The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated) (509 page)

THESEUS

Thanks, good Egeus: what's the news with thee?

Thank you, Egeus

EGEUS

Full of vexation come I, with complaint

I am confused and worried for

Against my child, my daughter Hermia.

Hermia, my daughter and child.

Stand forth, Demetrius. My noble lord,

Come forward, Demetrius. My Lord,

This man hath my consent to marry her.

I have agreed to this man marrying her.

Stand forth, Lysander: and my gracious duke,

Come forward, Lysander: and good duke,

This man hath bewitch'd the bosom of my child;

This man has tricked my daughter’s heart.

Thou, thou, Lysander, thou hast given her rhymes,

You, Lysander, you have written her poems,

And interchanged love-tokens with my child:

And given her trinkets and gifts:

Thou hast by moonlight at her window sung,

At night, below her window, you sang to her,

With feigning voice verses of feigning love,

Deceiving her with insincere lyrics of untrue love,

And stolen the impression of her fantasy

And have stirred her imagination

With bracelets of thy hair, rings, gawds, conceits,

With locks of hair, rings, toys, favors,

Knacks, trifles, nosegays, sweetmeats, messengers

Knickknacks, charms, flowers, and desserts, convincing

Of strong prevailment in unharden'd youth:

Signs to strongly sway a naive youth
.

With cunning hast thou filch'd my daughter's heart,

Sneakily you have stolen my daughter’s love,

Turn'd her obedience, which is due to me,

So that she obeys you instead of me, and to me

To stubborn harshness: and, my gracious duke,

Acts stubbornly and rudely. And now, gracious duke,

Be it so she; will not here before your grace

I ask that you let me, if she will not here

Consent to marry with Demetrius,

Agree to marrying Demetrius,

I beg the ancient privilege of Athens,

Do what I am allowed as an Athenian father,

As she is mine, I may dispose of her:

Who owns his daughter, and send her away:

Which shall be either to this gentleman

Either to marry Demetrius,

Or to her death, according to our law

Or to die, according to the law.

Immediately provided in that case.

THESEUS

What say you, Hermia? be advised fair maid:

Well, Hermia – how do you respond? Know this:

To you your father should be as a god;

Your father should be thought of as your god –

One that composed your beauties, yea, and one

He created you, as beautiful as you are, and

To whom you are but as a form in wax

So you are only a wax model

By him imprinted and within his power

That he has signed as the artist, and as such

To leave the figure or disfigure it.

He may leave it untouched, or demolish it.

Demetrius is a worthy gentleman.

Demetrius is well worth marrying.

HERMIA

So is Lysander.

But Lysander is as well.

THESEUS

In himself he is;

Yes, outside of this situation he is,

But in this kind, wanting your father's voice,

But considering your father’s opinion

The other must be held the worthier.

Demetrius is the better man.

HERMIA

I would my father look'd but with my eyes.

I wish my father could see this as I do!

THESEUS

Rather your eyes must with his judgment look.

No, you should instead see it as he does.

HERMIA

I do entreat your grace to pardon me.

Please forgive me for what I am going to say.

I know not by what power I am made bold,

I do not know how I feel so confident to speak honestly,

Nor how it may concern my modesty,

or how much I am overstepping my place and being ill-mannered,

In such a presence here to plead my thoughts;

And bring my case to you who are my authority;

But I beseech your grace that I may know

But I ask, because I wish to know for sure,

The worst that may befall me in this case,

What is the worst that might happen to me

If I refuse to wed Demetrius.

If I refuse to marry Demetrius?

THESEUS

Either to die the death or to abjure

You must either die or be banished

For ever the society of men.

From marrying and sent to a nunnery.

Therefore, fair Hermia, question your desires;

So, beautiful Hermia, step back and search yourself,

Know of your youth, examine well your blood,

Understand your immaturity, your youth, and your temperament,

Whether, if you yield not to your father's choice,

So you can know, if you do not obey your father,

You can endure the livery of a nun,

If you can live the rest of your life as a nun.

For aye to be in shady cloister mew'd,

You would be caged in a dark convent

To live a barren sister all your life,

All your life, living as a nun, childless,

Chanting faint hymns to the cold fruitless moon.

Chanting hymns to the cold moon, which like you is without child.

