The Tempest: Act 2, Scene 2
Enter CALIBAN with a burden of wood.
A noise of thunder heard.
CALIBAN
1
All the infections that the sun sucks up 2
From bogs, fens, flats, on Prosper fall and make him 3
By inch-meal a disease! His spirits hear me3. By inch-meal: inch by inch.
4
And yet I needs must curse. But they'll nor pinch, 5
Fright me with urchin-shows, pitch me i' the mire,
5. urchin-shows: sights of goblins in the shape of hedgehogs.
6
Nor lead me, like a firebrand, in the dark
6. like a firebrand: in the shape of a will-o'-the-wisp?
>>>
7
Out of my way, unless he bid 'em; but 8
For every trifle are they set upon me; 9
Sometime like apes that mow and chatter at me
9. mow: make faces.
10
And after bite me, then like hedgehogs which 11
Lie tumbling in my barefoot way and mount 12
Their pricks at my footfall; sometime am I 13
All wound with adders who with cloven tongues
14
Do hiss me into madness.
Enter TRINCULO.
14
Lo, now, lo! 15
Here comes a spirit of his, and to torment me 16
For bringing wood in slowly. I'll fall flat; 17
Perchance he will not mind me.
17. mind: notice.
TRINCULO
18
Here's neither bush nor shrub, to bear off any
18. bear off: ward off, keep off.
19
weather at all, and another storm brewing; I hear it 20
sing i' the wind: yond same black cloud, yond 21
huge one, looks like a foul bombard that would shed21. foul: dirty, threatening. bombard: large leather jug.
22
his liquor. If it should thunder as it did before, I know
23
not where to hide my head: yond same cloud cannot 24
choose but fall by pailfuls. What have we here? 25
a man or a fish? dead or alive? A fish: he smells 26
like a fish; a very ancient and fish-like smell; a kind of 27
not of the newest Poor-John. A strange fish! Were I
27. Poor-John: cheap dried fish.
28
in England now, as once I was, and had but this fish 29
painted, not a holiday fool there but would give a piece
29. painted: i.e., on a sign hung outside a booth at a fair to attract curiosity-seekers.
30
of silver: there would this monster make a man;
30. make a man: i.e., make a man's fortune.
31
any strange beast there makes a man: when they will 32
not give a doit to relieve a lame beggar, they will lay
32. doit: small coin of trifling value.
33
out ten to see a dead Indian. Legged like a man and 34
his fins like arms!
[Trinculo touches a leg or arm of Caliban.]
34
Warm o' my troth! I do now let
34. o' my troth: by my faith.
35
loose my opinion; hold it no longer: this is no fish, 36
but an islander, that hath lately suffered by a thunderbolt.
Thunder.
37
Alas, the storm is come again! my 38
best way is to creep under his gaberdine; there is no
38. gaberdine: cloak, loose upper garment.
39
other shelter hereabouts: misery acquaints a man with 40
strange bed-fellows. I will here shroud till the dregs of
40. shroud: take shelter. dregs: last remains.
41
the storm be past.
Enter STEPHANO, singing,
[a bottle in his hand].
STEPHANO
Illustrator: Walter Crane
42
"I shall no more to sea, to sea, 43
Here shall I die ashore" 44
This is a very scurvy tune to sing at a man's 45
funeral: well, here's my comfort.
Drinks.
(Sings.)
46
"The master, the swabber, the boatswain and I, 47
The gunner and his mate 48
Loved Mall, Meg and Marian and Margery, 49
But none of us cared for Kate; 50
For she had a tongue with a tang, 51
Would cry to a sailor, Go hang! 52
She loved not the savour of tar nor of pitch, 53
Yet a tailor might scratch her where'er she did itch:
53. a tailor: Stereotypically, tailors were small and shy, the opposite of hearty sailors.
54
Then to sea, boys, and let her go hang!" 55
This is a scurvy tune too: but here's my comfort.
Drinks.
CALIBAN
56
Do not torment me: Oh!
56. Do not torment me: Caliban mistakes Stephano for a spirit sent by Prospero to torment him.
STEPHANO
57
What's the matter? Have we devils here? Do you 58
put tricks upon's with savages and men of Ind, ha?
58. put tricks upon's: try to fool me with magician's tricks.
Ind: India, or, vaguely, the East.
Ind: India, or, vaguely, the East.
