The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated) (816 page)

Like

Even so

a man poisoned by his own good deeds,

As with a man by his own alms empoison'd,

and killed by his charity.

And with his charity slain.  

SECOND CONSPIRATOR.

Good sir,

Most noble sir,

if you still have the plan you had when

If you do hold the same intent wherein

you asked us to be your partners, we’ll save you

You wish'd us parties, we'll deliver you

from your danger.

Of your great danger.

AUFIDIUS.

I can’t tell.

Sir, I cannot tell:

We’ll have to make it up as we go along, depending on how people react.

We must proceed as we do find the people.

THIRD CONSPIRATOR.

The people will remain uncertain while

The people will remain uncertain whilst

you two are arguing with each other. But when one of you loses,

'Twixt you there's difference: but the fall of either

the other wins everything.

Makes the survivor heir of all.

AUFIDIUS.

I know.

I know it;

And my excuse to attack him can be

And my pretext to strike at him admits

interpreted favorable. I promoted him, and I sold

A good construction. I rais'd him, and I pawn'd

my honor on the basis of his guarantee. And once I had so exalted him,

Mine honour for his truth: who being so heighten'd,

we flattered the Volscians,

He water'd his new plants with dews of flattery,

seducing my friends. And in order to accomplish this ingratiation,

Seducing so my friends; and to this end

he concealed his true nature, which was always

He bow'd his nature, never known before

rough, obstinate and uninhibited.

But to be rough, unswayable, and free.

THIRD CONSPIRATOR.

His stubbornness

Sir, his stoutness

when he was running for consul, which he lost

When he did stand for consul, which he lost

because he wouldn’t give the people what they wanted—

By lack of stooping,--  

AUFIDIUS.

I would have said that if you hadn’t interrupted me.

That I would have spoken of:

Having been banished, he came to my home,

Being banish'd for't, he came unto my hearth;

and gave me the chance to kill him. I took him in,

Presented to my knife his throat: I took him;

made him my equal in the service of the government, let him have

Made him joint-servant with me; gave him way

whatever he desired, even let him choose his own soldiers

In all his own desires; nay, let him choose

out of my ranks, so that he could do what he wanted

Out of my files, his projects to accomplish,

using my best men. I helped him achieve his goals

My best and freshest men; serv'd his designments

myself, helped to make him famous

In mine own person; holp to reap the fame

when he’d done all this, and I took pride in

Which he made all his; and took some pride

hurting myself by helping him. Until, finally,

To do myself this wrong: till, at the last,

I seemed like his follower, not his partner, and

I seem'd his follower, not partner; and

he paid me with his kind looks as if

He wag'd me with his countenance as if

I were a soldier of fortune.

I had been mercenary.

FIRST CONSPIRATOR.

That’s true.

So he did, my lord:

The army marveled at it. And, at last,

The army marvell'd at it; and, in the last,

when he had defeated Rome, and we looked

When he had carried Rome, and that we look'd

for glory more than booty—

For no less spoil than glory,--

AUFIDIUS.

That was it.

There was it;--

That’s why I will fight him with all my strength.

For which my sinews shall be stretch'd upon him.

After a few women’s tears, which are

At a few drops of women's rheum, which are  

as common as their lies, he betrayed our dead and our work

As cheap as lies, he sold the blood and labour

in that campaign, and for that he will die,

Of our great action: therefore shall he die,

and I’ll renew myself with his defeat. But, look!

And I'll renew me in his fall. But, hark!

[Drums and trumpets sound, with great shouts of the people.]

FIRST CONSPIRATOR.

You entered Antium like a messenger,

Your native town you enter'd like a post,

and no one welcomed you home. But when Coriolanus returns,

And had no welcomes home; but he returns

everyone makes a big fuss.

Splitting the air with noise.

SECOND CONSPIRATOR.

And long-suffering fools,

And patient fools,

whose children he killed, go hoarse from shouting

Whose children he hath slain, their base throats tear

his praise.

With giving him glory.

THIRD CONSPIRATOR.

