No Fear Shakespeare
The Tempest
Get this No Fear to go!
Act 1, Scene 2, Page 5
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PROSPERO
I pray thee, mark
me.
I, thus neglecting worldly ends, all dedicated
To closeness and the bettering of my mind
With that which, but by being so retired,
O'erprized all popular rate, in my false brother
Awaked an evil nature. And my trust,
Like a good parent, did beget of him
A falsehood in its contrary as great
As my trust was, which had indeed no limit,
A confidence sans bound. He being thus lorded,
Not only with what my revenue yielded
But what my power might else exact, like one
Who having into truth, by telling of it,
Made such a sinner of his memory
To credit his own lie—he did believe
He was indeed the duke, out o' th'
substitution
And executing th' outward face of royalty,
With all prerogative. Hence his ambition growing—
Dost thou hear?
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PROSPERO
Please listen to me carefully. As I neglected practical matters,
being totally dedicated to solitude and to improving my mind with
subjects more valuable than most people imagine, I was so shut away
from the world that I unwittingly stirred up evil wishes in my
disloyal brother. My deep trust in him made him deeply
untrustworthy, arousing in him a treachery as big as my trust
was—my trust which had no limit, an infinite confidence.
With Antonio possessing such powers and wealth, coming not only from
my income but also from his ability to take whatever my authority
allowed him to take, Antonio started to believe that he was the
duke, like some liar who begins to believe in his own lie. He put on
the face of royalty, with all the rights that go along with it. With
his ambition growing like this—do you hear what
I’m saying?
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MIRANDA
Your tale, sir,
would cure deafness.
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MIRANDA
What you’re saying could cure deafness, father. Of
course I hear it.
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PROSPERO
To have no screen between this part he played
And him he played it for, he needs will be
Absolute Milan. Me, poor man, my library
Was dukedom large enough. Of temporal royalties
He thinks me now incapable, confederates—
So dry he was for sway—wi' th'
King of Naples
To give him annual tribute, do him homage,
Subject his coronet to his crown and bend
The dukedom yet unbowed—alas, poor Milan!—
To most ignoble stooping.
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PROSPERO
To make his political performance absolutely perfect, he simply
had to become the Duke of Milan himself. My library was a large
enough dukedom for me. So, now Antonio judges me incapable of
carrying out my duties. He’s so power-hungry that he
allies himself with the King of Naples, agreeing to pay him a
regular annual sum, swear subservience to him, and put the dukedom
of Milan—never subservient to anyone
before!—under the humiliating control of Naples.
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MIRANDA
Oh, the
heavens!
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MIRANDA
Good heavens!
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