LI
Yet one man for one moment 235
Strode out before the crowd:
Well known was he to all the Three,
And they gave him greeting loud.
“Now welcome, welcome, Sextus!
Now welcome to thy home! 240
Why dost thou stay, and turn away?
Here lies the road to Rome.”
LII
Thrice looked he at the city;
Thrice looked he at the dead;
And thrice came on in fury, 245
And thrice turned back in dread,
And, white with fear and hatred,
Scowled at the narrow way,
Where, wallowing in a pool of blood,
The bravest Tuscans lay. 250
LIII
But meanwhile axe and lever
Have manfully been plied;
And now the bridge hangs tottering
Above the boiling tide.
“Come back, come back, Horatius!” 255
Loud cried the Fathers all.
“Back, Lartius! back, Herminius!
Back, ere the ruin fall!”
LIV
Back darted Spurius Lartius:
Herminius darted back: 260
And, as they passed, beneath their feet
They felt the timbers crack.
But when they turned their faces,
And on the farther shore
Saw brave Horatius stand alone, 265
They would have crossed once more.
LV
But with a crash like thunder
Fell every loosened beam,
And, like a dam, the mighty wreck
Lay right athwart the stream: 270
And a long shout of triumph
Rose from the walls of Rome,
As to the highest turret-tops
Was splashed the yellow foam.
LVI
And like a horse unbroken, 275
When first he feels the rein,
The furious river struggled hard,
And tossed his tawny mane,
And burst the curb, and bounded,
Rejoicing to be free, 280
And whirling down, in fierce career,
Battlement and plank and pier,
Rushed headlong to the sea.
LVII
Alone stood brave Horatius,
But constant still in mind; 285
Thrice thirty thousand foes before,
And the broad flood behind.
“Down with him!” cried false Sextus,
With a smile on his pale face.
“Now yield thee,” cried Lars Porsena, 290
“Now yield thee to our grace.”
LVIII
Round turned he, as not deigning
Those craven ranks to see;
Naught spake he to Lars Porsena,
To Sextus naught spake he; 295
But he saw on Palatinus
The white porch of his home,
And he spake to the noble river
That rolls by the towers of Rome.
LIX
“O Tiber! father Tiber! 300
To whom the Romans pray,
A Roman’s life, a Roman’s arms,
Take thou in charge this day!”
So he spake, and, speaking, sheathed
The good sword by his side, 305
And with his harness on his back,
Plunged headlong in the tide.
LX
No sound of joy or sorrow
Was heard from either bank:
But friends and foes in dumb surprise, 310
With parted lips and straining eyes,
Stood gazing where he sank;
And when above the surges,
They saw his crest appear,
All Rome sent forth a rapturous cry, 315
And even the ranks of Tuscany
Could scarce forbear to cheer.
LXI
LXIII
“Curse on him!” quoth false Sextus:
“Will not the villain drown?
But for this stay, ere close of day
We should have sacked the town!”
“Heaven help him!” quoth Lars Porsena, 330
“And bring him safe to shore;
For such a gallant feat of arms
Was never seen before.”
LXIV
And now he feels the bottom;
Now on dry earth he stands; 335
Now round him throng the Fathers,
To press his gory hands;
And now, with shouts and clapping,
And noise of weeping loud,
He enters through the River-Gate, 340
Borne by the joyous crowd.
Stanza I
l. 1-4.—The exalted position of Lars Porsena, the oath, and the grandeur of the Tarquin house, all contribute to make the movement slow and the atmosphere dignified.
l. 5.—Note the repetition and its effect on the movement.
l. 7.—Rather fast.
l. 8.—According to the importance we attach to this line will be the rate of movement. If it means simply in all directions, the time will be moderate. If, however, we desire to emphasize that the messengers rode far to the east, and far to the west, and so forth, the time will be slow. Probably the former is the better interpretation.
Stanza XI
Colloquial style and moderate time prevail throughout the stanza except in
l. 16, where the transition is marked.
Stanza XII
The atmosphere is that of the pride of Porsena in his army.
Stanza XIII
l. 26.—Observe the transition to the atmosphere of fright and terror that pervades the entire stanza.
l. 30.—Conceive that mass of humanity and note how the length of the inflection on mile is extended.
l. 33.—Very slow; each day and each night seems to be endless.