59
I have not scaped drowning to be afeard now of your 60
four legs; for it hath been said, "As proper a man as 61
ever went on four legs cannot make him give ground";
60-63. for it hath been said . . . nostrils: It has been said, no man, no matter how manly, could make him take a step back, and it will be said so again (of me) as long as I breathe air." >>>
62
and it shall be said so again while Stephano 63
breathes at's nostrils.
CALIBAN
64
The spirit torments me; Oh!
STEPHANO
65
This is some monster of the isle with four legs, who 66
hath got, as I take it, an ague. Where the devil 67
should he learn our language? I will give him some 68
relief, if it be but for that. if I can recover him68. for that: i.e., because he knows our language. recover: restore.
69
and keep him tame and get to Naples with him, he's a 70
present for any emperor that ever trod on neat's leather.
70. neat's-leather: cowhide or oxhide.
CALIBAN
71
Do not torment me, prithee; I'll bring my 72
wood home faster.
STEPHANO
73
He's in his fit now and does not talk after the 74
wisest. He shall taste of my bottle: if he have 75
never drunk wine afore will go near to remove his 76
fit. If I can recover him and keep him tame, I will
76-77. recover him: cure him of his fit. I will not take too much for him: whatever I can get for him won't be more than he's worth.
77
not take too much for him; he shall pay for him that
78
hath him, and that soundly.
78. hath him: buys him.
CALIBAN
79
Thou dost me yet but little hurt; thou wilt
79-80. thou wilt anon: i.e., you will hurt me more very soon.
80
anon, I know it by thy trembling: now Prosper works
80. I know it by thy trembling: Apparently Caliban mistakes Stephano's drunken staggering for some kind of possession by Prospero's magic.
81
upon thee.
STEPHANO
82
Come on your ways; open your mouth; here is that
82-83. Come on your ways: Come on, let's get on with it. here . . . cat: There was a proverb that said "Good liquor will make a cat talk."
83
which will give language to you, cat: open your 84
mouth; this will shake your shaking, I can tell you,
84. this . . . shaking: this will let you shake off your fit.
85
and that soundly: you cannot tell who's your friend: 86
open your chaps again.
85. you cannot tell who's your friend: i.e., I'm your friend, you just don't know it yet.
86. chaps: jaws.
86. chaps: jaws.
[Caliban drinks.]
TRINCULO
87
I should know that voice: it should bebut he is 88
drowned; and these are devils: O defend me!
STEPHANO
89
Four legs and two voices: a most delicate monster!
89. delicate: ingenious.
90
His forward voice now is to speak well of his 91
friend; his backward voice is to utter foul speeches 92
and to detract. If all the wine in my bottle will 93
recover him, I will help his ague. Come.
93. recover him: cure him.
[Caliban drinks again]
94
Amen! I will pour some in thy other 95
mouth.
TRINCULO
96
Stephano!
STEPHANO
97
Doth thy other mouth call me? Mercy, mercy! This is 98
a devil, and no monster: I will leave him; I have no 99
long spoon.
99. long spoon: A proverb says that "He must have a long spoon that will eat with the devil."
TRINCULO
100
Stephano! If thou beest Stephano, touch me and101
speak to me: for I am Trinculobe not afeardthy102
good friend Trinculo.
STEPHANO
103
If thou beest Trinculo, come forth: I'll pull thee104
by the lesser legs: if any be Trinculo's legs,105
these are they. Thou art very Trinculo indeed! How106
camest thou to be the siege of this moon-calf? can
106. siege: poop. moon-calf: monstrosity, creature born misshapen because of lunar influence.
107
he vent Trinculos?
107. vent: emit.
TRINCULO
108
I took him to be killed with a thunder-stroke. But109
art thou not drowned, Stephano? I hope now thou art110
not drowned. Is the storm overblown? I hid me111
under the dead moon-calf's gaberdine for fear of112
the storm. And art thou living, Stephano? O113
Stephano, two Neapolitans 'scaped!
STEPHANO
114
Prithee, do not turn me about; my stomach is
114. do not turn me about: Apparently Trinculo tries to do a celebratory dance with Stephano.
115
not constant.
115. not constant: unsteady, churning.
CALIBAN [Aside]
116
These be fine things, an if they be not sprites.
116. an if: if.
117
That's a brave god and bears celestial liquor.
117. brave: handsome, admirable.
118
I will kneel to him.
STEPHANO
119
How didst thou 'scape? How camest thou hither?120
swear by this bottle how thou camest hither. I121
escaped upon a butt of sack which the sailors
121. butt of sack: barrel of Spanish Canary wine.
