Titus Andronicus-Saturninus

Front 1

ACT 1 SCENE 1

The Tomb of the ANDRONICI appearing; the Tribunes and Senators aloft. Enter, below, from one side, SATURNINUS and his Followers; and, from the other side, BASSIANUS and his Followers; with drum and colours

Back 1

Noble patricians, patrons of my right,Defend the justice of my cause with arms,And, countrymen, my loving followers,Plead my successive title with your swords:I am his first-born son, that was the lastThat wore the imperial diadem of Rome;Then let my father's honours live in me,Nor wrong mine age with this indignity.

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MARCUS ANDRONICUS:Dismiss your followers and, as suitors should,Plead your deserts in peace and humbleness.

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How fair the tribune speaks to calm my thoughts!

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BASSIANUS: Marcus Andronicus, so I do allyIn thy uprightness and integrity,And so I love and honour thee and thine,Thy noble brother Titus and his sons,And her to whom my thoughts are humbled all,Gracious Lavinia, Rome's rich ornament,That I will here dismiss my loving friends,And to my fortunes and the people's favorCommit my cause in balance to be weigh'd.Exeunt the followers of BASSIANUS

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Friends, that have been thus forward in my right,I thank you all and here dismiss you all,And to the love and favor of my countryCommit myself, my person and the cause.

Exeunt the followers of SATURNINUS

Rome, be as just and gracious unto meAs I am confident and kind to thee.Open the gates, and let me in.

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MARCUS ANDRONICUS: Titus, thou shalt obtain and ask the empery.

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Proud and ambitious tribune, canst thou tell?

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TITUS ANDRONICUS: Patience, Prince Saturninus.

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Romans, do me right:Patricians, draw your swords: and sheathe them notTill Saturninus be Rome's emperor.Andronicus, would thou wert shipp'd to hell,Rather than rob me of the people's hearts!

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MARCUS ANDRONICUS: With voices and applause of every sort,Patricians and plebeians, we createLord Saturninus Rome's great emperor,And say 'Long live our Emperor Saturnine!'A long flourish till they come down

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Titus Andronicus, for thy favors doneTo us in our election this day,I give thee thanks in part of thy deserts,And will with deeds requite thy gentleness:And, for an onset, Titus, to advanceThy name and honourable family,Lavinia will I make my empress,Rome's royal mistress, mistress of my heart,And in the sacred Pantheon her espouse:Tell me, Andronicus, doth this motion please thee?

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TITUS ANDRONICUS: It doth, my worthy lord; and in this matchI hold me highly honour'd of your grace:And here in sight of Rome to Saturnine,King and commander of our commonweal,The wide world's emperor, do I consecrateMy sword, my chariot and my prisoners;Presents well worthy Rome's imperial lord:Receive them then, the tribute that I owe,Mine honour's ensigns humbled at thy feet.

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Thanks, noble Titus, father of my life!How proud I am of thee and of thy giftsRome shall record, and when I do forgetThe least of these unspeakable deserts,Romans, forget your fealty to me.

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TITUS ANDRONICUS: [To TAMORA] Now, madam, are you prisoner toan emperor;To him that, for your honour and your state,Will use you nobly and your followers.

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A goodly lady, trust me; of the hueThat I would choose, were I to choose anew.Clear up, fair queen, that cloudy countenance:Though chance of war hath wrought this change of cheer,Thou comest not to be made a scorn in Rome:Princely shall be thy usage every way.Rest on my word, and let not discontentDaunt all your hopes: madam, he comforts youCan make you greater than the Queen of Goths.Lavinia, you are not displeased with this?

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LAVINIA: Not I, my lord; sith true nobilityWarrants these words in princely courtesy.

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Thanks, sweet Lavinia. Romans, let us go;Ransomless here we set our prisoners free:Proclaim our honours, lords, with trump and drum.

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TITUS ANDRONICUS: Traitors, avaunt! Where is the emperor's guard?Treason, my lord! Lavinia is surprised!

Back 10

Surprised! by whom?

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LUCIUS: Dead, if you will; but not to be his wife,That is another's lawful promised love.Exit

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No, Titus, no; the emperor needs her not,Nor her, nor thee, nor any of thy stock:I'll trust, by leisure, him that mocks me once;Thee never, nor thy traitorous haughty sons,Confederates all thus to dishonour me.Was there none else in Rome to make a stale,But Saturnine? Full well, Andronicus,Agree these deeds with that proud brag of thine,That said'st I begg'd the empire at thy hands.

