The Andrian: Act the Second: Scene I
CHAR. How, Byrrhia? Is she to be married, say you,To Pamphilus to-day?
BYR. I had it even nowFrom Davus at the Forum.
CHAR. Woe is me!Then I'm a wretch indeed: till now my mindFloated 'twixt hope and fear: now, hope remov'd,Stunn'd, and o'erwhelm'd, it sinks beneath its cares.
BYR. Nay, prithee master, since the thing you wishCan not be had, e'en wish for that which may!CHAR. I wish for nothing but Philumena.
BYR. Ah, how much wiser were it, that you stroveTo quench this passion, than, with words like theseTo fan the fire, and blow it to a flame?
CHAR. How readily do men at ease prescribeTo those who're sick at heart! distress'd like me,You would not talk thus.
BYR. Well, well, as you please.
CHAR. Ha! I see Pamphilus. I can resolveOn any thing, e'er give up all for lost.
CHAR. I will entreat him, beg, beseech him,Tell him our course of love, and thus, perhaps,At least prevail upon him to deferHis marriage some few days: meanwhile, I hope,Something may happen.BYR. Aye, that something's nothing.
CHAR. Byrrhia, what think you? Shall I speak to him?
BYR. Why not? for though you don't obtain your suit,He will at least imagine you're prepar'dTo cuckold him, in case he marries her.
CHAR. Away, you hang-dog, with your base suspicions!
Words in this poem
- forum n.
- A market place or public place in Rome, where causes were judicially tried, and orations delivered to the people. [L.; akin to foris, foras, out of doors. See Foreign.]
- prithee interj.
- A corruption of pray thee; as, I prithee; generally used without I.
- prescribe v. t.
- To lay down authoritatively as a guide, direction, or rule of action; to impose as a peremptory order; to dictate; to appoint; to direct. [L. praescribere, praescriptum; prae before + scriebe to write. See Scribe.]
- entreat v. t.
- To treat, or conduct toward; to deal with; to use. [OE. entreten to treat, request, OF. entraiter to treat of; pref. en- (L. in) + traitier to treat. See Treat.]
- meanwhile n.
- The intervening time; as, in the meantime (or mean time).
- 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,]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Andrian: Act the Second: Scene I is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Comedies of Terence, Project Gutenberg ebook #22695; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Terence, The Andrian: Act the Second: Scene I, in The Comedies of Terence (1765), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #22695, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/terence-comedies/the-andrian-act-the-second-scene-i.html, id L25722.
Form and metre
The Andrian: Act the Second: Scene I is 31 lines in 12 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 86%).
See 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.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| CHAR. How, Byrrhia? Is she to be married, say you, | 12 | ········/˘·· |
| To Pamphilus to-day? | 6 | ······ |
| BYR. I had it even now | 7 | ····/˘· |
| From Davus at the Forum. | 7 | ·····/˘ |
| CHAR. Woe is me! | 4 | ···· |
| Then I'm a wretch indeed: till now my mind | 10 | ····˘/···· |
| Floated 'twixt hope and fear: now, hope remov'd, | 10 | /˘······˘/ |
| Stunn'd, and o'erwhelm'd, it sinks beneath its cares. | 10 | ·········· |
| BYR. Nay, prithee master, since the thing you wish | 11 | ··/˘/˘····· |
| Can not be had, e'en wish for that which may! | 10 | ·········· |
| CHAR. I wish for nothing but Philumena. | 11 | ····/˘····· |
| BYR. Ah, how much wiser were it, that you strove | 10 | ····/····· |
| To quench this passion, than, with words like these | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| To fan the fire, and blow it to a flame? | 10 | ···/······ |
| CHAR. How readily do men at ease prescribe | 10 | ··/˘····˘/ |
| To those who're sick at heart! distress'd like me, | 11 | ··/˘···˘/·· |
| You would not talk thus. | 5 | ····· |
| BYR. Well, well, as you please. | 6 | ······ |
| CHAR. Ha! I see Pamphilus. I can resolve | 11 | ·········˘/ |
| On any thing, e'er give up all for lost. | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| CHAR. I will entreat him, beg, beseech him, | 10 | ···˘/··˘/· |
| Tell him our course of love, and thus, perhaps, | 10 | ··/·····˘/ |
| At least prevail upon him to defer | 10 | ··˘/····˘/ |
| His marriage some few days: meanwhile, I hope, | 10 | ·/˘···/··· |
| Something may happen. | 5 | /˘·/˘ |
| BYR. Aye, that something's nothing. | 7 | ···/˘/˘ |
| CHAR. Byrrhia, what think you? Shall I speak to him? | 11 | ··········· |
| BYR. Why not? for though you don't obtain your suit, | 11 | ·······˘/·· |
| He will at least imagine you're prepar'd | 10 | ····˘/˘·˘/ |
| To cuckold him, in case he marries her. | 10 | ·/˘····/˘· |
| CHAR. Away, you hang-dog, with your base suspicions! | 12 | ·˘/······˘/˘ |
The reader shows the same poem with its rhymes coloured and a stress row above each line, the notes beside their stanzas, and any word's definition on a tap; the analysis page takes the whole book apart. How every part of this site was made.