The Self-Tormentor: Act the Fourth: Scene III
BACCH. Upon my life,This Syrus with his golden promisesHas fool'd me hither charmingly! Ten minaeHe gave me full assurance of: but ifHe now deceives me, come whene'er he will,Canting and fawning to allure me hither,It shall be all in vain; I will not stir.Or when I have agreed, and fix'd a time,Of which he shall have giv'n his master notice,And Clitipho is all agog with hope,I'll fairly jilt them both, and not come near them;And master Syrus' back shall smart for it.CLIN. She promises you very fair.
SYRUS. D'ye thinkShe jests? She'll do it, if I don't take heed.
BACCH. They sleep: i' faith, I'll rouse them. Hark ye, Phrygia,Didst note the villa of Charinus, whichThat fellow just now show'd us? (Aloud.)
PHRY. I did, Madam.
BACCH. The next house on the right hand. (Aloud.)
BACCH. Run thither quickly: for the Captain spendsThe Dionysia there. (Aloud.)
BACCH. Tell him I'm here; and sore against my will,Detain'd by force; but that I'll find some meansTo slip away and come to him. (Aloud.)
SYRUS. Confusion!-- (Comes forward.)Stay, Bacchis, Bacchis! where d'ye send that girl?Bid her stop!BACCH. Go! (To PHRYGIA.)
SYRUS. The money's ready.
BACCH. ThenI stay. (PHRYGIA returns.)
SYRUS. This instant you shall have it, Bacchis.
BACCH. When you please; I don't press you.
SYRUS. But d'ye knowWhat you're to do?
SYRUS. You must go over,You and your equipage, to Menedemus.BACCH. What are you at now, sauce-box?
SYRUS. Coining moneyFor your use, Bacchis.
BACCH. Do you think to playYour jests on me?SYRUS. No; this is downright earnest.
BACCH. Are you the person I'm to deal with?
SYRUS. No.But there I'll pay the money.
BACCH. Let us go then!
SYRUS. Follow her there.----Ho, Dromo!
HarperDidst note the villa of Charinus, whichThat fellow just now show'd us?PHRY. I did, Madam.BACCH. The next house on the right hand.PHRY. I remember.Colman 1768Did you observe the villa of Charinus,Which yonder fellow shew'd us?PHRY. I did, Madam.BACCH. The next upon the right.PHRY. I recollect.
HarperDetain'd by force; but that I'll find some meansColman 1768Detain'd by force; but I'll devise some means
HarperSYRUS. The money's ready.BACCH. ThenI stay.SYRUS. This instant you shall have it, Bacchis.Colman 1768SYRUS. The money's ready for youBACCH. Oh! then I stay.SYRUS. You shall be paid directly.
HarperBut there I'll pay the money.Colman 1768
Words in this poem
- canting a.
- Speaking in a whining tone of voice; using technical or religious terms affectedly; affectedly pious; as, a canting rogue; a canting tone. - Cant"ing*ly, adv.
- 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,]
- agog a.
- In eager desire; eager; astir. [Cf. F. gogue fun, perhaps of Celtic origin.]
- fairly adv.
- In a fairmanner; clearly; openly; plainly; fully; distinctly; frankly.
- jilt n.
- A woman who capriciously deceives her lover; a coquette; a flirt. Otway. [Contr. fr. Scot. jillet a giddy girl, a jill-flirt, dim. of jill a jill.]
- didst
- , the 2d pers. sing. imp. of Do.
- villa n.
- A country seat; a country or suburban residence of some pretensions to elegance. Dryden. [L. villa, LL. also village, dim. of L. vicus a village: cf. It. & F. villa. See Vicinity, and cf. Vill, Village, Villain.]
- aloud adv.
- With a loud voice, or great noise; loudly; audibly. [Pref. a- + loud.]
- downright adv.
- Straight down; perpendicularly.
- harper n.
- A player on the harp; a minstrel. [AS. hearpere.]
- yonder adv.
- At a distance, but within view. [OE. yonder, ýonder; cf. OD. ginder, Goth. jaindr there. Yond, adv.]
- recollect v. t.
- To recover or recall the knowledge of; to bring back to the mind or memory; to remember. [Pref. re- + collect: cf. L. recolligere, recollectum, to collect. Cf. Recollet.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Self-Tormentor: Act the Fourth: Scene III 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 Self-Tormentor: Act the Fourth: Scene III, in The Comedies of Terence (1765), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #22695, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/terence-comedies/the-self-tormentor-act-the-fourth-scene-iii.html, id L25803.
Form and metre
The Self-Tormentor: Act the Fourth: Scene III is 77 lines in 24 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.
