Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare (most read book in the world TXT) 📕

drawn among these heartless hinds?
Turn thee, Benvolio, look upon thy death. Benvolio

I do but keep the peace: put up thy sword,
Or manage it to part these men with me.

Tybalt

What, drawn, and talk of peace! I hate the word,
As I hate hell, all Montagues, and thee:
Have at thee, coward! They fight.

Enter several of both houses, who join the fray; then enter Citizens, with clubs. First Citizen

Clubs, bills, and partisans! strike! beat them down!
Down with the Capulets! down with the Montagues!

Enter Capulet in his gown, and Lady Capulet. Capulet What noise is this? Give me my long sword, ho! Lady Capulet A crutch, a crutch! why call you for a sword? Capulet

My sword, I say! Old Montague is come,
And flourishes his blade in spite of me.

Enter Montague and Lady Montague. Montague Thou villain Capulet⁠—Hold me not, let me go. Lady Montague Thou shalt not stir a foot to seek a foe. Enter Prince, with Attendants. Prince

Rebellious subjects, enemies to peace,
Profaners of this neighbour-stained steel⁠—
Will they not hear? What, ho! you men, you beasts,
That quench the fire of your pernicious rage
With purple fountains issuing from your veins,
On pain of torture, from those bloody hands
Throw your mistemper’d weapons to the ground,
And hear the sentence of your moved prince.
Three civil brawls, bred of an airy word,
By thee, old Capulet, and Montague,
Have thrice disturb’d the quiet of our streets,
And made Verona’s ancient citizens
Cast by their grave beseeming ornaments,
To wield old partisans, in hands as old,
Canker’d with peace, to part your canker’d hate:
If ever you disturb our streets again,
Your lives shall pay the forfeit of the peace.
For this time, all the rest depart away:
You, Capulet, shall go along with me:
And, Montague, come you this afternoon,
To know our further pleasure in this case,
To old Free-town, our common judgment-place.
Once more, on pain of death, all men depart. Exeunt all but Montague, Lady Montague, and Benvolio.

Montague

Who set this ancient quarrel new abroach?
Speak, nephew, were you by when it began?

Benvolio

Here were the servants of your adversary,
And yours, close fighting ere I did approach:
I drew to part them: in the instant came
The fiery Tybalt, with his sword prepared,
Which, as he breathed defiance to my ears,
He swung about his head and cut the winds,
Who nothing hurt withal hiss’d him in scorn:
While we were interchanging thrusts and blows,
Came more and more and fought on part and part.
Till the prince came, who parted either part.

Lady Montague

O, where is Romeo? saw you him to-day?
Right glad I am he was not at this fray.

Benvolio

Madam, an hour before the worshipp’d sun
Peer’d forth the golden window of the east,
A troubled mind drave me to walk abroad;
Where, underneath the grove of sycamore
That westward rooteth from the city’s side,
So early walking did I see your son:
Towards him I made, but he was ware of me
And stole into the covert of the wood:
I, measuring his affections by my own,
That most are busied when they’re most alone,
Pursued my humour not pursuing his,
And gladly shunn’d who gladly fled from me.

Montague

Many a morning hath he there been seen,
With tears augmenting the fresh morning’s dew,
Adding to clouds more clouds with his deep sighs;
But all so soon as the all-cheering sun
Should in the furthest east begin to draw
The shady curtains from Aurora’s bed,
Away from light steals home my heavy son,
And private in his chamber pens himself,
Shuts up his windows, locks fair daylight out
And makes himself an artificial night:
Black and portentous must this humour prove,
Unless good counsel may the cause remove.

Benvolio My noble uncle, do you know the cause? Montague I neither know it nor can learn of him. Benvolio Have you importuned him by any means? Montague

Both by myself and many other friends:
But he, his own affections’ counsellor,
Is to himself⁠—I will not say how true⁠—
But to himself so secret and so close,
So far from sounding and discovery,
As is the bird bit with an envious worm,
Ere he can spread his sweet leaves to the air,
Or dedicate his beauty to the sun.
Could we but learn from whence his sorrows grow,
We would as willingly give cure as know.

Enter Romeo. Benvolio

See, where he comes: so please you, step aside;
I’ll know his grievance, or be much denied.

Montague

I would thou wert so happy by thy stay,
To hear true shrift. Come, madam, let’s away. Exeunt Montague and Lady.

Benvolio Good morrow, cousin. Romeo Is the day so young? Benvolio But new struck nine. Romeo

Ay me! sad hours seem long.
Was that my father that went hence so fast?

Benvolio It was. What sadness lengthens Romeo’s hours? Romeo Not having that, which, having, makes them short. Benvolio In love? Romeo Out⁠— Benvolio Of love? Romeo Out of her favour, where I am in love. Benvolio

Alas, that love, so gentle in his view,
Should be so tyrannous and rough in proof!

Romeo

Alas, that love, whose view is muffled still,
Should, without eyes, see pathways to his will!
Where shall we dine? O me! What fray was here?
Yet tell me not, for I have heard it all.
Here’s much to do with hate, but more with love.
Why, then, O brawling love! O loving hate!
O anything, of nothing first create!
O heavy lightness! serious vanity!
Mis-shapen chaos of well-seeming forms!
Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health!
Still-waking sleep, that is not what it is!
This love feel I, that feel no love in this.
Dost thou not laugh?

Benvolio No, coz, I rather weep. Romeo Good heart, at what? Benvolio At thy good heart’s oppression. Romeo

Why, such is love’s transgression.
Griefs of mine own lie heavy in my breast,
Which thou wilt propagate, to have it prest
With more of thine: this love that thou hast shown
Doth add more grief to too much of mine own.
Love is a smoke raised with the fume of sighs;
Being purged, a fire sparkling in lovers’ eyes;
Being vex’d, a sea nourish’d with lovers’ tears:
What is it else? a madness most discreet,
A choking gall and a preserving sweet.
Farewell, my coz.

Benvolio

Soft! I will go along;
An if you leave me so, you do me wrong.

Romeo

Tut, I have lost