Home > The Tempest Text > Act I, Scene II - Page 3

PROSP:

Dost thou forget
From what a torment I did free thee?

PROSP:

Do you forget
From what a torment I freed you?

ARIEL:

No.

ARIEL:

No.

PROSP:

Thou dost, and think'st it much to tread the ooze(300)
Of the salt deep,
To run upon the sharp wind of the north,
To do me business in the veins o'th’ earth
When it is baked with frost.

PROSP:

You do, and you think it’s a lot to walk the waves
Of the ocean,
To run on the sharp wind of the north,
To do my business under the earth
When it is baked with frost.

ARIEL:

I do not, sir.(305)

ARIEL:

I don’t, sir.

PROSP:

Thou liest, malignant thing! Hast thou forgot
The foul witch Sycorax, who with age and envy
Was grown into a hoop? Hast thou forgot her?

PROSP:

You lie, malignant thing! Have you forgotten
The foul witch Sycorax, who had grown in to a circle
With age and envy? Have you forgotten her?

ARIEL:

No, sir.

ARIEL:

No, sir.

PROSP:

Thou hast. Where was she born? Speak; tell me.(310)

PROSP:

You have. Where was she born?
Speak; tell me.

ARIEL:

Sir, in Algiers.

ARIEL:

Sir, in Algeria.

PROSP:

O, was she so? I must
Once in a month recount what thou hast been,
Which thou forget'st. This damned witch Sycorax,
For mischiefs manifold and sorceries terrible(315)
To enter human hearing, from Algiers
Thou know'st was banished—for one thing she did
They would not take her life. Is not this true?

PROSP:

Oh! Was she? I must recount
What you have been once a month,
Which you forget. This damned witch Sycorax
Was banished from Algeria
For many evil deeds and magic spells too terrible
To be heard by human beings.
They would not take her life for one thing she did.
Isn’t this true?

ARIEL:

Ay, sir.

ARIEL:

Yes, sir.

PROSP:

This blue-eyed hag was hither brought with child,(320)
And here was left by th’ sailors. Thou, my slave,
As thou report'st thyself, wast then her servant;
And for thou wast a spirit too delicate
To act her earthy and abhorred commands,
Refusing her grand hests, she did confine thee,(325)
By help of her more potent ministers
And in her most unmitigable rage,
Into a cloven pine; within which rift
Imprisoned thou didst painfully remain
A dozen years; within which spaced she died(330)
And left thee there, where thou didst vent thy groans
As fast as mill-wheels strike. Then was this island—
Save for the son that she did litter here,
A freckled whelp, hag-born—not honoured with
A human shape.(335)

PROSP:

This blue-eyed hag was brought here, pregnant,
And was left here by sailors. You, my slave,
As you told me yourself, was her servant then,
And, because you were too delicate a spirit
To carry put her earthy and horrifying commands,
Refusing her huge commands, she locked you up,
In a split pine tree, with help from her more powerful servants,
And in her anger which couldn’t be stopped.
Inside the split of the tree,
Imprisoned, you painfully remained
For twelve years; during that time she died,
And left you there, where you gave out your groans
As fast as the wheels of a mill strike the stone.
Then this was an island—except for the son that she had here,
A freckled pup, born of a witch—not resembling
Any human shape.

ARIEL:

Yes, Caliban her son.

ARIEL:

Yes, Caliban, her son.

PROSP:

Dull thing, I say so: he, that Caliban
Whom now I keep in service. Thou best know'st
What torment I did find thee in. Thy groans
Did make wolves howl, and penetrate the breasts(340)
Of ever-angry bears; it was a torment
To lay upon the damned, which Sycorax
Could not again undo. It was mine art,
When I arrived and heard thee, that made gape
The pine and let thee out.(345)

PROSP:

I say he’s a dull thing, that Caliban,
Whom now I keep as a servant. You know best
What torment I found you in; your groans
Made wolves howl, and penetrated the breasts
Of ever-angry bears: it was a torment that should
Only be laid on the damned, which Sycorax
Couldn’t undo; when I arrived and heard you,
It was my magic that opened up
The pine tree, and let you out.

