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  • Title: Romeo and Juliet (Quarto 1, 1597)
  • Editor: Roger Apfelbaum

    • ISBN: 1-55058-299-2

    Copyright Internet Shakespeare Editions. This text may be freely used for educational, non-proift purposes; for all other uses contact the Coordinating Editor.
    Author: William Shakespeare
    Editor: Roger Apfelbaum
    Not Peer Reviewed

    Romeo and Juliet (Quarto 1, 1597)

    Enter Frier.
    1800Fr:Romeo come forth, come forth thou fearfull man,
    Affliction is enamourd on thy parts,
    And thou art wedded to Calamitie.
    1803.1Enter Romeo.
    Rom:Father what newes, what is the Princes doome,
    What Sorrow craues acquaintance at our hands,
    Which yet we know not.
    Fr:Too familiar
    Is my yong sonne with such sowre companie:
    1810I bring thee tidings of the Princes doome.
    Rom.What lesse than doomes day is the Princes doome?
    Fr:A gentler iudgement vanisht from his lips,
    Not bodies death, but bodies banishment.
    1815Rom:Ha, Banished? be mercifull, say death:
    For Exile hath more terror in his lookes,
    Than death it selfe, doo not say Banishment.
    Fr:Hence from Verona art thou banished:
    Be patient, for the world is broad and wide.
    1820Rom:There is no world without Verona walls,
    But purgatorie, torture, hell itselfe.
    Hence banished, is banisht from the world:
    And world exilde is death. Calling death banishment,
    1825Thou cutst my head off with a golden axe,
    And smilest vpon the stroke that murders me.
    Fr:Oh monstrous sinne, O rude vnthankfulnes:
    Thy fault our law calls death, but the milde Prince
    (Taking thy part) hath rushd aside the law,
    And
    The excellent Tragedie
    1830And turnd that blacke word death to banishment:
    This is meere mercie, and thou seest it not.
    Rom:Tis torture and not mercie, heauen is heere
    Where Iuliet liues: and euerie cat and dog,
    And little mouse, euerie vnworthie thing
    1835Liue here in heauen, and may looke on her,
    But Romeo may not. More validitie,
    More honourable state, more courtship liues
    In carrion flyes, than Romeo: they may seaze
    On the white wonder of faire Iuliets skinne,
    1840And steale immortall kisses from her lips;
    1845But Romeo may not, he is banished.
    Flies may doo this, but I from this must flye.
    Oh Father hadst thou no strong poyson mixt,
    No sharpe ground knife, no present meane of death,
    Though nere so meane, but banishment
    1848.1To torture me withall: ah, banished.
    O Frier, the damned vse that word in hell:
    1850Howling attends it. How hadst thou the heart,
    Being a Diuine, a ghostly Confessor,
    A sinne absoluer, and my frend profest,
    To mangle me with that word, Banishment?
    Fr:Thou fond mad man, heare me but speake a word.
    1855Rom:O, thou wilt talke againe of Banishment.
    Fr:Ile giue thee armour to beare off this word,
    Aduersities sweete milke, philosophie,
    To comfort thee though thou be banished.
    Rom:Yet Banished? hang vp philosophie,
    1860Vnlesse philosophie can make a Iuliet,
    Displant a Towne, reuerse a Princes doome,
    It helpes not, it preuailes not, talke no more.
    Fr:O, now I see that madmen haue no eares.
    Rom:How should they, when that wise men haue no
    1865eyes.
    Fr:Let me dispute with thee of thy estate.
    Rom:Thou canst not speak of what thou dost not feele.
    Wert
    of Romeo and Iuliet.
    Wert thou as young as I, Iuliet thy Loue,
    An houre but married, Tybalt murdred.
    1870Doting like me, and like me banished,
    Then mightst thou speake, then mightst thou teare thy
    hayre.
    And fall vpon the ground as I doe now,
    Taking the measure of an vnmade graue.
