Читать книгу The Two Gentlemen of Verona: The 30-Minute Shakespeare - William Shakespeare - Страница 11

Milan. The Duke’s palace.

Enter NARRATOR from stage rear, coming downstage center and leading CRAB on a leash.

NARRATOR

Proteus arrives in Milan and is greeted by his best friend, Valentine, and Valentine’s beloved, Silvia. Proteus immediately falls in love with Silvia.

Exit NARRATOR and CRAB stage left.

Enter SILVIA and VALENTINE from stage rear. SILVIA sits in chair stage right and VALENTINE sits in chair stage left.

SILVIA

Here comes the gentleman.

Enter PROTEUS from stage right. VALENTINE goes to him, greeting him warmly.

VALENTINE

Welcome, dear Proteus!

Mistress, I beseech you, entertain him

To be my fellow-servant to your ladyship.

SILVIA

Too low a mistress for so high a servant.

PROTEUS

Not so, sweet lady; but too mean a servant

(kneels; kisses her hand)

To have a look of such a worthy mistress.

VALENTINE (moves next to SILVIA)

Leave off discourse of disability:

Sweet lady, entertain him for your servant.

PROTEUS

My duty will I boast of, nothing else.

SILVIA

And duty never yet did want his meed:

Servant, you are welcome to a worthless mistress.

SILVIA gestures for PROTEUS to sit in stage right chair.

PROTEUS

I’ll die on him that says so, but yourself.

SILVIA

That you are welcome?

PROTEUS

That you are worthless.

VALENTINE coughs.

SILVIA

I’ll leave you to confer of home affairs;

When you have done, I look to hear from you.

PROTEUS

We’ll both attend upon your ladyship.

Exit SILVIA stage right.

VALENTINE walks to Proteus’s chair.

VALENTINE

Now, tell me, Proteus,

How does your lady? And how thrives your love?

PROTEUS

My tales of love were wont to weary you;

I know you joy not in a love-discourse.

VALENTINE

Ay, Proteus, but that life is alter’d now.

(walks downstage center)

For, in revenge of my contempt of love,

Love hath chased sleep from my enthralled eyes,

And made them watchers of mine own heart’s sorrow.

O gentle Proteus, Love’s a mighty lord,

And hath so humbled me, as, I confess,

Now can I break my fast, dine, sup, and sleep,

Upon the very naked name of love.

PROTEUS (walks to VALENTINE)

Enough; I read your fortune in your eye.

Was this the idol that you worship so?

(gestures to where SILVIA exited)

VALENTINE

Even she; and is she not a heavenly saint?

PROTEUS

No; but she is an earthly paragon.

VALENTINE

Call her divine.

PROTEUS

I will not flatter her.

VALENTINE

Then speak the truth by her: if not divine,

Yet let her be a principality,

Sovereign to all the creatures on the earth.

PROTEUS

Except my mistress.

Why, Valentine, what braggardism is this?

VALENTINE

Pardon me, Proteus: all I can is nothing

To her, whose worth makes other worthies nothing;

She is alone.

PROTEUS

Then let her alone.

VALENTINE

Not for the world: why, man, she is mine own;

And I as rich in having such a jewel

As twenty seas, if all their sand were pearl,

The water nectar, and the rocks pure gold.

PROTEUS

But she loves you?

VALENTINE

Ay, and we are betroth’d: nay, more, our marriage-hour,

With all the cunning manner of our flight,

Determined of; how I must climb her window,

The ladder made of cords; and all the means

Plotted and ’greed on for my happiness.

Good Proteus, go with me to my chamber,

In these affairs to aid me with thy counsel.

PROTEUS

Go on before; I shall inquire you forth:

And then I’ll presently attend you.

VALENTINE

Will you make haste?

PROTEUS

I will.

Exit VALENTINE stage right.

(to audience) Even as one heat another heat expels,

Or as one nail by strength drives out another,

So the remembrance of my former love

Is by a newer object quite forgotten.

Is it mine eye, or Valentine’s praise,

Her true perfection, or my false transgression,

That makes me, reasonless, to reason thus?

She’s fair; and so is Julia, that I love,—

That I did love, for now my love is thaw’d;

Which, like a waxen image ’gainst a fire,

Bears no impression of the thing it was.

If I can check my erring love, I will;

If not, to compass her I’ll use my skill.

Exit PROTEUS stage right.

STAGEHANDS remove throne.