And I have found Demetrius like a gemell, (28) Dem. It feems to me, That yet we fleep, we dream. Do not you think, The Duke was here, and bid us follow him? Her. Yea, and my father. Hel. And Hippolita. (28) And I have found Demetrius like a jewel, Mine own, and not mine own.] Hermia had faid, things ap peared double to her. Helena fays, So, methinks; and then fub- joins, Demetrius was like a jewel, her own and not her own. According to common fenfe and conftruction, Demetrius is here compared to fomething that has the property of appearing the fame, and yet not being the fame: and this was a thought natural enough, upon her declaring her approbation of what Hermia had faid, that every thing feems double. But now, how has a jewel, or any preciousthing, the property, rather than a more worthless one, of appearing to be the fame and yet not the fame? This I believe, won't be eafily found out. I make no doubt therefore, but the true reading is;. And I have found Demetrius like a gemell, Mine own, and not mine own. from gemellus, a tavin. For Demetrius acted that night two fuch dif ferent parts, that he could hardly think him one and the fame Demetrius: but that there were two Twin-Demetrius's to the acting this farce, like the two Socia's. This makes good and pertinent fer.fe of the whole; and the corruption from gemell to jewel was fo eafy from the fimilar trace of the letters, and the difficulty of the transcribers understanding the true-word, that, I think, it is not to be question’d. Mr. Warburton. If fome over-nice fpirits should object to gemell wanting its authorities as an English word, I think fit to obferve, in aid of my friend's fine conjecture, that it is no new thing with Shakespeare to coin and enfranchize words fairly derived; and fome fuch as have by the grammarians been called ἅπαξ λεγόμενα, or words ufed but once. Again, though gemell be not adopted either by Chaucer or Spenfer; not ac knowledged by the dictionaries; yet both Blount in his Gloffography, and Philips, in his World of Words, have geminels, which they interpret twins. And lastly, in two or three other paffages, Shakespeare ufes the fame manner of thought. In the Comedy of Errors, where Adriana · fees her husband and his twin-brother, the fays; : I fee two hufbands, or my eyes deceive me." One of them, therefore, feem'd to be her own, but was not. And in his twelfth-night, when Viola and Sebaftian, who were twins, appear together, they bear fo ftrict a refemblance, that the Duke cries: One face, one voice, one habit, and two perfons; A nat❜ral perspective, that is, and is not, Lyf. And he did bid us follow to the temple. Dem. Why then, we are awake; let's follow him; And, by the way, let us recount our dreams. [Exeunt. At they go out, Bottom wakes. Bot. When my cue comes, call me, and I will anfwer. My next is, most fair Pyramus hey, ho,Peter Quince, Flute the bellows-mender! Snowt the tinker! Starveling! god's my life! ftolen hence, and left me afleep I have had a most rare vifion. I had a dream, paft the wit of man to fay what dream it was: man is but an afs, if he go about to expound this dream. Methought I was, there is no man can tell what. Methought I was, and methought I had,— But man is but a patch'd fool, if he will offer to say what methought I had. The eye of man hath not heard, the ear of man hath not feen; man's hand is not able to taste, his tongue to conceive, nor his heart to report what my dream was. I will get Peter Quince 10 write a ballad of this dream; it shall be call'd Bot10m's Dream, because it hath no bottom; and I will fing it in the latter end of a play before the duke; (29) peradventure, to make it the more gracious, I fhall fing it after death. [Exit. (29) Peradventure, to make it the more gracious, I shall fing it at her death] At ber death? At whose? In all Bottom's speech there is not the leaft mention of any fhe-creature, to whom this relative can be coupled. I make not the leaft fcruple, but Bottom, for the fake of a jeft, and to render his voluntary, as we may call it, the more gra. cious and extraordinary, faid;—I shall sing it after death. He, as Pyramus, is killed upon the scene; and fo might promise to rife again at the conclufion of the Interlude, and give the Duke his dream by way of fong.