The Eunuch: Act the Fourth: Scene VII
THAIS. I am apt to think,The Captain will soon follow me, to takeThe virgin from me: Well then, let him come!But if he does but lay a finger on her,We'll tear his eyes out.--His impertinence.And big words, while mere words, I can endure;But if he comes to action, woe be to him!CHREM. Thais, I have been here some time.
THAIS. My Chremes!The very man I wanted!--Do you knowThat you have been th' occasion of this quarrel?And that this whole affair relates to you?CHREM. To me! how so?
THAIS. Because, while I endeavor,And study to restore your sister to you,This and much more I've suffer'd.
CHREM. Where's my sister?
THAIS. Within, at my house.
CHREM. Ha! (With concern.)
THAIS. Be not alarm'd:She has been well brought up, and in a mannerWorthy herself and you.
THAIS. 'Tis true:And now most freely I restore her to you,Demanding nothing of you in return.
CHREM. I feel your goodness, Thais, and shall everRemain much bounden to you.
THAIS. Aye, but nowTake heed, my Chremes, lest ere you receiveThe maid from me, you lose her! for 'tis she,Whom now the Captain comes to take by storm.--Pythias, go, fetch the casket with the proofs!CHREM. D'ye see him, Thais? (Looking out.)
PYTH. Where's the casket plac'd?
THAIS. Plac'd in the cabinet.--D'ye loiter, hussy?(Exit PYTHIAS.
CHREM. What force the Captain brings with him against you!Good Heav'n!THAIS. Are you afraid, young gentleman?
CHREM. Away!--who? I? afraid?--There is no manAlive less so.
THAIS. Consider,He, whom you've now to cope with, is a strangerLess powerful than you, less known, and lessBefriended here than you!
CHREM. I know all that:But why, like fools, admit what we may shun?Better prevent a wrong, than afterwardRevenge it, when receiv'd----Do you step in,And bolt the door, while I run to the Forum,And call some officers to our assistance. (Going.)THAIS. Stay! (Holding him.)
CHREM. 'Twill be better.
CHREM. Nay, let me go!I'll soon be back.
THAIS. We do not want them, Chremes.Say, only, that this maiden is your sister,And that you lost her when a child, and nowKnow her again for yours.PYTH. Here they are.
THAIS. Take them, Chremes!--If the CaptainAttempts to do you any violence,Lead him before a magistrate. D'ye mark me?
THAIS. Be sure now speak with a good courage!
THAIS. Come, gather up your cloak.----Undone!I've got a champion, who wants help himself.
HarperPYTH. Where's the casket plac'd?THAIS. Plac'd in the cabinet.--D'ye loiter, hussy?Colman 1768PYTH. Where does the casket stand?THAIS. Upon the cabinet.--D'ye loiter, hussy?
HarperCHREM. Away!--who? I? afraid?--There is no manAlive less so.THAIS. You'd need be stout at present.Colman 1768CHREM. Away!--who? I? afraid?--No mortal less.
HarperI've got a champion, who wants help himself.Colman 1768
Words in this poem
- impertinence n.
- The condition or quality of being impertnent; absence of pertinence, or of adaptedness; irrelevance; unfitness. [Cf. F. impertinence. See Impertinent.]
- 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,]
- bounden a.
- Bound; fastened by bonds. [Old. p. p. of bind.]
- casket v. t.
- To put into, or preserve in, a casket.
- hussy n.
- A housewife or housekeeper. [Contr. fr. huswife.]
- 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.]
- undone a.
- Not done or performed; neglected. [Pref. un- not + done.]
- harper n.
- A player on the harp; a minstrel. [AS. hearpere.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Eunuch: Act the Fourth: Scene VII 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 Eunuch: Act the Fourth: Scene VII, in The Comedies of Terence (1765), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #22695, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/terence-comedies/the-eunuch-act-the-fourth-scene-vii.html, id L25774.
Form and metre
The Eunuch: Act the Fourth: Scene VII is 81 lines in 25 stanzas. This poem did not settle on a metre of its own; the book it comes from is in iambic pentameter.
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.
