Romeo and Juliet Page #12

SCENE III. Friar Laurence's cell.

Enter FRIAR LAURENCE

FRIAR LAURENCE:

Romeo, come forth; come forth, thou fearful man:

Affliction is enamour'd of thy parts,

And thou art wedded to calamity.

Enter ROMEO

ROMEO:

Father, what news? what is the prince's doom?

What sorrow craves acquaintance at my hand,

That I yet know not?

FRIAR LAURENCE:

Too familiar

Is my dear son with such sour company:

I bring thee tidings of the prince's doom.

ROMEO:

What less than dooms-day is the prince's doom?

FRIAR LAURENCE:

A gentler judgment vanish'd from his lips,

Not body's death, but body's banishment.

ROMEO:

Ha, banishment! be merciful, say 'death;'

For exile hath more terror in his look,

Much more than death: do not say 'banishment.'

FRIAR LAURENCE:

Hence from Verona art thou banished:

Be patient, for the world is broad and wide.

ROMEO:

There is no world without Verona walls,

But purgatory, torture, hell itself.

Hence-banished is banish'd from the world,

And world's exile is death: then banished,

Is death mis-term'd: calling death banishment,

Thou cutt'st my head off with a golden axe,

And smilest upon the stroke that murders me.

FRIAR LAURENCE:

O deadly sin! O rude unthankfulness!

Thy fault our law calls death; but the kind prince,

Taking thy part, hath rush'd aside the law,

And turn'd that black word death to banishment:

This is dear mercy, and thou seest it not.

ROMEO:

'Tis torture, and not mercy: heaven is here,

Where Juliet lives; and every cat and dog

And little mouse, every unworthy thing,

Live here in heaven and may look on her;

But Romeo may not: more validity,

More honourable state, more courtship lives

In carrion-flies than Romeo: they my seize

On the white wonder of dear Juliet's hand

And steal immortal blessing from her lips,

Who even in pure and vestal modesty,

Still blush, as thinking their own kisses sin;

But Romeo may not; he is banished:

Flies may do this, but I from this must fly:

They are free men, but I am banished.

And say'st thou yet that exile is not death?

Hadst thou no poison mix'd, no sharp-ground knife,

No sudden mean of death, though ne'er so mean,

But 'banished' to kill me?--'banished'?

O friar, the damned use that word in hell;

Howlings attend it: how hast thou the heart,

Being a divine, a ghostly confessor,

A sin-absolver, and my friend profess'd,

To mangle me with that word 'banished'?

FRIAR LAURENCE:

Thou fond mad man, hear me but speak a word.

ROMEO:

O, thou wilt speak again of banishment.

FRIAR LAURENCE:

I'll give thee armour to keep off that word:

Adversity's sweet milk, philosophy,

To comfort thee, though thou art banished.

ROMEO:

Yet 'banished'? Hang up philosophy!

Unless philosophy can make a Juliet,

Displant a town, reverse a prince's doom,

It helps not, it prevails not: talk no more.

FRIAR LAURENCE:

O, then I see that madmen have no ears.

ROMEO:

How should they, when that wise men have no eyes?

FRIAR LAURENCE:

Let me dispute with thee of thy estate.

ROMEO:

Thou canst not speak of that thou dost not feel:

Wert thou as young as I, Juliet thy love,

An hour but married, Tybalt murdered,

Doting like me and like me banished,

Then mightst thou speak, then mightst thou tear thy hair,

And fall upon the ground, as I do now,

Taking the measure of an unmade grave.

Knocking within

Rate this script:4.0 / 11 votes