Three Major Plays
Page 19
CONSTABLE. Your Majesty.
Don Pedro merits sons-in-law
Of worth such as are present here.
On their behalf I now request 655
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That they be married to his daughters.
KING. Who are they?
RODRIGO. With your permission, sir,
I seek Inés's hand in marriage.
FERNANDO. And I, sir, offer both my hand
And will to Leonor.
KING. In these 660
Two handsome gentlemen, your daughters will,
Don Pedro, have most worthy husbands.
PEDRO. Your Majesty, I cannot give
Inés to Don Rodrigo. She is,
You see, already promised to Don 665
Alonso Manrique, the knight
From Olmedo, whom you saw fit
To favour.
KING. I further intend to make
Him Knight Commander.
RODRIGO. This is too much!
FERNANDO. Control yourself!
KING. He is a man 670
Of many qualities.
Enter TELLO.
TELLO. Let me in!
KING. What is that noise?
CONSTABLE. The guard restrains
A servant who wishes to speak
With you.
KING. Leave him!
CONSTABLE. He comes in tears,
Demanding justice.
KING. It is my duty to 675
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Dispense it. Such is the meaning of
This sceptre.
TELLO. Oh, great Don Juan, ruler
Of all Castile, despite the envy of
Your enemies!* I come here to
Medina, accompanied by another, old 680
In years,* to ask that justice be brought
Against two traitors. The old man is
Outside, exhausted if not dead
By such great sorrow, and so, on his
Behalf, I choose to use this violence 685
On both your guards and your ears.
Listen, then, since Heaven above has placed
In your hands the rod of justice,
And given you discretion to reward
Good men and punish those who have 690
Done wrong. Last night, after the fiestas of
The Cross of May, celebrated by
Medina's knights to prove that where
There is a cross, there is true passion,
My master, Don Alonso, the worthy youth 695
Who was deserving of your praise,
Departed from Medina for Olmedo.
He wished to let his aged parents know
That he'd survived the bulls, less fierce,
It proved, than those who were his enemies. 700
Because it was my job to see
To both the horses and the harnesses,
I stayed behind, and by the time
I left, unruly night, half-way
Between both poles,* had offered treachery 705
A sword, ambush assistance, fear
A swift escape. As I passed by
A stream and crossed a bridge that points
The way, I saw six men* riding
Together towards Medina, 710
And clearly disturbed. The moon
Appeared late, blood-red, and though
Its light was pale, it helped me recognize
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Two men amongst the group. Perhaps
Heaven's tapers light the darkest and 715
Most silent place in order to reveal
Those who are guilty of true wickedness,
And prove to us there is no secret we
Can hide from God above. I hurried on,
And there I found my master, Don 720
Alonso, covered in blood and on
The point of death. Your Majesty,
The very mention of it makes
Me weep, my grief impedes my speech.
I placed him on my horse, and still 725
There was sufficient life in him
To make his enemies believe
He was not dead, and still enough
To reach Olmedo and receive
The blessing of his aged parents who, 730
Such was their sorrow, bathed his wounds
With tears and kisses. His household and
His lands are deep in mourning. His funeral will,
Your Majesty, remind us of the Phoenix,
For he, though dead, will live again 735
Through his great fame, which, as we know,
Ignores the frailty of men
And time's forgetfulness.
KING. This is,
Indeed, most strange!
INÉS. Oh, what am I
To do!
PEDRO. Restrain your tears, Inés! 740
You'll weep enough when we're at home.
INÉS. Father, the plan I entertained
In jest . . . I now propose it seriously.
As for these evil men, I ask
Your Majesty for justice.*
KING. You say 745
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You saw them. Who, then, are these traitors?
I swear to God I shall not leave
This place until they are my prisoners.
TELLO. They stand before your Majesty.
The first is Don Rodrigo, the other Don 750
Fernando.
CONSTABLE. Their guilt is written on
Their faces.
RODRIGO. Your Majesty . . .
KING. Arrest them!
Tomorrow in a public place
Cut off their evil heads.
