ACT 3
[Enter PORTIA, NERISSA, LORENZO, JESSICA, and BALTHASAR]
LORENZO
Madam, although I speak it in your presence,
Madam, although I say this to your face,
You have a noble and a true conceit
You have a truly honourable trait
Of godlike amity; which appears most strongly
Of godlike friendship, that’s best demonstrated
In bearing thus the absence of your lord.
In how you’re handling your husband’s absence.
But if you knew to whom you show this honour,
But if you knew the man that you are helping,
How true a gentleman you send relief,
How much a gentleman you are supporting,
How dear a lover of my lord your husband,
How dear a friend he has been to your husband,
I know you would be prouder of the work
I know you would be prouder of your actions
Than customary bounty can enforce you.
Than what you normally might have expected.
PORTIA
I never did repent for doing good,
I’ve never said I’m sorry being kind,
Nor shall not now: for in companions
And will not now. For when men are good friends
That do converse and waste the time together,
That chat away and spend their time together,
Whose souls do bear an equal yoke of love,
Who both enjoy each other’s company,
There must be needs a like proportion
It follows that they share characteristics
Of lineaments, of manners and of spirit;
Like features, manners, and their sense of humour;
Which makes me think that this Antonio,
Which makes me think that this Antonio,
Being the bosom lover of my lord,
Who’s like a closest brother to my lord,
Must needs be like my lord. If it be so,
Must be just like my lord. If that’s the case,
How little is the cost I have bestowed
How little have I gifted to help out
In purchasing the semblance of my soul
A man who is the image of my soulmate
From out the state of hellish misery!
and rescued him from hellish misery!
This comes too near the praising of myself;
This sounds too self-congratulatory;
Therefore no more of it: hear other things.
I’ll stop it and move on to other things.
Lorenzo, I commit into your hands
Lorenzo, I’m entrusting unto you
The husbandry and manage of my house
The management and upkeep of my house
Until my lord's return: for mine own part,
Until my lord returns. And as for me,
I have toward heaven breathed a secret vow
I have declared a secret vow to heaven
To live in prayer and contemplation,
To live in prayer and meditation,
Only attended by Nerissa here,
With just Nerissa looking after me,
Until her husband and my lord's return:
Until her husband and my lord return.
There is a monastery two miles off;
There is a monastery two miles from here,
And there will we abide. I do desire you
And that is where I’ll stay. I ask that you
Not to deny this imposition;
Do not decline to honour this request,
The which my love and some necessity
Which out of love and some necessity
Now lays upon you.
I have to ask of you.
LORENZO
Madam, with all my heart;
With all my heart,
I shall obey you in all fair commands.
I’ll do whatever fair request you ask me.
PORTIA
My people do already know my mind,
My staff already know of my intentions,
And will acknowledge you and Jessica
And they’ll report to you and Jessica
In place of Lord Bassanio and myself.
Just as they would to me and Lord Bassanio.
And so farewell, till we shall meet again.
And so, goodbye, until we meet again.
LORENZO
Fair thoughts and happy hours attend on you!
I wish you happy thoughts and happy days!
JESSICA
I wish your ladyship all heart's content.
I wish your ladyship great happiness.
PORTIA
I thank you for your wish, and am well pleased
I thank you for your wish, and it’s my pleasure
To wish it back on you: fare you well Jessica.
To wish it back to you. Goodbye now, Jessica.
[Exeunt JESSICA and LORENZO]
Now, Balthasar,
Now, Balthasar,
As I have ever found thee honest-true,
As I have always found you to be honest,
So let me find thee still. Take this same letter,
I hope that will continue. Take this letter,
And use thou all the endeavour of a man
And using all the manly strength you have,
In speed to Padua: see thou render this
Go fast to Padua. Make sure you put this
Into my cousin's hand, Doctor Bellario;
Into my cousin’s hand, Doctor Bellario.
And, look, what notes and garments he doth give thee,
And then, whatever notes and clothes he gives you,
Bring them, I pray thee, with imagined speed
Bring them, I ask, as quickly as you can
Unto the tranect, to the common ferry
Onto the ferry regularly running
Which trades to Venice. Waste no time in words,
From there to Venice. Waste no time with questions,
But get thee gone: I shall be there before thee.
But get a move on. I’ll be there before you.
BALTHASAR
Madam, I go with all convenient speed.
Madam, I’ll go as quickly as I can.
[Exit]
PORTIA
Come on, Nerissa; I have work in hand
Come on, Nerissa, I’ve some work for us
That you yet know not of: we'll see our husbands
That you don’t yet know of. We’ll see our husbands
Before they think of us.
Before they think of us.
NERISSA
Shall they see us?
Will they see us?
PORTIA
They shall, Nerissa; but in such a habit,
They will, Nerissa, but we will be dressed
That they shall think we are accomplished
In such a way, they’ll think that we’re endowed
With that we lack. I'll hold thee any wager,
With that we were not born with. I will bet you,
When we are both accoutred like young men,
When we are both dressed up like we’re young men,
I'll prove the prettier fellow of the two,
I will appear the prettier of the two,
And wear my dagger with the braver grace,
And hold my dagger with a braver stance,
And speak between the change of man and boy
And speak as though my boyhood voice is breaking
With a reed voice, and turn two mincing steps
With shrieking tones; and change from dainty walking
Into a manly stride, and speak of frays
Into a manly stride, and talk of fighting
Like a fine bragging youth, and tell quaint lies,
Much a young man bragging, and tell lies
How honourable ladies sought my love,
About how lovely ladies hoped to date me,
Which I denying, they fell sick and died;
But, when I turned them down, they dropped down dead.
I could not do withal; then I'll repent,
I cannot help myself. Then I’ll repent
And wish for all that, that I had not killed them;
And wish that I had not have killed them all.
And twenty of these puny lies I'll tell,
And I’ll tell twenty crafty lies like this
That men shall swear I have discontinued school
So men will think I’ve only finished school
Above a twelvemonth. I have within my mind
About a year. I have, within my mind,
A thousand raw tricks of these bragging Jacks,
A thousand tricks these cocky blokes might use,
Which I will practise.
And I will use them.
NERISSA
Why, shall we turn to men?
Will we turn to men?
PORTIA
Fie, what a question's that,
What sort of question’s that?
If thou wert near a lewd interpreter!
One could interpret that as rather rude!
But come, I'll tell thee all my whole device
Come on, I’ll tell you all about my plan
When I am in my coach, which stays for us
When we are in my coach, which waits for us
At the park gate; and therefore haste away,
At the park gate. So let’s be on our way,
For we must measure twenty miles to-day.
We have to travel twenty miles today.
[Exeunt]
