Read The Complete Plays Online
Authors: Christopher Marlowe
184Â Â Â Â Â Â
stopped the tempest
: Some editors emend to
stooped the topmost.
187Â Â Â Â Â Â
strewèd weeds
: Herbs and rushes scattered on the floor.
201Â Â Â Â Â Â
no way but one
: The proverbial phrase (Tilley W148) implies, ânothing but disaster', but Tamburlaine (202) turns the phrase to his own account: If there can be only one outcome, let us be the winners.
218Â Â Â Â Â Â
Furies⦠Cocytus
: See (N). Cf. 4.4.17â18.
226Â Â Â Â Â Â
proper rooms
: Natural places.
234Â Â Â Â Â Â
Cimmerian Styx
: An oath by the Styx, the principal river of Hades, bound even the gods.
236â7Â Â
aye / Griping
: Constantly clawing: the âthoughts' are imagined as curled talons. The sentence lacks a main verb.
240Â Â Â Â Â Â
fiend
: Infernal spirit to whom we might pray for help.
241Â Â Â Â Â Â
infamous
: Stressed on the second syllable. Cf. lines 391Â Â Â and 404.
244Â Â Â Â Â Â
Erebus
: Usually, the darkness of Hell; here associated with the river Styx (see next note).
246Â Â Â Â Â Â
ferryman
: Charon, who conveyed the souls of the dead across the river Styx to the underworld, which included the Elysian fields (247)
249Â Â
build up nests
: Build false hopes.
256Â Â Â Â Â Â
noisome parbreak
: Offensive vomit.
257Â Â Â Â Â Â
standing
: Stagnant.
259Â Â Â Â Â Â
engines
: I.e. eyes.
270â74Â Â
Accursed Bajazéth⦠break
: Bajazeth would wish to condole with Zabina, but hunger gnaws at the source of his feelings.
277Â Â Â Â Â Â
date
: I.e. life.
282Â Â Â Â Â Â
expressless, banned inflictions
: The inexpressible, cursed things inflicted on.
300Â Â Â Â Â Â
resolved⦠air
: Melted into transparent, bright air.
air
: O's
ay
is nonsense.
311Â Â Â Â Â Â
wildfire
: Inflammable substance used as a weapon of war.
332Â Â Â Â Â Â
charged
: (Here) levelled.
333Â Â Â Â Â Â
check
: Stamp, paw.
337Â Â Â Â Â Â
Whose
: The Virgins'.
347Â Â
entrails
: Perhaps trisyllabic.
349Â Â Â Â Â Â
Shake⦠grief
: Zenocrate calls for an earthquake to mark their deaths.
358Â Â Â Â Â Â
in conduct
: Under the guidance.
365Â Â Â Â Â Â
Of⦠pity
: âFor the inevitable turn of Fortune's wheel and for considerations of pity' (Bevington and Rasmussen 1995).
368Â Â Â Â Â Â
In
: As in the case of (or, on account of?).
380Â Â Â Â Â Â
Turnus⦠Aeneas
: See (N). Aeneas killed his rival for the hand of Lavinia. Cf. lines 392â4.
387Â Â Â Â Â Â
racked
: Tormented, pulled apart (by her divided loyalties).
390Â Â Â Â Â Â
change I use
: My inconstancy.
393Â Â Â Â Â Â
Prevented
: Deprived.
394Â Â Â Â Â Â
fatally
: (i) By decree of fate, (ii) disastrously (to Turnus).
395â9Â Â
So⦠my hope
: Similarly, to end my sorrows and reconcile my nation with my beloved, Tamburlaine must, through the irresistible power of the gods, grant honourable terms to the losers.
397Â Â Â Â Â Â
by⦠powers
: Referring to âthe gods' (392).
400â402Â Â
Then⦠fair Arabia
: Zenocrate prays that the King of Arabia may be saved, as well as her father.
412Â Â Â Â Â Â
for such love
: For one so unworthy of that love.
414Â Â Â Â Â Â
Whose fortunes⦠griefs
: Whose good fortune has never overcome her sorrow.