- 21 --AB----AB-- harper · which · usA · madamB · hand · remember · — · charinus · usA · madamB · right · recollect
- 22 -A-A harper · meansA · — · meansA
- 23 ---A---A- harper · ready · then · stayA · bacchis · — · you · stayA · directly
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 |
|---|---|---|
| BACCH. Upon my life, | 5 | ····· |
| This Syrus with his golden promises | 10 | ·····/˘/˘˘ |
| Has fool'd me hither charmingly! Ten minae | 10 | ···/˘/˘˘·· |
| He gave me full assurance of: but if | 10 | ····˘/˘··· |
| He now deceives me, come whene'er he will, | 11 | ··˘/······· |
| Canting and fawning to allure me hither, | 11 | /˘·/˘·˘/·/˘ |
| It shall be all in vain; I will not stir. | 10 | ·········· |
| Or when I have agreed, and fix'd a time, | 10 | ····˘/···· |
| Of which he shall have giv'n his master notice, | 11 | ·······/˘/˘ |
| And Clitipho is all agog with hope, | 10 | ······˘/·· |
| I'll fairly jilt them both, and not come near them; | 11 | ·/˘········ |
| And master Syrus' back shall smart for it. | 10 | ·/˘······· |
| CLIN. She promises you very fair. | 9 | ··/˘˘·/˘· |
| SYRUS. D'ye think | 4 | ···· |
| She jests? She'll do it, if I don't take heed. | 10 | ·········· |
| BACCH. They sleep: i' faith, I'll rouse them. Hark ye, Phrygia, | 12 | ············ |
| Didst note the villa of Charinus, which | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| That fellow just now show'd us? (Aloud.) | 9 | ·/˘····˘/ |
| PHRY. I did, Madam. | 5 | ···/˘ |
| BACCH. The next house on the right hand. (Aloud.) | 10 | ········˘/ |
| BACCH. Run thither quickly: for the Captain spends | 11 | ··/˘/˘··/˘· |
| The Dionysia there. (Aloud.) | 7 | ·····˘/ |
| BACCH. Tell him I'm here; and sore against my will, | 11 | ··········· |
| Detain'd by force; but that I'll find some means | 10 | ˘/········ |
| To slip away and come to him. (Aloud.) | 10 | ··˘/····˘/ |
| SYRUS. Confusion!-- (Comes forward.) | 8 | ··˘/˘·/˘ |
| Stay, Bacchis, Bacchis! where d'ye send that girl? | 10 | ·/˘/˘····· |
| Bid her stop! | 3 | ··· |
| BACCH. Go! (To PHRYGIA.) | 5 | ····· |
| SYRUS. The money's ready. | 7 | ···/˘/˘ |
| BACCH. Then | 2 | ·· |
| I stay. (PHRYGIA returns.) | 6 | ····˘/ |
| SYRUS. This instant you shall have it, Bacchis. | 11 | ···/˘····/˘ |
| BACCH. When you please; I don't press you. | 8 | ········ |
| SYRUS. But d'ye know | 5 | ····· |
| What you're to do? | 4 | ···· |
| SYRUS. You must go over, | 7 | ······· |
| You and your equipage, to Menedemus. | 11 | ···/˘˘····· |
| BACCH. What are you at now, sauce-box? | 8 | ········ |
| SYRUS. Coining money | 6 | ··/˘/˘ |
| For your use, Bacchis. | 5 | ···/˘ |
| BACCH. Do you think to play | 6 | ······ |
| Your jests on me? | 4 | ···· |
| SYRUS. No; this is downright earnest. | 9 | ·····/·/˘ |
| BACCH. Are you the person I'm to deal with? | 10 | ····/˘···· |
| SYRUS. No. | 3 | ··· |
| But there I'll pay the money. | 7 | ·····/˘ |
| BACCH. Let us go then! | 5 | ····· |
| SYRUS. Follow her there.----Ho, Dromo! | 9 | ··/˘····· |
| Harper | 2 | /˘ |
| Didst note the villa of Charinus, which | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| That fellow just now show'd us? | 7 | ·/˘···· |
| PHRY. I did, Madam. | 5 | ···/˘ |
| BACCH. The next house on the right hand. | 8 | ········ |
| PHRY. I remember. | 5 | ··˘/˘ |
| Colman 1768 | 2 | /˘ |
| Did you observe the villa of Charinus, | 11 | ··˘/·/˘···· |
| Which yonder fellow shew'd us? | 7 | ·/˘/˘·· |
| PHRY. I did, Madam. | 5 | ···/˘ |
| BACCH. The next upon the right. | 7 | ······· |
| PHRY. I recollect. | 5 | ···˘/ |
| Harper | 2 | /˘ |
| Detain'd by force; but that I'll find some means | 10 | ˘/········ |
| Colman 1768 | 2 | /˘ |
| Detain'd by force; but I'll devise some means | 10 | ˘/····˘/·· |
| Harper | 2 | /˘ |
| SYRUS. The money's ready. | 7 | ···/˘/˘ |
| BACCH. Then | 2 | ·· |
| I stay. | 2 | ·· |
| SYRUS. This instant you shall have it, Bacchis. | 11 | ···/˘····/˘ |
| Colman 1768 | 2 | /˘ |
| SYRUS. The money's ready for you | 9 | ···/˘/˘·· |
| BACCH. Oh! then I stay. | 5 | ····· |
| SYRUS. You shall be paid directly. | 9 | ······˘/˘ |
| Harper | 2 | /˘ |
| But there I'll pay the money. | 7 | ·····/˘ |
| Colman 1768 | 2 | /˘ |
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.