SCENE I. ATHENS. A ROOM IN THE PALACE OF THESEUS. This man hath my consent to marry her :- Enter Theseus, Hippolyta, Philostrate, and Atten- This hath bewitch'd the bosom of my child : dants. The. Now, fair Hippolyta, our nuptial hour Long withering out a young man's revenue. Four nights will quickly dream away the time; The. Go, Philostrate, Stir up the Athenian youth to merriments; Thou, thou, Lysander, thou hast given her rhymes, Of strong prevailment in unharden'd youth: Turn'd her obedience, which is due to me, To stubborn harshness :-and, my gracious duke, I beg the ancient privilege of Athens; Hippolyta, I woo'd thee with my sword, Ege. Full of vexation come I, with complaint The. What say you, Hermia? be advis'd, fait To you your father should be as a god; But, in this kind, wanting your father's voice, The other must be held the worthier. Her. I would, my father look'd but with my eyes. [look. The. Rather your eyes must with his judgment Her. I do entreat your grace to pardon me. I know not by what power I am made bold; Nor how it may concern my modesty, In such a presence here, to plead my thoughts: But I beseech your grace, that I may know The worst that may befal me in this case, If I refuse to wed Demetrius. The. Either to die the death, or to abjure Therefore, fair Hermia, question your desires, Her. So will I grow, so live, so die, my lord, Or else, to wed Demetrius, as he would: Dem. Relent, sweet Hermia ;-and, Lysander, Thy crazed title to my certain right. [yield Lys. You have her father's love, Demetrius; Lys. I am, my lord, as well deriv'd as he, And, which is more than all these boasts can be, The. I must confess, that I have heard so much, Or else the law of Athens yields you up [exeunt Thes. Hip. Ege. Dem. and train. Lys. How now, my love? Why is your cheek so How chance the roses there do fade so fast? [pale? Her. Belike, for want of rain; which I could well Beteem them from the tempest of mine eyes. Lys. Ah me! for aught that ever I could read, Could ever hear by tale or history, The course of true love never did run smooth: Her. O cross! too high to be enthrall'd to low! Her. O hell! to choose love by another's eye! Lys. Or, if there were a sympathy in choice, War, death, or sickness, did lay siege to it; Making it momentary as a sound, Swift as a shadow, short as any dream; So quick bright things come to confusion. Her. If then true lovers have been ever cross'd, It stands as an edíct in destiny: Then let us teach our trial patience, As due to love, as thoughts, and dreams, and sighs, Lys. A good persuasion; therefore, hear me, I have a widow aunt, a dowager [Hermia. Of great revenue, and she hath no child: From Athens is her house remote seven leagues; And she respects me as her only son, There, gentle Hermia, may I marry thee; And to that place the sharp Athenian law Cannot pursue us: if thou lov'st me then. Steal forth thy father's house to-morrow night; And in the wood, a league without the town, Where I did meet thee once with Helena, To do observance to a morn of May, There will I stay for thee. Her. My good Lysander! I swear to thee by Cupid's strongest bow; By that which knitteth souls, and prospers loves; Lys. Keep promise, love: look, here comes Enter Helena. Her. God speed fair Helena! Whither away? Were the world mine, Demetrius being bated, Her. I frown upon him, yet he loves me still. Hel. O, that your frowns would teach my smiles such skill! Her. I give him curses, yet he gives me love. Hel. O, that my prayers could such affection move! Her. The more I hate, the more he follows me. Hel. The more I love, the more he hateth me. Her. His folly, Helena, is no fault of mine. Hel. None, but your beauty; 'would that fault were mine! [face; Her. Take comfort; he no more shall see my Lysander and myself will fly this place.