|
 |
|
| Enter THESEUS,
HIPPOLYTA, and PHILOSTRATE, with
others |
|
| THESEUS and
HIPPOLYTA enter with PHILOSTRATE and
others. |
|
| | THESEUS |
| |
Now, fair Hippolyta, our nuptial hour |
| |
Draws on apace. Four happy days bring in |
| |
Another moon. But oh, methinks how slow |
| |
This old moon wanes! She lingers my desires, |
| 5 |
Like to a stepdame or a dowager |
| |
Long withering out a young man's revenue. |
|
| THESEUS |
|
Our wedding day is almost here, my beautiful Hippolyta.
We'll be getting married in four days, on the day of the
new moon. But it seems to me that the days are passing too
slowly—the old moon is taking too long to fade away! That
old, slow moon is keeping me from getting what I want, just like an
old widow makes her stepson wait to get his inheritance. |
|
| | HIPPOLYTA |
| |
Four days will quickly steep themselves in night. |
| |
Four nights will quickly dream away the time. |
| |
And then the moon, like to a silver bow |
| 10 |
New bent in heaven, shall behold the night |
| |
Of our solemnities. |
|
| HIPPOLYTA |
|
No, you'll see, four days will quickly turn into four
nights. And since we dream at night, time passes quickly then.
Finally the new moon, curved like a silver bow in the sky, will look
down on our wedding celebration. |
|
| | THESEUS |
| |
Go, Philostrate, |
| |
Stir up the Athenian youth to merriments. |
| |
Awake the pert and nimble spirit of mirth. |
| |
Turn melancholy forth to funerals. |
| 15 |
The pale companion is not for our pomp. |
|
| THESEUS |
|
Go, Philostrate, get the young people of Athens ready to celebrate
and have a good time. Sadness is only appropriate for funerals. We
don't want it at our festivities. |
|
|
|
| |
Hippolyta, I wooed thee with my sword |
| |
And won thy love doing thee injuries. |
| |
But I will wed thee in another key, |
| |
With pomp, with triumph, and with reveling. |
|
|
Hippolyta, I wooed you with violence, using my sword, and got you
to fall in love with me by injuring you. But I'll marry
you under different circumstances—with extravagant
festivals, public festivities, and celebration. |
|
| Enter EGEUS and his daughter
HERMIA, and LYSANDER and
DEMETRIUS |
|
| EGEUS enters with his daughter
HERMIA, and LYSANDER and
DEMETRIUS. |
|
| | EGEUS |
| 20 |
Happy be Theseus, our renownèd duke. |
|
| EGEUS |
|
Long live Theseus, our famous and respected duke! |
|
|
|
| |
 |
Understand great writers and their verse in one easy reference with Poetry Classics.
More...
|
|
|
 |
101 Women’s Literature gives you everything you need to know to pass the class.
More...
|
|
| |
| |
|
Shopping Cart 
More...
