Read The Tempest Online

Authors: William Shakespeare

The Tempest (6 page)

Enter Caliban

CALIBAN
    As wicked dew as e’er my mother brushed

With raven’s feather from unwholesome
fen
379

Drop on you both! A
southwest
380
blow on ye

And blister you all o’er!

PROSPERO
    For this, be sure, tonight thou shalt have cramps,

Side-stitches that shall pen thy breath up:
urchins
383

Shall, for that
vast
384
of night that they may work,

All
exercise
385
on thee: thou shalt be pinched

As thick as honeycomb
386
, each pinch more stinging

Than
bees that made
’em.
387

CALIBAN
    I must eat my dinner.

This island’s mine by Sycorax my mother,

Which thou tak’st from me. When thou cam’st first,

Thou strok’st me and made much of me: wouldst give me

Water with
berries
392
in’t, and teach me how

To name the
bigger light, and how the less
393
,

That burn by day and night: and then I loved thee

And showed thee all the qualities o’th’isle,

The fresh springs,
brine-pits
396
, barren place and fertile.

Cursed be I that did so! All the
charms
397

Of Sycorax — toads, beetles, bats —
light
398
on you!

For I am all the subjects that you have,

Which first was mine own king: and here you
sty
400
me

In this
hard rock
401
, whiles you do keep from me

The rest o’th’island.

PROSPERO
    Thou most lying slave,

Whom
stripes
may move, not
kindness!
I have
used
404
thee —

Filth as thou art — with
humane
405
care, and lodged thee

In mine own cell, till thou didst seek to
violate
406

The honour of my child.

CALIBAN
    O ho, O ho! Would’t had been done!

Thou didst prevent me:
I had peopled else
409

This isle with Calibans.

MIRANDA
    Abhorrèd slave,

Which any
print
412
of goodness wilt not take,

Being
capable of all ill.
413
I pitied thee,

Took pains to make thee speak, taught thee each hour

One thing or other: when thou didst not, savage,

Know thine own meaning, but wouldst gabble like

A thing most brutish, I endowed thy purposes

With words that made them known. But thy vile
race
418

Though thou didst learn — had that in’t which good natures

Could not abide to be with: therefore wast thou

Deservedly confined into this rock, who hadst

Deserved
more
422
than a prison.

CALIBAN
    You taught me language, and my profit on’t

Is, I know how to curse. The
red-plague
rid
424
you

For
learning
425
me your language.

PROSPERO
    
Hag-seed
426
, hence!

Fetch us in fuel, and be quick:
thou’rt best
427

To answer other business. Shrug’st thou, malice?

If thou neglect’st or dost unwillingly

What I command, I’ll
rack
thee with
old cramps
430
,

Fill all thy bones with aches, make thee roar,

That beasts shall tremble at thy din.

CALIBAN
    No, pray thee.—

Aside

I must obey: his art is of such power,

It would control my dam’s god,
Setebos
435
,

And make a
vassal
436
of him.

PROSPERO
    So, slave, hence!

Exit Caliban

Enter Ferdinand, and Ariel, invisible, playing and singing

Song

ARIEL
         Come unto these yellow sands,

                  And then take hands:

                  Curtsied when you have, and kissed

                  The wild waves
whist
441
:

                  
Foot it featly
442
here and there,

                  And, sweet sprites, bear

                  The
burden.
444

[
SPIRITS
      
Within, sing the
]
(burden, dispersedly)

                  Hark, hark! Bow-wow!

                  The watch-dogs bark: bow-wow.

                  

ARIEL
         Hark, hark! I hear

                  The
strain
of strutting
chanticleer
448

                  Cry, cock-a-diddle-dow.

FERDINAND
    Where should this music be? I’th’air or th’earth?

It sounds no more: and sure it
waits upon
451

Some god o’th’island. Sitting on a bank,

Weeping again
the
453
king my father’s wreck,

This music crept by me upon the waters,

Allaying both their fury and my
passion
455

With its sweet air: thence I have followed it —

Or it hath drawn me rather — but ’tis gone.

No, it begins again.

Song

ARIEL
        Full
fathom five
459
thy father lies,

                  Of his bones are coral made:

                  Those are pearls that were his eyes:

                  Nothing of him that doth
fade
462
,

                  But doth
suffer
463
a sea-change

                  Into something rich and strange.

                  Sea-nymphs hourly ring his
knell
465
:

[
SPIRITS
    
Within, sing the
]
(burden)
Ding-dong.

ARIEL
    Hark! Now I hear them: ding-dong, bell.

FERDINAND
    The
ditty
does remember
468
my drowned father.

This is no
mortal
469
business, nor no sound

That the earth
owes.
470
I hear it now above me.

