The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated) (921 page)

To set thee here?

Who is he who's shown your position so little respect

that he's put you here?

KENT

It is both he and she;

Your son and daughter.

Both a he and a she;

your son and your daughter.

KING LEAR

No.

No.

KENT

Yes.

Yes.

KING LEAR

No, I say.

No, I say.

KENT

I say, yea.

And I say yes.

KING LEAR

No, no, they would not.

No, no, they wouldn't.

KENT

Yes, they have.

Yes, they have.

KING LEAR

By Jupiter, I swear, no.

By Jupiter I swear they would not.

KENT

By Juno, I swear, ay.

By Juno I swear that they have.

KING LEAR

They durst not do 't;

They could not, would not do 't; 'tis worse than murder,

To do upon respect such violent outrage:

Resolve me, with all modest haste, which way

Thou mightst deserve, or they impose, this usage,

Coming from us.

They wouldn't dare;

they could not, would not do it; it's worse than murder,

to commit such a disrespectful act:

tell me, as quickly as you can, how

you came to deserve, or them to impose, this punishment,

when you came from me.

KENT

My lord, when at their home

I did commend your highness' letters to them,

Ere I was risen from the place that show'd

My duty kneeling, came there a reeking post,

Stew'd in his haste, half breathless, panting forth

From Goneril his mistress salutations;

Deliver'd letters, spite of intermission,

Which presently they read: on whose contents,

They summon'd up their meiny, straight took horse;

Commanded me to follow, and attend

The leisure of their answer; gave me cold looks:

And meeting here the other messenger,

Whose welcome, I perceived, had poison'd mine,--

Being the very fellow that of late

Display'd so saucily against your highness,--

Having more man than wit about me, drew:

He raised the house with loud and coward cries.

Your son and daughter found this trespass worth

The shame which here it suffers.

My lord, when I went to their home

I gave them your Highness' letters;

before I had got up from where I was kneeling

to show my respect, there came a stinking messenger,

boiling with haste, almost out of breath, gasping out

greetings from his mistress, Goneril;

he delivered letters, in spite of the fact that it interrupted me,

which they then read: having read them

they called up their servants, and got their horses ready;

they ordered me to follow and wait

for their answer; they gave me dirty looks:

and they met the other messenger here,

who I saw had managed to poison my welcome,

being the same fellow who recently

was so cheeky to your Highness;

having more courage than sense I drew my sword,

and he woke the household with loud cowardly cries.

Your son and daughter decided this offence

deserved the punishment you can see here.

Fool

Winter's not gone yet, if the wild-geese fly that way.

Fathers that wear rags

Do make their children blind;

But fathers that bear bags

Shall see their children kind.

Fortune, that arrant whore,

Ne'er turns the key to the poor.

But, for all this, thou shalt have as many dolours

for thy daughters as thou canst tell in a year.

Winter hasn't gone, if we see such migration.

Fathers that are poor

are ignored by their children;

but fathers that are rich

will be well treated by them.

Fortune, that flighty whore,

never opens the door to the poor.

But despite this you shall have as many dollars

from your daughters as you could count in a year.

KING LEAR

O, how this mother swells up toward my heart!

Hysterica passio, down, thou climbing sorrow,

Thy element's below! Where is this daughter?

Oh, how this choking feeling clutches at my heart!

Get down you hysterical passion, you rising depression,

you should stay down below! Where is my daughter?

KENT

With the earl, sir, here within.

With the earl, sir, in there.

KING LEAR

Follow me not;

Stay here.

Exit

Don't follow me;

stay here.

Gentleman

Made you no more offence but what you speak of?

Did you do no other wrong except what you mentioned?

KENT

None.

How chance the king comes with so small a train?

Nothing.

Why has the King come with such a small entourage?

Fool

And thou hadst been set i' the stocks for that

question, thou hadst well deserved it.

If you were in the stocks for asking

that question, you would deserve it.

KENT

Why, fool?

Why, fool?