Stanzas XIV and XV
Observe that the principal verb does not appear until line 49. Hence there will be a rising inflection at the end of every line of these stanzas except 49.
The movement is rather fast and the atmosphere that of despair.
l. 49.—Very slow.
Stanza XVI
l. 50-54.—Narrative style.
l. 55.—Slow.
l. 56.—Note the longer inflections on every hour.
Stanza XIX
l. 58.—Be careful to separate the last two words.
l. 63.—Slower time and marked transition.
Stanza XX
l. 66-67.—Fast time; not in imitation of the speed of the scout, but in sympathy with his feelings.
l. 68-69.—No effort should be made to shriek these words; it is sufficient to suggest the fact that he is calling, and his fear. The time will be fast.
l. 70.—Observe the change in time and atmosphere.
l. 73.—A good illustration of the principle underlying movement. This line is read slowly, for it announces the doom of the city.
Stanza XXI
l. 74-75.—Moderate time.
l. 76-79.—Note that the time grows gradually slower as the mind becomes more and more engrossed with the picture, and how the voice swells with increasing grandeur.
l. 80-85.—Prevailingly moderate movement.
l. 84.—Rising inflection on bright because the speaker no doubt has in mind the two lines, 84 and 85.
Stanza XXV
The hatred and contempt of the speaker will color the entire stanza. The movement will be on the whole moderate.
l. 88.—Slow.
Stanza XXVI
l. 94.—Slower time, and an atmosphere of sadness. Bear in mind the speaker sympathizes with the Consul.
l. 98.—Despair and sadness.
Stanza XXVII
l. 102-103.—Manifest the speaker’s pride in Horatius, and note the striking contrast between the atmosphere of these lines and that of the concluding lines of the preceding stanza.
l. 104-109.—Solemn and deliberate.
Stanza XXIX
l. 110-115.—Note the change in Horatius.
l. 116-117.—As if addressing the crowd; a marked transition.
Stanza XXX
A good study in variety; nearly every line presents a change of atmosphere.
Stanza XXXI
l. 126-127.—Very deliberately the Consul speaks. Why? What are his feelings?
l. 128-129.—Observe the patriotic ring in the speaker’s words.
Stanza XXXIV
The stanza is in simple narrative style, and contains but little emotion. The significant idea is that the patricians in this hour of trial worked side by side with plebeians.
Stanza XXXV
The time is moderate at the beginning, becoming gradually slower to the end.
Observe the change in atmosphere in the last line. Once more it is well to remind the reader that the speaker is a patriot.
Stanza XXXVI
The movement of the first two lines is rather slow; after that it accelerates to the end, in sympathy with the fast moving picture.
Stanza XXXVIII
The atmosphere is that of struggle and of the joy of victory.
The time will be rather fast, retarding towards the close.
Stanza XL
l. 170-173.—See note on preceding stanza.
l. 174.—Transition. Observe the hate of Horatius.
Stanza XLI
The time is prevailingly slow, and the atmosphere in marked contrast to that of the preceding stanza. There is, too, a note of contempt and irony.
Stanza XLII
l. 189.—Abrupt transition to atmosphere of what is almost fear. Time fast.
l. 190-196.—Time slow, and atmosphere in sympathy with the size and strength of Astur.
Stanza XLIII
l. 197-198.—Observe the contrast between the atmosphere of these lines and that of the succeeding two.
l. 201-202.—Astur’s contempt for his own allies.
l. 203.—Boastfully.
Stanza XLIV
l. 205-208.—Fast and strong.
l. 209-210.—Fast.
l. 211-212.—Slower, and note change in feeling: Horatius is wounded.
l. 213-214.—The joy of the enemy serves but to increase the speaker’s sorrow.
Stanza XLV
l. 217-222.—Note the intensity of the speaker’s feeling and his savage joy at the close.
Stanza XLVI
Slow time throughout.
Stanza XLVII
l. 227.—Moderate time.
l. 231-234.—Transition to the proud and contemptuous defiance of Horatius. The time is moderate; the key is high, because Horatius is calling to the opposing army.