    1875Nurse knockes.
    Fr:Romeo arise, stand vp thou wilt be taken,
    I heare one knocke, arise and get thee gone.
    1877.1Nu:Hoe Fryer.
    Fr:Gods will what wilfulnes is this?
    Shee knockes againe.
    Nur:Hoe Fryer open the doore,
    1892.1Fr:By and by I come. Who is there?
    Nur:One from Lady Iuliet.
    1895Fr:Then come neare.
    Nur:Oh holy Fryer, tell mee oh holy Fryer,
    Where is my Ladies Lord? Wher's Romeo?
    Fr:There on the ground, with his owne teares made
    drunke.
    1900Nur:Oh he is euen in my Mistresse case.
    Iust in her case. Oh wofull simpathy,
    Pitteous predicament, euen so lyes shee,
    Weeping and blubbring, blubbring and weeping:
    Stand vp, stand vp, stand and you be a man.
    1905For Iuliets sake, for her sake rise and stand,
    Why should you fall into so deep an O.
    1906.1He rises.
    Rom:Nurse.
    Nur:Ah sir, ah sir. Wel death's the end of all.
    G Rom:
    The excellent Tragedie
    Rom:Spakest thou of Iuliet, how is it with her?
    1910Doth she not thinke me an olde murderer,
    Now I haue stainde the childhood of her ioy,
    With bloud remou'd but little from her owne?
    Where is she? and how doth she? And what sayes
    My conceal'd Lady to our canceld loue?
    1915Nur:Oh she saith nothing, but weepes and pules,
    And now fals on her bed, now on the ground,
    And Tybalt cryes, and then on Romeo calles.
    Rom.As if that name shot from the deadly leuel of a gun
    1920Did murder her, as that names cursed hand
    Murderd her kinsman. Ah tell me holy Fryer
    In what vile part of this Anatomy
    Doth my name lye? Tell me that I may sacke
    The hatefull mansion?
    1924.1He offers to stab himselfe, and Nurse snatches
    the dagger away.
    Nur:Ah?
    1925Fr:Hold, stay thy hand: art thou a man? thy forme
    Cryes out thou art, but thy wilde actes denote
    The vnresonable furyes of a beast.
    Vnseemely woman in a seeming man,
    1930Or ill beseeming beast in seeming both.
    Thou hast amaz'd me. By my holy order,
    I thought thy disposition better temperd,
    Hast thou slaine Tybalt? wilt thou slay thy selfe?
    And slay thy Lady too, that liues in thee?
    Rouse vp thy spirits, thy Lady Iuliet liues,
    For whose sweet sake thou wert but lately dead:
    There art thou happy. Tybalt would kill thee,
    1955But thou sluest Tybalt, there art thou happy too.
    A packe of blessings lights vpon thy backe,
    Happines Courts thee in his best array:
    1960But like a misbehaude and sullen wench
    Thou frownst vpon thy Fate that smilles on thee.
    Take
    of Romeo and Iuliet.
    Take heede, take heede, for such dye miserable.
    Goe get thee to thy loue as was decreed:
    Ascend her Chamber Window, hence and comfort her,
    1965But looke thou stay not till the watch be set:
    For then thou canst not passe to Mantua.
    1966.1Nurse prouide all things in a readines,
    Comfort thy Mistresse, haste the house to bed,
    Which heauy sorrow makes them apt vnto.
    Nur:Good Lord what a thing learning is.
    I could haue stayde heere all this night
    To heare good counsell. Well Sir,
    Ile tell my Lady that you will come.
    Rom:Doe so and bidde my sweet prepare to childe,
    1979.1Farwell good Nurse.
    Nurse offers to goe in and turnes againe.
    1980Nur:Heere is a Ring Sir, that she bad me giue you,
    Rom:How well my comfort is reuiued by this.
    1982.1Exit Nurse.
    Fr:Soiorne in Mantua, Ile finde out your man,
    And he shall signifie from time to time:
    Euery good hap that doth befall thee heere.
    1990Farwell.
    Rom:But that a ioy, past ioy cryes out on me,
    It were a griefe so breefe to part with thee.
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