So ends the tragic history of 755
The Knight from Olmedo.*
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PUNISHMENT WITHOUT REVENGE (El castigo sin venganza)
A Tragedy*
-169-
THE CHARACTERS OF THE PLAY
The Duke of Ferrara
The Count Federico
Albano
Rutilio
Floro
Lucindo
The Marquis of Gonzaga
Casandra
Aurora
Lucrecia
Batín
Cintia
Febo and Ricardo
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ACT ONE
Night. The DUKE OF FERRARA. FEBO and RICARDO, servants.
RICARDO. A splendid trick, my lord!
FEBO. I think
The lady would be pleased to know
A real duke had just deceived her.
DUKE. Be quiet! No one must know I am
Ferrara.
RICARDO. Disguise is but a licence 5
For all sins. See how the cloak of night
Conceals the sky, a cape bedecked
With silver stars, the moon above
A brightly jewelled pin on high.
DUKE. Are you gone mad?
FEBO. You must admit, 10
My lord, the metaphor's appropriate.
No modern poet* would have thought of it.
RICARDO. If I took their liberties,
I expect you'd call it ingenuity.
I read this poet once, would you believe? 15
He called the moon a piece of cottage-cheese!
DUKE. I quite agree. The stuff they write
Today lacks quality. All sleight
Of hand. The poet waves a magic wand
And there, behold, produces from 20
His mouth a string of images.
Oh what a tedious thing this is!
Let's change the subject. The lady seems
Quite interesting.
RICARDO. The lady is
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A jewel, sir, a real gem! 25
But even so, you have to know
The poor girl is sadly burdened.
DUKE. How?
RICARDO. She has a husband, a man
So m
ean he keeps her to himself.
Won't let her give herself to someone else. 30
FEBO. My lord, conceal yourself.
DUKE. Such men
Are by their nature hard of heart.
They lack true generosity.
FEBO. I do agree, my lord. The man
Whose wife receives such welcome gifts 35
As jewels, gold, and clothes, should, as
I see it, feel more sympathy
For him who gives.* I mean to say,
No sooner has the wife passed on,
He gets his hands on half her fortune. 40
RICARDO. It's true. This is the kind of man Who in the noble art of charity
Is sadly lacking. You see? I turn
The phrase around* to illustrate my skill
In modern poetry.
DUKE. Such people are 45
The true disciples of the devil.
They tempt us till we sign their pact,
And then they stop us in the act.
RICARDO. We could stop here, my lord. I do,
However, think the going might 50
Be rather hard.
DUKE. Why so?
RICARDO. The mother is
A perfect saint, prays all the time.
She does her best to keep her girls
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In line. Two lovely creatures, one
Like pearl, the other silver; somewhere 55
Between a sparkling and full-bodied wine.
DUKE. The devil take them. Never judge
A bottle by its label.
RICARDO. There is
Another girl not far from here,
As sweet as honey; and you should see 60
Her dark complexion.
DUKE. How about passion?
RICARDO. As much, my lord, as you'd expect
From any fiery dark brunette.*
The bloke who lives with her, a dull,
Suspicious, sullen soul, reminds 65
You of a great, cud-chewing bull.
FEBO. You really mean cud-chewing cow,
My friend. You chose that rhyme to make
The line end like the previous one.
RICARDO. I know another girl. She lives 70
Quite near. Oh, very clever!
She would have made a lovely lawyer.
DUKE. Take me to her.
RICARDO. She'd never let you in
At this late hour.
DUKE. Never say 'won't'.
Tell her I'm the duke, and I don't 75
Take no for an answer.
RICARDO. All right,
It might just work.
DUKE. Come, knock the door.
RICARDO. She must have been expecting you.
Two hefty kicks and hey presto!
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CINTIA above.*
CINTIA. Who's there?
RICARDO. It's me.
CINTIA. Who's me?
RICARDO. A friend 80
Of yours, Cintia. Open up. I've got
The Duke down here. I sang your praises
To him, see, and now he wants to see you.
CINTIA. See me? The Duke?
RICARDO. Don't you believe me?
CINTIA. Oh, I believe he's with you, yes. 85
But as for seeing me, a nobleman
At such a time of night? You must
Think I'm some sort of simpleton.
RICARDO. He comes disguised because he is
A gentleman and wouldn't want 90
A lady's reputation ruined.
I wouldn't tell you lies, now would I?
CINTIA. Ricardo, if you'd told me this
A month ago, I might just have
Believed the Duke would fancy knocking at 95
My door. I mean, the whole world knows
His reputation: he thinks he is
God's gift to women and so has lived
His life devoted to that passion.
