SCENE 2: ROME. CAESAR'S HOUSE. — Shakespeare Retold

[Thunder and lightning. Enter CAESAR, in his night-gown]

CAESAR

Nor heaven nor earth have been at peace to-night:

Tonight heaven and earth are not at peace.

Thrice hath Calpurnia in her sleep cried out,

Three times Calpurnia yelled in her sleep,

'Help, ho! They murder Caesar!' Who's within?

“Help! They are murdering Caesar!” Who’s there?

[Enter a Servant]

SERVANT

My lord?

CAESAR

Go bid the priests do present sacrifice

Get priests to sacrifice an animal

And bring me their opinions of success.

And tell me what their entrails reveal.

SERVANT

I will, my lord.

[Exit]

[Enter CALPURNIA]

CALPURNIA

What mean you, Caesar? Think you to walk forth?

What are you doing, Caesar? Are you leaving?

You shall not stir out of your house to-day.

You will not go outside your house today.

CAESAR

Caesar shall forth: the things that threatened me

Caesar will leave. The things that threaten me

Ne'er looked but on my back; when they shall see

Look at me from behind. But when they’ll see

The face of Caesar, they are vanished.

The face of Caesar, they will disappear.

CALPURNIA

Caesar, I never stood on ceremonies,

Caesar, I’ve never bothered about omens

Yet now they fright me. There is one within,

But now they’re scaring me. A servant told me,

Besides the things that we have heard and seen,

Recounts most horrid sights seen by the watch.

That awful sights were spotted by our watchman.

A lioness hath whelped in the streets;

A lioness gave birth within the streets,

And graves have yawned, and yielded up their dead;

And graves have opened up and dead have risen.

Fierce fiery warriors fought upon the clouds,

Fierce warriors of fire fought in the clouds

In ranks and squadrons and right form of war,

In regular battalions of war

Which drizzled blood upon the Capitol;

Which drizzled blood upon the Capitol.

The noise of battle hurtled in the air,

The noise of battle rattled through the air,

Horses did neigh, and dying men did groan,

With neighing horses, cries from dying men,

And ghosts did shriek and squeal about the streets.

And ghosts did shriek and squeal throughout the streets.

O Caesar! These things are beyond all use,

Oh Caesar, all these things are so unusual

And I do fear them.

I’m scared of them.

CAESAR

What can be avoided

But what can be avoided

Whose end is purposed by the mighty gods?

If it is the intention of the gods?

Yet Caesar shall go forth; for these predictions

But Caesar will go out, for these predictions

Are to the world in general as to Caesar.

Are for the world in general, not just Caesar.

CALPURNIA

When beggars die, there are no comets seen;

When beggars die, there are no shooting stars;

The heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes.

But skies light up whenever princes die.

CAESAR

Cowards die many times before their deaths;

The valiant never taste of death but once.

The bravest only die a single time.

Of all the wonders that I yet have heard.

Of all the strange things I’ve heard people say,

It seems to me most strange that men should fear;

The strangest thing to me is men that fear death,

Seeing that death, a necessary end,

For death is something that comes to us all,

Will come when it will come.

And comes when it will come.

[Re-enter Servant]

What say the augurers?

What did the priests say?

SERVANT

They would not have you to stir forth to-day.

They said you shouldn’t leave your house today.

Plucking the entrails of an offering forth,

They plucked the entrails of the sacrifice

They could not find a heart within the beast.

But couldn’t find a heart within the beast.

CAESAR

The gods do this in shame of cowardice:

The gods do this to teach us to be brave.

Caesar should be a beast without a heart,

Caesar would be a beast without a heart

If he should stay at home to-day for fear.

If, out of fear, he stayed at home today.

No, Caesar shall not: danger knows full well

No, Caesar won’t do that. For danger knows

That Caesar is more dangerous than he:

That Caesar is more dangerous than danger.

We are two lions littered in one day,

Danger and I are lions born together,

And I the elder and more terrible:

Yet I’m the elder and more terrifying.

And Caesar shall go forth.

And Caesar will go out.

CALPURNIA

Alas, my lord,

Oh dear, my lord,

Your wisdom is consumed in confidence.

Your wisdom’s been usurped by confidence.

Do not go forth to-day: call it my fear

Do not go out today. Say that I’m scared

That keeps you in the house, and not your own.

And that’s why you stay home; it’s not your own fear.

We'll send Mark Antony to the senate-house:

We’ll send Mark Antony to the Senate House,

And he shall say you are not well to-day:

And he will say that you are sick today.

Let me, upon my knee, prevail in this.

I beg of you, please let me have my way.

CAESAR

Mark Antony shall say I am not well,

Mark Antony will say that I’m unwell,

And, for thy humour, I will stay at home.

And, just to please you, I will stay at home.

[Enter DECIUS BRUTUS]

Here's Decius Brutus, he shall tell them so.

Here’s Decius Brutus; he will let them know.

DECIUS BRUTUS

Caesar, all hail! Good morrow, worthy Caesar:

Caesar, all hail! Good morning, master Caesar.

I come to fetch you to the senate-house.

I’m here to take you to the Senate House.

CAESAR

And you are come in very happy time,

And you’ve arrived just at the perfect time

To bear my greeting to the senators

To send my greetings to the Senators

And tell them that I will not come to-day:

And tell them that I will not come today.

Cannot, is false, and that I dare not, falser:

It’s not that I cannot, nor do not dare.

I will not come to-day: tell them so, Decius.

It’s just I will not come today. Tell them so.

CALPURNIA

Say he is sick.

CAESAR

Shall Caesar send a lie?

Should Caesar lie to them?

