less young, more strong, not beneath him in fortunes, beyond him in the advantage of the time, above him in birth, alike conversant in general services, and more remarkable in single oppositions2: yet this imperseverant thing loves him in my despite. What mortality is! Posthumus, thy head, which now is growing upon thy shoulders, shall within this hour be off; thy mistress enforced; thy garments cut to pieces before thy face3: and all this done, spurn her home to her father: who may, haply, be a little angry for my so rough usage: but my mother, haying power of his testiness, shall turn all into my commendations. My horse is tied up safe: Out, sword, and to a sore purpose! Fortune, put them into my hand! This is the very description of their meeting-place; and the fellow dares not deceive me. [Exit. SCENE II. Before the Cave. Enter, from the Cave, BELARIUS, GUIDERIUS, ARVIRAGUS, and IMOGEN. Bel. You are not well [To ImOGEN]: remain here in the cave: We'll come to you after hunting. Arv. Are we not brothers? Brother, stay here: [To IMOGEN. 2 In single combat? So in King Henry IV. Part 1. Act i. Sc. 3: In single opposition, hand to hand, He did confound the best part of an hour In changing bardiment with great Glendower.' An opposite, in the language of Shakspeare's age, was the common phrase for an antagonist. See vol i, p. 340; vol. ii. p. 61. Imperseverant probably means no more than perseverant, like imbosomed, impassioned, immasked. Malone 3 Warburton thought we should read, before her face." says, that Shakspeare may have intentionally given this absurd and brutal language to Cloten. The Clown in The Winter's Tale says, "If thou'lt see a thing to talk of after thou art dead.' Imo. So man and man should be; But clay and clay differs in dignity, Whose dust is both alike. I am very sick. Gui. Go you to hunting. I'll abide with him. But not so citizen a wanton, as To seem to die, ere sick: So please you leave me; Stick to your journal course: the breach of custom Is breach of all1. I am ill; but your being by me Cannot amend me: Society is no comfort To one not sociable: I'm not very sick, Since I can reason of it. Pray you, trust me here: I'll rob none but myself; and let me die, Stealing so poorly. Gui. I love thee; I have spoke it: How much the quantity, the weight as much, As I do love my father. Bel. What? how? how? Arv. If it be sin to say so, sir, 1 yoke me In my good brother's fault: I know not why I love this youth; and I have heard you say, Love's reason's without reason; the bier at door, And a demand who is't shall die, I'd say, My father, not this youth. Bel. O noble strain! [Aside. O worthiness of nature! breed of greatness! Cowards father cowards, and base things sire base: Nature hath meal, and bran; contempt, and grace. I am not their father: yet who this should be, Doth miracle itself, lov'd before me. "Tis the ninth hour o'the morn Arv. Brother, farewell. You health. So please you, sir. Imo. I wish ye sport. Arv. Imo. [Aside.] These are kind creatures. Gods, what lies I have heard! Keep your daily course uninterrupted; if the stated plan of life is once broken, nothing follows but confusion.-Johnson. Our courtiers say, all's savage, but at court: The imperious2 seas breed monsters; for the dish, I am sick still; heart-sick :-Pisanio, Gui. I could not stir him; He said, he was gentle3, but unfortunate; Arv. Thus did he answer me: yet said, hereafter I might know more. Bel. To the field, to the field: We'll leave you for this time; go in, and rest. Arv. We'll not be long away. Bel. For you must be our housewife. Imo. I am bound to you. Pray, be not sick, Well, or ill, And shalt be ever. [Exit IMOGEN. This youth, howe'er distress'd, appears, he hath had Good ancestors. · Arv. How angel-like he sings! Gui. But his neat cookery! He cut our roots in characters; And sauc'd our broths, as Juno had been sick, Arv. Nobly he yokes A smiling with a sigh: as if the sigh ་ Was that it was, for not being such a smile; With winds that sailors rail at. 2 Here again Malone asserts that 'imperious was used by Shakspeare for imperial. This is absurd enough when we look at the context: what has imperial to do with seas? Imperious has here its usual meaning of proud, haughty. See Troilus and Cressida, Act iv. Sc. 5, note 27, p 391. 3I could not move him to tell his story." Gentle is of a gentle race or rank, well born. Gui. I do note, That grief and patience, rooted in him both, Arv. Grow, patience! And let the stinking elder, grief, untwine His perishing root, with the increasing vine5! Bel. It is great mornings. Come; away.-Who's there? Enter CLOTEN. Clo. I cannot find those runagates; that villain Hath mock'd me: I am faint. Bel. Those runagates! Means he not us? I partly know him; 'tis Cloten, the son o'the queen. I fear some ambush. I saw him not these many years, and yet I know 'tis he;-We are held as outlaws :-) -Hence. Gui. He is but one: You and my brother search What companies are near: pray you, away; Let me alone with him. [Exeunt BELARIUS and ARVIRAgus. Clo. More slavish did I ne'er than answering Clo. A thing Thou art a robber, A law-breaker, a villain: Yield thee, thief. 4 Spurs are the longest and largest leading roots of trees. We have the word again in The Tempest : -the strong bas'd promontory Have I made shake, and by the spurs How much difficulty has been made to appear in this simple figurative passage! which to me appears sufficiently intelligible without a note. 'Let patience grow, and let the stinking elder, grief, untwine his perishing root from those of the increasing vine, patience. I have already observed, that with, from, and by, are almost always convertible words. 6 The same phrase occurs in Troilus and Cressida, Act iv. Sc. 3, p. 377. It is a Gallicism: Il est grand matin.' i. e. than answering that abusive word slave. Gui. To who? to thee? What art thou? Have An arm as big as thine? a heart as big? Clo. Know'st me not by my clothes? Thou villain base, Gui. Who is thy grandfather; he made those clothes, Which, as it seems, make thee9. No, nor thy tailor, rascal, Clo. My tailor made them not. Gui. Thou precious varlet, Hence then, and thank The man that gave them thee. Thou art some fool; Clo. Cloten, thou villain. Gui. Cloten, thou double villain, be thy name, I cannot tremble at it; were't toad, or adder, spider, "Twould move me sooner. Clo. Nay, to thy mere confusion, thou shalt know I'm son to the queen. Gui. To thy further fear, I'm sorry for't; not seeming Art not afeard? So worthy as thy birth. Clo. Gui. Those that I reverence, those I fear; the wise: At fools I laugh, not fear them. Clo. Die the death: When I have slain thee with my proper haud, 8 So in Solyman and Perseda, 1599: "I fight not with my tongue: this is my oratrix.' Macduff says to Macbeth: a similar passage in a former scene, p. 69 |