PROSPERO
    The
fringèd curtains
of thine eye
advance
471

And say what thou see’st
yond.
472

MIRANDA
    What is’t? A spirit?

Lord, how it looks about! Believe me, sir,

It carries a
brave
475
form. But ’tis a spirit.

PROSPERO
    No, wench: it eats, and sleeps, and hath such senses

As we have, such. This
gallant
477
which thou see’st

Was in the wreck: and,
but
he’s
something
478
stained

With grief — that’s beauty’s
canker
479
— thou mightst call him

A
goodly
480
person: he hath lost his fellows

And strays about to find ’em.

MIRANDA
    I might call him

A thing divine, for nothing
natural
483

I ever saw so noble.

Aside

PROSPERO
    It goes on, I see,

As my soul
prompts
486
it.— Spirit, fine spirit: I’ll free thee

To Ariel

Within two days for this.

FERDINAND
    Most sure, the goddess

On whom these
airs
attend!
Vouchsafe
489
my prayer

May know if you
remain
490
upon this island,

And that you will some good instruction give

How I may
bear me
492
here: my prime request,

Which I do last pronounce, is — O you
wonder!
493

If you be
maid
494
or no?

MIRANDA
    No wonder, sir,

But certainly a maid.

FERDINAND
    My language? Heavens!

I am the
best
498
of them that speak this speech,

Were I but
where
499
’tis spoken.

PROSPERO
    How? The best?

What wert thou if the King of Naples heard thee?

FERDINAND
    A
single thing
502
, as I am now, that wonders

To hear thee speak of Naples.
He
503
does hear me:

And that he does, I weep. Myself am Naples,

Who with mine eyes, never since at
ebb
505
, beheld

The king my father wrecked.

MIRANDA
    Alack, for mercy!

FERDINAND
    Yes, faith, and all his lords, the Duke of Milan

And his brave
son
being
twain.
509

PROSPERO
    The Duke of Milan

Aside

And his more braver daughter could
control
511
thee

If now ’twere fit to do’t. At the first sight

They have
changed eyes.

Delicate
513
Ariel,

To Ariel

I’ll set thee free for this.— A word, good sir,

To Ferdinand

I fear you have
done yourself some wrong
515
: a word.

MIRANDA
    Why speaks my father so
ungently?
516
This

Is the third man that e’er I saw: the first

That e’er I sighed for. Pity move my father

To be inclined my way.

FERDINAND
    O, if a virgin,

And
your affection not gone forth
521
, I’ll make you

The Queen of Naples.

PROSPERO
    
Soft
523
, sir, one word more.—

They are both in
either’s
524
powers: but this swift business

Aside

I must
uneasy
make, lest too
light
525
winning

Make the prize light.— One word more: I
charge
526
thee

To Ferdinand

That thou
attend
527
me: thou dost here usurp

The name thou
ow’st not
528
, and hast put thyself

Upon this island as a spy, to win it

From me, the lord
on’t.
530

FERDINAND
    No, as I am a man.

MIRANDA
    There’s nothing ill can dwell in such a
temple
532
:

If the ill-spirit have so fair a house,

Good things will strive to dwell with’t.

PROSPERO
    Follow me.—

To Ferdinand

Speak not you for him: he’s a traitor.— Come:

To Miranda/To Ferdinand

I’ll manacle thy neck and feet together:

Seawater shalt thou drink: thy food shall be

The
fresh-brook mussels
539
, withered roots and husks

Wherein the acorn cradled. Follow.

FERDINAND
    No!

I will resist such
entertainment
542
till

Mine enemy has more power.

He draws, and is charmed from moving

MIRANDA
    O dear father,

Make not too rash a trial of him, for

He’s
gentle
, and not
fearful.
546

PROSPERO
    What, I say,

My
foot
548
my tutor?— Put thy sword up, traitor:

To Ferdinand

Who mak’st a show but dar’st not strike, thy conscience

Is so possessed with guilt. Come from thy
ward
550
,

For I can here disarm thee with this stick,

Brandishes his staff

And make thy weapon drop.

MIRANDA
    Beseech you, father.

Kneels or attempts
to stop him

PROSPERO
    Hence! Hang not on my garments.

MIRANDA
    Sir, have pity:

I’ll be his
surety.
556

PROSPERO
    Silence! One word more

Shall make me
chide
558
thee, if not hate thee. What,

An advocate for an impostor? Hush!

Thou think’st there is no more such
shapes
560
as he,

Having seen but him and Caliban. Foolish wench,

To
562
th’most of men this is a Caliban,

And they to him are angels.

MIRANDA
    My affections

Are then most humble: I have no ambition

To see a goodlier man.

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