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Home > Romeo and Juliet > ACT I - SCENE I. Verona. A public place.

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ACT I - SCENE I. Verona. A public place.
SAMPSON
1    Gregory, o' my word, we'll not carry coals.
GREGORY
2    No, for then we should be colliers.
SAMPSON
3    I mean, an we be in choler, we'll draw.
GREGORY
4    Ay, while you live, draw your neck out o' the collar.
SAMPSON
5    I strike quickly, being moved.
GREGORY
6    But thou art not quickly moved to strike.
SAMPSON
7    A dog of the house of Montague moves me.
GREGORY
8    To move is to stir; and to be valiant is to stand:
9    therefore, if thou art moved, thou runn'st away.
SAMPSON
10   A dog of that house shall move me to stand: I will
11   take the wall of any man or maid of Montague's.
GREGORY
12   That shows thee a weak slave; for the weakest goes
13   to the wall.
SAMPSON
14   True; and therefore women, being the weaker vessels,
15   are ever thrust to the wall: therefore I will push
16   Montague's men from the wall, and thrust his maids
17   to the wall.
GREGORY
18   The quarrel is between our masters and us their men.
SAMPSON
19   'Tis all one, I will show myself a tyrant: when I
20   have fought with the men, I will be cruel with the
21   maids, and cut off their heads.
GREGORY
22   The heads of the maids?
SAMPSON
23   Ay, the heads of the maids, or their maidenheads;
24   take it in what sense thou wilt.
GREGORY
25   They must take it in sense that feel it.
SAMPSON
26   Me they shall feel while I am able to stand: and
27   'tis known I am a pretty piece of flesh.
GREGORY
28   'Tis well thou art not fish; if thou hadst, thou
29   hadst been poor John. Draw thy tool! here comes
30   two of the house of the Montagues.
SAMPSON
31   My naked weapon is out: quarrel, I will back thee.
GREGORY
32   How! turn thy back and run?
SAMPSON
33   Fear me not.
GREGORY
34   No, marry; I fear thee!
SAMPSON
35   Let us take the law of our sides; let them begin.
GREGORY
36   I will frown as I pass by, and let them take it as
37   they list.
SAMPSON
38   Nay, as they dare. I will bite my thumb at them;
39   which is a disgrace to them, if they bear it.
Enter ABRAHAM and BALTHASAR

ABRAHAM
40   Do you bite your thumb at us, sir?
SAMPSON
41   I do bite my thumb, sir.
ABRAHAM
42   Do you bite your thumb at us, sir?
SAMPSON
Aside to GREGORY
43    Is the law of our side, if I say
44   ay?
GREGORY
45   No.
SAMPSON
46   No, sir, I do not bite my thumb at you, sir, but I
47   bite my thumb, sir.
GREGORY
48   Do you quarrel, sir?
ABRAHAM
49   Quarrel sir! no, sir.
SAMPSON
50   If you do, sir, I am for you: I serve as good a man as you.
ABRAHAM
51   No better.
SAMPSON
52   Well, sir.
GREGORY
53   Say 'better:' here comes one of my master's kinsmen.
SAMPSON
54   Yes, better, sir.
ABRAHAM
55   You lie.
SAMPSON
56   Draw, if you be men. Gregory, remember thy swashing blow.
They fight

Enter BENVOLIO

BENVOLIO
57   Part, fools!
58   Put up your swords; you know not what you do.
Beats down their swords

Enter TYBALT

TYBALT
59   What, art thou drawn among these heartless hinds?
60   Turn thee, Benvolio, look upon thy death.
BENVOLIO
61   I do but keep the peace: put up thy sword,
62   Or manage it to part these men with me.
TYBALT
63   What, drawn, and talk of peace! I hate the word,
64   As I hate hell, all Montagues, and thee:
65   Have at thee, coward!
They fight

First Citizen
66   Clubs, bills, and partisans! strike! beat them down!
67   Down with the Capulets! down with the Montagues!
Enter CAPULET in his gown, and LADY CAPULET

CAPULET
68   What noise is this? Give me my long sword, ho!
LADY CAPULET
69   A crutch, a crutch! why call you for a sword?
CAPULET
70   My sword, I say! Old Montague is come,
71   And flourishes his blade in spite of me.
Enter MONTAGUE and LADY MONTAGUE

MONTAGUE
72   Thou villain Capulet,--Hold me not, let me go.
LADY MONTAGUE
73   Thou shalt not stir a foot to seek a foe.
Enter PRINCE, with Attendants

