The Andrian: Act the Second: Scene IV
DAVUS. That I'll explain. If he were angry now,Merely that Chremes has refus'd his daughter,He'd think himself in fault; and justly too,Before the bias of your mind is known.But granting you refuse her for a wife,Then all the blame devolves on you, and thenComes all the storm.
PAM. What course then shall I take?Shall I submit----
DAVUS. He is your Father, Sir,Whom to oppose were difficult; and thenGlycerium's a lone woman; and he'll findSome course, no matter what, to drive her hence.PAM. To drive her hence?
PAM. Tell me then,Oh tell me, Davus, what were best to do?
DAVUS. Say that you'll marry!
DAVUS. And where's the harm?
PAM. Say that I'll marry!
PAM. Never, never.
DAVUS. Do not refuse!
PAM. Persuade not!
DAVUS. Do but markThe consequence.
PAM. Divorcement from Glycerium.And marriage with the other.
DAVUS. No such thing.Your father, I suppose, accosts you thus.I'd have you wed to-day;--I will, quoth you:What reason has he to reproach you then?Thus shall you baffle all his settled schemes,And put him to confusion; all the whileSecure yourself: for 'tis beyond a doubtThat Chremes will refuse his daughter to you;So obstinately too, you need not pause,Or change these measures, lest he change his mind;Say to your father then, that you will wed,That, with the will, he may want cause to chide.But if, deluded by fond hopes, you cry,"No one will wed their daughter to a rake,A libertine."--Alas, you're much deceiv'd.For know, your father will redeem some wretchFrom rags and beggary to be your wife,Rather than see your ruin with Glycerium.But if he thinks you bear an easy mind,He too will grow indiff'rent, and seek outAnother match at leisure; the mean whileAffairs may take a lucky turn.PAM. D'ye think so?
DAVUS. Beyond all doubt.
PAM. See, what you lead me to.
DAVUS. Nay, peace!
PAM. I'll say so then. But have a careHe knows not of the child, which I've agreedTo educate.
DAVUS. O confidence!
PAM. She drewThis promise from me, as a firm assuranceThat I would not forsake her.
DAVUS. We'll take care.But here's your father: let him not perceiveYou're melancholy.
Words in this poem
- angry a.
- Troublesome; vexatious; rigorous. [See Anger.]
- 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,]
- lone n.
- A lane. See Loanin.
- divorcement n.
- Dissolution of the marriage tie; divorce; separation.
- quoth v. t.
- Said; spoke; uttered; -- used only in the first and third persons in the past tenses, and always followed by its nominative, the word or words said being the object; as, quoth I. quoth he. [AS.cweedhan, imp cwæedh, pl. cwædon; akin to OS. queedhan, OHG. quethan, quedan, Icel. kveedha, Goth. qiþan. sq. root22. Cf. Bequeath.]
- baffle v. i.
- To cause to undergo a disgraceful punishment, as a recreant knight. [Cf. Lowland Scotch bauchle to treat contemptuously, bauch tasteless, abashed, jaded, Icel. bagr uneasy, poor, or bagr, n., struggle, bægja to push, treat harshl]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Andrian: Act the Second: Scene IV 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 IV, 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-iv.html, id L25725.
Form and metre
The Andrian: Act the Second: Scene IV is 62 lines in 20 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 88%).
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.
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.