— Before the time I did Lysander see, Seem'd Athens as a paradise to me: O then, what graces in my love do dwell, That he hath turn'd a heaven into a hell! Lys. Helen, to you our minds we will unfold: To-morrow night, when Phœbe doth behold Her silver visage in the watʼry glass, Decking with liquid pearl the bladed grass, (A time that lovers' flights doth still conceal,) Through Athens' gates have we devised to steal. Her. And in the wood, where often you and I Upon faint primrose-beds were wont to lie, Emptying our bosoms of their counsel sweet, There my Lysander and myself shall meet: And thence, from Athens, turn away our eyes, To seek new friends and stranger companies. Farewell, sweet playfellow; pray thou for us, And good luck grant thee thy Demetrius! Keep word, Lysander: we must starve our sight From lovers' food, till morrow deep midnight. [exit Her. Lys. I will, my Hermia.-Helena, adieu : As you on him, Demetrius dote on you! exit Lys. Hel. How happy some, o'er other some can be! Through Athens I am thought as fair as she. But what of that? Demetrius thinks not so; He will not know what all but he do know. And as he errs, doting on Hermia's eyes, So I, admiring of his qualities. Things base and vile, holding no quantity, Love can transpose to form and dignity. Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind; And therefore is wing'd Cupid painted blind: Nor hath love's mind of any judgment taste; Wings, and no eyes, figure unheedy haste: And therefore is Love said to be a child, Because in choice he is so oft beguil'd. As waggish boys in game themselves forswear, SCENE II. THE SAME. A ROOM IN A COTTAGE. Enter Snug, Bottom, Flute, Snout, Quince, and Starveling. Quin. Is all our company here? Bot. You were best to call them generally, man by man, according to the scrip. Quin. Here is the scroll of every man's name, which is thought fit, through all Athens, to play in our interlude before the duke and duchess, on his wedding-day at night. Bot. First, good Peter Quince, say what the play treats on; then read the names of the actors: and so grow to a point. Quin. Mary, our play is-The most lamentable comedy, and most cruel death of Pyramus and Thisby. Bot. A very good piece of work, I assure you, and a merry-Now, good Peter Quince, call forth your actors by the scroll-Masters, spread yourselves. Quin. Answer, as I call you.-Nick Bottom, the weaver. Bot. Ready: name what part I am for, and proceed. Quin. You, Nick Bottom, are set down for Pyramus. Bot. What is Pyramus? a lover, or a tyrant? Quin. A lover, that kills himself most gallantly for love. Bot. That will ask some tears in the true performing of it: if I do it, let the audience look to their eyes; I will move storms, I will condole in some measure. To the rest yet my chief humour is for a tyrant: I could play Ercles rarely, or a part to tear a cat in, to make all split. The raging rocks, With shivering shocks, Shall break the locks Of prison-gates: And Phibbus' car Shall shine from far, And make and mar The foolish fates." This was lofty!-Now name the rest of the players. This is Ercles' vein, a tyrant's vein; a lover is more condoling. Quin. Francis Flute, the bellows-mender. Quin. You must take Thisby on you. Flu. What is Thisby? a wandering knight? Quin. It is the lady that Pyramus must love. Flu. Nay, faith, let me not play a woman; I have a beard coming. Quin. That's all one; you shall play it in a mask, and you may speak as small as you will. Bot. An I may hide my face, let me play 1 Thisby too: I'll speak in a monstrous little voice; -Thisne, Thisne,—Ah, Pyramus, my lover dear; thy Thisby dear! and lady dear! as gently as any sucking dove; I will roar you an 'twere any nightingale. Quin. You can play no part but Pyramus: Quin. No, no; you must play Pyramus; and, for Pyramus is a sweet-faced man; a proper man, Flute, you Thisby. Bot. Well, proceed. Quin. Robin Starveling, the tailor. Star. Here, Peter Quince. as one shall see in a summer's day; a most lovely, gentleman-like man; therefore you must needs play Pyramus. Bot. Well, I will undertake it. What beard Quin. Robin Starveling, you must play Thisby's were I best to play it in? mother.