The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated)
Page 203
Before I speak, too threateningly replies:
Love make your fortunes twenty times above
Her that so wishes and her humble love!
The honour, sir, that is burning in your fair eyes,
answers me too threateningly before I speak:
may love give you something twenty times better
than the one who wishes that for you and her humble love.
Second Lord
No better, if you please.
I don't want any better than you, if that's allowed.
HELENA
My wish receive,
Which great Love grant! and so, I take my leave.
Take my best wishes for that,
and I hope the god of love grants it! And so, I'm going.
LAFEU
Do all they deny her? An they were sons of mine,
I'd have them whipped; or I would send them to the
Turk, to make eunuchs of.
Are they all refusing her? If they were sons of mine
I'd have them whipped; or I would send them to the
Turks, to have them made into eunuchs.
HELENA
Be not afraid that I your hand should take;
I'll never do you wrong for your own sake:
Blessing upon your vows! and in your bed
Find fairer fortune, if you ever wed!
Don't be afraid that I would take your hand;
I would never want to do harm:
may your marriage be blessed! And may you find
someone more beautiful in your bed, if you ever marry!
LAFEU
These boys are boys of ice, they'll none have her:
sure, they are bastards to the English; the French
ne'er got 'em.
These boys are made of ice, none of them will have her:
I'm certain they are the bastard sons of Englishmen; no Frenchman
ever fathered these.
HELENA
You are too young, too happy, and too good,
To make yourself a son out of my blood.
You are too young, too happy, and too good,
to breed a son from me.
Fourth Lord
Fair one, I think not so.
Beautiful one, I don't agree.
LAFEU
There's one grape yet; I am sure thy father drunk
wine: but if thou be'st not an ass, I am a youth
of fourteen; I have known thee already.
There's just one left; I am sure your father put
good blood in you but if you're not an ass then I am a
fourteen-year-old; I know what you're like.
HELENA
[To BERTRAM] I dare not say I take you; but I give
Me and my service, ever whilst I live,
Into your guiding power. This is the man.
I dare not say that I am taking you; but I give
myself and my service, as long as I live,
into your hands. This is the man.
KING
Why, then, young Bertram, take her; she's thy wife.
Why then, young Bertram, take her; she's your wife.
BERTRAM
My wife, my liege! I shall beseech your highness,
In such a business give me leave to use
The help of mine own eyes.
My wife, my lord! I must ask your Highness
that in a business like this you let me
make my own choices.
KING
Know'st thou not, Bertram,
What she has done for me?
Bertram, don't you know
what she has done for me?
BERTRAM
Yes, my good lord;
But never hope to know why I should marry her.
I do know that my good lord;
but I can't see why I should marry her.
KING
Thou know'st she has raised me from my sickly bed.
You know that she has raised me from my sick bed.
BERTRAM
But follows it, my lord, to bring me down
Must answer for your raising? I know her well:
She had her breeding at my father's charge.
A poor physician's daughter my wife! Disdain
Rather corrupt me ever!
But must it follow, my lord, that I have to be brought down
to pay for you being raised up? I know her well:
she was brought up at my father's expense.
Me, marry the daughter of a poor physician!
I'd rather face your disapproval than be brought this low!
KING
'Tis only title thou disdain'st in her, the which
I can build up. Strange is it that our bloods,
Of colour, weight, and heat, pour'd all together,
Would quite confound distinction, yet stand off
In differences so mighty. If she be
All that is virtuous, save what thou dislikest,
A poor physician's daughter, thou dislikest
Of virtue for the name: but do not so:
From lowest place when virtuous things proceed,
The place is dignified by the doer's deed:
Where great additions swell's, and virtue none,
It is a dropsied honour. Good alone
Is good without a name. Vileness is so:
The property by what it is should go,
Not by the title. She is young, wise, fair;
It's only her lack of title you don't like, and I
can fix that. It is strange that our blood,
if all poured together could not be distinguished
by colour, weight or heat, and yet
we claim that they are so different. If she
is good in everything, except that which you dislike,
the fact that she is a poor physician's daughter, then you dislike
goodness just because of its name: do not do so:
when good things come from humble places,
the place is made better by what has been done.
