Act V: Scene II
(To Polyeucte)Is life still hateful? Doth death still allure?Is earth still naught? Do heavenly joys endure?Doth Christ still counsel thee to hate thy wife;--To sheathe thy sword,--to cast away thy life?
POLY.I never hated life, or wooed a grave,To life I am a servant--not a slave.Here service free I give upon this earth below,--For higher service changed when to His Home I go.Eternal life is this: to tread the path He trod;To Him your body yield! Then trust your soul to God!
FELIX.Yes, trust to an abyss of depth unknown!
POLY.No, trust to Holy Cross! That Cross my own!
FELIX.The steep ascent, my son, I too would climb,Yes, I would Christian be,--but--give me time,--By Jove! I'll tread thy path! This my desire.Else at thy hand the judge may me require!
POLY.Nay, laugh not, Felix! He thy Judge will be,No refuge there for impious blasphemy!Nor kings nor clowns can 'scape His righteous ire,His slaughtered Saints of thee will He require!
FELIX.I'll slay no more;--by Hercules I swear!So I a Christian crown perchance may wear;I will protect the flock!
POLY.Nay, rather beA goad, a scourge, for their felicity!Let suffering purify each Christian soul,Cross, rack, and flame but lead them to their goal;What here they lose--in Heaven an hundredfold they find.Be cruel,--persecute!--and so alone be kind!My words thou canst not read; thine eyes are blinded here,Wait the unveiling There! Then understand and fear!
FELIX.Nay, nay, in truth I would a Christian be!
POLY.In thy hard heart alone a bar I see.
FELIX (whispering).This Roman knight----
POLY (aloud).Severus, thou wouldst say.
FELIX.Once let him sail, I will no more delay,For this I anger feign;--let him depart!
POLY.'Tis thus thou wouldst reveal a Christian heart?To idols dumb--to Pagans blind, thy sugared poison bear,Christ's servants quaff another cup, sure refuge from despair.
FELIX.What is this deadly draught that thou wouldst drain?I'll drink thy wine.--Till then, from death refrain!
POLY.To swine no more my holy pearls I cast,Faith,--faith--not reason, shall see light at last;Soon--when I see my God--yes, face to face,I will implore that Felix may find grace.
FELIX.O dearest son, thy loss were death to me!
POLY.This loss can be repaired--the remedyFind in Severus; he will take my place;By Decius honoured he will not disgraceThy house: my death will an advantage winFor thee, for her, for me.--The work begin!
FELIX.Such my reward! Yes, insult is the childOf injury. The grace I grant, reviled,Shall turn to swift revenge. The gods defiedMay do their will and speed the suicide!
POLY.I thought the gods were dead, but they reviveWith human passion; Felix, do not striveAgainst thy nature; lay aside thy ruth;Who loves a lie can never follow truth.
FELIX.I humoured madness, but the mood is o'er,I am myself again; I did implore,--'Twas vain; the dark abyss that yawns for theeMay hold thee now, tomb to thy constancy.The hope I cherished--fondled--now is flownSeverus will be king, and I o'erthrown;--Shall I the gods by incense pacify?Or by thy death? for thou, at last, must die!
POLY.Incense might but incense; I cannot tell:
(Enter Pauline)Pauline!
Words in this poem
- hateful a.
- Manifesting hate or hatred; malignant; malevolent.
- jove n.
- The chief divinity of the ancient Romans; Jupiter. [L. Jupiter, gen. Jovis, OL. Jovis, nom. & gen. for Djovis; akin to E. Tuesday. See Tuesday, and cf. Jupiter.]
- scourge n.
- A lash; a strap or cord; especially, a lash used to inflict pain or punishment; an instrument of punishment or discipline; a whip. [F. escourgée, fr. L. excoriata (sc. scutica) a stripped off (lash or whip), fr. excoriate to strip, to skin. See Excoriate.]
- hundredfold n.
- A hundred times as much or as many.
- aloud adv.
- With a loud voice, or great noise; loudly; audibly. [Pref. a- + loud.]
- depart v. i.
- To part; to divide; to separate. [OE. departen to divide, part, depart, F. départir to divide, distribute, se départir to separate one's self, depart; pref. dé- (L. de) + partir to part, depart,]
- quaff v. t.
