Dem. He should have worn the horns on his head. The. He is no crescent, and his horns are invisible within the circumference. Moon. This lanthorn doth the horned moon present; Myself the man i' the moon do seem to be. The. This is the greatest error of all the rest the man should be put into the lanthorn. How is it else the man i' the moon? Dem. He dares not come there for the candle; for, you see, it is already in snuff. Hip. I am aweary of this moon: would he would change! The. It appears, by his small light of discretion, that he is in the wane; but yet, in courtesy, in all reason, we must stay the time, Lys. Proceed, Moon. 260 Moon. All that I have to say, is, to tell you that the lanthorn is the moon; I, the man in the moon; this thorn-bush, my thorn-bush ; and this dog, my dog. Dem. Why, all these should be in the lanthorn; for all these are in the moon. But, silence! here comes Thisbe. Come, tears, confound ; Out, sword, and wound The pap of Pyramus; Ay, that left pap, Where heart doth hop: [Stabs himself. My soul is in the sky: Moon, take thy flight: [Exit Moonshine. [Dies. Dem. No die, but an ace, for him; for he is but one. Lys. Less than an ace, man; for he is dead; he is nothing. The. With the help of a surgeon he might yet recover, and prove an ass. Hip. How chance Moonshine is gone before Thisbe comes back and finds her lover? The. She will find him by starlight. Here she comes; and her passion ends the play. 321 Re-enter THISBE. Hip. Methinks she should not use a long one for such a Pyramus: I hope she will be brief. Dem. A mote will turn the balance, which Pyramus, which Thisbe, is the better; he for a man, God warrant us; she for a woman, God bless us. [those sweet eyes. Lys. She hath spied him already with Dem. And thus she means, videlicet:- 330 This. Asleep, my love? What, dead, my dove? O Pyramus, arise! Speak, speak. Quite dumb? Must cover thy sweet eyes. This cherry nose, These yellow cowslip cheeks, Are gone, are gone : His eyes were green as leeks. Come, come to me, With hands as pale as milk; Lay them in gore, Since you have shore With shears his thread of silk. Tongue, not a word: 340 Come, trusty sword; 350 Come, blade, my breast imbrue : 290 [Stabs herself. And, farewell, friends; [Dies. Quail, crush, conclude, and quell ! The. This passion, and the death of a dear friend, would go near to make a man look sad. Hip. Beshrew my heart, but I pity the man. Pyr. O wherefore, Nature, didst thou lions frame? Since lion vile hath here deflower'd my dear: Which is no, no-which was the fairest dame That lived, that loved, that liked, that look'd with cheer. Thus Thisby ends : Adieu, adieu, adieu. The. Moonshine and Lion are left to bury the dead. Dem. Ay, and Wall too. Bot. [Starting up] No, I assure you; the wall is down that parted their fathers. Will it please you to see the epilogue, or to hear a Bergomask dance between two of our company? 361 T 380 Puck. Now the hungry lion roars, Now it That the graves all gaping wide, 390 Enter OBERON and TITANIA with their train. light, By the dead and drowsy fire: Every elf and fairy sprite Hop as light as bird from brier ; 400 And each several chamber bless, Trip away; make no stay; Meet 430 [Exeunt Oberon, Titania, and train. Now to 'scape the serpent's tongue, 440 Give me your hands, if we be friends, KING HENRY VI. PART II. (WRITTEN ABOUT 1591-92.) INTRODUCTION. The second and third parts of King Henry VI. are recasts of two older plays-The First Part of the Contention (published 1594) and The True Tragedie of Richard Duke of York, &c. (published 1595). About 3,241 lines of these old plays re-appear either in the same or in an altered form in 2 and 3 Henry VI.; what remains (2,736 lines) being altogether new. No question in Shakespeare scholarship is more perplexing and difficult than that of the authorship of these four connected historical dramas. Various theories have been propounded, but the two which have superseded all others are: (1) that of Mr. Richard Grant White, that Marlowe, Greene, and Shakespeare (and perhaps Peele) were the authors of the old plays, and Shakespeare alone the reviser; (2) that of Miss Jane Lee, that Marlowe and Greene (and possibly Peele) were the authors of the old plays, and Shakespeare and Marlowe (working as collaborateurs) the revisers. The latter is perhaps the most generally accepted theory. Marlowe's hand is certainly visible in both the old plays and in some of the passages which appear for the first time in Henry VI. (see, for a striking example, 2 Henry VI., Act IV. Sc. I., L. 1-11). Shakespeare and the "Dead Shepherd" whom he alludes to in As You Like It, were then fellowworkers, and if rivals, their rivalry was noble. But in truth, at this time, Marlowe, by virtue of his prestige, and because he had found his proper genius while Shakespeare was still feeling after his true direction, would be the superior, and the degree of independence of spirit shown in Shakespeare's work, although he is under the influence of Marlowe, is interesting and remarkable. It is evident that already in variety of imagination and sound judgment Shakespeare surpasses