The Complete Tragedies of William Shakespeare - All 12 Books in One Edition. William Shakespeare

day!

       Lady Capulet.

       O woful time!

       Capulet.

       Death, that hath ta’en her hence to make me wail,

       Ties up my tongue and will not let me speak.

       [Enter Friar Lawrence and Paris, with Musicians.]

       Friar.

       Come, is the bride ready to go to church?

       Capulet.

       Ready to go, but never to return:—

       O son, the night before thy wedding day

       Hath death lain with thy bride:—there she lies,

       Flower as she was, deflowered by him.

       Death is my son-in-law, death is my heir;

       My daughter he hath wedded: I will die.

       And leave him all; life, living, all is death’s.

       Paris.

       Have I thought long to see this morning’s face,

       And doth it give me such a sight as this?

       Lady Capulet.

       Accurs’d, unhappy, wretched, hateful day!

       Most miserable hour that e’er time saw

       In lasting labour of his pilgrimage!

       But one, poor one, one poor and loving child,

       But one thing to rejoice and solace in,

       And cruel death hath catch’d it from my sight!

       Nurse.

       O woe! O woeful, woeful, woeful day!

       Most lamentable day, most woeful day

       That ever, ever, I did yet behold!

       O day! O day! O day! O hateful day!

       Never was seen so black a day as this:

       O woeful day! O woeful day!

       Paris.

       Beguil’d, divorced, wronged, spited, slain!

       Most detestable death, by thee beguil’d,

       By cruel cruel thee quite overthrown!—

       O love! O life!—not life, but love in death!

       Capulet.

       Despis’d, distressed, hated, martyr’d, kill’d!—

       Uncomfortable time, why cam’st thou now

       To murder, murder our solemnity?—

       O child! O child!—my soul, and not my child!—

       Dead art thou, dead!—alack, my child is dead;

       And with my child my joys are buried!

       Friar.

       Peace, ho, for shame! confusion’s cure lives not

       In these confusions. Heaven and yourself

       Had part in this fair maid; now heaven hath all,

       And all the better is it for the maid:

       Your part in her you could not keep from death;

       But heaven keeps his part in eternal life.

       The most you sought was her promotion;

       For ‘twas your heaven she should be advanc’d:

       And weep ye now, seeing she is advanc’d

       Above the clouds, as high as heaven itself?

       O, in this love, you love your child so ill

       That you run mad, seeing that she is well:

       She’s not well married that lives married long:

       But she’s best married that dies married young.

       Dry up your tears, and stick your rosemary

       On this fair corse; and, as the custom is,

       In all her best array bear her to church;

       For though fond nature bids us all lament,

       Yet nature’s tears are reason’s merriment.

       Capulet.

       All things that we ordained festival

       Turn from their office to black funeral:

       Our instruments to melancholy bells;

       Our wedding cheer to a sad burial feast;

       Our solemn hymns to sullen dirges change;

       Our bridal flowers serve for a buried corse,

       And all things change them to the contrary.

       Friar.

       Sir, go you in,—and, madam, go with him;—

       And go, Sir Paris;—every one prepare

       To follow this fair corse unto her grave:

       The heavens do lower upon you for some ill;

       Move them no more by crossing their high will.

       [Exeunt Capulet, Lady Capulet, Paris, and Friar.]

       1 Musician. Faith, we may put up our pipes and be gone.

       Nurse.

       Honest good fellows, ah, put up, put up;

       For well you know this is a pitiful case.

       [Exit.]

       1 Musician. Ay, by my troth, the case may be amended.

       [Enter Peter.]

       Peter.

       Musicians, O, musicians, ‘Heart’s ease,’ ‘Heart’s ease’:

       O, an you will have me live, play ‘Heart’s ease.’

       1 Musician. Why ‘Heart’s ease’?

       Peter. O, musicians, because my heart itself plays ‘My heart is full of woe’: O, play me some merry dump to comfort me.

       1 Musician. Not a dump we: ‘tis no time to play now.

       Peter.

       You will not then?

       1 Musician. No.

       Peter.

       I will then give it you soundly.

       1 Musician. What will you give us?

       Peter. No money, on my faith; but the gleek,—I will give you the minstrel.

       1 Musician. Then will I give you the serving-creature.

       Peter.

       Then will I lay the serving-creature’s dagger on your pate.

       I will carry no crotchets: I’ll re you, I’ll fa you: do you note

       me?

       1 Musician. An you re us and fa us, you note us.

       2 Musician. Pray you put up your dagger, and put out your wit.

       Peter. Then have at you with my wit! I will dry-beat you with an iron wit, and put up my iron dagger.—Answer me like men:

       ‘When griping grief the heart doth wound,

       And doleful dumps the mind oppress,

       Then music with her silver sound’—

       why ‘silver sound’? why ‘music with her silver sound’?— What say you, Simon Catling?

       1 Musician. Marry, sir, because silver hath a sweet sound.

       Peter.

       Pretty!—What say you, Hugh Rebeck?

       2 Musician. I say ‘silver sound’ because musicians sound for silver.

       Peter.

       Pretty too!—What say you, James Soundpost?