Enter Hector, armed, and Andromache. ANDROMACHE
When was my lord so much ungently tempered
To stop his ears against admonishment?
Unarm, unarm, and do not fight today. HECTOR
You train me to offend you. Get you in.
By all the everlasting gods, I’ll go! 5 ANDROMACHE
My dreams will sure prove ominous to the day. HECTOR
No more, I say. Enter Cassandra. CASSANDRA
Where is my brother Hector? ANDROMACHE
Here, sister, armed and bloody in intent.
Consort with me in loud and dear petition; 10
Pursue we him on knees. For I have dreamt
Of bloody turbulence, and this whole night
Hath nothing been but shapes and forms of slaughter. CASSANDRA
O, ’tis true! HECTOR, calling out
Ho! Bid my trumpet sound! 15 CASSANDRA
No notes of sally, for the heavens, sweet brother! HECTOR
Begone, I say. The gods have heard me swear. CASSANDRA
The gods are deaf to hot and peevish vows.
They are polluted off’rings more abhorred
Than spotted livers in the sacrifice. 20 ANDROMACHE, to Hector
O, be persuaded! Do not count it holy
To hurt by being just. It is as lawful,
For we would give much, to use violent thefts
And rob in the behalf of charity. CASSANDRA
It is the purpose that makes strong the vow, 25
But vows to every purpose must not hold.
Unarm, sweet Hector. HECTOR
Hold you still, I say.
Mine honor keeps the weather of my fate.
Life every man holds dear, but the dear man 30
Holds honor far more precious-dear than life. Enter Troilus, armed. How now, young man? Meanest thou to fight today? ANDROMACHE
Cassandra, call my father to persuade. Cassandra exits. | The next morning, in Troy, Hector's wife Andromache begs her husband not to fight today. Hector says something horrible like, "Woman, you're asking for it with all this nagging." We find out that Andromache has been having some "ominous" dreams. (Uh-oh.) Speaking of female premonitions, here's crazy Cassandra. Hector's wife and sister beg him not to go because they've both had premonitions of "bloody turbulence" and "slaughter"—presumably, Hector's. But Hector insists that his "honor" is way more important to him than his life. Troilus shows up and Cassandra runs off to get Priam to talk Hector out of fighting. |
HECTOR
No, faith, young Troilus, doff thy harness, youth.
I am today i’ th’ vein of chivalry. 35
Let grow thy sinews till their knots be strong,
And tempt not yet the brushes of the war.
Unarm thee, go, and doubt thou not, brave boy,
I’ll stand today for thee and me and Troy. TROILUS
Brother, you have a vice of mercy in you 40
Which better fits a lion than a man. HECTOR
What vice is that? Good Troilus, chide me for it. TROILUS
When many times the captive Grecian falls,
Even in the fan and wind of your fair sword,
You bid them rise and live. 45 HECTOR
O, ’tis fair play. TROILUS
Fool’s play, by heaven. Hector. HECTOR
How now? How now? TROILUS
For th’ love of all the gods,
Let’s leave the hermit Pity with our mother, 50
And when we have our armors buckled on,
The venomed Vengeance ride upon our swords,
Spur them to ruthful work, rein them from ruth. HECTOR
Fie, savage, fie! TROILUS
Hector, then ’tis wars. 55 HECTOR
Troilus, I would not have you fight today. TROILUS
Who should withhold me?
Not fate, obedience, nor the hand of Mars,
Beck’ning with fiery truncheon my retire;
Not Priamus and Hecuba on knees, 60
Their eyes o’er-gallèd with recourse of tears;
Nor you, my brother, with your true sword drawn
Opposed to hinder me, should stop my way,
But by my ruin. | |
Enter Priam and Cassandra. CASSANDRA, indicating Hector
Lay hold upon him, Priam; hold him fast. 65
He is thy crutch. Now if thou loose thy stay,
Thou on him leaning, and all Troy on thee,
Fall all together. PRIAM Come, Hector, come. Go back.
Thy wife hath dreamt, thy mother hath had visions, 70
Cassandra doth foresee, and I myself
Am like a prophet suddenly enrapt
To tell thee that this day is ominous.
Therefore, come back. HECTOR
Aeneas is afield, 75
And I do stand engaged to many Greeks,
Even in the faith of valor, to appear
This morning to them. PRIAM
Ay, but thou shalt not go. HECTOR
I must not break my faith. 80
You know me dutiful; therefore, dear sir,
Let me not shame respect, but give me leave
To take that course by your consent and voice
Which you do here forbid me, royal Priam. CASSANDRA
O Priam, yield not to him! 85 ANDROMACHE
Do not, dear father. HECTOR
Andromache, I am offended with you.
Upon the love you bear me, get you in. Andromache exits. TROILUS
This foolish, dreaming, superstitious girl
Makes all these bodements. 90 CASSANDRA
O farewell, dear Hector.
Look how thou diest! Look how thy eye turns pale!
Look how thy wounds do bleed at many vents!
Hark, how Troy roars, how Hecuba cries out,
How poor Andromache shrills her dolor forth! 95
Behold, distraction, frenzy, and amazement,
Like witless antics, one another meet,
And all cry “Hector! Hector’s dead! O, Hector!” TROILUS
Away, away! CASSANDRA
Farewell.—Yet soft! Hector, I take my leave. 100
Thou dost thyself and all our Troy deceive. She exits. HECTOR
You are amazed, my liege, at her exclaim.
Go in and cheer the town. We’ll forth and fight,
Do deeds worth praise, and tell you them at night. PRIAM
Farewell. The gods with safety stand about thee! 105 Hector and Priam exit at separate doors. | Priam shows up with Cassandra and begs Hector not to go to battle since Hector's wife, sister, mom, and even Priam have all had visions of his death. Hector goes to battle anyway. |
Alarum. TROILUS
They are at it, hark! Proud Diomed, believe,
I come to lose my arm or win my sleeve. Enter Pandarus, with a paper. PANDARUS Do you hear, my lord? Do you hear? TROILUS What now? PANDARUS
Here’s a letter come from yond poor girl. 110 TROILUS
Let me read. He reads. PANDARUS
A whoreson phthisic, a whoreson rascally
phthisic so troubles me, and the foolish fortune of
this girl, and what one thing, what another, that I
shall leave you one o’ these days. And I have a 115
rheum in mine eyes too, and such an ache in my
bones that, unless a man were cursed, I cannot tell
what to think on ’t.—What says she there? TROILUS
Words, words, mere words, no matter from the heart.
Th’ effect doth operate another way. 120
Go, wind, to wind! There turn and change together. He tears up the paper and throws the pieces in the air. My love with words and errors still she feeds,
But edifies another with her deeds. They exit. | Alone on stage, Troilus tells us that he's going to get his "sleeve" back from Diomedes on the battlefield. In pops Pandarus with a letter from Cressida. As Troilus reads it, Pandarus gives us way too much information about how he's been feeling sick lately. He's got a nasty cough, a mucous oozing from his eyes, and his bones ache (probably from syphilis, a.k.a. the "Neapolitan bone-ache" we told you about earlier). Troilus announces the letter is full of "words, words, mere words" and tears it to shreds. Okay, Troilus, but seriously: what else did you expect a letter to be full of? |