ARIEL:

I thank thee, master.

ARIEL:

I thank you, master.

PROSP:

If thou more murmur'st, I will rend an oak,
And peg thee in his knotty entrails till
Thou hast howled away twelve winters.

PROSP:

If you make any more complaints, I will open an oak
And put you inside it until
You have howled away twelve more years.

ARIEL:

Pardon, master.(350)
I will be correspondent to command
And do my spiriting gently.

ARIEL:

Forgive me, master:
My will is ready for your command,
And I will do my spirit jobs gently.

PROSP:

Do so, and after two days
I will discharge thee.

PROSP:

Do so; and after two days,
I will set you free.

ARIEL:

That's my noble master!(355)
What shall I do? Say what; what shall I do?

ARIEL:

That's my noble master!
What shall I do? Say what? What shall I do?

PROSP:

Go make thyself like a nymph o'th’ sea.
Be subject to no sight by thine and mine, invisible
To every eyeball else. Go take this shape,
And hither come in't: go; hence with diligence! [Exit Ariel](360)
Awake, dear heart, awake! Thou hast slept well;
Awake.

PROSP:

Go make yourself like a female spirit of the sea: make yourself
Invisible to all except you and me; invisible
To every other eye. Go, change into a spirit,
And come here invisibly: go, come here with care!
Awake, dear heart, awake! You have slept well;
Awake!

MIRAN:

The strangeness of your story put
Heaviness in me.

MIRAN:

The strangeness of your story
Made me very sleepy.

PROSP:

Shake it off. Come on;(365)
We'll visit Caliban my slave, who never
Yields us kind answer.

PROSP:

Shake it off. Come on;
We'll visit Caliban my slave, who never
Gives us a kind answer.

MIRAN:

’Tis a villain, sir,
I do not love to look on.

MIRAN:

It is a villain, sir, that
I don’t like to look at.

PROSP:

But as ’tis,(370)
We cannot miss him: he does make our fire,
Fetch in our wood, and serves in offices
That profit us. What ho! Slave, Caliban!
Thou earth, thou, speak!

PROSP:

But as it is,
We can’t dismiss him: he makes our fire,
Fetches in our wood; and serves in jobs
That are to our advantage.—What hey! Slave! Caliban!
You low-life, you! Speak.

CALIBAN:

[within]

There's wood enough within.(375)
Come forth, I say! There's other business for thee.
Come, thou tortoise! When?

[Re-enter Ariel like a water-nymph]

Fine apparition! My quaint Ariel,
Hark in thine ear.

CALIBAN:

There's enough wood inside.
Come out, I say; there's other work for you:
Come, you turtle! When? Fine apparition! My clever Ariel,
Listen. [PROSPERO whispers in ARIEL’s ear.]

ARIEL:

My lord, it shall be done.(380)

ARIEL:

My lord, it shall is done.

[Exit]

PROSP:

Thou poisonous slave, got by the devil himself
Upon thy wicked dam, come forth!

PROSP:

You poisonous slave, fathered by the devil himself
Through your wicked mother, come out!

[Enter Caliban]

CALIBAN:

As wicked dew as e'er my mother brushed
With raven's feather from unwholesome fen
Drop on you both! A south-west blow on ye(385)
And blister you all o'er!

CALIBAN:

Let a dew as wicked as any my mother brushed
From a polluted bog with raven's feather
Fall on both of you! A south-west wind blow on you,
And blister you all over!

PROSP:

For this be sure tonight thou shalt have cramps,
Side-stiches that shall pen thy breath up. Urchins
Shall, for that vast of night that they may work,
All exercise on thee. Thou shalt be pinched(390)
As thick as honeycomb, each pinch more stinging
Than bees that made ’em.

