The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated) (420 page)

Behold the window of my heart, mine eye,
See the window of my heart, my eye

What humble suit attends thy answer there:
What humble offering awaits your answer there:

Impose some service on me for thy love.
Let me do something to earn your love.

ROSALINE Oft have I heard of you, my Lord Biron,
I’ve heard quite a bit about you, my Lord Biron,

Before I saw you; and the world's large tongue
before I saw you; and the general consensus

Proclaims you for a man replete with mocks,
claims you to be a man who mocks others,

Full of comparisons and wounding flouts,
Full of witty sarcastic similes and harsh disregard,

Which you on all estates will execute
Which you would place on all classes

That lie within the mercy of your wit.
that you were able to insult.

To weed this wormwood from your fruitful brain,

To get this poison from your intelligent brain,

And therewithal to win me, if you please,
And in doing so, win me, if you’d like to,

Without the which I am not to be won,
But without that you’ll never win me

You shall this twelvemonth term from day to day
During this twelve month term, every day, you will

Visit the speechless sick and still converse
Visit those that are too ill to speak and still have a conversation

With groaning wretches; and your task shall be,
with groaning sick people; and your task will be,

With all the fierce endeavor of your wit
with all the ability of your wit

To enforce the pained impotent to smile.
to cause these poor sick people to smile.  

BIRON To move wild laughter in the throat of death?
To cause dying people to laugh?

It cannot be; it is impossible:
It can’t be; it’s impossible:

Mirth cannot move a soul in agony.
Jokes cannot cause an agonized soul to feel happy.  

ROSALINE Why, that's the way to choke a gibing spirit,

Well, that’s the only way to stop a mocking spirit,
Whose influence is begot of that loose grace
whose influence gets too much approval

Which shallow laughing hearers give to fools:
by people laughing shallowly at your foolish jokes:

A jest's prosperity lies in the ear
A joke’s value lies in the way it’s heard

Of him that hears it, never in the tongue
by him that hears it, rather than the way it’s told

Of him that makes it: then, if sickly ears,
by the one who speaks it: then, if it’s heard by the sick

Deaf'd with the clamours of their own dear groans,
Deafened with the sound of their own groans,

Will hear your idle scorns, continue then,
will hear your dumb insults, then keep making them,

And I will have you and that fault withal;
and I will accept you and all of your faults;

But if they will not, throw away that spirit,
But if they don’t, stop your habit of mocking,

And I shall find you empty of that fault,
and I will find you free of flaws,

Right joyful of your reformation.
And happy to see you’ve changed.  

BIRON A twelvemonth! well; befall what will befall,

Twelve months! Well; let happen what will happen,
I'll jest a twelvemonth in an hospital.
I’ll joke for twelve months in a hospital

PRINCESS [To FERDINAND] Ay, sweet my lord; and so I take my leave.

Ok, my sweet lord; I will leave now.  
FERDINAND No, madam; we will bring you on your way.

No, madam; let us go with you a ways.  
BIRON Our wooing doth not end like an old play;
Our attempts to win them over didn’t have a storybook ending

Jack hath not Jill: these ladies' courtesy
Jack did not win Jill: these ladies’ manners

Might well have made our sport a comedy.
might have made our attempts a joke.  

FERDINAND Come, sir, it wants a twelvemonth and a day,

Come on, sir, we have to wait twelve months and a day,
And then 'twill end.
And then our play will end.

BIRON That's too long for a play.

That’s too long for a play.
Re-enter DON ADRIANO DE ARMADODON ADRIANO DE ARMADO Sweet majesty, vouchsafe me,--

Sweet majesty, grant me,--
PRINCESS Was not that Hector?

Isn’t that Hector?
DUMAIN The worthy knight of Troy.
Hector, the worthy knight of Troy.