his great contemporary. Miss Lee has made a detailed apportionment of the work among the several writers, but her table is too long to be reproduced here. She says: "The Third Part of Henry VI. underwent a much less thorough revision than the second. Out of 3,075 lines in Part II. there are 1,715 new lines, some 840 altered lines (many but very slightly altered), and some 520 old lines. In Part III., out of 2,902 lines, there are about 1,021 new lines, about 871 altered lines, and about 1,010 old lines. Hence it is that in Part III. there are fewer resemblances of thought and verbal expression to Shakespeare's undoubted writings than in Part II." When the revision of the old plays was made cannot be said with certainty-perhaps a short time before Marlowe's death, in 1593, perhaps at a date previous to Greene's sneering allusion to Shakespeare in the Groatsworth of Wit, 1592. A Spirit. ACT I. SCENE I. London. The palace. Flourish of trumpets: then hautboys. Enter the KING, HUMPHREY, Duke of GLOUCESTER, SALISBURY, WARWICK, and CARDINAL BEAUFORT, on the one side; the QUEEN, SUFFOLK, YORK, SOMERSET, and BUCKINGHAM, on the other. Suf. As by your high imperial majesty I had in charge at my depart for France, As procurator to your excellence, To marry Princess Margaret for your grace, So, in the famous ancient city, Tours, In presence of the Kings of France and Sicil, The Dukes of Orleans, Calaber, Bretagne and Alençon, Seven earls, twelve barons and twenty reverend bishops, I have perform'd my task and was espoused: 10 To your most gracious hands, that are the sub stance Of that great shadow I did represent; I can express no kinder sign of love Than this kind kiss. O Lord, that lends me life, Queen. Great King of England and my gracious lord, The mutual conference that my mind hath had, King. Her sight did ravish ; but her grace in speech, Her words y-clad with wisdom's majesty, Makes me from wondering fall to weeping joys; Such is the fulness of my heart's content. Lords, with one cheerful voice welcome my love. All [kneeling]. Long live Queen Margaret, England's happiness! Queen. We thank you all. [Flourish. Suf. My lord protector, so it please your Henry King of England, that the said Henry shall espouse the Lady Margaret, daughter unto Reignier King of Naples, Sicilia and Jerusalem, and crown her Queen of England ere the thirtieth of May next ensuing. Item, that the duchy of Anjou and the county of Maine shall be released and delivered to the king her father'[Lets the paper fall. King. Uncle, how now! Glou. Pardon me, gracious lord; Some sudden qualm hath struck me at the heart And dimm'd mine eyes, that I can read no further. King. Uncle of Winchester, I pray, read on. Car. [Reads]Item, It is further agreed between them, that the duchies of Anjou and Maine shall be released and delivered over to the king her father, and she sent over of the King of England's own proper cost and charges, without having any dowry.' King. They please us well. Lord marquess, kneel down: We here create thee the first duke of Suffolk, And gird thee with the sword. Cousin of York, We here discharge your grace from being re gent 80 To you Duke Humphrey must unload his grief, Received deep scars in France and Normandy? awe, 90 And had his highness in his infancy 101 Blotting your names from books of memory, Razing the characters of your renown, Defacing monuments of conquer'd France, Undoing all, as all had never been! Car. Nephew, what means this passionate discourse, This peroration with such circumstance? Suffolk, the new-made duke that rules the roast, Hath given the duchy of Anjou and Maine 110 Unto the poor King Reignier, whose large style Agrees not with the leanness of his purse. Sal. Now, by the death of Him that died for all, These counties were the keys of Normandy. But wherefore weeps Warwick, my valiant son? War. For grief that they are past recovery: For, were there hope to conquer them again, My sword should shed hot blood, mine eyes no tears. Anjou and Maine ! myself did win them both; Those provinces these arms of mine did conquer : And are the cities, that I got with wounds, 120 'Tis not my speeches that you do mislike, 140 And all the wealthy kingdoms of the west, There's reason he should be displeased at it. Look to it, lords! let not his smoothing words Bewitch your hearts; be wise and circumspect. What though the common people favor him, Calling him 'Humphrey, the good Duke of Gloucester,' Clapping their hands, and crying with loud voice, 160 'Jesu maintain your royal excellence!' I fear me, lords, for all this flattering gloss, He being of age to govern of himself? Car. This weighty business will not brook delay: 170 [Exit. I'll to the Duke of Suffolk presently. And greatness of his place be grief to us, Than all the princes in the land beside If Gloucester be displaced, he'll be protector. Buck. Or thou or I, Somerset, will be protector, Despite Duke Humphrey or the cardinal. I never saw but Humphrey Duke of Gloucester Hath won the greatest favor of the commons, ple: 200 Join we together, for the public good, While they do tend the profit of the land. |