Fool

We'll set thee to school to an ant, to teach thee

there's no labouring i' the winter. All that follow

their noses are led by their eyes but blind men; and

there's not a nose among twenty but can smell him

that's stinking. Let go thy hold when a great wheel

runs down a hill, lest it break thy neck with

following it: but the great one that goes up the

hill, let him draw thee after. When a wise man

gives thee better counsel, give me mine again: I

would have none but knaves follow it, since a fool gives it.

That sir which serves and seeks for gain,

And follows but for form,

Will pack when it begins to rain,

And leave thee in the storm,

But I will tarry; the fool will stay,

And let the wise man fly:

The knave turns fool that runs away;

The fool no knave, perdy.

We should get you an ant as your teacher, to show you

that nothing can be gained in the winter.

Everyone can sense the King's in trouble.

When a great wheel runs out of control downhill

let go of it, in case you break your neck in the chase;

but when a great one is going upwards

let him pull you behind him;

if you get better advice from a wise man

then give me mine back: only knaves

should follow it, because it's given by a fool.

The ones who serve and look for profit,

and only follow rank,

will pack up when it begins to rain

and leave you in the storm.

But I will wait; the fool will stay,

and let the wise man run:

the knave who runs away is a fool;

and this fool is no treacherous knave.

KENT

Where learned you this, fool?

Where did you learn this, fool?

Fool

Not i' the stocks, fool.

Re-enter KING LEAR with GLOUCESTER

Not in the stocks, fool.

KING LEAR

Deny to speak with me? They are sick? they are weary?

They have travell'd all the night? Mere fetches;

The images of revolt and flying off.

Fetch me a better answer.

They won't speak with me? They are sick? They are tired?

They have been travelling all night? These are just excuses;

they show rebellion and evasion.

Get me a better answer.

GLOUCESTER

My dear lord,

You know the fiery quality of the duke;

How unremoveable and fix'd he is

In his own course.

My dear lord,

you know how fiery the Duke is;

you know how impossible it is

to get him to deviate from his plans.

KING LEAR

Vengeance! plague! death! confusion!

Fiery? what quality? Why, Gloucester, Gloucester,

I'ld speak with the Duke of Cornwall and his wife.

Revenge! Plague! Death! Confusion!

Fiery? What's that?  Why, Gloucester, Gloucester,

I will speak with the Duke of Cornwall and his wife.

GLOUCESTER

Well, my good lord, I have inform'd them so.

Well my good lord, that's what I have told them.

KING LEAR

Inform'd them! Dost thou understand me, man?

Told them! Do you understand what I've said, man?

GLOUCESTER

Ay, my good lord.

Yes, my good lord.

KING LEAR

The king would speak with Cornwall; the dear father

Would with his daughter speak, commands her service:

Are they inform'd of this? My breath and blood!

Fiery? the fiery duke? Tell the hot duke that--

No, but not yet: may be he is not well:

Infirmity doth still neglect all office

Whereto our health is bound; we are not ourselves

When nature, being oppress'd, commands the mind

To suffer with the body: I'll forbear;

And am fall'n out with my more headier will,

To take the indisposed and sickly fit

For the sound man. Death on my state! wherefore

Looking on KENT

Should he sit here? This act persuades me

That this remotion of the duke and her

Is practise only. Give me my servant forth.

Go tell the duke and 's wife I'ld speak with them,

Now, presently: bid them come forth and hear me,

Or at their chamber-door I'll beat the drum

Till it cry sleep to death.

The King wants to speak with Cornwall; the dear father

wants to speak with his daughter, and orders her to obey:

have they been told this? By my breath and blood!

Fiery? The fiery Duke? Tell the hot Duke that–

no, not yet: maybe he really is not well:

when we are ill we forget all the duties

for which we need our health; we are not ourselves

when nature, under pressure, orders the mind

to suffer with the body: I'll hold back;

and I will control my temper

rather than think that the ill man

is representative of the healthy one.