Stanza LI
l. 235-236.—Simple narrative.
l. 237-238.—Contemptuous.
l. 239-242.—Sarcastic throughout. Time quite slow.
Stanza LII
l. 246.—Very slow and contemptuous, especially the last four words. Falling inflection on dread.
Stanza LIII
l. 251.—Note the transition.
l. 251-254.—Rather fast.
l. 255.—Suggest the sustained call and the warning.
l. 256.—Subordinate.
l. 257-258.—Faster and with greater trepidation.
Stanza LIV
l. 259-262.—Fast.
l. 263.—Transition.
Stanza LV
This stanza is the climax of the poem. Horatius’ work is done! The atmosphere is that of joy, triumph, and exultation.
Stanza LVI
The excitement of the speaker carries him on with headlong speed as he recalls the picture described in this stanza.
Stanza LVII
l. 284.—The excitement subsides.
l. 286-287.—No hope.
l. 289.—What is the emotion of Sextus? Note the smile.
l. 290.—Observe the difference between Lars Porsena and Sextus in their feelings toward Horatius.
Stanza LVIII
l. 292.—Slower time. Is there not a note of pride in the speaker’s voice as he recalls the bravery of Horatius?
l. 297-299.—Tender and slow.
Stanza LIX
l. 300-303.—Slow and reverential.
l. 304-307.—Rather fast, with pause before and after headlong.
Stanza LX
l. 308-312.—Rather slow.
l. 313.—Note transition to the feeling of joy.
Stanza LXI
The entire stanza is permeated with the speaker’s suspense and with his sympathy with the struggles of the wounded man.
Stanza LXIII
Observe again the contrast between Sextus and Lars Porsena, both enemies of Horatius.
Stanza LXIV
If we will follow the picture and describe it as we see it and as the speaker now recalls it, we will make long pauses after bottom and stands.
The time increases in rapidity through the first four lines, and then is retarded to the end.
The atmosphere of the first four lines is that of joy, and it is hardly possible to keep back the tears as we utter the last four.
In the final selection we shall call attention to all the interpretative difficulties which the teacher is likely to meet with in the class-room. There is no reason why such a piece of literature as this cannot be used to advantage even in the public school, provided we take the time for careful analysis.
JULIUS CAESAR.—Shakespeare
Act IV., Scene 3
Brutus’s Tent
Enter Brutus and Cassius
Cas. That you have wrong’d me doth appear in this:
You have condemn’d and noted Lucius Pella
For taking bribes here of the Sardians;
Wherein my letters, praying on his side,
Because I knew the man, were slighted off.
Bru. You wrong’d yourself to write in such a case.
Cas. In such a time as this it is not meet
That every nice offence should bear his comment.
Bru. Let me tell you, Cassius, you yourself
Are much condemn’d to have an itching palm; 10
To sell and mart your offices for gold
To undeservers.
Cas. I an itching palm!
You know that you are Brutus that speak this,
Or, by the gods, this speech were else your last.
Bru. The name of Cassius honours this corruption,
And chastisement doth therefore hide his head.
Cas. Chastisement!
Bru. Remember March, the ides of March remember:
Did not great Julius bleed for justice sake?
What villain touch’d his body, that did stab, 20
And not for justice? What, shall one of us,
That struck the foremost man of all this world
But for supporting robbers, shall we now
Contaminate our fingers with base bribes,
And sell the mighty space of our large honours
For so much trash as may be grasped thus?
I had rather be a dog, and bay the moon,
Than such a Roman.
Cas. Brutus, bay not me;
I’ll not endure it; you forget yourself,
To hedge me in; I am a soldier, I, 30
Older in practice, abler than yourself
To make conditions.
Bru. Go to; you are not, Cassius.
Cas. I am.
Bru. I say you are not.
Cas. Urge me no more, I shall forget myself;
Have mind upon your health, tempt me no farther.
Bru. Away, slight man!
Cas. Is’t possible?
Bru. Hear me, for I will speak.
Must I give way and room to your rash choler?
Shall I be frighted when a madman stares? 40
Cas. O ye gods, ye gods! must I endure all this?
Bru. All this! ay, more: fret till your proud heart break;
Go show your slaves how choleric you are,
And make your bondmen tremble. Must I budge?
