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- HAMLET PRINCE OF DENMARK
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- Act 2 Scene 1
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- (Enter old Polonius with his man Reynaldo)
- l1l Polonius Give him this money and these notes, Reynaldo.
- l2l Reynaldo I will, my lord.
- l3l Polonius You shall do marvÆlous wisely, good Reynaldo,
- l4l Before you visit him to make enquire
- l5l Of his behaviour.
- Reynaldo My lord, I did intend it.
- l6l Polonius Marry, well said, very well said. Look you, sir,
- l7l Enquire me first what Danskers are in Paris,
- l8l And how, and who, what means, and where they keep,
- l9l What company, at what expense; and finding
- l10l By this encompassment and drift of question
- l11l That they do know my son, come you more nearer
- l12l Than your particular demands will touch it.
- l13l Take you, as Ætwere, some distant knowledge of him,
- l14l As thus: ôI know his father and his friends,
- l15l And in part himöùdo you mark this, Reynaldo?
- l16l Reynaldo Ay, very well, my lord.
- l17l Polonius ôAnd in part him, butö, you may say, ônot well,
- l18l But if Æt be he I mean, heÆs very wild,
- l19l Addicted so and soö; and there put on him
- l20l What forgeries you pleaseùmarry, none so rank
- l21l As may dishonour him, take heed of thatù
- l22l But, sir, such wanton, wild, and usual slips
- l23l As are companions noted and most known
- l24l To youth and liberty.
- l25l Reynaldo As gaming, my lord?
- l26l Polonius Ay, or drinking, fencing, swearing,
- l27l Quarrelling, drabbingùyou may go so far.
- l28l Reynaldo My lord, that would dishonour him.
- l29l Polonius Faith, no, as you may season it in the charge.
- l30l You must not put another scandal on him,
- l31l That he is open to incontinency.
- l32l ThatÆs not my meaningùbut breathe his faults so quaintly
- l33l That they may seem the taints of liberty,
- l34l The flash and outbreak of a fiery mind,
- l35l A savageness in unreclaimΦd blood,
- l36l Of general assault.
- Reynaldo But, my good lordù
- l37l Polonius Wherefore should you do this?
- Reynaldo Ay, my lord.
- l38l I would know that.
- Polonius Marry, sir, hereÆs my drift,
- l39l And I believe it is a fetch of warrant:
- l40l You laying these slight sullies on my son,
- l41l As Ætwere a thing a little soiled iÆ thÆ working,
- l42l Mark you, your party in converse, him you would sound,
- l43l Having ever seen in the prenominate crimes
- l44l The youth you breathe of guilty, be assured
- l45l He closes with you in this consequence:
- l46l ôGood sirö, or so, or ôfriendö, or ôgentlemanö,
- l47l According to the phrase and the addition
- l48l Of man and country.
- Reynaldo Very good, my lord.
- l49l Polonius And then, sir, does a thisùa doesù
- l50l what was I about to say? By the mass, I was about to
- l51l say something. Where did I leave?
- l52l Reynaldo At ôcloses in the consequenceö, at ôfriend,
- l53l Or soö, and ôgentlemanö.
- l54l Polonius At ôcloses in the consequenceöùay, marry,
- l55l He closes with you thus: ôI know the gentleman,
- l56l I saw him yesterdayöùor tÆ other day,
- l57l Or then, or thenùôwith such and such, and, as you say,
- l58l There was a gaming, there oÆertook in Æs rouse,
- l59l There falling out at tennisö, or perchance
- l60l ôI saw him enter such a house of saleö,
- l61l Videlicet, a brothel, or so forth. See you now,
- l62l Your bait of falsehood takes this carp of truth;
- l63l And thus do we of wisdom and of reach
- l64l With windlasses and with assays of bias
- l65l By indirections find directions out.
- l66l So, by my former lecture and advice,
- l67l Shall you my son. You have me, have you not?
- l68l Reynaldo My lord, I have.
- l69l Polonius God bÆ wiÆ ye. Fare ye well.
- l70l Reynaldo Good my lord.
- l71l Polonius Observe his inclination in yourself.
- l72l Reynaldo I shall, my lord.
- l73l Polonius And let him ply his music.
- l74l Reynaldo Well, my lord.
- (Enter Ophelia)
- l75l Polonius Farewell.
- (Exit Reynaldo)
- How now, Ophelia, whatÆs the matter?
- l76l Ophelia Alas, my lord, I have been so affrighted.
- l77l Polonius With what, iÆ thÆ name of God?
- l78l Ophelia My lord, as I was sewing in my chamber,
- l79l Lord Hamlet, with his doublet all unbraced,
- l80l No hat upon his head, his stockings fouled,
- l81l Ungartered, and down-gyvΦd to his ankle,
- l82l Pale as his shirt, his knees knocking each other,
- l83l And with a look so piteous in purport
- l84l As if he had been loosΦd out of hell
- l85l To speak of horrors, he comes before me.
- l86l Polonius Mad for thy love?
- Ophelia My lord, I do not know,
- l87l But truly I do fear it.
- Polonius What said he?
- l88l Ophelia He took me by the wrist and held me hard,
- l89l Then goes he to the length of all his arm,
- l90l And with his other hand thus oÆer his brow
- l91l He falls to such perusal of my face
- l92l As a would draw it. Long stayed he so.
- l93l At last, a little shaking of mine arm,
- l94l And thrice his head thus waving up and down,
- l95l He raised a sigh so piteous and profound
- l96l That it did seem to shatter all his bulk
- l97l And end his being. That done, he lets me go,
- l98l And, with his head over his shoulder turned,
- l99l He seemed to find his way without his eyes,
- l100l For out oÆ doors he went without their help,
- l101l And to the last bended their light on me.
- l102l Polonius Come, go with me. I will go seek the King.
- l103l This is the very ecstasy of love,
- l104l Whose violent property fordoes itself
- l105l And leads the will to desperate undertakings
- l106l As oft as any passion under heaven
- l107l That does afflict our natures. I am sorryù
- l108l What, have you given him any hard words of late?
- l109l Ophelia No, my good lord, but as you did command
- l110l I did repel his letters and denied
- l111l His access to me.
- Polonius That hath made him mad.
- l112l I am sorry that with better speed and judgement
- l113l I had not quoted him. I feared he did but trifle
- l114l And meant to wreck thee. But beshrew my jealousy!
- l115l By heaven, it is as proper to our age
- l116l To cast beyond ourselves in our opinions
- l117l As it is common for the younger sort
- l118l To lack discretion. Come, go we to the King.
- l119l This must be known, which, being kept close, might move
- l120l More grief to hide than hate to utter love.
- (Exeunt)
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