The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated) (947 page)

BANQUO

Very gladly.

That sounds good.

MACBETH

Till then, enough. Come, friends.

Until then, enough. Come, friends, let’s go.

Exeunt

Forres. The Palace.

Flourish. Enter DUNCAN, MALCOLM, DONALBAIN, LENNOX, and Attendants

DUNCAN

Is execution done on Cawdor? Are not

Those in commission yet return'd?

Has Cawdor been killed yet? Have those

sent to do the job returned?

MALCOLM

My liege,

They are not yet come back. But I have spoke

With one that saw him die: who did report

That very frankly he confess'd his treasons,

Implored your highness' pardon and set forth

A deep repentance: nothing in his life

Became him like the leaving it; he died

As one that had been studied in his death

To throw away the dearest thing he owed,

As 'twere a careless trifle.

My lord,

they have not come back yet. But I spoke

with someone who saw him die, and they said

that he frankly confessed his treasons,

begged your forgiveness and said he was

deeply sorry: nothing in his life

became him like the leaving of it; he died

like someone who had learned how to throw

away the dearest thing he owned

as if it were nothing.

DUNCAN

There's no art

To find the mind's construction in the face:

He was a gentleman on whom I built

An absolute trust.

There’s no way to find the truth of someone in their face.

He was a man whom I trusted completely.

Enter MACBETH, BANQUO, ROSS, and ANGUS

O worthiest cousin!

The sin of my ingratitude even now

Was heavy on me: thou art so far before

That swiftest wing of recompense is slow

To overtake thee. Would thou hadst less deserved,

That the proportion both of thanks and payment

Might have been mine! only I have left to say,

More is thy due than more than all can pay.

My best cousin! The guilt of being able to thank you

enough was just weighing heavy on me: you

are so deserving of reward it can not come

to you fast enough. If you had deserved less,

then the gratitude and payment might have

been easier! All I can say it that you

deserve more than we can ever give to you.

MACBETH

The service and the loyalty I owe,

In doing it, pays itself. Your highness' part

Is to receive our duties; and our duties

Are to your throne and state children and servants,

Which do but what they should, by doing every thing

Safe toward your love and honour.

The service and loyalty I owe repays

itself. Your highness’s part is to receive

our duties, and our duties are to your throne

and children and servants. We do what we should

by doing all things toward your love and honor.

DUNCAN

Welcome hither:

I have begun to plant thee, and will labour

To make thee full of growing. Noble Banquo,

That hast no less deserved, nor must be known

No less to have done so, let me enfold thee

And hold thee to my heart.

Welcome here.

I have nurtured your career and will strive

to make it fully grown. Noble Banquo,

you are no less deserving and should not receive

no less honor for doing what you did.

Let me bring you into my fold and

hold you in my heart.

BANQUO

There if I grow,

The harvest is your own.

If I grow there

it is to your credit.

DUNCAN

My plenteous joys,

Wanton in fulness, seek to hide themselves

In drops of sorrow. Sons, kinsmen, thanes,

And you whose places are the nearest, know

We will establish our estate upon

Our eldest, Malcolm, whom we name hereafter

The Prince of Cumberland; which honour must

Not unaccompanied invest him only,

But signs of nobleness, like stars, shall shine

On all deservers. From hence to Inverness,

And bind us further to you.

My joy is so great it brings tears to my eyes.

Sons, kinsmen, thanes, and others who are near,

witness today that I will establish my kingdom

upon my oldest son, Malcolm, who will now be known

as the Prince of Cumberland. But he is not the only one

to be honored. Nobility, like stars, shines on all

deserving. Let us go to Inverness, where I

will be your guest,

MACBETH

The rest is labour, which is not used for you:

I'll be myself the harbinger and make joyful

The hearing of my wife with your approach;

So humbly take my leave.

I am so eager to be working for you that

resting is hard work. I will tell my wife

the joyful news of your arrival.

Allow me to take my leave.

DUNCAN

My worthy Cawdor!

My worthy Cawdor!

MACBETH

[Aside] The Prince of Cumberland! that is a step

On which I must fall down, or else o'erleap,

For in my way it lies. Stars, hide your fires;

Let not light see my black and deep desires:

The eye wink at the hand; yet let that be,

Which the eye fears, when it is done, to see.

[Aside] The Prince of Cumberland! That is a step

on which I must fall, or else overcome,

for it lies in my way. Stars, hide your light;

do not shine on my deep and dark desires.

The eye may blink at the hand, yet when it is over

the eye will see what it fears.

Exit

DUNCAN

True, worthy Banquo; he is full so valiant,

And in his commendations I am fed;

It is a banquet to me. Let's after him,

Whose care is gone before to bid us welcome:

It is a peerless kinsman.

It’s true, my good Banquo, he is so valiant

and there is much to commend him. It

satisfies me. Let’s follow him. He has taken

care to go ahead and prepare for us.

There are very few as good as him.

Flourish. Exeunt

Inverness. Macbeth's Castle.

Enter LADY MACBETH, reading a letter

LADY MACBETH

'They met me in the day of success: and I have

learned by the perfectest report, they have more in

them than mortal knowledge. When I burned in desire

to question them further, they made themselves air,

into which they vanished. Whiles I stood rapt in

the wonder of it, came missives from the king, who

all-hailed me 'Thane of Cawdor;' by which title,

before, these weird sisters saluted me, and referred

me to the coming on of time, with 'Hail, king that

shalt be!' This have I thought good to deliver

thee, my dearest partner of greatness, that thou

mightst not lose the dues of rejoicing, by being

ignorant of what greatness is promised thee. Lay it

to thy heart, and farewell.'

Glamis thou art, and Cawdor; and shalt be

What thou art promised: yet do I fear thy nature;

It is too full o' the milk of human kindness

To catch the nearest way: thou wouldst be great;

Art not without ambition, but without

The illness should attend it: what thou wouldst highly,

That wouldst thou holily; wouldst not play false,

And yet wouldst wrongly win: thou'ldst have, great Glamis,

That which cries 'Thus thou must do, if thou have it;

And that which rather thou dost fear to do

Than wishest should be undone.' Hie thee hither,

That I may pour my spirits in thine ear;

And chastise with the valour of my tongue

All that impedes thee from the golden round,

Which fate and metaphysical aid doth seem

To have thee crown'd withal.

‘They met me on the day of success: and I have

learned in the most perfect way that they know

more than men. When I tried to question them further,

they vanished into the air. While I stood in wonder,

messengers sent by the king arrived and hailed me

as the ‘Thane of Cawdor;’ which is exactly

what the witches called me, saying as well that I

will be king someday. I wanted to let you know

all of this, my dearest partner of greatness, so that

you may not lose out on the rejoicing by not knowing

of the greatness that is promised us. Hold it in your heart

and tell no one, farewell.’

You are the thane of Glamis and Cawdor, and you

will be king, as promised. But I fear your nature

is too kind to grab the opportunity. It’s not

that you are without ambition, it’s just that you

do not possess the malevolence required for it:

you would rather take the high road and do good

things; you would not lie and you would not cheat:

and yet you want things that do not belong

to you, great Glamis. You want them, but