PRINCE
74   Rebellious subjects, enemies to peace,
75   Profaners of this neighbour-stained steel,--
76   Will they not hear? What, ho! you men, you beasts,
77   That quench the fire of your pernicious rage
78   With purple fountains issuing from your veins,
79   On pain of torture, from those bloody hands
80   Throw your mistemper'd weapons to the ground,
81   And hear the sentence of your moved prince.
82   Three civil brawls, bred of an airy word,
83   By thee, old Capulet, and Montague,
84   Have thrice disturb'd the quiet of our streets,
85   And made Verona's ancient citizens
86   Cast by their grave beseeming ornaments,
87   To wield old partisans, in hands as old,
88   Canker'd with peace, to part your canker'd hate:
89   If ever you disturb our streets again,
90   Your lives shall pay the forfeit of the peace.
91   For this time, all the rest depart away:
92   You Capulet; shall go along with me:
93   And, Montague, come you this afternoon,
94   To know our further pleasure in this case,
95   To old Free-town, our common judgment-place.
96   Once more, on pain of death, all men depart.
Exeunt all but MONTAGUE, LADY MONTAGUE, and BENVOLIO

MONTAGUE
97   Who set this ancient quarrel new abroach?
98   Speak, nephew, were you by when it began?
BENVOLIO
99   Here were the servants of your adversary,
100  And yours, close fighting ere I did approach:
101  I drew to part them: in the instant came
102  The fiery Tybalt, with his sword prepared,
103  Which, as he breathed defiance to my ears,
104  He swung about his head and cut the winds,
105  Who nothing hurt withal hiss'd him in scorn:
106  While we were interchanging thrusts and blows,
107  Came more and more and fought on part and part,
108  Till the prince came, who parted either part.
LADY MONTAGUE
109  O, where is Romeo? saw you him to-day?
110  Right glad I am he was not at this fray.
BENVOLIO
111  Madam, an hour before the worshipp'd sun
112  Peer'd forth the golden window of the east,
113  A troubled mind drave me to walk abroad;
114  Where, underneath the grove of sycamore
115  That westward rooteth from the city's side,
116  So early walking did I see your son:
117  Towards him I made, but he was ware of me
118  And stole into the covert of the wood:
119  I, measuring his affections by my own,
120  That most are busied when they're most alone,
121  Pursued my humour not pursuing his,
122  And gladly shunn'd who gladly fled from me.
MONTAGUE
123  Many a morning hath he there been seen,
124  With tears augmenting the fresh morning dew.
125  Adding to clouds more clouds with his deep sighs;
126  But all so soon as the all-cheering sun
127  Should in the furthest east begin to draw
128  The shady curtains from Aurora's bed,
129  Away from the light steals home my heavy son,
130  And private in his chamber pens himself,
131  Shuts up his windows, locks far daylight out
132  And makes himself an artificial night:
133  Black and portentous must this humour prove,
134  Unless good counsel may the cause remove.
BENVOLIO
135  My noble uncle, do you know the cause?
MONTAGUE
136  I neither know it nor can learn of him.
BENVOLIO
137  Have you importuned him by any means?
MONTAGUE
138  Both by myself and many other friends:
139  But he, his own affections' counsellor,
140  Is to himself--I will not say how true--
141  But to himself so secret and so close,
142  So far from sounding and discovery,
143  As is the bud bit with an envious worm,
144  Ere he can spread his sweet leaves to the air,
145  Or dedicate his beauty to the sun.
146  Could we but learn from whence his sorrows grow.
147  We would as willingly give cure as know.
Enter ROMEO

BENVOLIO
148  See, where he comes: so please you, step aside;
149  I'll know his grievance, or be much denied.
MONTAGUE
150  I would thou wert so happy by thy stay,
151  To hear true shrift. Come, madam, let's away.
Exeunt MONTAGUE and LADY MONTAGUE