- To drink with relish; to drink copiously of; to swallow in large draughts. [For quach, fr. Gael. & Ir. cuach a drinking cup; cf. L. caucus a drinking vessel. Cf. Quaigh.]
- shall v. i.
- To owe; to be under obligation for. [OE. shal, schal, imp. sholde, scholde, AS. scal, sceal, I am obliged, imp. scolde, sceolde, inf. sculan; akin to OS. skulan, pres. skal, imp. skolda, D. zullen,]
- ruth n.
- Sorrow for the misery of another; pity; tenderness. [From Rue, v.: cf. Icel. hryggedh, hrygedh.]
- flown a.
- Flushed, inflated.
- pauline a.
- Of or pertaining to the apostle Paul, or his writings; resembling, or conforming to, the writings of Paul; as, the Pauline epistles; Pauline doctrine. [L. Paulinus, fr. Paulus Paul.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Act V: Scene II is in the public domain. This text is taken from Polyeucte, Project Gutenberg ebook #2543, the Thomas Constable translation; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Pierre Corneille, Act V: Scene II, in Polyeucte (1910), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #2543, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/corneille-polyeucte/act-v-scene-ii.html, id L27797.
Form and metre
Act V: Scene II is 93 lines in 23 verse paragraphs. It is in rhyming couplets, 54% of the lines: heroic couplets. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 90%).
See other poems in heroic couplets, other poems in iambic pentameter.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 1 -AABB polyeucte · allureA · endureA · wifeB · lifeB
- 2 -AABBCC poly · graveA · slaveA · belowB · goB · trodC · godC
- 5 -AABB felix · climbA · timeA · desireB · requireB
- 6 ---AA poly · be · blasphemy · ireA · requireA
- 7 -AA- felix · swearA · wearA · flock
- 8 ---AABBCC poly · be · felicity · soulA · goalA · findB · kindB · hereC · fearC
- 14 --AA poly · heart · bearA · despairA
- 15 -AA felix · drainA · refrainA
- 16 -AABB poly · castA · lastA · faceB · graceB
- 18 --AABB poly · remedy · placeA · disgraceA · winB · beginB
- 19 -AABB felix · childA · reviledA · defiedB · suicideB
- 20 -AABB poly · reviveA · striveA · ruthB · truthB
- 21 ---A-BBAA felix · o'er · implore · theeA · constancy · flownB · o'erthrownB · pacifyA · dieA
- 23 AA paulineA · paulineA
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against iambic pentameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| (To Polyeucte) | 3 | ··· |
| Is life still hateful? Doth death still allure? | 10 | ···/˘···˘/ |
| Is earth still naught? Do heavenly joys endure? | 10 | ·····/˘·˘/ |
| Doth Christ still counsel thee to hate thy wife;-- | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| To sheathe thy sword,--to cast away thy life? | 10 | ······˘/·· |
| POLY. | 2 | /˘ |
| I never hated life, or wooed a grave, | 10 | ·/˘/˘····· |
| To life I am a servant--not a slave. | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Here service free I give upon this earth below,-- | 12 | ·/˘········· |
| For higher service changed when to His Home I go. | 11 | ·//˘······· |
| Eternal life is this: to tread the path He trod; | 12 | ˘/˘········· |
| To Him your body yield! Then trust your soul to God! | 12 | ···/˘······· |
| FELIX. | 2 | /˘ |
| Yes, trust to an abyss of depth unknown! | 10 | ····˘/··˘/ |
| POLY. | 2 | /˘ |
| No, trust to Holy Cross! That Cross my own! | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| FELIX. | 2 | /˘ |
| The steep ascent, my son, I too would climb, | 10 | ··˘/······ |
| Yes, I would Christian be,--but--give me time,-- | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| By Jove! I'll tread thy path! This my desire. | 11 | ········˘/˘ |
| Else at thy hand the judge may me require! | 11 | ·········/˘ |
| POLY. | 2 | /˘ |
| Nay, laugh not, Felix! He thy Judge will be, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| No refuge there for impious blasphemy! | 11 | ·/˘··˘/˘/˘˘ |