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TITUS ANDRONICUS: O monstrous! what reproachful words are these?

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But go thy ways; go, give that changing pieceTo him that flourish'd for her with his swordA valiant son-in-law thou shalt enjoy;One fit to bandy with thy lawless sons,To ruffle in the commonwealth of Rome.

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TITUS ANDRONICUS: These words are razors to my wounded heart.

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And therefore, lovely Tamora, queen of Goths,That like the stately Phoebe 'mongst her nymphsDost overshine the gallant'st dames of Rome,If thou be pleased with this my sudden choice,Behold, I choose thee, Tamora, for my bride,And will create thee empress of Rome,Speak, Queen of Goths, dost thou applaud my choice?And here I swear by all the Roman gods,Sith priest and holy water are so nearAnd tapers burn so bright and every thingIn readiness for Hymenaeus stand,I will not re-salute the streets of Rome,Or climb my palace, till from forth this placeI lead espoused my bride along with me.

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TAMORA: And here, in sight of heaven, to Rome I swear,If Saturnine advance the Queen of Goths,She will a handmaid be to his desires,A loving nurse, a mother to his youth.

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Ascend, fair queen, Pantheon. Lords, accompanyYour noble emperor and his lovely bride,Sent by the heavens for Prince Saturnine,Whose wisdom hath her fortune conquered:There shall we consummate our spousal rites.

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TITUS ANDRONICUS: I know not, Marcus; but I know it is,Whether by device or no, the heavens can tell:Is she not then beholding to the manThat brought her for this high good turn so far?Yes, and will nobly him remunerate.Flourish. Re-enter, from one side, SATURNINUS attended, TAMORA, DEMETRIUS, CHIRON and AARON; from the other, BASSIANUS, LAVINIA, and others

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So, Bassianus, you have play'd your prize:God give you joy, sir, of your gallant bride!

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BASSIANUS: And you of yours, my lord! I say no more,Nor wish no less; and so, I take my leave.

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Traitor, if Rome have law or we have power,Thou and thy faction shall repent this rape.

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BASSIANUS: Rape, call you it, my lord, to seize my own,My truth-betrothed love and now my wife?But let the laws of Rome determine all;Meanwhile I am possess'd of that is mine.

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'Tis good, sir: you are very short with us;But, if we live, we'll be as sharp with you.

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TAMORA: My worthy lord, if ever TamoraWere gracious in those princely eyes of thine,Then hear me speak in indifferently for all;And at my suit, sweet, pardon what is past.

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What, madam! be dishonour'd openly,And basely put it up without revenge?

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TAMORA: Come, come, sweet emperor; come, Andronicus;Take up this good old man, and cheer the heartThat dies in tempest of thy angry frown.

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Rise, Titus, rise; my empress hath prevail'd.

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MARCUS ANDRONICUS: That, on mine honour, here I do protest.

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Away, and talk not; trouble us no more.

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TAMORA: Nay, nay, sweet emperor, we must all be friends:The tribune and his nephews kneel for grace;I will not be denied: sweet heart, look back.

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Marcus, for thy sake and thy brother's here,And at my lovely Tamora's entreats,I do remit these young men's heinous faults: Stand up.Lavinia, though you left me like a churl,I found a friend, and sure as death I sworeI would not part a bachelor from the priest.Come, if the emperor's court can feast two brides,You are my guest, Lavinia, and your friends.This day shall be a love-day, Tamora.

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TITUS ANDRONICUS: To-morrow, an it please your majestyTo hunt the panther and the hart with me,With horn and hound we'll give your grace bonjour.

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Be it so, Titus, and gramercy too.

Flourish. Exeunt

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QUINTUS: Thy hand once more; I will not loose again,Till thou art here aloft, or I below:Thou canst not come to me: I come to thee.

Falls in. Enter SATURNINUS with AARON

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Along with me: I'll see what hole is here,And what he is that now is leap'd into it.Say who art thou that lately didst descendInto this gaping hollow of the earth?

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MARTIUS: The unhappy son of old Andronicus:Brought hither in a most unlucky hour,To find thy brother Bassianus dead.