So, when you have an opportunity,

Therefore, at your vantage,

before he can speak publicly or persuade the people

Ere he express himself or move the people

with his speech, stab him,

With what he would say, let him feel your sword,

and then we’ll stab him, too. When he’s dead,

Which we will second. When he lies along,

and you have told his story as you would have it told, we’ll bury him

After your way his tale pronounc'd shall bury

with his justifications.

His reasons with his body.

AUFIDIUS.

Shut up!

Say no more:

Here come the leaders of Antium.

Here come the lords.

[Enter the LORDS of the city.]

LORDS.

Welcome home.

You are most welcome home.

AUFIDIUS.

I don’t deserve to be welcomed home.

I have not deserv'd it.

But, my lords, have you read my letter

But, worthy lords, have you with heed perus'd

carefully?

What I have written to you?

LORDS.

We have.

We have.

FIRST LORD.

And we were sorry to read it.

And grieve to hear't.

Whatever he did wrong before the end, I think

What faults he made before the last, I think

could have been punished with only small penalties. But then to

Might have found easy fines: but there to end

call of the war before it really began, and give away the advantage we

Where he was to begin, and give away

gained by mustering a large army, and defending himself to us

The benefit of our levies, answering us

with the authority we gave him, and making a peace treaty when the other side

With our own charge: making a treaty where

hadn’t even surrendered—for that there’s no excuse.

There was a yielding.--This admits no excuse.

AUFIDIUS.

Here he comes, let’s see what he has to say.

He approaches: you shall hear him.

[Enter CORIOLANUS, with drum and colours; a crowd of Citizens

with him.]

CORIOLANUS.

Hello! I am back, still as your soldier,

Hail, lords! I am return'd your soldier;  

not influenced by my love for my country

No more infected with my country's love

any more than when I left here, but still remaining

Than when I parted hence, but still subsisting

under your command. You must have heard

Under your great command. You are to know

how successful my efforts were, and

That prosperously I have attempted, and

how we fought our way violently all the way to

With bloody passage led your wars even to

the gates of Rome. The booty we brought home

The gates of Rome. Our spoils we have brought home

will pay for at least a third of

Do more than counterpoise a full third part

the cost of the war. We have made peace

The charges of the action. We have made peace

with no less honor for the Volscians

With no less honour to the Antiates

than shame for the Romans, and I now give you

Than shame to the Romans: and we here deliver,

the treaty, signed by the consuls and noblemen,

Subscribed by the consuls and patricians,

together with the stamp of approval of the senate,

Together with the seal o' the senate, what

which we have agreed on.

We have compounded on.

AUFIDIUS.

Don’t read it, lords.

Read it not, noble lords;

Tell the traitor how much

But tell the traitor, in the highest degree

he has abused the powers you gave him.

He hath abus'd your powers.

CORIOLANUS.

Traitor? What now?

Traitor!--How now?

AUFIDIUS.

Yes, traitor, Marcius.

Ay, traitor, Marcius.

CORIOLANUS.

Marcius!

Marcius!

AUFIDIUS.

Yes, Marcius, Caius Marcius! Do you think  

Ay, Marcius, Caius Marcius! Dost thou think  

I’d honor you with that stolen name of yours,

I'll grace thee with that robbery, thy stol'n name

Coriolanus, in Corioles?

Coriolanus, in Corioli?—

[There is some ambiguity as to whether this scene takes place in Antium or Corioles.]

You leaders of the Volscian government, he has betrayed you

You lords and heads o' the state, perfidiously

treacherously, and given up,

He has betray'd your business, and given up,

for a few tears, the city of Rome

For certain drops of salt, your city Rome,--

(which should have been your), to his wife and mother,

I say your city,--to his wife and mother;

breaking his oath and his sworn purpose like

Breaking his oath and resolution, like

a thread of rotten silk. He never accepted

A twist of rotten silk; never admitting

military advice, but at his mother’s tears

Counsel o' the war; but at his nurse's tears

he cried and gave away your victory,

He whin'd and roar'd away your victory;

so that servant boys blush in shame for him, and brave men

That pages blush'd at him, and men of heart

were amazed.

Look'd wondering each at others.

CORIOLANUS.

Do you here this, god of war?

Hear'st thou, Mars?

AUFIDIUS.

Don’t talk about that god, you cry-baby!

Name not the god, thou boy of tears,--