PROSP:

You shall have cramps tonight for this, you can be sure,
Very sharp pains that shall take your breath away; goblins
Shall come out in the middle of night so that they may play
All their tricks on you: you shall be pinched
As many times as there are cells in honeycomb,
Each pinch more stinging than the bees’ stings.

CALIBAN:

I must eat my dinner.
This island's mine, by Sycorax my mother,
Which thou tak'st from me. When thou cam'st first,(395)
Thou strok'st me and made much of me, wouldst give me
Water and berries in't, and teach me how
To name the bigger light, and how the less,
That burn by day and night; and then I loved thee,
And showed thee all the qualities o'th‘ isle,(400)
The fresh springs, brine-pits, barren place and fertile—
Cursed be I that did so! All the charms
Of Sycorax, toads, beetles, bats, light on you!
For I am all the subjects that you have,
Which first was mine own king, and here you sty me(405)
In this hard rock, whiles you do keep from me
The rest o‘th’ island.

CALIBAN:

I must eat my dinner.
This island's mine, through Sycorax my mother,
Which you took from me. When you first came,
You stroked me and made much of me; you would give me
Water with berries in it; and teach me how
To name the sun, and how to name the moon,
That burn by day and night: and then I loved you,
And showed you all the qualities of the island,
The fresh springs, salt water pits, the desert, and the fertile.
I am cursed that I did so! All the charms
Of Sycorax, toads, beetles, bats, fall on you!
Because I am all of the subjects that you have,
Who was first my own king; and here you chain me
To this hard rock, while you keep from me
The rest of the island.

PROSP:

Thou most lying slave,
Whom stripes may move, not kindness! I have used
thee,(410)
Filth as thou art, with human care, and lodged thee
In mine own cell, till thou didst seek to violate
The honour of my child.

PROSP:

You most lying slave,
Whom beatings may move, not kindness! I have used you,
Filth as you are, with human care, and let you live
In my own dwelling, until you tried to rape
My daughter.

CALIBAN:

O ho, O ho! Would't had been done!
Thou didst prevent me; I had peopled else(415)
This isle with Calibans.

CALIBAN:

Oh ho! Oh ho! I wish I had!
You stopped me; I would have populated
This island with Calibans.

MIRANDA:

Abhorrèd slave,
Which any print of goodness wilt not take,
Being capable of all ill! I pitied thee,
Took pains to make thee speak, taught thee each hour(420)
One thing or other. When thou didst not, savage,
Know thine own meaning, but wouldst gabble like
A thing most brutish, I endowed thy purposes
With words that made them known. But thy vile race,
Though thou didst learn, had that in't which good natures(425)
Could not abide to be with; therefore wast thou
Deservedly confined into this rock,
Who hadst deserved more than a prison.

MIRANDA:

Disgusting slave,
In which any type of goodness won’t take hold,
Being capable of every evil! I pitied you,
Took pains to teach you to speak, taught you one thing
Or another each hour: when you didn’t know what you were saying,
Savage, but would babble very crude things, I gave your ideas
Words so you could make them known: although you learned,
Your vile race had that in it that which good natures
Could not out up with; therefore, you were
Confined into this rock because you deserved it,
You who had deserved more than a prison.

CALIBAN:

You taught me language, and my profit on't
Is I know how to curse. The red plague rid you(430)
For learning me your language!

CALIBAN:

You taught me language, what I got out of it
Is that I know how to curse: may the red plague kill you,
For teaching me your language!

PROSP:

Hag-seed, hence!
Fetch us in fuel, and be quick, thou'rt best,
To answer other business.—Shrug'st thou, malice?
If thou neglect'st or dost unwillingly(435)
What I command, I'll rack thee with old cramps,
Fill all thy bones with aches, make thee roar,
That beasts shall tremble at thy din.

PROSP:

Offspring of a witch, come here!
Get fuel for us and you had better be quick
About answering the other business. You shrug at me, Hatred?
If you fail to do what I order you to do,
Or do it unwillingly, I'll torture you with old cramps,
Fill all your bones with aches; make you roar in such pain,
That beasts shall shake at noise you make.