William Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida in the complete original text.
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Troilus and Cressida

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Act III. Scene I.

Act III. Scene I.—Troy. PRIAM'S Palace.

Enter PANDARUS and a Servant.

Pan. Friend! you! pray you, a word: do
not you follow the young Lord Paris?
Serv. Ay, sir, when he goes before me.
Pan. You depend upon him, I mean?
Serv. Sir, I do depend upon the Lord.
Pan. You depend upon a noble gentleman;
I must needs praise him.
Serv. The Lord be praised!
Pan. You know me, do you not?
Serv. Faith, sir, superficially.
Pan. Friend, know me better. I am the
Lord Pandarus.
Serv. I hope I shall know your honour
better.
Pan. I do desire it.
Serv. You are in the state of grace.
Pan. Grace! not so, friend; honour and
lordship are my titles. [Music within.] What
music is this?
Serv. I do but partly know, sir: it is music
in parts.
Pan. Know you the musicians?
Serv. Wholly, sir.
Pan. Who play they to?
Serv. To the hearers, sir.
Pan. At whose pleasure, friend?
Serv. At mine, sir, and theirs that love music.
Pan. Command, I mean, friend.
Serv. Who shall I command, sir?
Pan. Friend, we understand not one another:
I am too courtly, and thou art too cunning. At
whose request do these men play?
Serv. That's to't, indeed, sir. Marry, sir, at
the request of Paris my lord, who is there in
person; with him the mortal Venus, the heart-
blood of beauty, love's invisible soul.
Pan. Who, my cousin Cressida?
Serv. No, sir, Helen: could you not find out
that by her attributes?
Pan. It should seem, fellow, that thou hast
not seen the Lady Cressida. I come to speak
with Paris from the Prince Troilus: I will make
a complimental assault upon him, for my busi-
ness seethes.
Serv. Sodden business: there's a stewed
phrase, indeed.

Enter PARIS and HELEN, attended.
Pan. Fair be to you, my lord, and to all this
fair company! fair desires, in all fair measures,
fairly guide them! especially to you, fair queen!
fair thoughts be your fair pillow!
Helen. Dear lord, you are full of fair words.
Pan. You speak your fair pleasure, sweet
queen. Fair prince, here is good broken music.
Par. You have broke it, cousin; and, by my
life, you shall make it whole again: you shall
piece it out with a piece of your performance.
Nell, he is full of harmony.
Pan. Truly, lady, no.
Helen. O, sir!
Pan. Rude, in sooth; in good sooth, very
rude.
Par. Well said, my lord! Well, you say so
in fits.
Pan. I have business to my lord, dear queen.
My lord, will you vouchsafe me a word?
Helen. Nay, this shall not hedge us out;
we'll hear you sing, certainly.
Pan. Well, sweet queen, you are pleasant
with me. But, marry, thus, my lord. My dear
lord and most esteemed friend, your brother
Troilus—
Helen. My Lord Pandarus; honey-sweet
lord,—
Pan. Go to, sweet queen, go to: commends
himself most affectionately to you.
Helen. You shall not bob us out of our
melody: if you do, our melancholy upon your
head!
Pan. Sweet queen, sweet queen! that's a
sweet queen, i' faith.
Helen. And to make a sweet lady sad is a
sour offence.
Pan. Nay, that shall not serve your turn;
that shall it not, in truth, la! Nay, I care not
for such words: no, no. And, my lord, he
desires you, that if the king call for him at
supper, you will make his excuse.
Helen. My Lord Pandarus,—
Pan. What says my sweet queen, my very
sweet queen?
Par. What exploit's in hand? where sups he
to-night?
Helen. Nay, but my lord,—
Pan. What says my sweet queen! My
cousin will fall out with you. You must know
where he sups.
Par. I'll lay my life, with my disposer
Cressida.
Pan. No, no, no such matter; you are wide.
Come, your disposer is sick.
Par. Well, I'll make excuse.
Pan. Ay, good my lord. Why should you
say Cressida? no, your poor disposer's sick.
Par. I spy.
Pan. You spy! what do you spy? Come,
give me an instrument. Now, sweet queen.
Helen. Why, this is kindly done.
Pan. My niece is horribly in love with a
thing you have, sweet queen.
Helen. She shall have it, my lord, if it be not
my Lord Paris.
Pan. He! no, she'll none of him; they two
are twain.
Helen. Falling in, after falling out, may make
them three.
Pan. Come, come, I'll hear no more of this.
I'll sing you a song now.
Helen. Ay, ay, prithee now. By my troth,
sweet lord, thou hast a fine forehead.
Pan. Ay, you may, you may.
Helen. Let thy song be love: this love will
undo us all. O Cupid, Cupid, Cupid!
Pan. Love! ay, that it shall, i' faith.
Par. Ay, good now, love, love, nothing but
love.
Pan. In good troth, it begins so:
[Sings.]
Love, love, nothing but love, still more!
For, oh! love's bow
Shoots buck and doe:
The shaft confounds,
Not that it wounds,
But tickles still the sore.
These lovers cry O! O! they die!
Yet that which seems the wound to kill,
Doth turn O! O! to ha! ha! he!
So dying love lives still:
O! O! a while, but ha! ha! ha!
O! O! groans out for ha! ha! ha!
Heigh-ho!
Helen. In love, i' faith, to the very tip of the
nose.
Par. He eats nothing but doves, love; and
that breeds hot blood, and hot blood begets hot
thoughts, and hot thoughts beget hot deeds, and
hot deeds is love.
Pan. Is this the generation of love? hot
blood? hot thoughts, and hot deeds? Why,
they are vipers: is love a generation of vipers?
Sweet lord, who's a-field to-day?
Par. Hector, Deiphobus, Helenus, Antenor,
and all the gallantry of Troy: I would fain have
armed to-day, but my Nell would not have it so.
How chance my brother Troilus went not?
Helen. He hangs the lip at something: you
know all. Lord Pandarus.
Pan. Not I, honey-sweet queen. I long to
hear how they sped to-day. You'll remember
your brother's excuse?
Par. To a hair.
Pan. Farewell, sweet queen.
Helen. Commend me to your niece.
Pan. I will, sweet queen.
[Exit. A retreat sounded.
Par. They're come from field: let us to
Priam's hall
To greet the warriors. Sweet Helen, I must
woo you
To help unarm our Hector: his stubborn buckles,
With these your white enchanting fingers
touch'd,
Shall more obey than to the edge of steel
Or force of Greekish sinews; you shall do
more
Than all the island kings,—disarm great Hec-
tor.
Helen. 'Twill make us proud to be his servant,
Paris;
Yea, what he shall receive of us in duty
Gives us more palm in beauty than we have,
Yea, overshines ourself.
Par. Sweet, above thought I love thee.
[Exeunt.
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