DON ADRIANO DE ARMADO I will kiss thy royal finger, and take leave. I am
I will kiss your royal finger, and leave.  I have made a

a votary; I have vowed to Jaquenetta to hold the
religious vow; I have vowed to Jaquenetta to work with a

plough for her sweet love three years. But, most
plough to win her sweet love for three years.  But, most

esteemed greatness, will you hear the dialogue that
honorable king, will you hear that dialogue that

the two learned men have compiled in praise of the
the two educated men came up with in praise of the

owl and the cuckoo? It should have followed in the
owl and the cuckoo?  It was supposed to be at the

end of our show.
end of our show.  

FERDINAND Call them forth quickly; we will do so.

Tell them to come quickly; we will hear it.  

DON ADRIANO DE ARMADO Holla! approach.

Hey!  Approach the stage.  
Re-enter HOLOFERNES, SIR NATHANIEL, MOTH, COSTARD, and othersThis side is Hiems, Winter, this Ver, the Spring;

This character is Hiems, portraying winter, and this is Ver, portraying Spring;
the one maintained by the owl, the other by the

The winter is played by the owl, the other is played by the
cuckoo. Ver, begin.

Cuckoo.  Ver, begin.  
THE SONGSPRING.When daisies pied and violets blue

When multicolored daisies and blue violets
And lady-smocks all silver-white
And silver-white lady’s smocks

And cuckoo-buds of yellow hue
And cuckoo-blossoms of a yellow hue

Do paint the meadows with delight,
Paint the meadows with delightful colors,

The cuckoo then, on every tree,
The cuckoo will then sit on every tree,

Mocks married men; for thus sings he, Cuckoo;
and Mock married men; for he sings like this, Cuckoo;

Cuckoo, cuckoo: O word of fear,
Cuckoo, cuckoo: O the scary word

Unpleasing to a married ear!
So unpleasant to someone who is married!

When shepherds pipe on oaten straws
When shepherds chew on weeds

And merry larks are ploughmen's clocks,
And happy larks serve as clocks to the field workers,

When turtles tread, and rooks, and daws,
when turtles walk, and crows and jack-daws,

And maidens bleach their summer smocks
And maidens wash their summer dresses

The cuckoo then, on every tree,
The cuckoo will then sit on every tree,

Mocks married men; for thus sings he, Cuckoo;
and mock married men; for he sings like this, Cuckoo;

Cuckoo, cuckoo: O word of fear,
Cuckoo, cuckoo: O scary word

Unpleasing to a married ear!
So unpleasant to someone who is married!

WINTER.When icicles hang by the wall

When icicles have formed by the wall
And Dick the shepherd blows his nail
And Dick the shepherd blows on his hands to keep them warm

And Tom bears logs into the hall
And Tom brings logs into the hall

And milk comes frozen home in pail,
And milk is frozen in the pail by the time you bring it home

When blood is nipp'd and ways be foul,
When blood is cold and moods are foul,

Then nightly sings the staring owl, Tu-whit;
Then every night will sing the staring owl, Tu-whit;

Tu-who, a merry note,
Tu-who, a happy song,

While greasy Joan doth keel the pot.
While greasy Joan keeps stirring the pot.

When all aloud the wind doth blow
When the wind blows loudly

And coughing drowns the parson's saw
And winter coughs drown the parson’s snoring

And birds sit brooding in the snow
And birds sit unmoving in the snow

And Marian's nose looks red and raw,
And Marian’s nose appears red and raw,

When roasted crabs hiss in the bowl,
When roasted crabs hiss in the bowl,

Then nightly sings the staring owl, Tu-whit;
Then every night the staring owl will sing, Tu-whit;

Tu-who, a merry note,
Tu-who, a happy song,

While greasy Joan doth keel the pot.
While greasy Joan keeps stirring the pot.  

DON ADRIANO DE ARMADO The words of Mercury are harsh after the songs of

The words of Hermes, god of eloquence, are harsh after the song of
Apollo. You that way: we this way.
Apollo, god of music: You go that way: we will go this way.  

Exeunt

VICENTIO, Duke of Vienna

ANGELO, Lord Deputy in the Duke's absence

ESCALUS, an ancient Lord, joined with Angelo in the deputation

CLAUDIO, a young Gentleman