-Tom Snout, the tinker. Snout. Here, Peter Quince. Quin. You, Pyramus's father; myself, Thisby's father;-Snug, the joiner, you, the lion's part: --and, I hope, here is a play fitted. Snug. Have you the lion's part written? pray you, if it be, give it me, for I am slow of study. Quin. You may do it extempore, for it is nothing but roaring. Bot. Let me play the lion too: I will roar, that I will do any man's heart good to hear me; I will roar, that I will make the duke say, Let him roar again, Let him roar again. Quin. An you shall do it too terribly, you would fright the duchess and the ladies, that they would shriek: and that were enough to hang us all. All. That would hang us every mother's son. Bot. I grant you, friends, if that you should fright the ladies out of their wits, they would have no more discretion but to hang us: but I will aggravate my voice so, that I will roar you SCENE 1. A WOOD NEAR ATHENS. Quin. Why, what you will. Bot. I will discharge it in either your strawcoloured beard, your orange-tawny beard, your purple-in-grain beard, or your French-crowncolour beard, your perfect yellow. Quin. Some of your French crowns have no hair at all, and then you will play bare-faced.— But, masters, here are your parts: and I am to entreat you, request you, and desire you, to con them by to-morrow night; and meet me in the palace wood, a mile without the town, by moonlight; there will we rehearse: for if we meet in the city, we shall be dog'd with company, and our devices knowr. In the meantime I will draw a bill of properties, such as our play wants. I pray you, fail me not. Bot. We will meet; and there we may rehearse more obscenely, and courageously. Take pains; be perfect; adieu. ACT Enter a Fairy at one door, and Puck at another. Thorough bush, thorough brier, In those freckles live their savours: Take heed, the queen come not within his sight. But they do square; that all their elves, for fear, Fai. Either I mistake your shape and making Or else you are that shrewd and knavish sprite, Puck. Thou speak'st aright, I am that merry wanderer of the night. Crowns him with flowers, and makes him all A merrier hour was never wasted there. her joy: And now they never meet in grove, or green, But, room, Faery, here comes Oberon. Fai. And here my mistress: 'would that he were gone. SCENE II. The fairy land buys not the child of me. Enter Oberon, at one door, with his train, and His mother was a vot'ress of my order: Titania, at another, with hers. Obe. Ill met by moon-light, proud Titania. Tita. What, jealous Oberon? Fairy, skip hence; I have forsworn his bed and company. Obe. Tarry, rash wanton; am not I thy lord? Tita. Then I must be thy lady: but I know, When thou hast stol'n away from fairy land, And in the shape of Corin sat all day, Playing on pipes of corn, and versing love, To amorous Phillida. Why art thou here, Come from the farthest steep of India? But that, forsooth, the bouncing Amazon, Your buskin'd mistress, and your warrior love, To Theseus must be wedded; and you come To give their bed joy and prosperity. Obe. How canst thou thus, for shame, Titania, Glance at my credit with Hippolyta, Knowing I know thy love to Theseus? Didst thou not lead him through the glimmering From Perigenia, whom he ravished? And make him with fair Æglé break his faith, With Ariadne, and Antiopa? [night Tita. These are the forgeries of jealousy : Obe. Do you amend it then; it lies in you: To be my henchman. Tita. Set your heart at rest, And, in the spiced Indian air, by night, Tita. Perchance, till after Theseus' wedding. [exeunt Titania and her train. Obe. Well, go thy way: thou shalt not from this grove, Till I torment thee for this injury.- Obe. That very time I saw, (but thou could'st Flying between the cold moon and the earth, Cupid all arm'd: a certain aim he took At a fair vestal, throned by the west; And loos'd his love-shaft smartly from his bow, As it should pierce a hundred thousand hearts: But I might see young Cupid's fiery shaft Quench'd in the chaste beams of the wat'ry moon; And the imperial vot'ress passed on, In maiden meditation, fancy-free. Yet mark'd I where the bolt of Cupid fell: Obe. Having once this juice, |