossom that hangs on the bough.
PROSPERO
Why,
that's my dainty Ariel ! I shall miss thee ;
But yet
thou shalt have freedom. So, so, so.
To the
King's ship, invisible as thou art ;
There
shalt thou find the mariners asleep
Under
the hatches ; the master and the boatswain
Being
awake, enforce them to this place ;
And
presently, I prithee.
ARIEL
I drink
the air before me, and return
Or ere
your pulse twice beat. Exit
GONZALO
All
torment, trouble, wonder and amazement,
Inhabits
here. Some heavenly power guide us
Out of
this fearful country !
PROSPERO
Behold,
Sir King,
The
wronged Duke of Milan, Prospero.
For
more assurance that a living prince
Does
now speak to thee, I embrace thy body ;
And to
thee and thy company I bid
A
hearty welcome.
ALONSO
Whe'er
thou be'st he or no,
Or some
enchanted trifle to abuse me,
As late
I have been, I not know. Thy pulse
Beats, as
of flesh and blood ; and, since I saw thee,
Th'
affliction of my mind amends, with which,
I fear,
a madness held me. This must crave-
An if
this be at all-a most strange story.
Thy
dukedom I resign, and do entreat
Thou
pardon me my wrongs. But how should Prospero
Be
living and be here ?
PROSPERO
First,
noble friend,
Let me
embrace thine age, whose honour cannot
Be
measur'd or confin'd.
GONZALO
Whether
this be
Or be
not, I'll not swear.
PROSPERO
You do
yet taste
Some
subtleties o' th' isle, that will not let you
Believe
things certain. Welcome, my friends all !
[Aside
to SEBASTIAN and ANTONIO] But you, my
brace of
lords,
were I so minded,
I here
could pluck his Highness' frown upon you,
And
justify you traitors ; at this time
I will
tell no tales.
SEBASTIAN
[Aside] The devil speaks in him.
PROSPERO
No.
For
you, most wicked sir, whom to call brother
Would
even infect my mouth, I do forgive
Thy
rankest fault-all of them ; and require
My
dukedom of thee, which perforce I know
Thou
must restore.
ALONSO
If thou
beest Prospero,
Give us
particulars of thy preservation ;
How
thou hast met us here, whom three hours since
Were
wreck'd upon this shore ; where I have lost-
How
sharp the point of this remembrance is !-
My dear
son Ferdinand.
PROSPERO
I am
woe for't, sir.
ALONSO
Irreparable
is the loss ; and patience
Says it
is past her cure.
PROSPERO
I
rather think
You
have not sought her help, of whose soft grace
For the
like loss I have her sovereign aid,
And
rest myself content.
ALONSO
You the
like loss !
PROSPERO
As
great to me as late ; and, supportable
To make
the dear loss, have I means much weaker
Than
you may call to comfort you, for I
Have
lost my daughter.
ALONSO
A
daughter !
O
heavens, that they were living both in Naples,
The
King and Queen there ! That they were, I wish
Myself
were mudded in that oozy bed
Where
my son lies. When did you lose your daughter ?
PROSPERO
In this
last tempest. I perceive these lords
At this
encounter do so much admire
That
they devour their reason, and scarce think
Their
eyes do offices of truth, their words
Are
natural breath ; but, howsoe'er you have
Been
justled from your senses, know for certain
That I
am Prospero, and that very duke
Which
was thrust forth of Milan ; who most strangely
Upon
this shore, where you were wrecked, was landed
To be
the lord on't. No more yet of this ;
For
'tis a chronicle of day by day,
Not a
relation for a breakfast, nor
Befitting
this first meeting. Welcome, sir ;
This
cell's my court ; here have I few attendants,
And
subjects none abroad ; pray you, look in.
My
dukedom since you have given me again,
I will
requite you with as good a thing ;
At
least bring forth a wonder, to content ye
As much
as me my dukedom.
Here PROSPERO discovers FERDINAND and
MIRANDA, playing at chess
MIRANDA
Sweet
lord, you play me false.
FERDINAND
No, my
dearest love,
I would
not for the world.
MIRANDA
Yes,
for a score of kingdoms you should wrangle
And I
would call it fair play.
ALONSO
If this
prove
A
vision of the island, one dear son
Shall I
twice lose.