Where there are great titles, but no goodness,
it is a diseased honour. Goodness is goodness,
it doesn't need a title. Vileness is the same:
you should judge things by their properties,
not their names. She is young, wise, beautiful;
In these to nature she's immediate heir,
And these breed honour: that is honour's scorn,
Which challenges itself as honour's born
And is not like the sire: honours thrive,
When rather from our acts we them derive
Than our foregoers: the mere word's a slave
Debosh'd on every tomb, on every grave
A lying trophy, and as oft is dumb
Where dust and damn'd oblivion is the tomb
Of honour'd bones indeed. What should be said?
If thou canst like this creature as a maid,
I can create the rest: virtue and she
Is her own dower; honour and wealth from me.
She inherits these things from nature,
and they make honor: that is what honor scorns,
which mocks itself when honor is inherited
and the son is not like the father: honors are worth something
when we get them from our actions
rather than inheriting them: words are just slaves
debased on every tomb, a lying trophy
on every grave, and they are just as often silent
when dust and terrible oblivion is the tomb
of those who are really honourable. What can I say?
If you like this creature as a woman,
I can do the rest: in terms of goodness
she brings her own dowry; she will get honors and wealth from me.
BERTRAM
I cannot love her, nor will strive to do't.
I cannot love her, and I will not force myself to.
K
ING
Thou wrong'st thyself, if thou shouldst strive to choose.
If you won't do this you're making a lot of trouble for yourself.
HELENA
That you are well restored, my lord, I'm glad:
Let the rest go.
I'm glad that you are now in good health, my lord:
forget about the rest.
KING
My honour's at the stake; which to defeat,
I must produce my power. Here, take her hand,
Proud scornful boy, unworthy this good gift;
That dost in vile misprision shackle up
My love and her desert; that canst not dream,
We, poising us in her defective scale,
Shall weigh thee to the beam; that wilt not know,
It is in us to plant thine honour where
We please to have it grow. Cheque thy contempt:
Obey our will, which travails in thy good:
Believe not thy disdain, but presently
Do thine own fortunes that obedient right
Which both thy duty owes and our power claims;
Or I will throw thee from my care for ever
Into the staggers and the careless lapse
Of youth and ignorance; both my revenge and hate
Loosing upon thee, in the name of justice,
Without all terms of pity. Speak; thine answer.
My honour's at stake; to win here
I must use my power. Here, takeher hand,
you arrogant contemptuous boy, who doesn't deserve this good gift;
you are showing a revolting contempt for both
my love and what she deserves; you can't imagine
that you can show such contempt for us
and not face the consequences; don't you know
That it's up to me to assign honour
to whomever I please; rein in your contempt:
do as I order, which is for your own good:
do not follow your contempt, but now
do the right thing for your own fortune
which you're bound to by duty and my power orders;
otherwise I will expel you from my care forever
into the stumbling careless errors
of youth and ignorance; I will unleash
both my revenge and my hate upon you
in the name of justice, I will show you no mercy.
Speak; give me your answer.
BERTRAM
Pardon, my gracious lord; for I submit
My fancy to your eyes: when I consider
What great creation and what dole of honour
Flies where you bid it, I find that she, which late
Was in my nobler thoughts most base, is now
The praised of the king; who, so ennobled,
Is as 'twere born so.
I apologise, my gracious lord; I now see it
from your point of view: when I think
that titles and honours are given
by you, I realise that she, who recently
seemed to me in my noble thoughts very humble, is now
praised by the King; as she is given this honour
it is as if she was always noble.
KING
Take her by the hand,
And tell her she is thine: to whom I promise
A counterpoise, if not to thy estate
A balance more replete.
Take her by the hand
and tell her she is yours: I promise her
riches which, if they don't completely match your estate
will make the two of you much more even.
BERTRAM
I take her hand.
I take her by the hand.