| Nor kings nor clowns can 'scape His righteous ire, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| His slaughtered Saints of thee will He require! | 11 | ·/˘······/˘ |
| FELIX. | 2 | /˘ |
| I'll slay no more;--by Hercules I swear! | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| So I a Christian crown perchance may wear; | 10 | ···/˘·˘/·· |
| I will protect the flock! | 6 | ··˘/·· |
| POLY. | 2 | /˘ |
| Nay, rather be | 4 | ·/˘· |
| A goad, a scourge, for their felicity! | 10 | ······˘/˘˘ |
| Let suffering purify each Christian soul, | 10 | ·/˘/˘··/˘· |
| Cross, rack, and flame but lead them to their goal; | 10 | ·········· |
| What here they lose--in Heaven an hundredfold they find. | 12 | ·····/·/˘˘·· |
| Be cruel,--persecute!--and so alone be kind! | 11 | ·//˘···˘/·· |
| My words thou canst not read; thine eyes are blinded here, | 12 | ·········/˘· |
| Wait the unveiling There! Then understand and fear! | 12 | ··˘/˘···˘/·· |
| FELIX. | 2 | /˘ |
| Nay, nay, in truth I would a Christian be! | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| POLY. | 2 | /˘ |
| In thy hard heart alone a bar I see. | 10 | ····˘/···· |
| FELIX (whispering). | 5 | /˘/˘˘ |
| This Roman knight---- | 4 | ·/˘· |
| POLY (aloud). | 4 | /˘˘/ |
| Severus, thou wouldst say. | 6 | ······ |
| FELIX. | 2 | /˘ |
| Once let him sail, I will no more delay, | 10 | ········˘/ |
| For this I anger feign;--let him depart! | 10 | ···/˘···˘/ |
| POLY. | 2 | /˘ |
| 'Tis thus thou wouldst reveal a Christian heart? | 10 | ····˘/·/˘· |
| To idols dumb--to Pagans blind, thy sugared poison bear, | 14 | ·/˘··/˘··/˘/˘· |
| Christ's servants quaff another cup, sure refuge from despair. | 14 | ·/˘·˘/˘··/˘·˘/ |
| FELIX. | 2 | /˘ |
| What is this deadly draught that thou wouldst drain? | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| I'll drink thy wine.--Till then, from death refrain! | 10 | ········˘/ |
| POLY. | 2 | /˘ |
| To swine no more my holy pearls I cast, | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Faith,--faith--not reason, shall see light at last; | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Soon--when I see my God--yes, face to face, | 10 | ·········· |
| I will implore that Felix may find grace. | 10 | ··˘/·/˘··· |
| FELIX. | 2 | /˘ |
| O dearest son, thy loss were death to me! | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| POLY. | 2 | /˘ |
| This loss can be repaired--the remedy | 10 | ····˘/·/˘˘ |
| Find in Severus; he will take my place; | 10 | ·········· |
| By Decius honoured he will not disgrace | 10 | ···/˘···˘/ |
| Thy house: my death will an advantage win | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| For thee, for her, for me.--The work begin! | 10 | ········˘/ |
| FELIX. | 2 | /˘ |
| Such my reward! Yes, insult is the child | 10 | ··˘/·/···· |
| Of injury. The grace I grant, reviled, | 10 | ·/˘˘····˘/ |
| Shall turn to swift revenge. The gods defied | 10 | ····˘/··˘/ |
| May do their will and speed the suicide! | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| POLY. | 2 | /˘ |
| I thought the gods were dead, but they revive | 10 | ········˘/ |
| With human passion; Felix, do not strive | 10 | ·/˘/˘/˘··· |
| Against thy nature; lay aside thy ruth; | 10 | ···/˘·˘/·· |
| Who loves a lie can never follow truth. | 10 | ·····/˘/˘· |
| FELIX. | 2 | /˘ |
| I humoured madness, but the mood is o'er, | 10 | ·/˘/˘····· |
| I am myself again; I did implore,-- | 10 | ···/˘/··˘/ |
| 'Twas vain; the dark abyss that yawns for thee | 10 | ····˘/···· |
| May hold thee now, tomb to thy constancy. | 10 | ·······/˘˘ |
| The hope I cherished--fondled--now is flown | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| Severus will be king, and I o'erthrown;-- | 10 | ·········· |
| Shall I the gods by incense pacify? | 10 | ·····/·/˘· |
| Or by thy death? for thou, at last, must die! | 10 | ·········· |
| POLY. | 2 | /˘ |
| Incense might but incense; I cannot tell: | 10 | ˘/··˘/·/˘· |
| (Enter Pauline) | 4 | /˘˘/ |
| Pauline! | 2 | ˘/ |
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