- 3 ---AA sir · then · find · henceA · henceA
- 13 --A--BCA-D--------DCB-- thing · thus · youA · then · schemes · whileB · doubtC · youA · pause · mindD · wed · chide · cry · rake · deceiv'd · wretch · wife · glycerium · mindD · outC · whileB · turn · so
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 |
|---|---|---|
| DAVUS. That I'll explain. If he were angry now, | 12 | ····˘/···/˘· |
| Merely that Chremes has refus'd his daughter, | 10 | /˘···˘/·/˘ |
| He'd think himself in fault; and justly too, | 10 | ··˘/···/˘· |
| Before the bias of your mind is known. | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| But granting you refuse her for a wife, | 10 | ·/˘·˘/···· |
| Then all the blame devolves on you, and then | 10 | ····˘/···· |
| Comes all the storm. | 4 | ···· |
| PAM. What course then shall I take? | 7 | ······· |
| Shall I submit---- | 4 | ··˘/ |
| DAVUS. He is your Father, Sir, | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| Whom to oppose were difficult; and then | 10 | ··˘/·/˘˘·· |
| Glycerium's a lone woman; and he'll find | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| Some course, no matter what, to drive her hence. | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| PAM. To drive her hence? | 5 | ····· |
| PAM. Tell me then, | 4 | ···· |
| Oh tell me, Davus, what were best to do? | 10 | ·········· |
| DAVUS. Say that you'll marry! | 7 | ·····/˘ |
| DAVUS. And where's the harm? | 6 | ······ |
| PAM. Say that I'll marry! | 6 | ····/˘ |
| PAM. Never, never. | 5 | ·/˘/˘ |
| DAVUS. Do not refuse! | 6 | ····˘/ |
| PAM. Persuade not! | 4 | ·˘/· |
| DAVUS. Do but mark | 5 | ····· |
| The consequence. | 4 | ·/˘˘ |
| PAM. Divorcement from Glycerium. | 8 | ·˘/˘···· |
| And marriage with the other. | 7 | ·/˘··/˘ |
| DAVUS. No such thing. | 5 | ····· |
| Your father, I suppose, accosts you thus. | 10 | ·/˘·˘/˘/·· |
| I'd have you wed to-day;--I will, quoth you: | 10 | ·········· |
| What reason has he to reproach you then? | 10 | ·/˘···˘/·· |
| Thus shall you baffle all his settled schemes, | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| And put him to confusion; all the while | 10 | ····˘/˘··· |
| Secure yourself: for 'tis beyond a doubt | 10 | ˘/˘/······ |
| That Chremes will refuse his daughter to you; | 10 | ···˘/·/˘·· |
| So obstinately too, you need not pause, | 11 | ··········· |
| Or change these measures, lest he change his mind; | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| Say to your father then, that you will wed, | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| That, with the will, he may want cause to chide. | 10 | ·········· |
| But if, deluded by fond hopes, you cry, | 10 | ··˘/˘····· |
| "No one will wed their daughter to a rake, | 10 | ·····/˘··· |
| A libertine."--Alas, you're much deceiv'd. | 10 | ·/˘·˘/··˘/ |
| For know, your father will redeem some wretch | 10 | ···/˘·˘/·· |
| From rags and beggary to be your wife, | 10 | ···/˘˘···· |
| Rather than see your ruin with Glycerium. | 10 | /˘···/···· |
| But if he thinks you bear an easy mind, | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| He too will grow indiff'rent, and seek out | 10 | ·········· |
| Another match at leisure; the mean while | 10 | ˘/˘··/˘··· |
| Affairs may take a lucky turn. | 8 | ˘/···/˘· |
| PAM. D'ye think so? | 4 | ···· |
| DAVUS. Beyond all doubt. | 6 | ······ |
| PAM. See, what you lead me to. | 7 | ······· |
| DAVUS. Nay, peace! | 4 | ···· |
| PAM. I'll say so then. But have a care | 9 | ········· |
| He knows not of the child, which I've agreed | 10 | ········˘/ |
| To educate. | 4 | ·/˘· |
| DAVUS. O confidence! | 6 | ···/˘˘ |
| PAM. She drew | 3 | ··· |
| This promise from me, as a firm assurance | 11 | ·/˘·····˘/˘ |
| That I would not forsake her. | 7 | ····˘/· |
| DAVUS. We'll take care. | 5 | ····· |
| But here's your father: let him not perceive | 10 | ···/˘···˘/ |
| You're melancholy. | 5 | ·/˘·˘ |
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.