in The Fatal Dowry — Field, Nathan; Massinger, Philip
Metadata
Play
The Fatal Dowry
Author
Field, Nathan; Massinger, Philip
Year (catalogued)
1632
First performance
1619
Decade
1630s
Genre
Tragedy
Play type
Adult Professional
Company
King's Men
Theater
Blackfriars;Indoor Professional
Speech prefix(es)
Nou. | N • u. | Nou. In.
Words
1234
Characters
6593
Typicality
0.40 (cosine to cluster centroid)
TCP id
A07251
BritDrama no.
1883
Cluster
Cluster 9 — Boon companions & bluff banter
Important excerpts
No keyword-matching excerpt could be extracted (the cluster label doesn't share vocabulary with this character's speech).
Full speech
I know whats to be done. One word more of this I am your enemy. Am I a man Your bribes can work on? would? 'Tis well. Your cause being good, and your proceedings so, Without corruption; I am your friend, Speak your desires. You show in it A father's care. I have a son my self, A fashionable Gentleman and a peaceful: And but I am assured he's not so given, He should take of it too. Sir, what are you? So are many that rake dunghills. If you have any suit, move it in Court. I take no papers in corners. That to we could lend you of our years. Best day to nature's curiosity, Star of Dijum, the lustre of all France, Perpetual pring dwell on thy rosy cheeks, Whose breath is perfume to our Continent, See Flora turned in her varieties. No autumn, nor no age ever approach This heavenly piece, which nature having wrought, She lost her needle and did then despair, Ever to work so lively and so fair. How? I would not for a 1000 crowns she had seen't. Dear Liladam, reform it. Mrs, you hear the news: your father has resigned his Presidentship to my Lord my father. Oh fi upon him, how he wears his clothes! As I he had come this Christmas from St. Omers, To see his friends, and returned after Twelfetyde. That had a winter ly'n perdieu i'th rain. Now out upon him! I thus recant, yet now your hand looks white, Because your lips robbed it of such a right. I rise to say my prayers, sir, he re's my Saint. Good morn unto your Lordship, Remember what you have vowed—to his Mrs. Exe nt omnes, prater Roch. Daug. What's this change? Mistress. Peace, peace. What, thou wouldst money; there. Would, would, would, what are my courses unto thee? Good Cou in Pontalier, meddle with that That shall concern thy self. Exit Nonall. To what purpose, trif er? Can any thing that thou canst say, make void The marriage? or those pleasures but a dream, Which Charaloyes (o Venus ) hath enjoyed? That I could. But apprehend one reason how this might be, Hope would not then forsake me. Give some relish How this may appear possible. But he tasted the first sweets, Bellapert. But for her marriage. With h too much fervor I have so long l u'd and still love you, Mistress, To esteem that and injury to me Which was to you convenient: that is passed My help, is passed my cure. You yet may, Lady, In recompense of all my duteous service, (Provided that your will answer your power) Become my Creditresse. With the next opportunity. That you would ever swear thus. What have I done, Sir, To draw this har h unsavoury language from you? Your presence and the place, makes him presum Upon my patience. So we shall meet —Madam. Very good. Exit Nouall. You are tired With your graven exhortations, Colonel. Pontallier, If I should strike him, I know I shall kill him: And therefore I would have thee beat him, for He's good for nothing else. Gods me, he's angry. Look they bring up their troops. My Lord, I am sorry, Your house is so inhospitable, we must quit it. Exeunt. Manent Char. Rome. MEnd this a little pox! thou hast burned me. o fie vpon't, Oh Lard, he has made me smell (for all the world) Like a flax, or a read headed woman's chamber: powder, powder, powder. Monsieur Liladam, Aymour, how allow you the model of these clothes? Nay, faith, thou art a reasonable near Artificer, give the devil his endue. I now want only my misters approbation, who is indeed, the most polite punctual Queen of dressing in all Burgundy Pah, and makes all other young Ladies appear, as if they came from board last week out of the country, Is't not to we, Liladam? Nay, my soul, it's so, what fouler object in the world, then to see a young fair, handsome beauty, unhand somely dighted a worser incongruently accou read; or a hopeful Chevalier, unmethodically appointed, in the external orna ments of nature? For even as the Index tells us the contents of stories, and directs to the particular Chapters, even S does