424â5Â Â
sweet accidents⦠merits
: Happy events such as you deserve which have befallen you.
438Â Â Â Â Â Â
had ere this
: Would by now have.
449Â Â Â Â Â Â
confirmed
: Established firmly, or was confirmed by.
454Â Â Â Â Â Â
the Fatal Sisters
: The three Fates (N); see 1.2.174.
459â62Â Â
swelling clouds⦠drinks
: Tamburlaine has killed so many people that their blood, drawn up by the sun, has fallen like a portentous rain on the earth.
466Â Â Â Â Â Â
foughten fields
: Battle fields (an archaic poetic formula).
474Â Â Â Â Â Â
of power to
: Able to.
487Â Â Â Â Â Â
record
: Call to witness.
488Â Â Â Â Â Â
find⦠time
: Wait no longer.
497Â Â Â Â Â Â
her love
: Your love for her.
504Â Â Â Â Â Â
work us rest
: Cause us to stop the work of conquest.
510â11Â Â
the giants⦠Jove
: On Zeus' triumph over the giants, see 2.3.21 and 2.6.5â6.
512Â Â Â Â Â Â
shadowing
: (i) Depicting, (ii) bearing.
514Â Â Â Â Â Â
Latona's daughter
: Diana, whom Marlowe here seems to conflate with Minerva (Athena); she played a prominent role in the war of the gods against the giants.
528Â Â
Alcides' post
: The door-post of the temple of Hercules, or the Pillars of Hercules, which marked the end of the known world.
TAMBURLAINE THE GREAT, PART TWO
PROLOGUE
8Â Â Â Â
sad
: For O's
said.
ACT 1
Scene 1
2Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Placed by the issue
: Appointed by (or to a place close to) the offspring (his son Callapine).
6â10Â Â Â Â Â Â
Now⦠a truce
: They have marched from Anatolia to the Danube, where Christian and Muslim worlds met.
17Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Guyron
: Marlowe seems to give the name of this town on the upper Euphrates, north-east of Aleppo, to a river.
20Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Besides
: Apparently hypermetrical (i.e. the line has six feet instead of the pentameter's five).
22Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Slavonians
: Slavs.
Almains, rutters
: German cavalry.
Muffs
: An abusive name for the Swiss or Germans.
24Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
hazard that
: Endanger what.
25Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â SP
ORCANES
: Omitted in all early texts.
25Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
shortest northern parallel
: The most northerly (and shortest) line of latitude.
26â8Â Â Â Â
Vast Gruntland⦠Polypheme
: Greenland was legendarily populated by giants, here compared to the Cyclops of the
Odyssey.
See (N).
29Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
cut the Arctic line
: Cross the Arctic Circle.
32Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
champian mead
: Open plain.
33â41Â Â
Danubius' stream⦠argosies
: Marlowe âsees the waters of the Danube sweeping from the river mouths in two strong currents, one racing across the Black Sea to Trebizond, the other swirling southward to the Bosporus, and so onward to the Hellespont and the Aegean. Both currents bear the slaughtered bodies of Christian soldiers, the one to bring proof of victory to the great Turkish town, the other to strike terror to the Italian merchants cruising round the Isles of Greece' (Seaton 1924:33).
42Â Â Â Â
Europe⦠bull
: The continent is identified with Europa, abducted by Jupiter in the form of a bull.
55â6Â Â
My realm⦠overthrown
: âNatolia' is larger than modern Anatolia, occupying most of Asia Minor.
59Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Fear not⦠Tamburlaine
: [They] do not frighten me, but great Tamburlaine does.
61Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Albanese
: Albanians.
62Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Sicilians
: O's
Cicilians
may be an error for Cilicians, from Anatolia.
63Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Sorians
: Syrians (in Part Two, Soria is treated as distinct from Egypt). Alternatively, the name may designate inhabitants of Zor, i.e. Tyre.
68Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
oriental plage
: Eastern region.
73â5Â Â
Even from⦠Archipelago
: All of Africa, from the northern Tropic of Cancer to Amazonia (near the southern Tropic of Capricorn in Marlowe's maps), and as far north as the islands of the Aegean archipelago.
81Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
as the Romans used
: As was the custom of the Romans.
88Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
the continent
: (Here) the ground.
90Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
axletree of heaven
: See Part One, 4.2.50 Orcanes compares the force of his cannon to earthquakes which shake the globe on its axis.
92Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
powdered shot⦠steel
: Gunshot and arrows.
93Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
blink-eyed burghers
: Citizens shutting their eyes in fear, wincing.
94Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
County Palatine
: Count enjoying territorial autonomy under the Holy Roman Emperor.
95Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Austric
: Austrian.
100Â Â Â Â Â Â
princely fowl
: The eagle, emblem of the Holy Roman Empire.
122Â Â Â Â Â Â
So prest are we
: We too are ready for action.
123Â Â Â Â Â Â
stand not upon terms
: Does not insist on unreasonable conditions.
161Â Â Â Â Â Â
chief
: Most.
163Â Â Â Â Â Â
stay
: Await.
Scene
2
3Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
the western world
: The Turkish Empire, from an oriental point of view. Orcanes's ambitions may also stretch to the rest of Europe.
12â18Â Â
Not for⦠of this
: Almeda's jokey prose, with its puns on âmove' and ârun', perhaps gives a hint of the kind of comedy cut by the printer.
12Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
move
: Urge.
20Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Darote's streams
: Ortelius's atlas shows a town of this name (pronounced with three syllables) in the Nile delta.
33Â Â Â Â
Straits
: Straits of Gibraltar.
44Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
cloth of arras
: Rich tapestry (originally manufactured in Arras, France).
48Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
goest
: Take a walk.
50â52Â Â
fair veil⦠Antipodes
: The veil of starlight, after the sun has set.
71Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
haughty
: Lofty.
77Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Even straight
: Immediately.
Scene
3
23Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Water⦠in one
: The combination of the moist cold phlegmatic humour (associated with water) with the moist hot humour of blood (associated with air).
39Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Trotting the ring
: Riding around a circular enclosure for training horses.
41Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
reined⦠curvet
: Raising the forelegs of a horse and exercising a leap with the back ones alone.
44Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Armour of proof
: Armour tested for strength.
46Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
harmless
: Unharmed.
79Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
superficies
: Surface (for O's
superfluities).
80Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
purple
: (Blood-) red.
103Â Â Â Â Â Â
channel
: Throat, or perhaps shoulder (channel-bone = collar-bone).
133â4Â Â
From Azamor⦠unpeopled
: The people of North Africa (âBarbary'), from Azimur in Morocco as far east as Tunis, have all been conscripted.
143Â Â Â Â Â Â
infernal Jove
: Pluto.
144Â Â Â Â Â Â
thee⦠these
: For O's
them⦠this.
152Â Â Â Â Â Â
Makes me⦠joy
: Overjoys me at the thought of future delight.
165Â Â Â Â Â Â
lavish
: Profligate spilling.
166Â Â Â Â Â Â
his wingèd messenger
: Mercury.
169Â Â Â Â Â Â
Thetis'
: I.e. the sea's (N).
170Â Â Â Â Â Â
Boötes
: Bootes (N), a ploughman, drove oxen.
174â215Â Â
My lord⦠th'inhabitants
: The journeys of Tamburlaine's henchmen are all derived from Ortelius. See (N).
176Â Â Â Â Â Â
lain in leaguer
: Encamped for besieging.
182Â Â Â Â Â Â
recreate
: Rest, spend time in recreation.
188Â Â Â Â Â Â
John the Great
: Prester John, the legendary Christian priest-king who ruled Abyssinia.
189Â Â Â Â Â Â
triple mitre
: Papal tiara.
192Â Â Â Â Â Â
Amazonians
: Amazons.
193Â Â Â Â Â Â
vouchsafed a league
: Granted an alliance.
194Â Â Â Â Â Â
Zanzibar
: Not the island, but part of the mainland.
196Â Â
Ethiopian sea
: (Apparently) the southern Atlantic.
198â201Â Â
Therefore⦠to Cubar
: See (N). Techelles travelled up through west Africa.