THESEUS, Duke of Athens.
Egeus, an Athenian Lord.
Lysander, in love with Hermia.
Demetrius, in love with Hermia.

Philostrate, Master of the Sports to the Duke.
Quince, the Carpenter.

Snug, the Joiner.

Bottom, the Weaver.
Flute, the Bellows-mender.
Snowt, the Tinker.

Starvelling, the Tailor.

Hippolita, Princess of the Amazons, betroth'd to Theseus,

Hermia, Daughter to Egeus, in love with Lysander. Helena, in live with Demetrius.

Attendants.

Oberon, King of the Fairies.
Titania, Queen of the Fairies.
Puck, or Robin-goodfellow, a Fairy.

Peaseblossom,
Cobweb,
Moth,

Mustard-feed,

Characters in the Interlude performed by the Clowns.

Other Fairies attending on the King and Queen.

SCENE, Athens; and a Wood not far from it.

The various Readings of this Play.

I. A Quarto printed for James Roberts, 1600.

II. The Folio of 1623.

III. The Folio of 1632.

IV. The Folio of 1664.

DREAM.

ACT I.

SCENE I.

The Duke's Palace in Athens.

Enter Theseus, Hippolita, Philostrate, with attendants.

N

THESEUS.

OW, fair Hippolita, our nuptial hour
Draws on apace; four happy days bring in
Another moon: but, oh, methinks, how

flow

This old moon wanes: the lingers my defires,
Like to a step-dame, or a dowager,

Long withering out a young man's revenue. '

Hip. Four days will quickly steep themselves in

night;

Four nights will quickly dream away the time :
And then the moon like to a silver bow,

Never bent in heaven, shall behold the night

1 Long WITHERING OUT a young Man's revenue.] Long withering out is, certainly not good English. I rather think Shakespear wrote, Long WINTERING ON a

young man's revenue. WARBURT. That the common reading is not good English, I cannot perceive, and therefore find in my felf no temptation to change it.

Of

Of our folemnities.

The. Go, Philoftrate,

Stir up the Athenian youth to merriments :
Awake the pert and nimble spirit of mirth;
Turn melancholy forth to funerals,

The pale companion is not for our pomp. (Exit Phi.
Hippolita. I woo'd thee with my sword;

And won thy love, doing thee injuries :
But I will wed thee in another key,
With pomp, with triumph, and with revelling.

Enter Egeus, Hermio, Lysander, and Demetrius.

Ege. Happy be Theseus, our renowned Duke:

The. Thanks, good Egeus; what's the news with

thee?

Ege. Full of vexation, come I with complaint

Against my child, my daughter Hermia.
Stand forth, Demetrius. - My noble lord,
This man hath my consent to marry her.
Stand forth, Lysander. And, my gracious Duke.
This man hath * witch'd the bosom of my child:
Thou, thou, Lysander, thou hast giv'n her rhimes,
And interchang'd love tokens with my child:
Thou hast by moon-light at her window sung,
With feigning voice, verses of feigning love;
And stol'n th' impression of her fantasie,
With bracelets of thy hair, rings, gawds, conceits,
Knacks, trifles, nosegays, sweet-meats, messengers
Of strong prevailment in unharden'd youth :
With cunning haft thou filch'd my daughter's heart,
Turn'd her obedience, which is due to me,
To stubborn harshness: And, my gracious Duke,
Be't so, she will not here before your Grace
Confent to marry with Demetrius;
I beg the antient privilege of Athens,
As she is mine, I may dispose of her:

Which shall be either to this gentleman,
Or to her death, according to our law,
Immediately provided in that cafe.

2

The. What say you, Hermia? be advis'd, fair maid.

To you your father should be as a God, 3
One, that compos'd your beauties; yea, and one,
To whom you are but as a form in wax
By him imprinted; and within his pow'er
To leave the figure, or disfigure it.

Demetrius, is a worthy gentleman.
Her. So is Lysander.

The. In himself he is;

But in this kind, wanting your father's voice,
The other must be held the worthier....

Her. I would, my father look'd but with my eyes.

The. Rather your eyes must with his judgment

look.

is faid to be imprinted by him. 'Tis from the French relever. Thus they say, Tapisseries relevées d'or. In the same fenfe they use enlever, which Maundeville makes English of in this Manner And alle the walles withinne ben covered with gola and fylver, in fyn Plates: and in the Plates ben Stories and Batayles of Knightes ENLEVED. p. 228. Rablais, with a ftrain of buffoon humour, that equals the fober elegance of this passage in our Poet, calls the small gentry of France, Gentilhommes de bas re. lief. WARBURTON.

I know not why so harsh a word should be admitted with fo

little need, a word that, spoken could not be understood, and of which no example can be shown. The fenfe is plain, you owe to your father a being which he may at pleasure continue or destroy.

Her.

Her. I do intreat your Grace to pardon me :
I know not, by what pow'r I am made bold;
Nor how it may concern my modesty,
In such a prefence here, to plead my thoughts :
But, I beseech your Grace, that I may know
The worst that may befal me in this case,
If I refuse to wed Demetrius.

The. Either to die the death, or to abjure
For ever the society of men.
Therefore, fair Hermia, question your defires :
Know of your truth, examine well your blood,
Whether, if you yield not to your father's choice,
You can endure the livery of a nun;
For aye to be in shady cloister mew'd,
To live a barren sister all your life,
Chanting faint hymns to the cold, fruitless, moon?
Thrice blessed they, that master so their blood,
To undergo such maiden pilgrimage!
But earthlier happy is the rose distill'd, 3
Than that which withering on the virgin thorn,
Grows, lives and dies, in single blessedness.

Her. So will I grow, so live, so die, my lord,
Ere I will yield my virgin patent up
Unto his lordship, * to whose unwish'd yoak
My foul consents not to give Sov'reignty.

The. Take time to pause: and by the next new

moon,

The sealing day betwixt my love and me,
For everlasting bond of fellowship,
Upon that day either prepare to die,
For disobedience to your father's will;
Or else to wed Demetrius, as he would;
Or on Diana's altar to protest,

For aye, austerity and single life.

3 Thus all the copies, yet earthlier is so harsh a word, and earthlier happy for happier earthly *I. II. Lordship, whose unwished yoke.

a mode of speech so unusual, that I wonder none of the Editors have proposed earlier happy.

Dem.