Thrice-blessed they that master so their blood,

Believe me, those that can quell their desires are blessed triple

To undergo such maiden pilgrimage;

For journeying through life as a nun is admirable –

But earthlier happy is the rose distill'd,

But on this earth, it is happier to be married, like a rose perfume,

Than that which withering on the virgin thorn

Rather than the rose that on the same stem

Grows, lives and dies in single blessedness.

Grows, lives, and dies, alone but chaste and blessed.

HERMIA

So will I grow, so live, so die, my lord,

So I will likewise grow, live, and die alone, my lord

Ere I will my virgin patent up

Before I consent to losing my virginity

Unto his lordship, whose unwished yoke

To Demetrius, whose bond of marriage I do not wish

My soul consents not to give sovereignty.

And to whose authority my soul does not desire to bow.

THESEUS

Take time to pause; and, by the nest new moon--

Take time and think about your decision until the new moon –

The sealing-day betwixt my love and me,

– which is when Hippolyta and I will marry

For everlasting bond of fellowship--

and be forever joined together –

Upon that day either prepare to die

And then you must be ready to die

For disobedience to your father's will,

For disobeying your father’s will,

Or else to wed Demetrius, as he would;

Or ready to wed Demetrius, as your father wishes,

Or on Diana's altar to protest

Or like the chaste Roman goddess Diana, commit

For aye austerity and single life.

Yourself to the nun’s vows of lifelong celibacy.

DEMETRIUS

Relent, sweet Hermia: and, Lysander, yield

Change your mind, sweet Hermia! And Lysander, give up

Thy crazed title to my certain right.

Your claim to the woman I am due to marry.

LYSANDER

You have her father's love, Demetrius;

Demetrius, you can have her father’s love

Let me have Hermia's: do you marry him.

And I can have Hermia’s – why don’t you marry him?

EGEUS

Scornful Lysander! true, he hath my love,

Rude Lysander! Yes, I love Demetrius,

And what is mine my love shall render him.

And so I will give him what is mine:

And she is mine, and all my right of her

My daughter, and the right to marry her

I do estate unto Demetrius.

Is so allowed to Demetrius.

LYSANDER

I am, my lord, as well derived as he,

You know, sir, I come from as good a family as he does,

As well possess'd; my love is more than his;

I am just as rich, and I love Hermia more.

My fortunes every way as fairly rank'd,

In everything I rank just as highly,

If not with vantage, as Demetrius';

If not higher, than Demetrius,

And, which is more than all these boasts can be,

And moreover, which should be what is most important,

I am beloved of beauteous Hermia:

Beautiful Hermia loves me in return:

Why should not I then prosecute my right?

Why should I not be able to marry her?

Demetrius, I'll avouch it to his head,

Demetrius, I promise this is true,

Made love to Nedar's daughter, Helena,

Wooed Nedar’s daughter, Helena,

And won her soul; and she, sweet lady, dotes,

Until she fell for him, and she, poor girl,  loves,

Devoutly dotes, dotes in idolatry,

Loves deeply, almost to the point of obsession,

Upon this spotted and inconstant man.

This flawed and inconsistent man.

THESEUS

I must confess that I have heard so much,

Admittedly, I have heard similar rumors

And with Demetrius thought to have spoke thereof;

And even considered speaking directly to Demetrius about them,

But, being over-full of self-affairs,

But, being so busy with my own obligations

My mind did lose it. But, Demetrius, come;

Forgot about it. Demetrius, come with me,

And come, Egeus; you shall go with me,

And you, Egeus, come with me as well:

I have some private schooling for you both.

I have some words in private to share with you both.

For you, fair Hermia, look you arm yourself

As for you, Hermia, prepare yourself

To fit your fancies to your father's will;

To do whatever your father’s will commands,

Or else the law of Athens yields you up--

Or else you must go before the Athenian Law –

Which by no means we may extenuate--

From which we cannot save you –

To death, or to a vow of single life.

And either die or become a nun.

Come, my Hippolyta: what cheer, my love?

Come, Hippolyta – how are you, my love?

Demetrius and Egeus, go along:

Demetrius and Egeus, come with us.

I must employ you in some business

I must as you about something

Against our nuptial and confer with you

Regarding my wedding, and speak with you

Of something nearly that concerns yourselves.

About something that concerns both of you.

EGEUS

With duty and desire we follow you.

We follow in order to obey, and because we want to hear your words.

Exeunt all but LYSANDER and HERMIA

LYSANDER

How now, my love! why is your cheek so pale?