- -The fource of the corruption of the text is very obvious. The fin after being funk by the vulgar pronunciation, the copyift might write it from the found,a'ter: which the wife editors not understanding, concluded, two words were erroneously got together; fo fplitting them, and clapping in an b, produced the prefent reading at ber. SCENE Quin. SCENE changes to the Town, Enter Quince, Flute, Snowt, and Starveling. Ave you fent to Bottom's house is he come home yet? HA Star. He cannot be heard of. Out of doubt, he is tranfported. Flute. If he come not, then the play is marr'd. It goes not forward, doth it? Quin. It is not poffible; you have not a man, in all Athens, able to difcharge Pyramus, but he. Flute. No, he hath fimply the beft wit of any handycraft man in Athens. Quin. Yea, and the best perfon too; and he is a very paramour for a fweet voice. Flute. You must fay, paragon; (30) a paramour is (God blefs us!) a thing of naught. Enter Snug. Snug. Mafters, the Duke is coming from the temple, and there is two or three Lords and Ladies more married; if our fport had gone forward, we had all been made men. Flute. O fweet bully Bottom! thus hath he loft fixpence a-day during his life; he could not have 'fcap'd Ex-pence a-day; an the Duke had not given him fixpence a-day for playing Pyramus, I'll be hang'd: he would have deferv'd it. Six-pence a-day, in Pyramus, or nothing. Enter Bottom. Bot. Where are these lads where are these hearts ? Quin. Bottom!-O moft courageous day! O moft happy hour! (30) A paramour is (God bless us) a thing of nought.] This is a reading, I am fure, of nought. My change of a fingle letter gives a very important change to the humour of the paffage. -A thing of naught, means, a naughty thing, little better than downright bawdry. So, in Hamlet, Ophelia, when he talks a little grofsly to her, replies; You're naught, you're naught, my Lord, &a, Bot. Mafters, I am to difcourfe wonders; but ask me not what; for if I tell you, I am no true Athenian. I will tell you every thing as it fell out. Quin. Let us hear, fweet Bottom. : Bot. Not a word of me; all I will tell you, is, that the Duke hath dined. Get your apparel together, good ftrings to your beards, new ribbons to your pumps; meet prefently at the palace, every man look. o'er his part; for the short and the long is, (31) our play is referred in any cafe, let Thisby have clean linnen; and let not him, that plays the lion, pare his nails, for they shall hang out for the lion's claws; and, most dear actors! eat no onions, nor garlick, for we are to utter fweet breath; and I do not doubt to hear them fay, it is a fweet comedy. No more words; away; go, away. [Exeunt A CT V. . SCENE, the Palace. Enter Thefeus; Hippolita, Egeus, and his Lords. HIPPOLIT A. IS ftrange, my Thefeus, what thefe lovers fpeak of. The More ftrange than true. I never may believe Thefe antic fables, nor thefe fairy toys; Lovers and madmen have fuch feething brains, (31) Our play is preferr'd:] This word is not to be taken in its most common acceptation here, as if their play was chofen in preference to the cthers; (for that appears afterwards not to be the fact ;) bat means, that it was given in, among others, for the Duke's option: And, in this fenfe, we fay,preferr a petition; i. e. give it in, lodge it, for the Judge's anfwer. So, in Julius Cæfar, Decius lays; Where is Metellus Cimber? let him go, And prefently prefer bis fuit to Cæfar. Arc Are of imagination all compact: One fees more devils than vaft hell can hold; The poet's eye, in a fine frenzy rolling, Doth glance from heaven to earth, from earth to heav'n; The forms of things unknown, the poet's pen Such tricks hath ftrong imagination, That if he would but apprehend fome joy, Hip. But all the ftory of the night told over, And grows to fomething of great conftancy; But, howfoever, ftrange and admirable. Enter Lyfander, Demetrius, Hermia, and Helena. Thef. Here comes the lovers, full of joy and mirth.. Joy, gentle friends; joy and fresh days of love Accompany your hearts.. Lyf, More than to us,, Wait on your royal walks, your board, your bed. Enter Philoftrate. Pbiloft. Here, mighty Thefeus. The Say, what abridgement have you for this evening? What mafque? what mufic? how fhall we beguile Philoft. |