Act V: Scene I. — Antiochus; Philip; Attendants
ANTIOCHUS.Here let us rest awhile. Where are we, Philip?What place is this?
PHILIP.Ecbatana, my Lord;And yonder mountain range is the Orontes.
ANTIOCHUS.The Orontes is my river at Antioch.Why did I leave it? Why have I been temptedBy coverings of gold and shields and breastplatesTo plunder Elymais, and be drivenFrom out its gates, as by a fiery blastOut of a furnace?
PHILIP.These are fortune's changes.
ANTIOCHUS.What a defeat it was! The Persian horsemenCame like a mighty wind, the wind Khamaseen,And melted us away, and scattered usAs if we were dead leaves, or desert sand.
PHILIP.Be comforted, my Lord; for thou hast lostBut what thou hadst not.
ANTIOCHUS.I, who made the JewsSkip like the grasshoppers, am made myselfTo skip among these stones.
PHILIP.Be not discouraged.Thy realm of Syria remains to thee;That is not lost nor marred.
ANTIOCHUS.O, where are nowThe splendors of my court, my baths and banquets?Where are my players and my dancing women?Where are my sweet musicians with their pipes,That made me merry in the olden time?I am a laughing-stock to man and brute.The very camels, with their ugly faces,Mock me and laugh at me.
PHILIP.Alas! my Lord,It is not so. If thou wouldst sleep awhile,All would be well.
ANTIOCHUS.Sleep from mine eyes is gone,And my heart faileth me for very care.Dost thou remember, Philip, the old fableTold us when we were boys, in which the bearGoing for honey overturns the hive,And is stung blind by bees? I am that beast,Stung by the Persian swarms of Elymais.
PHILIP.When thou art come again to AntiochThese thoughts will be as covered and forgottenAs are the tracks of Pharaoh's chariot-wheelsIn the Egyptian sands.
ANTIOCHUS.Ah! when I comeAgain to Antioch! When will that be?Alas! alas!
Words in this poem
- awhile adv.
- For a while; for some time; for a short time. [Adj. a + while time, interval.]
- yonder adv.
- At a distance, but within view. [OE. yonder, ýonder; cf. OD. ginder, Goth. jaindr there. Yond, adv.]
- defeat v. t.
- To undo; to disfigure; to destroy. [From F. défait, OF. desfait, p. p. ofe défaire, OF. desfaire, to undo; L. dis- + facere to do. See Feat, Fact, and cf. Disfashion.]
- hast
- , 2d pers. sing. pres. of. Fave, contr. of havest.
- olden a.
- Old; ancient; as, the olden time.
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
Act V: Scene I. — Antiochus; Philip; Attendants is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Complete Poetical Works of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Project Gutenberg ebook #1365; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Act V: Scene I. — Antiochus; Philip; Attendants, in Judas Maccabaeus (1872), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #1365, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/longfellow-judas-maccabaeus/act-v-scene-i-antiochus-philip-attendants.html, id L19134.
Form and metre
Act V: Scene I. — Antiochus; Philip; Attendants is 61 lines in 13 stanzas.
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 A-A antiochusA · philip · thisA
- 5 A--A- antiochusA · horsemen · khamaseen · usA · sand
- 11 --A-A--- antiochus · gone · careA · fable · bearA · hive · beast · elymais
- 13 A--A antiochusA · come · be · alasA
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. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| ANTIOCHUS. | 4 | ˘/˘˘ |
| Here let us rest awhile. Where are we, Philip? | 11 | ····˘/···/˘ |
| What place is this? | 4 | ···· |
| PHILIP. | 2 | /˘ |
| Ecbatana, my Lord; | 6 | ······ |
| And yonder mountain range is the Orontes. | 10 | ·/˘/˘····· |
| ANTIOCHUS. | 4 | ˘/˘˘ |
| The Orontes is my river at Antioch. | 11 | ·····/˘·/˘· |
| Why did I leave it? Why have I been tempted | 11 | ·········/˘ |
| By coverings of gold and shields and breastplates | 10 | ·/˘·····/· |
| To plunder Elymais, and be driven | 10 | ·/˘·····/˘ |
| From out its gates, as by a fiery blast | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| Out of a furnace? | 5 | ···/˘ |
| PHILIP. | 2 | /˘ |
| These are fortune's changes. | 6 | ··/˘/˘ |
| ANTIOCHUS. | 4 | ˘/˘˘ |
| What a defeat it was! The Persian horsemen | 11 | ··˘/···/˘/˘ |
| Came like a mighty wind, the wind Khamaseen, | 11 | ···/˘······ |
| And melted us away, and scattered us | 10 | ·/˘·˘/·/˘· |
| As if we were dead leaves, or desert sand. | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| PHILIP. | 2 | /˘ |
| Be comforted, my Lord; for thou hast lost | 10 | ·/˘˘······ |
| But what thou hadst not. | 5 | ····· |
| ANTIOCHUS. | 4 | ˘/˘˘ |
| I, who made the Jews | 5 | ····· |
| Skip like the grasshoppers, am made myself | 10 | ···/·˘···/ |
| To skip among these stones. | 6 | ······ |
| PHILIP. | 2 | /˘ |
| Be not discouraged. | 5 | ··˘/˘ |
| Thy realm of Syria remains to thee; | 10 | ···/˘˘˘/·· |
| That is not lost nor marred. | 6 | ······ |
| ANTIOCHUS. | 4 | ˘/˘˘ |
| O, where are now | 4 | ···· |
| The splendors of my court, my baths and banquets? | 11 | ·/˘······/˘ |
| Where are my players and my dancing women? | 11 | ···/˘··/˘/˘ |
| Where are my sweet musicians with their pipes, | 10 | ····˘/˘··· |
| That made me merry in the olden time? | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| I am a laughing-stock to man and brute. | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| The very camels, with their ugly faces, | 11 | ·/˘/˘··/˘/˘ |
| Mock me and laugh at me. | 6 | ······ |
| PHILIP. | 2 | /˘ |
| Alas! my Lord, | 4 | ˘/·· |
| It is not so. If thou wouldst sleep awhile, | 10 | ········˘/ |
| All would be well. | 4 | ···· |
| ANTIOCHUS. | 4 | ˘/˘˘ |
| Sleep from mine eyes is gone, | 6 | ······ |
| And my heart faileth me for very care. | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Dost thou remember, Philip, the old fable | 11 | ··˘/˘/˘··/˘ |
| Told us when we were boys, in which the bear | 10 | ·········· |
| Going for honey overturns the hive, | 10 | /˘·/˘/˘··· |
| And is stung blind by bees? I am that beast, | 10 | ·········· |
| Stung by the Persian swarms of Elymais. | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| PHILIP. | 2 | /˘ |
| When thou art come again to Antioch | 10 | ····˘/·/˘· |
| These thoughts will be as covered and forgotten | 11 | ·····/˘·˘/˘ |
| As are the tracks of Pharaoh's chariot-wheels | 10 | ·····/˘/˘· |
| In the Egyptian sands. | 6 | ··˘/˘· |
| ANTIOCHUS. | 4 | ˘/˘˘ |
| Ah! when I come | 4 | ···· |
| Again to Antioch! When will that be? | 10 | ˘/·/˘····· |
| Alas! alas! | 4 | ˘/˘/ |
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