The Brothers: Act the Second: Scene IV
CTES. Favors are welcome in the hour of needFrom any hand; but doubly welcome whenConferr'd by those from whom we most expect them.O brother, brother, how shall I applaud thee?Ne'er can I rise to such a height of praiseBut your deservings will outtop me still:For in this point I am supremely bless'd,That none can boast so excellent a brother,So rich in all good qualities, as I.SYRUS (coming forward). O Ctesipho!
CTES. (turning round). O Syrus! where's my brother?
SYRUS. At home, where he expects you.
CTES. Ha! (Joyfully.)
CTES. What now?--By his assistance I live, Syrus.Ah, he's a friend indeed! who disregardingAll his own interests for my advantage,The scandal, infamy, intrigue, and blame,All due to me, has drawn upon himself!What could exceed it?--But who's there?--The doorCreaks on the hinges. (Offering to go off.)
SYRUS. Hold! 'tis AEschinus.
Words in this poem
- expect v. t.
- To wait for; to await. [L. expectatum, to look out for, await, expect; ex + out spectare to look at. See Spectacle.]
- 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,]
- supremely adv.
- In a supreme manner.
- scandal n.
- Offense caused or experienced; reproach or reprobation called forth by what is regarded as wrong, criminal, heinous, or flagrant: opprobrium or disgrace. [F. scandale, fr. L. scandalum, Gr. scandle, OF. escandle. See Slander.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Brothers: 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 Brothers: 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-brothers-act-the-second-scene-iv.html, id L25825.
Form and metre
The Brothers: Act the Second: Scene IV is 21 lines in 6 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 83%).
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 |
|---|---|---|
| CTES. Favors are welcome in the hour of need | 11 | ·/˘·/˘··/·· |
| From any hand; but doubly welcome when | 10 | ·/˘··/˘/˘· |
| Conferr'd by those from whom we most expect them. | 11 | ˘/······˘/· |
| O brother, brother, how shall I applaud thee? | 11 | ·/˘/˘···˘/· |
| Ne'er can I rise to such a height of praise | 10 | ·········· |
| But your deservings will outtop me still: | 10 | ··˘/˘·˘/·· |
| For in this point I am supremely bless'd, | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| That none can boast so excellent a brother, | 11 | ·····/˘˘·/˘ |
| So rich in all good qualities, as I. | 10 | ·····/˘˘·· |
| SYRUS (coming forward). O Ctesipho! | 10 | ··/˘/˘···· |
| CTES. (turning round). O Syrus! where's my brother? | 11 | ·/˘······/˘ |
| SYRUS. At home, where he expects you. | 9 | ······˘/· |
| CTES. Ha! (Joyfully.) | 5 | ··/˘˘ |
| CTES. What now?--By his assistance I live, Syrus. | 12 | ·····˘/˘···· |
| Ah, he's a friend indeed! who disregarding | 11 | ····˘/··˘/˘ |
| All his own interests for my advantage, | 10 | ···/˘··˘/˘ |
| The scandal, infamy, intrigue, and blame, | 10 | ·/˘/˘˘˘/·· |
| All due to me, has drawn upon himself! | 10 | ········˘/ |
| What could exceed it?--But who's there?--The door | 10 | ··˘/······ |
| Creaks on the hinges. (Offering to go off.) | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| SYRUS. Hold! 'tis AEschinus. | 7 | ······· |
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