Enter\u00a0Theseus, Hippolyta, Philostrate<\/span>\u00a0and Attendants.<\/p>\n THESEUS. HIPPOLYTA. THESEUS. [Exit\u00a0Philostrate<\/span>.<\/i>]<\/p>\n Hippolyta, I woo\u2019d thee with my sword, Enter\u00a0Egeus, Hermia, Lysander<\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0Demetrius<\/span>.<\/p>\n EGEUS. THESEUS. EGEUS. THESEUS. HERMIA. THESEUS. HERMIA. THESEUS. HERMIA. THESEUS. HERMIA. THESEUS. DEMETRIUS. LYSANDER. EGEUS. LYSANDER. THESEUS. EGEUS. [Exeunt all but\u00a0Lysander<\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0Hermia<\/span>.<\/i>]<\/p>\n Homepage<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" ACT I SCENE I. Athens. A room in the Palace of Theseus Enter\u00a0Theseus, Hippolyta, Philostrate\u00a0and Attendants. 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, Like to a step-dame or a dowager, Long withering … Continue reading Midsummer Night’s Dream, Scene 1<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4697,"featured_media":0,"parent":488,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-216","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/digitalmethodsforthehumanities\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/216","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/digitalmethodsforthehumanities\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/digitalmethodsforthehumanities\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/digitalmethodsforthehumanities\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4697"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/digitalmethodsforthehumanities\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=216"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/digitalmethodsforthehumanities\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/216\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/digitalmethodsforthehumanities\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/488"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/digitalmethodsforthehumanities\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=216"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nNow, fair Hippolyta, our nuptial hour
\nDraws on apace; four happy days bring in
\nAnother moon; but oh, methinks, how slow
\nThis old moon wanes! She lingers my desires,
\nLike to a step-dame or a dowager,
\nLong withering out a young man\u2019s revenue.<\/p>\n
\nFour days will quickly steep themselves in night;
\nFour nights will quickly dream away the time;
\nAnd then the moon, like to a silver bow
\nNew bent in heaven, shall behold the night
\nOf our solemnities.<\/p>\n
\nGo, Philostrate,
\nStir up the Athenian youth to merriments;
\nAwake the pert and nimble spirit of mirth;
\nTurn melancholy forth to funerals;
\nThe pale companion is not for our pomp.<\/p>\n
\nAnd won thy love doing thee injuries;
\nBut I will wed thee in another key,
\nWith pomp, with triumph, and with revelling.<\/p>\n
\nHappy be Theseus, our renown\u00e8d Duke!<\/p>\n
\nThanks, good Egeus. What\u2019s the news with thee?<\/p>\n
\nFull of vexation come I, with complaint
\nAgainst my child, my daughter Hermia.
\nStand forth, Demetrius. My noble lord,
\nThis man hath my consent to marry her.
\nStand forth, Lysander. And, my gracious Duke,
\nThis man hath bewitch\u2019d the bosom of my child.
\nThou, thou, Lysander, thou hast given her rhymes,
\nAnd interchang\u2019d love-tokens with my child.
\nThou hast by moonlight at her window sung,
\nWith feigning voice, verses of feigning love;
\nAnd stol\u2019n the impression of her fantasy
\nWith bracelets of thy hair, rings, gauds, conceits,
\nKnacks, trifles, nosegays, sweetmeats (messengers
\nOf strong prevailment in unharden\u2019d youth)
\nWith cunning hast thou filch\u2019d my daughter\u2019s heart,
\nTurn\u2019d her obedience (which is due to me)
\nTo stubborn harshness. And, my gracious Duke,
\nBe it so she will not here before your grace
\nConsent to marry with Demetrius,
\nI beg the ancient privilege of Athens:
\nAs she is mine I may dispose of her;
\nWhich shall be either to this gentleman
\nOr to her death, according to our law
\nImmediately provided in that case.<\/p>\n
\nWhat say you, Hermia? Be advis\u2019d, fair maid.