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My brother dead! I know thou dost but jest:He and his lady both are at the lodgeUpon the north side of this pleasant chase;'Tis not an hour since I left him there.

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TAMORA: Where is my lord the king?

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Here, Tamora, though grieved with killing grief.

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TAMORA: Where is thy brother Bassianus?

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Now to the bottom dost thou search my wound:Poor Bassianus here lies murdered.

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TAMORA: Then all too late I bring this fatal writ,The complot of this timeless tragedy;And wonder greatly that man's face can foldIn pleasing smiles such murderous tyranny.

She giveth SATURNINUS a letter

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[Reads] 'An if we miss to meet him handsomely--Sweet huntsman, Bassianus 'tis we mean--Do thou so much as dig the grave for him:Thou know'st our meaning. Look for thy rewardAmong the nettles at the elder-treeWhich overshades the mouth of that same pitWhere we decreed to bury Bassianus.Do this, and purchase us thy lasting friends.'O Tamora! was ever heard the like?This is the pit, and this the elder-tree.Look, sirs, if you can find the huntsman outThat should have murdered Bassianus here.

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AARON: My gracious lord, here is the bag of gold.

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[To TITUS] Two of thy whelps, fell curs ofbloody kind,Have here bereft my brother of his life.Sirs, drag them from the pit unto the prison:There let them bide until we have devisedSome never-heard-of torturing pain for them.

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TITUS ANDRONICUS: High emperor, upon my feeble kneeI beg this boon, with tears not lightly shed,That this fell fault of my accursed sons,Accursed if the fault be proved in them,--

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If it be proved! you see it is apparent.Who found this letter? Tamora, was it you?

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TITUS ANDRONICUS: I did, my lord: yet let me be their bail;For, by my father's reverend tomb, I vowThey shall be ready at your highness' willTo answer their suspicion with their lives.

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Thou shalt not bail them: see thou follow me.Some bring the murder'd body, some the murderers:Let them not speak a word; the guilt is plain;For, by my soul, were there worse end than death,That end upon them should be executed.

Front 31

TITUS ANDRONICUS: Come, Marcus, let us go. Publius, follow me.

EXIT

SCENE IV. Enter SATURNINUS, TAMORA, DEMETRIUS, CHIRON, Lords, and others; SATURNINUS with the arrows in his hand that TITUS shot

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Why, lords, what wrongs are these! was ever seenAn emperor in Rome thus overborne,Troubled, confronted thus; and, for the extentOf egal justice, used in such contempt?My lords, you know, as know the mightful gods,However these disturbers of our peaceBuz in the people's ears, there nought hath pass'd,But even with law, against the willful sonsOf old Andronicus. And what an ifHis sorrows have so overwhelm'd his wits,Shall we be thus afflicted in his wreaks,His fits, his frenzy, and his bitterness?And now he writes to heaven for his redress:See, here's to Jove, and this to Mercury;This to Apollo; this to the god of war;Sweet scrolls to fly about the streets of Rome!What's this but libelling against the senate,And blazoning our injustice every where?A goodly humour, is it not, my lords?As who would say, in Rome no justice were.But if I live, his feigned ecstasiesShall be no shelter to these outrages:But he and his shall know that justice livesIn Saturninus' health, whom, if she sleep,He'll so awake as she in fury shallCut off the proud'st conspirator that lives.

Front 32

CLOWN: 'Tis he. God and Saint Stephen give you good den:I have brought you a letter and a couple of pigeons here.

SATURNINUS reads the letter

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Go, take him away, and hang him presently.

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CLOWN: Hanged! by'r lady, then I have brought up a neck toa fair end.Exit, guarded

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Despiteful and intolerable wrongs!Shall I endure this monstrous villany?I know from whence this same device proceeds:May this be borne?--as if his traitorous sons,That died by law for murder of our brother,Have by my means been butcher'd wrongfully!Go, drag the villain hither by the hair;Nor age nor honour shall shape privilege:For this proud mock I'll be thy slaughterman;Sly frantic wretch, that holp'st to make me great,In hope thyself should govern Rome and me.

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SATURNINUS:For this proud mock I'll be thy slaughterman; Sly frantic wretch, that holp'st to make me great, In hope thyself should govern Rome and me.Enter AEMILIUS

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What news with thee, AEmilius?