SEBASTIAN
A most
high miracle !
FERDINAND
Though
the seas threaten, they are merciful ;
I have
curs'd them without cause.
[Kneels]
ALONSO
Now all
the blessings
Of a
glad father compass thee about !
Arise,
and say how thou cam'st here.
MIRANDA
O,
wonder !
How
many goodly creatures are there here !
How
beauteous mankind is ! O brave new world
That
has such people in't !
PROSPERO
'Tis
new to thee.
ALONSO
What is
this maid with whom thou wast at play ?
Your
eld'st acquaintance cannot be three hours ;
Is she
the goddess that hath sever'd us,
And
brought us thus together ?
FERDINAND
Sir,
she is mortal ;
But by
immortal Providence she's mine.
I chose
her when I could not ask my father
For his
advice, nor thought I had one. She
Is
daughter to this famous Duke of Milan,
Of whom
so often I have heard renown
But
never saw before ; of whom I have
Receiv'd
a second life ; and second father
This
lady makes him to me.
ALONSO
I am
hers.
But, O,
how oddly will it sound that I
Must
ask my child forgiveness !
PROSPERO
There,
sir, stop ;
Let us
not burden our remembrances with
A
heaviness that's gone.
GONZALO
I have
inly wept,
Or
should have spoke ere this. Look down, you gods,
And on
this couple drop a blessed crown ;
For it
is you that have chalk'd forth the way
Which
brought us hither.
ALONSO
I say,
Amen, Gonzalo !
GONZALO
Was
Milan thrust from Milan, that his issue
Should
become Kings of Naples ? O, rejoice
Beyond
a common joy, and set it down
With
gold on lasting pillars : in one voyage
Did
Claribel her husband find at Tunis ;
And
Ferdinand, her brother, found a wife
Where
he himself was lost ; Prospero his dukedom
In a
poor isle ; and all of us ourselves
When no
man was his own.
ALONSO
[To
FERDINAND and MIRANDA] Give me your
hands.
Let
grief and sorrow still embrace his heart
That
doth not wish you joy.
GONZALO
Be it
so. Amen !
Re-enter ARIEL, with the MASTER and
BOATSWAIN amazedly following
O look,
sir ; look, sir ! Here is more of us !
I
prophesied, if a gallows were on land,
This
fellow could not drown. Now, blasphemy,
That
swear'st grace o'erboard, not an oath on shore ?
Hast
thou no mouth by land ? What is the news ?
BOATSWAIN
The
best news is that we have safely found
Our
King and company ; the next, our ship-
Which but
three glasses since we gave out split-
Is
tight and yare, and bravely rigg'd, as when
We
first put out to sea.
ARIEL
[Aside
to PROSPERO] Sir, all this service
Have I
done since I went.
PROSPERO
[Aside
to ARIEL] My tricksy spirit !
ALONSO
These
are not natural events ; they strengthen
From
strange to stranger. Say, how came you hither ?
BOATSWAIN
If I
did think, sir, I were well awake,
I'd
strive to tell you. We were dead of sleep,
And-how,
we know not-all clapp'd under hatches ;
Where,
but even now, with strange and several noises
Of
roaring, shrieking, howling, jingling chains,
And moe
diversity of sounds, all horrible,
We were
awak'd ; straightway at liberty ;
Where
we, in all her trim, freshly beheld
Our
royal, good, and gallant ship ; our master
Cap'ring
to eye her. On a trice, so please you,
Even in
a dream, were we divided from them,
And
were brought moping hither.
ARIEL
[Aside
to PROSPERO] Was't well done ?
PROSPERO
[Aside
to ARIEL] Bravely, my diligence. Thou
shalt
be free.
ALONSO
This is
as strange a maze as e'er men trod ;
And
there is in this business more than nature
Was
ever conduct of. Some oracle
Must
rectify our knowledge.
PROSPERO
Sir, my
liege,
Do not
infest your mind with beating on
The
strangeness of this business ; at pick'd leisure,
Which
shall be shortly, single I'll resolve you,
Which
to you shall seem probable, of every
These
happen'd accidents ; till when, be cheerful
And
think of each thing well. [Aside to
ARIEL] Come
hither,
spirit ;
Set
Caliban and his companions free ;
Untie
the spell. [Exit ARIEL] How fares my gracious sir ?