the outward habit and superficial order of garments (in man woman) give us a taste of the spirit, and demon stratiuely point (as it were a manual note from the margin) all the intern ll quality, and habiliment of the soul, and there cannot be a more evident, palpable, gros e manifestam cion of poor degenerate dunghilly blood, and breeding, then rude, unpolished, disordered and slo enly outside. Pox a this gla see lit flatters, I could find in my heart to break it. I marry? we e there a Q eene oth' world, not I. Wedlock? no padlooke, horslocke, I wear spurs H capers. To keep it off my heals; yet my Aymour, Like a free wanton jennet i'th meadows, I look about, and neigh, take hedge and ditch, Feed in my ne ghbours pastures, pick my choice Of all their faire-maind mares: but married once, A man I staked, or pown'd, and cannot graze Beyond his own hedge. Pish: no more, Thy gall sure's overthrown; these are my Council, And we were now in serious discourse. Thou 'ldst have me be a dog: up, stretch and shake, And ready for all day. Would, would, wouldst have me challenge poor Romont ? Fight with close breeches, thou mayest think I dare not. Do not mistake me (cooze) I am very valiant, But valour shall not make me such and Ass. What use is there of valour (now a days?) It's sure, or to be killed, or to be hanged. Fight thou as thy mind moves thee, it's thy trade, Thou hast nothing else to do; fight with Romont ? No, i'll not fight under a Lord. Gentlemen. Hark you. What mean you, sir? My people. Tell you why sir? Are you my confessor? What will you do? Hold, hold, isle speak. I vow to heaven and you, She's yet untouched, more then her face and hands: cannot call her innocent; for I yield On my solicitous wrongs she consented Where time and place met opportunity To grant me all requests. As upon your faith. Draws Inkehorne and paper. Pox of this Gun. It's done, sir. My hand to this? Nay, there it's. Good devil to your rogueship. No man's safe I'll have a Cannon planted in my chamber, Exit. Against such roaring rogues. Would? Sweet wench, I come. Hence fear, I swore, that's all one, my next oath 'ile keep That I did mean to break, and then it's quit. No pain is endue to lovers perjury. If love himself l ugh at it, so will I. Exit Nouall, Help, ave me, murder, murder. I dare not, I have already done you too much wrong, To fight in such a cause. Since ther's no remedy They fight, Nouall is slain. Despair oh safety now in me prove courage. Oh as you are, persuade you to continue The nobl exercise of your knowing judgement. Not so, you h we a jewel in her, Madam. Fly not to these excuses: thou hast been False in thy promise, and when I have said Ungrateful, all is spoke.
Plot summary
Plot — The Fatal Dowry
. Before the start of the action, the Marshal Charolais bankrupted himself to pay the army, and died in a debtors’ prison. Now his creditors seek to detain his body, preventing it from being buried. His son appeals in the courts, but the measure is pronounced legal; however, the creditors accept Young Charolais’s offer to be imprisoned himself, and the funeral takes place. Being poor, Charolais has no hope of ever being released, but Rochfort pays the debt and, in return, asks that Charolais marry his daughter Beaumelle. Before the marriage, Young Novall paid Beaumelle’s waiting-woman Bellapert to help him seduce her. Despite now being Charolais’s wife, Beaumelle proves receptive to his continued courting, but their meeting is witnessed by Charolais’s friend Romont. He intervenes and sends Novall packing, much to Beaumelle’s displeasure, then accuses her, first to Rochfort and then to her husband, but neither will believe him. Finally he confronts Novali and forces him at gunpoint to sign a confession and undertake never to see or contact Beaumelle again. Novall does not keep his word: Charolais catches him with Beaumelle and kills him. He then presents his wife to her father as the accused in an adultery trial. As a judge, Rochfort is obliged to condemn her to death, a sentence Charolais readily carries out; but as a father, he takes her part and accuses Charolais of ingratitude. The young man is arrested and tried for Novall’s murder. He admits the killing, but pleads that the adultery extenuates it. The court accepts the argument after Romont produces the confession signed by Novall. Private revenge takes over: Charolais is killed in open court by Pontalier, Novall’s kinsman, who is himself killed in turn by Romont, whom the court banishes for the crime.