Must I observe you? must I stand and crouch
Under your testy humour? By the gods,
You shall digest the venom of your spleen,
Though it do split you; for, from this day forth,
I’ll use you for my mirth, yea, for my laughter,
When you are waspish.
Cas. Is it come to this? 50
Bru. You say you are a better soldier;
Let it appear so; make your vaunting true,
And it shall please me well: for mine own part,
I shall be glad to learn of noble men.
Cas. You wrong me every way; you wrong me, Brutus;
I said, an elder soldier, not a better:
Did I say ‘better’?
Bru. If you did, I care not.
Cas. When Caesar lived, he durst not thus have moved me.
Bru. Peace, peace! you durst not so have tempted him.
Cas. I durst not! 60
Bru. No.
Cas. What, durst not tempt him!
Bru. For your life you durst not.
Cas. Do not presume too much upon my love;
I may do that I shall be sorry for.
Bru. You have done that you should be sorry for.
There is no terror, Cassius, in your threats,
For I am arm’d so strong in honesty
That they pass by me as the idle wind,
Which I respect not. I did send to you
For certain sums of gold, which you denied me: 70
For I can raise no money by vile means:
By heaven, I had rather coin my heart,
And drop my blood for drachmas, than to wring
From the hard hands of peasants their vile trash
By any indirection: I did send
To you for gold to pay my legions,
Which you denied me: was that done like Cassius?
Should I have answer’d Caius Cassius so?
When Marcus Brutus grows so covetous,
To lock such rascal counters from his friends, 80
Be ready, gods, with all your thunderbolts;
Dash him to pieces!
Cas. I denied you not.
Bru. You did.
Cas. I did not: he was but a fool that brought
My answer back. Brutus hath rived my heart:
A friend should bear his friend’s infirmities,
But Brutus makes mine greater than they are.
Bru. I do not, till you practise them on me.
Cas. You love me not.
Bru. I do not like your faults.
Cas. A friendly eye could never see such faults. 90
Bru. A flatterer’s would not, though they do appear
As huge as high Olympus.
Cas. Come, Antony, and young Octavius, come,
Revenge yourselves alone on Cassius,
For Cassius is aweary of the world:
Hated by one he loves; braved by his brother;
Check’d like a bondman; all his faults observed,
Set in a note-book, learn’d, and conn’d by rote,
To cast into my teeth. O, I could weep
My spirit from mine eyes! There is my dagger, 100
And here my naked breast; within, a heart
Dearer than Plutus’ mine, richer than gold:
If that thou be’st a Roman, take it forth;
Strike, as thou didst at Caesar; for, I know,
I, that denied thee gold, will give my heart:
When thou didst hate him worst, thou lovedst him better
Than ever thou lovedst Cassius.
Bru. Sheathe your dagger:
Be angry when you will, it shall have scope;
Do what you will, dishonour shall be humour.
O Cassius, you are yoked with a lamb 110
That carries anger as the flint bears fire;
Who, much enforced, shows a hasty spark,
And straight is cold again.
Cas. Hath Cassius lived
To be but mirth and laughter to his Brutus,
When grief, and blood ill-temper’d, vexeth him?
Bru. When I spoke that, I was ill-temper’d too.
Cas. Do you confess so much? Give me your hand.
Bru. And my heart too.
Cas. O Brutus!
Bru. What’s the matter?
Cas. Have not you love enough to bear with me,
When that rash humour which my mother gave me 120
Makes me forgetful?
Bru. Yes, Cassius; and, from henceforth,
When you are over-earnest with your Brutus.
He’ll think your mother chides, and leave you so.