\nTo you your father should be as a god;
\nOne that compos\u2019d your beauties, yea, and one
\nTo whom you are but as a form in wax
\nBy him imprinted, and within his power
\nTo leave the figure, or disfigure it.
\nDemetrius is a worthy gentleman.<\/p>\n
\nSo is Lysander.<\/p>\n
\nIn himself he is.
\nBut in this kind, wanting your father\u2019s voice,
\nThe other must be held the worthier.<\/p>\n
\nI would my father look\u2019d but with my eyes.<\/p>\n
\nRather your eyes must with his judgment look.<\/p>\n
\nI do entreat your Grace to pardon me.
\nI know not by what power I am made bold,
\nNor how it may concern my modesty
\nIn such a presence here to plead my thoughts:
\nBut I beseech your Grace that I may know
\nThe worst that may befall me in this case,
\nIf I refuse to wed Demetrius.<\/p>\n
\nEither to die the death, or to abjure
\nFor ever the society of men.
\nTherefore, fair Hermia, question your desires,
\nKnow of your youth, examine well your blood,
\nWhether, if you yield not to your father\u2019s choice,
\nYou can endure the livery of a nun,
\nFor aye to be in shady cloister mew\u2019d,
\nTo live a barren sister all your life,
\nChanting faint hymns to the cold fruitless moon.
\nThrice-bless\u00e8d they that master so their blood
\nTo undergo such maiden pilgrimage,
\nBut earthlier happy is the rose distill\u2019d
\nThan that which, withering on the virgin thorn,
\nGrows, lives, and dies, in single blessedness.<\/p>\n
\nSo will I grow, so live, so die, my lord,
\nEre I will yield my virgin patent up
\nUnto his lordship, whose unwish\u00e8d yoke
\nMy soul consents not to give sovereignty.<\/p>\n
\nTake time to pause; and by the next new moon
\nThe sealing-day betwixt my love and me
\nFor everlasting bond of fellowship,
\nUpon that day either prepare to die
\nFor disobedience to your father\u2019s will,
\nOr else to wed Demetrius, as he would,
\nOr on Diana\u2019s altar to protest
\nFor aye austerity and single life.<\/p>\n
\nRelent, sweet Hermia; and, Lysander, yield
\nThy craz\u00e8d title to my certain right.<\/p>\n
\nYou have her father\u2019s love, Demetrius.
\nLet me have Hermia\u2019s. Do you marry him.<\/p>\n
\nScornful Lysander, true, he hath my love;
\nAnd what is mine my love shall render him;
\nAnd she is mine, and all my right of her
\nI do estate unto Demetrius.<\/p>\n
\nI am, my lord, as well deriv\u2019d as he,
\nAs well possess\u2019d; my love is more than his;
\nMy fortunes every way as fairly rank\u2019d,
\nIf not with vantage, as Demetrius\u2019;
\nAnd, which is more than all these boasts can be,
\nI am belov\u2019d of beauteous Hermia.
\nWhy should not I then prosecute my right?
\nDemetrius, I\u2019ll avouch it to his head,
\nMade love to Nedar\u2019s daughter, Helena,
\nAnd won her soul; and she, sweet lady, dotes,
\nDevoutly dotes, dotes in idolatry,
\nUpon this spotted and inconstant man.<\/p>\n
\nI must confess that I have heard so much,
\nAnd with Demetrius thought to have spoke thereof;
\nBut, being over-full of self-affairs,
\nMy mind did lose it.\u2014But, Demetrius, come,
\nAnd come, Egeus; you shall go with me.
\nI have some private schooling for you both.\u2014
\nFor you, fair Hermia, look you arm yourself
\nTo fit your fancies to your father\u2019s will,
\nOr else the law of Athens yields you up
\n(Which by no means we may extenuate)
\nTo death, or to a vow of single life.
\nCome, my Hippolyta. What cheer, my love?
\nDemetrius and Egeus, go along;
\nI must employ you in some business
\nAgainst our nuptial, and confer with you
\nOf something nearly that concerns yourselves.<\/p>\n
\nWith duty and desire we follow you.<\/p>\n