To live so freely meant, of course, 100
He never thought of getting married,
Even though, upon his death, his land
And wealth would be inherited,
As some would say, unfairly, by
His only son and heir, the bastard 105
Federico. And so, a month
Ago, I could believe the Duke
Might think of knocking at my door.
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But now, they say, he is to change
His ways and has agreed to marry, 110
And for that reason Federico's gone
To Mantua* to fetch Casandra,
The bride-to-be. How, then, can this
Be such a nightly escapade
As he was once accustomed to, 115
When all the wedding-plans are made
And his new bride is almost due?
If this were Federico, it
Would be an impropriety;
In him a sin completely unforgivable. 120
And you, if you had any kind
Of loyalty, would not so openly
Abuse your master's reputation.
I do believe the Duke's at home,
Tucked-up in bed, and what you've said 125
To me is just a pack of lies,
A piece of fiction you've made up
To get me into conversation.
I'll close my window now, so you
Can go. Try your luck again tomorrow. 130
DUKE. What kind of bawdy-house is this You've brought me to?
RICARDO. Don't blame me, master.
I always try to do my best
For you.
DUKE [to Febo]. To think tonight's success
Depended on a fool like him. 135
FEBO. Depend on me, my lord. Just say The word, I'll kick the door right in.
DUKE. That I should have to listen to such things!
FEBO. It's true Ricardo is to blame,
But even so the nobleman 140
Who really wants to know what kind
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Of fame and reputation he
Enjoys, or if he's loved or plain
Despised, should never listen to
A fawning servant's flattery. 145
A better ploy's to sally forth
At night, on foot or in his coach,
And, well-disguised, to ascertain
What shape his reputation's in.
Some famous emperors and kings* 150
Resorted to such subtle cunning.
DUKE. A man who gives himself to listening,
Will only hear the most offensive things
About himself. These kings that seem
So wise to you, to me are fools. 155
The common herd is not concerned
With truth, and any man who puts
His faith in them is bound to get
His fingers burned when everything
They say runs contrary to reason. 160
Some discontented fellow wants
Revenge, and so invents a story which
The common herd then seeks to bend
To satisfy its need for novelty.
And since such people are by rank 165
Forbidden entry to the palaces
Where great men live, they choose instead
To feed the envy that they feel
By means of slanderous attacks.
As for myself, it is a fact 170
That I have lived indulgently,*
Preferring pleasure to the need
To marry anyone: in part
Because I've wanted to be free,
In part because I thought my son, 175
Though illegitimate, should be
My only heir. But now that he
Is on his way to Mantua
To fetch my bride, the fair Casandra,
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I am resolved to put my past 180
Behind me.
FEBO. Marriage is undoubtedly
The remedy, my lord.
RICARDO. And i
f
You listen at this door, you'll find
An answer to your melancholy too.
DUKE. You must mean music.
RICARDO. Can you hear? 185
DUKE. Who is it lives there?
RICARDO. An actor-manager.*
FEBO. The very best in Italy.
DUKE. They sing extremely well. Does he write
Good plays?
RICARDO. All plays depend, my lord,
On playing to a friendly audience.* 190
The audience claps, it guarantees
A play's success; the audience boos,
It means the play's a certain miss.
FEBO. I think he means the theatre's
A hit-or-miss affair, my lord. 195
DUKE. For our wedding, Febo, you'll
Prepare the very finest rooms,
And look for plays where wit
And ingenuity exceed
Vulgarity.*
FEBO. I promise I
200
Shall see to it, my lord. You'll have
Those plays refinement and good taste
Permit.
DUKE. Are they rehearsing yet?
RICARDO. A woman's speaking.
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DUKE. It might be
Andrelina,* an actress of 205
The highest reputation. Such strength,
Intelligence, such deep emotion!
VOICE [off]. Such thoughts will never let me rest,
Such memories endure and persist,
And all that once was glory unsurpassed, 210
Is now a constant agony.
If I could but forget such memories
As now remind me of a joy that's lost!
For though they think they sweeten misery,
They deepen longing for a pleasure past. 215
DUKE. How well she speaks her lines!
FEBO. I've always found
There's nothing finer than a good actress,