They have proclaim'd their malefactions; For murder, though it have no tongue, will speak T' assume a pleasing shape; yea, and, perhaps, ACT III. SCENE I. A Room in the Castle. [Exit. Enter King, Queen, POLONIUS, OPHELIA, ROSENCRANTZ, and Guildenstern. King. And can you, by no drift of conference, Get from him, why he puts on this confusion, Grating so harshly all his days of quiet With turbulent and dangerous lunacy? Ros. He does confess, he feels himself distracted; But from what cause he will by no means speak. Guil. Nor do we find him forward to be sounded, When we would bring him on to some confession Queen. Did he receive you well? Ros. Most like a gentleman. Guil. But with much forcing of his disposition. Ros. Niggard of question; but, of our demands, Most free in his reply. Queen. Did you assay him Ros. Madam, it so fell out, that certain players Pol. 'Tis most true: And he beseech'd me to entreat your majesties, To hear and see the matter. King. With all my heart; and it doth much content me To hear him so inclin'd. Good gentlemen, give him a farther edge, And drive his purpose on to these delights. Ros. We shall, my lord. King. [Exeunt ROSENCRANTZ and Guildenstern. Sweet Gertrude, leave us too; For we have closely sent for Hamlet hither, That he, as 't were by accident, may here Affront Ophelia: her father, and myself (lawful espials) We may of their encounter frankly judge; And gather by him, as he is behav'd, And, for your part, Ophelia, I do wish, That your good beauties be the happy cause Of Hamlet's wildness; so shall I hope, your virtues To both your honours. Oph. Madam, I wish it may. [Exit Queen. Pol. Ophelia, walk you here. — Gracious, so please you, We will bestow ourselves. - Read on this book; [TO OPHELIA. That show of such an exercise may colour T is too much prov'd, — that, with devotion's visage, VI. 49 50 And pious action, we do sugar o'er The devil himself. King. O! 't is too true: [Aside.] how smart A lash that speech doth give my conscience! The harlot's cheek, beautied with plastering art, Pol. I hear him coming: let 's withdraw, my lord. [Exeunt King and POLONIUS. Enter HAMLet. Ham. To be, or not to be; that is the question: That flesh is heir to, To sleep! perchance to dream: to sleep, to sleep : ay, there's the rub; For in that sleep of death what dreams may come, When we have shuffled off this mortal coil, Must give us pause. There's the respect For who would bear the whips and scorns of time, And makes us rather bear those ills we have, Is sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought, Oph. Good my lord, How does your honour for this many a day? Ham. I humbly thank you; well, well, well. Oph. My lord, I have remembrances of yours, That I have longed long to re-deliver; I pray you, now receive them. Ham. I never gave you aught. No, not I; Oph. My honour'd lord, I know right well you did; And with them, words of so sweet breath compos'd, As made the things more rich: their perfume lost, Take these again; for to the noble mind, Rich gifts wax poor when givers prove unkind. There, my lord. Ham. Ha, ha! are you honest? Oph. My lord! Ham. Are you fair? Oph. What means your lordship? Ham. That if you be honest, and fair, your honesty should admit no discourse to your beauty. Oph. Could beauty, my lord, have better commerce than with honesty? Ham. Ay, truly; for the power of beauty will sooner transform honesty from what it is to a bawd, than the force of honesty can translate beauty into his likeness: this was sometime a paradox, but now the time gives it proof. I did love you once. Oph. Indeed, my lord, you made me believe so. Ham. You should not have believed me; for virtue cannot so inoculate our old stock, but we shall relish of it. I loved you not. Oph. I was the more deceived. me. Ham. Get thee to a nunnery: why would'st thou be a breeder of sinners? I am myself indifferent honest: but yet I could accuse me of such things, that it were better, my mother had not borne I am very proud, revengeful, ambitious; with more offences at my beck, than I have thoughts to put them in, imagination to give them shape, or time to act them in. What should such fellows as I do crawling between heaven and earth? We are arrant knaves, all; believe none of us. Go thy ways to a nunnery. Where's you father? Oph. At home, my lord. Ham. Let the doors be shut upon him, that he may play the fool no where but in 's own house. Farewell. Oph. O! help him, you sweet heavens! Ham. If thou dost marry, I'll give thee this plague for thy dowry: be thou as chaste as ice, as pure as snow, thou shalt not escape calumny. Get thee to a nunnery; farewell. Or, if thou wilt needs marry, marry a fool, for wise men know well enough what monsters you make of them. To a nunnery, go; and quickly too. Farewell. Oph. Heavenly powers, restore him! Ham. I have heard of your paintings too, well enough: God hath given you one face, and you make yourselves another: you jig, you amble, and you lisp, and nickname God's creatures, and make your wantonness your ignorance. Go to; I'll no more on 't: it hath made me mad. I say, we will have no more marriages : those that are married already, all but one, shall live; the rest shall keep as they are. To a nunnery, go. [Exit HAMLET. Oph. O, what a noble mind is here o'erthrown! The glass of fashion, and the mould of form, Th' observ'd of all observers, quite, quite down! That suck'd the honey of his music vows, |