There
are yet missing of your company
Some
few odd lads that you remember not.
Re-enter ARIEL, driving in CALIBAN,
STEPHANO, and TRINCULO, in their stolen apparel
STEPHANO
Every
man shift for all the rest, and let no man
take
care for himself ; for all is but fortune. Coragio,
bully-monster,
coragio !
TRINCULO
If
these be true spies which I wear in my head,
here's
a goodly sight.
CALIBAN
O
Setebos, these be brave spirits indeed !
How
fine my master is ! I am afraid
He will
chastise me.
SEBASTIAN
Ha, ha
!
What
things are these, my lord Antonio ?
Will
money buy'em ?
ANTONIO
Very
like ; one of them
Is a
plain fish, and no doubt marketable.
PROSPERO
Mark
but the badges of these men, my lords,
Then
say if they be true. This mis-shapen knave-
His
mother was a witch, and one so strong
That
could control the moon, make flows and ebbs,
And
deal in her command without her power.
These
three have robb'd me ; and this demi-devil-
For
he's a bastard one-had plotted with them
To take
my life. Two of these fellows you
Must
know and own ; this thing of darkness I
Acknowledge
mine.
CALIBAN
I shall
be pinch'd to death.
ALONSO
Is not
this Stephano, my drunken butler ?
SEBASTIAN
He is
drunk now ; where had he wine ?
ALONSO
And
Trinculo is reeling ripe ; where should they
Find
this grand liquor that hath gilded 'em ?
How
cam'st thou in this pickle ?
TRINCULO
I have
been in such a pickle since I saw you
last
that, I fear me, will never out of my bones. I
shall
not fear fly-blowing.
SEBASTIAN
Why,
how now, Stephano !
STEPHANO
O,
touch me not ; I am not Stephano, but a
cramp.
PROSPERO
You'd
be king o' the isle, sirrah ?
STEPHANO
I
should have been a sore one, then.
ALONSO
[Pointing
to CALIBAN] This is as strange a thing
as e'er
I look'd on.
PROSPERO
He is
as disproportioned in his manners
As in
his shape. Go, sirrah, to my cell ;
Take
with you your companions ; as you look
To have
my pardon, trim it handsomely.
CALIBAN
Ay,
that I will ; and I'll be wise hereafter,
And
seek for grace. What a thrice-double ass
Was I
to take this drunkard for a god,
And
worship this dull fool !
PROSPERO
Go to ;
away !
ALONSO
Hence,
and bestow your luggage where you found it.
SEBASTIAN
Or
stole it, rather.
Exeunt CALIBAN, STEPHANO,
and TRINCULO
PROSPERO
Sir, I
invite your Highness and your train
To my
poor cell, where you shall take your rest
For
this one night ; which, part of it, I'll waste
With
such discourse as, I not doubt, shall make it
Go
quick away-the story of my life,
And the
particular accidents gone by
Since I
came to this isle. And in the morn
I'll
bring you to your ship, and so to Naples,
Where I
have hope to see the nuptial
Of
these our dear-belov'd solemnized,
And
thence retire me to my Milan, where
Every
third thought shall be my grave.
ALONSO
I long
To hear
the story of your life, which must
Take
the ear strangely.
PROSPERO
I'll
deliver all ;
And
promise you calm seas, auspicious gales,
And
sail so expeditious that shall catch
Your
royal fleet far off. [Aside to
ARIEL] My Ariel,
chick,
That is
thy charge. Then to the elements
Be
free, and fare thou well !-Please you, draw near.
Exeunt
EPILOGUE
Spoken
by PROSPERO
Now my charms are all o'erthrown,
And what strength I have's mine own,
Which is most faint. Now 'tis true,
I must be here confin'd by you,
Or sent to Naples. Let me not,
Since I have my dukedom got,
And pardon'd the deceiver, dwell
In
this bare island by your spell ;
But release me from my bands
With the help of your good hands.
Gentle breath of yours my sails
Must fill, or else my project fails,
Which was to please. Now I want
Spirits to enforce, art to enchant ;
And my ending is despair
Unless I be reliev'd by prayer,
Which pierces so that it assaults
Mercy itself, and frees all faults.
As you from crimes would pardon'd be,
Let your indulgence set me free.
THE END