122
heaved o'erboard, by this bottle; which I made of123
the bark of a tree with mine own hands since I was124
cast ashore.
CALIBAN
125
I'll swear upon that bottle to be thy true subject;126
for the liquor is not earthly.
STEPHANO
127
Here; swear then how thou escapedst.
TRINCULO
128
Swum ashore. man, like a duck: I can swim like a129
duck, I'll be sworn.
STEPHANO
130
Here, kiss the book.
130. kiss the book: i.e., take a drink. Remember that Trinculo has taken his oath on the bottle, so his holy book is that bottle.
[Passing the bottle.]
131
Though thou canst swim like a duck, thou art made
132
like a goose.
131-132. thou art made like a goose: you're a fool.
TRINCULO
133
O Stephano, hast any more of this?
STEPHANO
134
The whole butt, man: my cellar is in a rock by the135
sea-side where my wine is hid. How now, moon-calf!136
how does thine ague?
CALIBAN
137
Hast thou not dropp'd from heaven?
STEPHANO
138
Out o' the moon, I do assure thee: I was the man i'139
the moon when time was.
139. when time was: once upon a time.
CALIBAN
140
I have seen thee in her and I do adore thee:141
My mistress show'd me thee and thy dog and thy bush.
141. thy dog and thy bush: Both here and in A Midsummer Night's Dream Shakespeare mixes together many bits of folklore to draw a picture of the Man in the Moon as accompanied by a dog and carrying a bush. See A Midsummer Night's Dream, 5.1.135, and 5.1.257.
STEPHANO
142
Come, swear to that; kiss the book: I will furnish143
it anon with new contents. Swear!
[Caliban drinks.]
TRINCULO
144
By this good light, this is a very shallow monster!145
I afeard of him! A very weak monster! The man i'146
the moon! A most poor credulous monster!147
Well drawn, monster, in good sooth!
147. Well drawn: that's a good long draught of wine you've taken. sooth: truth.
CALIBAN
148
I'll show thee every fertile inch o' th' island;149
And I will kiss thy foot: I prithee, be my god.
TRINCULO
150
By this light, a most perfidious and drunken151
monster! When 's god's asleep, he'll rob his bottle.
151. When 's god's asleep, he'll rob his bottle: When his god (Stephano) is asleep, he (Caliban) will steal his bottle of wine.
CALIBAN
152
I'll kiss thy foot; I'll swear myself thy subject.
STEPHANO
153
Come on then; down, and swear.
TRINCULO
154
I shall laugh myself to death at this puppy-headed155
monster. A most scurvy monster! I could find in my156
heart to beat him,
STEPHANO
157
Come, kiss.
TRINCULO
158
But that the poor monster's in drink: an
158. But that the poor monster's in drink: i.e., I could beat Caliban, but I will take pity on him because he's drunk.
159
abominable monster!
CALIBAN
160
I'll show thee the best springs; I'll pluck thee berries;161
I'll fish for thee and get thee wood enough.162
A plague upon the tyrant that I serve!163
I'll bear him no more sticks, but follow thee,164
Thou wondrous man.
TRINCULO
165
A most ridiculous monster, to make a wonder of a166
Poor drunkard!
CALIBAN
167
I prithee, let me bring thee where crabs grow;
167. crabs: crab apples.
168
And I with my long nails will dig thee pignuts;
168. pignuts: the edible tubers of Conopodium majus.
169
Show thee a jay's nest and instruct thee how170
To snare the nimble marmoset; I'll bring thee
170. marmoset: a small monkey.
171
To clustering filberts and sometimes I'll get thee172
Young scamels from the rock. Wilt thou go with me?
172. scamels: Shellfish? Birds that nest on the rocks?
STEPHANO
173
I prithee now, lead the way without any more174
talking. Trinculo, the king and all our company175
else being drowned, we will inherit here. Here,
175. inherit: take possession.
176
bear my bottle: fellow Trinculo, we'll fill him by177
and by again.
CALIBAN (Sings drunkenly.)
178
Farewell master; farewell, farewell!
TRINCULO
179
A howling monster: a drunken monster!
CALIBAN
180
No more dams I'll make for fish181
Nor fetch in firing182
At requiring;183
Nor scrape trenchering, nor wash dish
183. trenchering: trenchers, wooden plates.
184
'Ban, 'Ban, Cacaliban185
Has a new master: get a new man.186
Freedom, hey-day! hey-day, freedom! freedom,187
hey-day, freedom!
STEPHANO
188
O brave monster! Lead the way.183. brave: handsome.
Exeunt.