KING
Good fortune and the favour of the king
Smile upon this contract; whose ceremony
Shall seem expedient on the now-born brief,
And be perform'd to-night: the solemn feast
Shall more attend upon the coming space,
Expecting absent friends. As thou lovest her,
Thy love's to me religious; else, does err.
May good fortune and the King's favor
smile upon this agreement; now seems
a good time to perform the ceremony,
and they shall be married tonight: the solemn feast
shallbe postponed a little while,
to wait for absent friends. As you love her,
your love to me is sacred; anything else is blasphemous.
Exeunt all but LAFEU and PAROLLES
LAFEU
[Advancing] Do you hear, monsieur? a word with you.
Did you hear that, sir? A word with you.
PAROLLES
Your pleasure, sir?
What is it, sir?
LAFEU
Your lord and master did well to make his
recantation.
Your lord and master did well to take that back.
PAROLLES
Recantation! My lord! my master!
Take it back! My Lord! My master!
LAFEU
Ay; is it not a language I speak?
Yes; am I not speaking a language you understand?
PAROLLES
A most harsh one, and not to be understood without
bloody succeeding. My master!
A very harsh one, which can't be understood without
bloodshed following. My master!
LAFEU
Are you companion to the Count Rousillon?
Aren't you a friend of the Count Rousillon?
PAROLLES
To any count, to all counts, to what is man.
I'm a friend to any counts, to all counts, to any man.
LAFEU
To what is count's man: count's master is of
another style.
A count's man is one thing: a count's master is
quite another.
PAROLLES
You are too old, sir; let it satisfy you, you are too old.
You are too old to fight, sir; you should be glad of that, you are too old.
LAFEU
I must tell thee, sirrah, I write man; to which
title age cannot bring thee.
I must tell you, sir, that I am a man; you won't
get that title through age.
PAROLLES
What I dare too well do, I dare not do.
I dare not do what I would really like to.
LAFEU
I did think thee, for two ordinaries, to be a pretty
wise fellow; thou didst make tolerable vent of thy
travel; it might pass: yet the scarfs and the
bannerets about thee did manifoldly dissuade me from
believing thee a vessel of too great a burthen. I
have now found thee; when I lose thee again, I care
not: yet art thou good for nothing but taking up; and
that thou't scarce worth.
I did think, for a little while, that you were a pretty
wise chap; you told a good story of your
travels; it was passable: but the scarves and
decorations on you certainly made me think
that you were pretty shallow. And I've
found out I was right; if I don't see you again
I wouldn't care: you're good for nothing but idle chatter
and hardly much good at that.
PAROLLES
Hadst thou not the privilege of antiquity upon thee,--
If you didn't have the privilege of age–
LAFEU
Do not plunge thyself too far in anger, lest thou
hasten thy trial; which if--Lord have mercy on thee
for a hen! So, my good window of lattice, fare thee
well: thy casement I need not open, for I look
through thee. Give me thy hand.
Don't let your anger run on to far, in case
you have to back it up with action, if you do–may the Lord
farewell: I don't need to open your frame, I can
see through you. Give me your hand.
PAROLLES
My lord, you give me most egregious indignity.
My lord, you have given me a serious insult.
LAFEU
Ay, with all my heart; and thou art worthy of it.
Yes, with all my heart; and you deserve it.
PAROLLES
I have not, my lord, deserved it.
I have not deserved it, my lord.
LAFEU
Yes, good faith, every dram of it; and I will not
bate thee a scruple.
You have indeed, every ounce of it; and I will not
lessen it by one drop.
PAROLLES
Well, I shall be wiser.
Well, I shall be wiser.
LAFEU
Even as soon as thou canst, for thou hast to pull at
a smack o' the contrary. If ever thou be'st bound
in thy scarf and beaten, thou shalt find what it is
to be proud of thy bondage. I have a desire to hold
my acquaintance with thee, or rather my knowledge,
that I may say in the default, he is a man I know.
You should become so as soon as you can, for you
are the opposite at the moment. If you're ever tied up
in your scarf and beaten, you will find out what it means
to be proud of your slavery. I would like to keep
my acquaintance with you, or rather my knowledge of you,
so that I can say when the time comes, I know that man.