The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated) (567 page)

and your lady from the bottom of my heart! May the gods

make up what I'm not fit to give!

CLEON

Your shafts of fortune, though they hurt you mortally,

Yet glance full wanderingly on us.

The arrows of fate, although they have fatally wounded you,

have also wounded us as they rebound.

DIONYZA

O your sweet queen!

That the strict fates had pleased you had brought her hither,

To have bless'd mine eyes with her!

Oh your sweet queen!

I wish the stern fates have allowed you to bring her here,

to have delighted my sight!

PERICLES

We cannot but obey

The powers above us. Could I rage and roar

As doth the sea she lies in, yet the end

Must be as 'tis. My gentle babe Marina, whom,

For she was born at sea, I have named so, here

I charge your charity withal, leaving her

The infant of your care; beseeching you

To give her princely training, that she may be

Manner'd as she is born.

We can only obey

the will of the gods. I could rage and roar

like the sea she is buried in, but in the end

nothing would change. My gentle baby Marina,

whom I have named after the fact that she was born at sea,

I ask you to show your kindness to; I will leave

the child in your care; I beg you

to bring her up as a princess, so that she can

have manners which fit with the status she is born to.

CLEON

Fear not, my lord, but think

Your grace, that fed my country with your corn,

For which the people's prayers still fall upon you,

Must in your child be thought on. If neglection

Should therein make me vile, the common body,

By you relieved, would force me to my duty:

But if to that my nature need a spur,

The gods revenge it upon me and mine,

To the end of generation!

Do not worry, my lord;  be assured

that you are still remembered in the people's prayers

for feeding my country with your corn,

and they will remember your child too. If I

was horrible enough to neglect her the common people,

whom you saved, would force me to do my duty:

but if I should ever need such a reminder,

may the gods punish me and my family for it

to the end of time!

PERICLES

I believe you;

Your honour and your goodness teach me to't,

Without your vows. Till she be married, madam,

By bright Diana, whom we honour, all

Unscissor'd shall this hair of mine remain,

Though I show ill in't. So I take my leave.

Good madam, make me blessed in your care

In bringing up my child.

I believe you;

your honour and goodness show me you will do it,

without your promises. Until she is married, madam,

I swear by Diana, whom we worship, that my

hair shall remain uncut,

although it makes me look bad. And so I must leave.

Good madam, give me blessings through your care

as you bring up my child.

DIONYZA

I have one myself,

Who shall not be more dear to my respect

Than yours, my lord.

I have a child myself,

and yours will be treated exactly

the same, my lord.

PERICLES

Madam, my thanks and prayers.

Madam, I give you my thanks and prayers.

CLEON

We'll bring your grace e'en to the edge o' the shore,

Then give you up to the mask'd Neptune and

The gentlest winds of heaven.

We'll go with your grace up to the edge of the sea,

where we'll hand you over to the now calm Neptune and

the gentlest winds of heaven.

PERICLES

I will embrace

Your offer. Come, dearest madam. O, no tears,

Lychorida, no tears:

Look to your little mistress, on whose grace

You may depend hereafter. Come, my lord.

Exeunt

I will accept

your offer gladly. Come, dearest madam. Oh, don't cry,

Lychordia, don't cry:

look after your little mistress, who will look after

you in the future. Come, my lord.

Enter CERIMON and THAISA

CERIMON

Madam, this letter, and some certain jewels,

Lay with you in your coffer: which are now

At your command. Know you the character?

Madam, this letter, and some very good jewels,

were in your coffin with you: these are now

yours. Do you know the handwriting?

THAISA

It is my lord's.

That I was shipp'd at sea, I well remember,

Even on my eaning time; but whether there

Deliver'd, by the holy gods,

I cannot rightly say. But since King Pericles,

My wedded lord, I ne'er shall see again,

A vestal livery will I take me to,

And never more have joy.

It is my husband's.

I can definitely remember going on a boat,

even though I was pregnant; but whether I gave

birth there, I swear

I cannot say for sure. But since I shall never again see

King Pericles, my beloved husband,

I shall live the life of a handmaiden in the temple,

and never know happiness again.

CERIMON

Madam, if this you purpose as ye speak,

Diana's temple is not distant far,

Where you may abide till your date expire.

Moreover, if you please, a niece of mine

Shall there attend you.

Madam, if you mean to do as you say,

Diana's temple is not far off,

and you can live there until your life is over.

Furthermore, if you wish it, a niece of mine

will serve you there.

THAISA

My recompense is thanks, that's all;

Yet my good will is great, though the gift small.

Exeunt

All I can give you in return is my thanks;

but my gratitude is great, though the gift is small.

Enter GOWER

GOWER

Imagine Pericles arrived at Tyre,

Welcomed and settled to his own desire.

His woeful queen we leave at Ephesus,

Unto Diana there a votaress.

Now to Marina bend your mind,

Whom our fast-growing scene must find

At Tarsus, and by Cleon train'd

In music, letters; who hath gain'd

Of education all the grace,

Which makes her both the heart and place

Of general wonder. But, alack,

That monster envy, oft the wrack

Of earned praise, Marina's life

Seeks to take off by treason's knife.

And in this kind hath our Cleon

One daughter, and a wench full grown,

Even ripe for marriage-rite; this maid

Hight Philoten: and it is said

For certain in our story, she

Would ever with Marina be:

Be't when she weaved the sleided silk

With fingers long, small, white as milk;

Or when she would with sharp needle wound

The cambric, which she made more sound

By hurting it; or when to the lute

She sung, and made the night-bird mute,

That still records with moan; or when

She would with rich and constant pen

Vail to her mistress Dian; still

This Philoten contends in skill

With absolute Marina: so

With the dove of Paphos might the crow

Vie feathers white. Marina gets

All praises, which are paid as debts,

And not as given. This so darks

In Philoten all graceful marks,

That Cleon's wife, with envy rare,

A present murderer does prepare

For good Marina, that her daughter

Might stand peerless by this slaughter.

The sooner her vile thoughts to stead,

Lychorida, our nurse, is dead:

And cursed Dionyza hath

The pregnant instrument of wrath

Prest for this blow. The unborn event

I do commend to your content:

Only I carry winged time

Post on the lame feet of my rhyme;

Which never could I so convey,

Unless your thoughts went on my way.

Dionyza does appear,

With Leonine, a murderer.

Exit

Now imagine Pericles has arrived at Tyre,