- 2 -A--A chremes · knowA · quarrel · you · soA
- 8 AA- trueA · youA · return
- 16 -A-AB-B that · shunA · afterward · inA · forumB · going · himB
- 23 --A--A harper · plac'd · hussyA · — · stand · hussyA
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 |
|---|---|---|
| THAIS. I am apt to think, | 6 | ······ |
| The Captain will soon follow me, to take | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| The virgin from me: Well then, let him come! | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| But if he does but lay a finger on her, | 11 | ·······/˘·· |
| We'll tear his eyes out.--His impertinence. | 10 | ······˘/˘˘ |
| And big words, while mere words, I can endure; | 10 | ········˘/ |
| But if he comes to action, woe be to him! | 11 | ·····/˘···· |
| CHREM. Thais, I have been here some time. | 8 | ········ |
| THAIS. My Chremes! | 3 | ··· |
| The very man I wanted!--Do you know | 10 | ·/˘··/˘··· |
| That you have been th' occasion of this quarrel? | 11 | ····˘/˘··/˘ |
| And that this whole affair relates to you? | 10 | ····˘/˘/·· |
| CHREM. To me! how so? | 5 | ····· |
| THAIS. Because, while I endeavor, | 8 | ·····˘/˘ |
| And study to restore your sister to you, | 11 | ·/˘·˘/·/˘·· |
| This and much more I've suffer'd. | 7 | ·····/˘ |
| CHREM. Where's my sister? | 5 | ···/˘ |
| THAIS. Within, at my house. | 6 | ······ |
| CHREM. Ha! (With concern.) | 5 | ···˘/ |
| THAIS. Be not alarm'd: | 5 | ···˘/ |
| She has been well brought up, and in a manner | 11 | ·········/˘ |
| Worthy herself and you. | 6 | /˘˘/·· |
| THAIS. 'Tis true: | 3 | ··· |
| And now most freely I restore her to you, | 11 | ···/˘·˘/··· |
| Demanding nothing of you in return. | 10 | ˘/˘/˘···˘/ |
| CHREM. I feel your goodness, Thais, and shall ever | 11 | ····/˘···/˘ |
| Remain much bounden to you. | 7 | ˘/·/˘·· |
| THAIS. Aye, but now | 4 | ···· |
| Take heed, my Chremes, lest ere you receive | 9 | ·······˘/ |
| The maid from me, you lose her! for 'tis she, | 10 | ·········· |
| Whom now the Captain comes to take by storm. | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| --Pythias, go, fetch the casket with the proofs! | 10 | /˘···/˘··· |
| CHREM. D'ye see him, Thais? (Looking out.) | 8 | ·····/˘· |
| PYTH. Where's the casket plac'd? | 6 | ···/˘· |
| THAIS. Plac'd in the cabinet.--D'ye loiter, hussy? | 11 | ····/˘·/˘/˘ |
| (Exit PYTHIAS. | 5 | /˘/˘˘ |
| CHREM. What force the Captain brings with him against you! | 12 | ····/˘······ |
| Good Heav'n! | 2 | ·· |
| THAIS. Are you afraid, young gentleman? | 9 | ···˘/·/˘˘ |
| CHREM. Away!--who? I? afraid?--There is no man | 11 | ·˘/··˘/···· |
| Alive less so. | 4 | ˘/·· |
| THAIS. Consider, | 4 | ·˘/˘ |
| He, whom you've now to cope with, is a stranger | 11 | ·········/˘ |
| Less powerful than you, less known, and less | 10 | ·/˘˘······ |
| Befriended here than you! | 6 | ˘/˘··· |
| CHREM. I know all that: | 5 | ····· |
| But why, like fools, admit what we may shun? | 10 | ····˘/···· |
| Better prevent a wrong, than afterward | 10 | /˘˘/···/˘˘ |
| Revenge it, when receiv'd----Do you step in, | 10 | ˘/··˘/···· |
| And bolt the door, while I run to the Forum, | 11 | ·········/˘ |
| And call some officers to our assistance. (Going.) | 11 | ···/˘·/˘/˘/ |
| THAIS. Stay! (Holding him.) | 5 | ··/˘· |
| CHREM. 'Twill be better. | 5 | ···/˘ |
| CHREM. Nay, let me go! | 5 | ····· |
| I'll soon be back. | 4 | ···· |
| THAIS. We do not want them, Chremes. | 7 | ······· |
| Say, only, that this maiden is your sister, | 11 | ·/˘··/˘··/˘ |
| And that you lost her when a child, and now | 10 | ·········· |
| Know her again for yours. | 6 | ··˘/·· |
| PYTH. Here they are. | 4 | ···· |
| THAIS. Take them, Chremes!--If the Captain | 8 | ······/˘ |
| Attempts to do you any violence, | 10 | ˘/···/˘/˘˘ |
| Lead him before a magistrate. D'ye mark me? | 11 | ·····/˘···· |
| THAIS. Be sure now speak with a good courage! | 10 | ········/˘ |
| THAIS. Come, gather up your cloak.----Undone! | 9 | ··/˘···˘/ |
| I've got a champion, who wants help himself. | 10 | ···/˘···˘/ |
| Harper | 2 | /˘ |
| PYTH. Where's the casket plac'd? | 6 | ···/˘· |
| THAIS. Plac'd in the cabinet.--D'ye loiter, hussy? | 11 | ····/˘·/˘/˘ |
| Colman 1768 | 2 | /˘ |
| PYTH. Where does the casket stand? | 7 | ····/˘· |
| THAIS. Upon the cabinet.--D'ye loiter, hussy? | 11 | ····/˘·/˘/˘ |
| Harper | 2 | /˘ |
| CHREM. Away!--who? I? afraid?--There is no man | 11 | ·˘/··˘/···· |
| Alive less so. | 4 | ˘/·· |
| THAIS. You'd need be stout at present. | 8 | ······/˘ |
| Colman 1768 | 2 | /˘ |
| CHREM. Away!--who? I? afraid?--No mortal less. | 11 | ·˘/··˘/·/˘· |
| Harper | 2 | /˘ |
| I've got a champion, who wants help himself. | 10 | ···/˘···˘/ |
| Colman 1768 | 2 | /˘ |
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