A few words of introduction are first necessary. We should understand the play as a whole, and be conversant with the events that lead up to this particular scene; further, we should bear in mind the tense, splenetic character of Cassius, and the calm, controlled, stoical disposition of Brutus.
l. 1.—In Scene 2 we get the keynote to Cassius’ manner. He is so full of his supposed wrong that he pays no heed to the surroundings, and bluntly plunges into the matter in hand. Brutus restrains him, and together they move to the former’s tent. No sooner do they enter than again Cassius bursts forth.
l. 4.—Cassius is piqued that his letters should have failed to shield Lucius Pella from the punishment for his wrongdoing.
l. 5.—Subordinate and explanatory.
l. 6.—Brutus’s answer is simple and direct, yet without feeling.
l. 8.—Nice is equivalent to unimportant, small. There is a touch of contempt in this speech.
l. 9.—Again we note the directness of Brutus’s statement, and the absence of feeling. Note, too, that he in no way seeks to soften his charges.
l. 12.—Imagine the surprise and rage of Cassius. There will be a sweeping upward inflection on I. It is only with the utmost effort that the fiery Cassius can control himself.
l. 15-16.—Paraphrased, these lines mean, The name of Cassius is associated with this corruption, and hence the hands of justice are tied. For, to bring the corrupters to trial would be to drag in Cassius with them.
l. 17.—Do you dare to use the term chastisement in connection with my name?
l. 18.—Unmoved by the anger of Cassius, Brutus proceeds calmly and perhaps too ruthlessly to arraign his friend.
l. 21.—Observe the high moral standard of Brutus.
l. 21-26.—Rising inflections throughout.
l. 27.—Observe the contempt.
l. 28.—During the speech of Brutus, Cassius can scarcely contain himself. Never has any one dared to arraign him. Now he is even forgetting the deference he has been wont to show to one whom he recognizes as his superior.
l. 32-34.—Rapidly, as the passion of the men rises.
l. 35-36.—Now Cassius begins to threaten.
l. 37.—There is no anger in this. Brutus knows that Cassius is beside himself, and brushes him aside as one would brush an insignificant dust speck from his clothing.
l. 38.—Such treatment Cassius cannot understand. The line is exclamatory rather than interrogative. It is equivalent to, Can I believe my ears?
l. 38.—Brutus now begins to assert himself. It is a new aspect of his character, which we can comprehend only when we learn, as we do later, that Portia is dead.
l. 40.—Brutus must be greatly moved to call his dearest friend a madman.
l. 41.—The strain of listening to such words is becoming too great for Cassius to bear.
l. 42.—Brutus seems almost to enjoy the terrible lesson he is reading Cassius. It is well-nigh incredible that the thoughtful, loving husband of Portia, and the considerate master of Lucius, should speak thus to any one, let alone his best friend.
l. 50.—There seems to be no feeling but surprise in this, surprise verging on bewilderment. As Brutus grows more passionate Cassius seems to subside.
l. 51-54.—It is Brutus now who appears to lose self-control. Cassius never said he was a better soldier.
l. 55-57.—Anger and bewilderment give way to a sense of having been wronged: the last sentence is almost pathetic in its humility.
l. 57.—Anger and contempt.
l. 58.—Cassius’ passion is again beginning to rise.
l. 59-62.—Note the increasing astonishment in the speeches of Cassius, and the superciliousness of Brutus.
l. 63-64.—A threat uttered not so much in anger as in fear that he may not be able to control his feelings.
l. 65.—Have and should are the emphatic words.
l. 65-82.—This speech needs no commentary. It is a plain and unmistakable arraignment, uttered in unequivocal language, and in simple, direct manner.
l. 82.—Cassius is pained that his friend should so misunderstand him. From now to line 93 Cassius seems to throw himself upon the mercy of his friend, while the latter repels his advances, each time with greater harshness.
l. 93-107.—Cassius’ heart is broken. If his best friend can so wantonly misunderstand him, what can he hope from his enemies? There is nothing left to live for, and he would eagerly welcome death even at the hands of Antony. The passage is overflowing with heartbreak, and gains our sympathy for one who else would seem but a crafty, self-seeking schemer.
l. 107.—The speech of Cassius brings Brutus back to himself. Here is the real Brutus, full of tenderness and love.
To understand fully the unusual display of feeling in this scene we should read further to the stage direction, Re-enter Lucius, with wine and taper.
FOOTNOTES:
[15] Let it be understood once for all that the various elements in expression should be the spontaneous outcome of the mental action. As has been so often stated, to tell a pupil to use a rising inflection or to emphasize this word or that, is a violation of the fundamental principle of correct teaching.
[16] The stanzas are numbered as in the original poem.