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AEMILIUS: Arm, arm, my lord;--Rome never had more cause.The Goths have gather'd head; and with a powerhigh-resolved men, bent to the spoil,They hither march amain, under conductOf Lucius, son to old Andronicus;Who threats, in course of this revenge, to doAs much as ever Coriolanus did.

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Is warlike Lucius general of the Goths?These tidings nip me, and I hang the headAs flowers with frost or grass beat down with storms:Ay, now begin our sorrows to approach:'Tis he the common people love so much;Myself hath often over-heard them say,When I have walked like a private man,That Lucius' banishment was wrongfully,And they have wish'd that Lucius were their emperor.

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TAMORA: Why should you fear? is not your city strong?

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Ay, but the citizens favor Lucius,And will revolt from me to succor him.

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TAMORA: ...With words more sweet, and yet more dangerous,Than baits to fish, or honey-stalks to sheep,When as the one is wounded with the bait,The other rotted with delicious feed.

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But he will not entreat his son for us.

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TAMORA: If Tamora entreat him, then he will:For I can smooth and fill his aged earWith golden promises; that, were his heartAlmost impregnable, his old ears deaf,Yet should both ear and heart obey my tongue.To AemiliusGo thou before, be our ambassador:Say that the emperor requests a parleyOf warlike Lucius, and appoint the meetingEven at his father's house, the old Andronicus.

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Aemilius, do this message honourably:And if he stand on hostage for his safety,Bid him demand what pledge will please him best.

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TAMORA: Now will I to that old Andronicus;And temper him with all the art I have,To pluck proud Lucius from the warlike Goths.And now, sweet emperor, be blithe again,And bury all thy fear in my devices.

Back 39

Then go successantly, and plead to him.

Front 40

LUCIUS: Away, inhuman dog! unhallow'd slave!Sirs, help our uncle to convey him in.

Exeunt Goths, with AARON. Flourish within.

The trumpets show the emperor is at hand.

Enter SATURNINUS and TAMORA, with AEMILIUS, Tribunes, Senators, and others

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What, hath the firmament more suns than one?

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MARCUS ANDRONICUS: Rome's emperor, and nephew, break the parle;These quarrels must be quietly debated.The feast is ready, which the careful TitusHath ordain'd to an honourable end,For peace, for love, for league, and good to Rome:Please you, therefore, draw nigh, and take your places.

Back 41

Marcus, we will.

Front 42

TITUS ANDRONICUS: Welcome, my gracious lord; welcome, dread queen;Welcome, ye warlike Goths; welcome, Lucius;And welcome, all: although the cheer be poor,'Twill fill your stomachs; please you eat of it.

Back 42

Why art thou thus attired, Andronicus?

Front 43

TITUS ANDRONICUS: An if your highness knew my heart, you were.My lord the emperor, resolve me this:Was it well done of rash VirginiusTo slay his daughter with his own right hand,Because she was enforced, stain'd, and deflower'd?

Back 43

It was, Andronicus.

Front 44

TITUS ANDRONICUS: Your reason, mighty lord?

Back 44

Because the girl should not survive her shame,And by her presence still renew his sorrows.

Front 45

TITUS ANDRONICUS: A reason mighty, strong, and effectual;A pattern, precedent, and lively warrant,For me, most wretched, to perform the like.Die, die, Lavinia, and thy shame with thee;Kills LAVINIAAnd, with thy shame, thy father's sorrow die!

Back 45

What hast thou done, unnatural and unkind?

Front 46

TITUS ANDRONICUS: Kill'd her, for whom my tears have made me blind.I am as woful as Virginius was,And have a thousand times more cause than heTo do this outrage: and it now is done.

Back 46

What, was she ravish'd? tell who did the deed.

Front 47

TITUS ANDRONICUS: Not I; 'twas Chiron and Demetrius:They ravish'd her, and cut away her tongue;And they, 'twas they, that did her all this wrong.

Back 47

Go fetch them hither to us presently.

Front 48

TITUS ANDRONICUS: Why, there they are both, baked in that pie;Whereof their mother daintily hath fed,Eating the flesh that she herself hath bred.'Tis true, 'tis true; witness my knife's sharp point.

Back 48

Die, frantic wretch, for this accursed deed!