Have I in conquest stretched mine arm so far,

Have I fought gallantly in many battles,

To be afraid to tell greybeards the truth?

But I’m afraid to tell old men the truth?

Decius, go tell them Caesar will not come.

DECIUS BRUTUS

Most mighty Caesar, let me know some cause,

Most mighty Caesar, let me have a reason

Lest I be laughed at when I tell them so.

Or else I will be laughed at when I tell them.

CAESAR

The cause is in my will: I will not come;

My wish will be reason. I won’t come.

That is enough to satisfy the senate.

That is enough to satisfy the Senate.

But for your private satisfaction,

But just to quell your curiosity,

Because I love you, I will let you know:

Because I love you, I will let you know.

Calpurnia here, my wife, stays me at home:

Calpurnia, my wife, wants me at home.

She dreamt to-night she saw my statua,

She dreamt last night she saw a statue of me

Which, like a fountain with an hundred spouts,

And, like a spouting fountain full of holes,

Did run pure blood: and many lusty Romans

It spewed out blood; and many lusty Romans

Came smiling, and did bathe their hands in it:

Came smiling by and washed their hands in it.

And these does she apply for warnings, and portents,

And she believes these signs are all bad omens

And evils imminent; and on her knee

Of evil coming soon, and on one knee

Hath begged that I will stay at home to-day.

She begged that I should stay at home today.

DECIUS BRUTUS

This dream is all amiss interpreted;

This dream’s interpretation’s incorrect.

It was a vision fair and fortunate:

It was a joyful and a lucky dream.

Your statue spouting blood in many pipes,

Your statue spouting blood from out its pipes,

In which so many smiling Romans bathed,

Signifies that from you great Rome shall suck

Means many Romans will rely on sucking

Reviving blood, and that great men shall press

Your health-reviving blood, and all great men

For tinctures, stains, relics and cognizance.

Will seek your blood to demonstrate allegiance.

This by Calpurnia's dream is signified.

That is the meaning of Calpurnia’s dream.

CAESAR

And this way have you well expounded it.

You’ve clarified the meaning of it well.

DECIUS BRUTUS

I have, when you have heard what I can say:

I will have when you’ve heard the rest of it.

And know it now: the senate have concluded

And know this now: the Senate have concluded

To give this day a crown to mighty Caesar.

Today they’ll give a crown to mighty Caesar.

If you shall send them word you will not come,

If you will tell them you won’t come today,

Their minds may change. Besides, it were a mock

Perhaps they’ll change their minds. And they may joke

Apt to be rendered, for some one to say

In sarcasm, with one of them declaring,

'Break up the senate till another time,

“Let’s stop the Senate till another day

When Caesar's wife shall meet with better dreams.'

When Caesar’s wife has had a better dream.”

If Caesar hide himself, shall they not whisper

If Caesar doesn’t show, perhaps they’ll whisper,

'Lo, Caesar is afraid'?

“Look, Caesar is afraid.”

Pardon me, Caesar; for my dear dear love

Forgive me, Caesar, for my love to see

To our proceeding bids me tell you this;

Your strong position strengthened makes me say this,

And reason to my love is liable.

And it’s my love that makes me sound so rude.

CAESAR

How foolish do your fears seem now, Calpurnia!

I am ashamed I did yield to them.

I am ashamed that I agreed to them.

Give me my robe, for I will go.

[Enter PUBLIUS, BRUTUS, LIGARIUS, METELLUS, CASCA, TREBONIUS, and CINNA]

And look where Publius is come to fetch me.

And look, it’s Publius; he’s come to fetch me.

PUBLIUS

Good morrow, Caesar.

Good morning, Caesar.

CAESAR

Welcome, Publius.

Welcome Publius.

What, Brutus, are you stirred so early too?

Wow, Brutus, why’ve you got up early too?

Good morrow, Casca. Caius Ligarius,

Good morning, Casca. Caius Ligarius,

Caesar was ne'er so much your enemy

I never was your enemy as much

As that same ague which hath made you lean.

As that same illness that has made you thin.

What is 't o'clock?

What is the time?

BRUTUS

Caesar, 'tis strucken eight.

Caesar, it’s eight o’clock.

CAESAR

I thank you for your pains and courtesy.

I thank for your trouble and your kindness.

[Enter ANTONY]

See! Antony, that revels long o' nights,

See, Antony—who parties through the night—

Is notwithstanding up. Good morrow, Antony.

Is even standing up. Good morning, Antony.

ANTONY

So to most noble Caesar.

The same to you, dear Caesar.

CAESAR

Bid them prepare within:

Tell those inside to get ready to leave.

I am to blame to be thus waited for.

It is my fault for keeping you all waiting.

Now, Cinna: now, Metellus: what, Trebonius!

Hello, Cinna, Metellus and Trebonius.

I have an hour's talk in store for you;

I have an hour-long topic to discuss.

Remember that you call on me to-day:

Remember that I want to talk today;

Be near me, that I may remember you.

Keep close to me so that I won’t forget.

TREBONIUS

Caesar, I will:

I will, Caesar.

[Aside]

and so near will I be,

I’ll be so close to you

That your best friends shall wish I had been further.

That your best friends will wish I had been further.

CAESAR

Good friends, go in, and taste some wine with me;

Come on, good friends, let’s drink some wine inside,

And we, like friends, will straightway go together.

And then, as friends, we’ll all depart together.

BRUTUS

[Aside]

That every like is not the same, O Caesar,

Oh Caesar, everything’s not as it seems,

The heart of Brutus yearns to think upon!

And that makes Brutus grieve to think about it.

[Exeunt]