BENVOLIO
152  Good-morrow, cousin.
ROMEO
153  Is the day so young?
BENVOLIO
154  But new struck nine.
ROMEO
155  Ay me! sad hours seem long.
156  Was that my father that went hence so fast?
BENVOLIO
157  It was. What sadness lengthens Romeo's hours?
ROMEO
158  Not having that, which, having, makes them short.
BENVOLIO
159  In love?
ROMEO
160  Out--
BENVOLIO
161  Of love?
ROMEO
162  Out of her favour, where I am in love.
BENVOLIO
163  Alas, that love, so gentle in his view,
164  Should be so tyrannous and rough in proof!
ROMEO
165  Alas, that love, whose view is muffled still,
166  Should, without eyes, see pathways to his will!
167  Where shall we dine? O me! What fray was here?
168  Yet tell me not, for I have heard it all.
169  Here's much to do with hate, but more with love.
170  Why, then, O brawling love! O loving hate!
171  O any thing, of nothing first create!
172  O heavy lightness! serious vanity!
173  Mis-shapen chaos of well-seeming forms!
174  Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire,
175  sick health!
176  Still-waking sleep, that is not what it is!
177  This love feel I, that feel no love in this.
178  Dost thou not laugh?
BENVOLIO
179  No, coz, I rather weep.
ROMEO
180  Good heart, at what?
BENVOLIO
181  At thy good heart's oppression.
ROMEO
182  Why, such is love's transgression.
183  Griefs of mine own lie heavy in my breast,
184  Which thou wilt propagate, to have it prest
185  With more of thine: this love that thou hast shown
186  Doth add more grief to too much of mine own.
187  Love is a smoke raised with the fume of sighs;
188  Being purged, a fire sparkling in lovers' eyes;
189  Being vex'd a sea nourish'd with lovers' tears:
190  What is it else? a madness most discreet,
191  A choking gall and a preserving sweet.
192  Farewell, my coz.
BENVOLIO
193  Soft! I will go along;
194  An if you leave me so, you do me wrong.
ROMEO
195  Tut, I have lost myself; I am not here;
196  This is not Romeo, he's some other where.
BENVOLIO
197  Tell me in sadness, who is that you love.
ROMEO
198  What, shall I groan and tell thee?
BENVOLIO
199  Groan! why, no.
200  But sadly tell me who.
ROMEO
201  Bid a sick man in sadness make his will:
202  Ah, word ill urged to one that is so ill!
203  In sadness, cousin, I do love a woman.
BENVOLIO
204  I aim'd so near, when I supposed you loved.
ROMEO
205  A right good mark-man! And she's fair I love.
BENVOLIO
206  A right fair mark, fair coz, is soonest hit.
ROMEO
207  Well, in that hit you miss: she'll not be hit
208  With Cupid's arrow; she hath Dian's wit;
209  And, in strong proof of chastity well arm'd,
210  From love's weak childish bow she lives unharm'd.
211  She will not stay the siege of loving terms,
212  Nor bide the encounter of assailing eyes,
213  Nor ope her lap to saint-seducing gold:
214  O, she is rich in beauty, only poor,
215  That when she dies with beauty dies her store.
BENVOLIO
216  Then she hath sworn that she will still live chaste?
ROMEO
217  She hath, and in that sparing makes huge waste,
218  For beauty starved with her severity
219  Cuts beauty off from all posterity.
220  She is too fair, too wise, wisely too fair,
221  To merit bliss by making me despair:
222  She hath forsworn to love, and in that vow
223  Do I live dead that live to tell it now.
BENVOLIO
224  Be ruled by me, forget to think of her.
ROMEO
225  O, teach me how I should forget to think.
BENVOLIO
226  By giving liberty unto thine eyes;
227  Examine other beauties.
ROMEO
228  'Tis the way
229  To call hers exquisite, in question more:
230  These happy masks that kiss fair ladies' brows
231  Being black put us in mind they hide the fair;
232  He that is strucken blind cannot forget
233  The precious treasure of his eyesight lost:
234  Show me a mistress that is passing fair,
235  What doth her beauty serve, but as a note
236  Where I may read who pass'd that passing fair?
237  Farewell: thou canst not teach me to forget.
BENVOLIO
238  I'll pay that doctrine, or else die in debt.
Exeunt

< (Previous) ACT I, PROLOGUEACT I, II (Next) >
Scene Index
ACT I
  • PROLOGUE
  • SCENE I
  • SCENE II
  • SCENE III
  • SCENE IV
  • SCENE V


  • ACT II
  • PROLOGUE
  • SCENE I
  • SCENE II
  • SCENE III
  • SCENE IV
  • SCENE V
  • SCENE VI


  • ACT III
  • SCENE I
  • SCENE II
  • SCENE III
  • SCENE IV
  • SCENE V


  • ACT IV
  • SCENE I
  • SCENE II
  • SCENE III
  • SCENE IV
  • SCENE V


  • ACT V
  • SCENE I
  • SCENE II
  • SCENE III

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