Early Modern Drama · Character Archetypes

PETOUNE

in The Fleer — Sharpham, Edward

Metadata

PlayThe Fleer
AuthorSharpham, Edward
Year (catalogued)1607
First performance1606
Decade1600s
GenreComedy
Play typeBoys Professional
CompanyChildren of the Queen's Revels
TheaterBlackfriars;Indoor Professional
Speech prefix(es)Pet. | Pet: | Pet | Pet; | Pet, | Pet ▪
Words871
Characters4427
Typicality0.27 (cosine to cluster centroid)
TCP idA12078
BritDrama no.1495
ClusterCluster 23 — Gulls, fops & laughing-stocks

Important excerpts

No keyword-matching excerpt could be extracted (the cluster label doesn't share vocabulary with this character's speech).

Full speech

And let Tobacco be your perfumes. Sure I was a fool. Indeed I was, indeed I was. Faith Lady these Gentlewomen have not long v said my company, yet you see how Tobacco hath already refined their spirits. Why, what ails my nose? Why doy' play so about my nose? Dear Lady, now by this day I love you. Faith Lady I must inquire your name. Oh, I know tit well enough. Come, come, Lady can you love? And can you love me? Every fool can say, I, and no, Doy' think I want wit? Good Lady, have a better regard of me, do but think me made of the same mettle other men are. Why, what mettle do you think me? Dear Lady, now by this day I love you. Sir, would you make my Lady and me friends? Lady, I must confess I have offered you and empty pipe, which me thinks hath small reason to be take ̄ in snuff. I with all my heart. Nost willingly. Most willingly. Never. Never? I'm in a fair case now. Well, isle keep my oath, farewell Gentlemen. Oh Fleire, how dost Fleire? How do thy two Ladies live Fleire? Thou their leader! why do they mean to go to the wars? Dost hear Fleir? woot prefer me to their service? I will tell her she is so wise, that neither age nor time could cousin her of beauty. I will tell her that I love her most for the whiteness of her skin. I will praise the smallness of her fingers. I am afraid that being old she has a dry hand. As I am truly generous, she's modest. Fair Mistress, you are so wise, that neither time nor age could ever cousin you of beauty, and I swear even by the Alps high heaven-touching tops, the travelers narrow passage, and by the towering head of high mount Chiego, the Sea-ma ̄ S southward mark: by these the witnesses unto my travel, I do vow that you are passing fair. Oh be not angry, for I protest I cannot but commend the whiteness of your skin. Now on my conscience Mistress, my love is honest, and I desire marriage. At our next meeting we will set down a day for the effecting of it. Faith ill news, the two Florentine Ladies, with Master Spark and Master Ruffell were all poisoned yeast erday at a feast by your Lord Piso and the Knight, but the Ladies have recovered their health, but Spark and Ruffell are dead, and their burial is committed to Fleire: your Lord & the Knight are committed to prison, & shall to morrow be arraigned for the murder, and tried by the Ciuill-lawe, because your Lord is a stranger, and claims to be tried by the law of nations. Faith Ladies I take it now and then fasting for the purification of my wit. Faith Ladies if you used but morning's when you rise, the divine smoke of this Celestial herb, it will more puri fie, cleanse and mundify your complexions, by ten parts then your dissolved Mercury, your juice of Lemons, your distilled snails, your gourd waters, your oil of rar tar, or a thousand such toys. Indeed I was a very silly fellow. Indeed I was and Idiot, a very Idiot. Will you teach me? I'll come to you to school. Prethe peace: deer Lady, please you take a pipe of Tobacco? Swear not good sir, swear not, profane not the Indian plant. But will she forgive me think you if I ask eher mere cy on my knees? Never. Never Well, some shall smoke for this. Hang her, hang her, she's a very crickee, she hath written for me three or four times, but isle see her damned ere isle come to her, woot take any Tobacco Fleire? Thou art a good Courtier Fleire, tha'st God a suit already. Prithe what are they? Why? I here say they live gallantly. And what art thou? a Sumner? Because thou art one of the; hark in thine ear. I think Fleir thy Ladies are not we rich. I pray sir what may she be worth? A Foul Lady? what bird might that be? Gods me; she's angry, what shall I do now Signior? I pray you Lady know me by the title of some kindness. I my Heroic spirits, isle follow ye. Faith Lady, would you bestow but one favour of me. Upon any conditions. What are they Fleire? Faith I can get but a cold comfort of her: For what? Is thy name Fleir? tha'rt a flattering, fleering, cog ging knave. I do not Like such quarrels, a struck me sir, and I protest and swear to you sir by this Trinidado, had I not taken the box on my cheek, a had broke my Pipe. Well, I see he that will have the commodity of good wits in his company, must endure the discommodity of jests, wit is Like the heat of blood in youth 'twil break out. I protest sir so am I for them both. Let the whole band of Angels be centinels to your safety sweet sir. Not I, I was not bid.

Plot summary

Plot — The Fleer
Before the start of the action, Piso deposed Antifront, whose daughters thereupon fled from Florence. Antifront now travels in search of his missing children. He arrives in London under the alias Fleer, and meets some gentlemen. One of them, Spark, gets him a job with two of his countrywomen, a pair of Florentine courtesans working in London. Antifront is dismayed to discover that they are his missing daughters. Two sisters, Susan and Nan, are interested in Spark and his friend Ruffle, who are among the courtesans’ many clients. They dress up as boys and try to get the gentlemen to employ them as pages; Spark and Ruffle refuse, and the ‘pages’ end up working for two other clients, Sir John Havelittle and Piso junior, the son of the Florentine usurper. ‘Fleer’ wants to engineer a marriage for his daughters, selecting Havelittle and Piso as the eligible bachelors. The daughters prefer Spark and Ruffle, but are refused; taking offence, they ask Piso and Havelittle to kill the gentlemen, and suggest poison as the safest method. The plot is overheard by ‘Fleer’ and the ‘pages’. ‘Fleer’ gets himself another job looking after an apothecary’s shop, and sells Piso and Havelittle a poison which is really a sleeping potion. Spark and Ruffle dine with Piso and Havelittle and apparently die. The hosts are at once arrested on suspicion of poisoning and are committed for trial. Fleer is sent on an errand to the senior judge, who is unable to attend through illness, and sends word back for the other two judges to proceed without him. Given a ring to authenticate the message, Fleer instead uses it to get himself deputized as the third judge. He produces a letter which establishes that the guilt extends to the daughters as well as the poisoners, and all four are sentenced to death. News arrives that Piso’s father has died, making him the new Duke of Florence; but-he tells the Florentines to recall the deposed Antifront instead, and offers to make amends for his father’s treason by marrying Antifront’s elder daughter. Antifront reveals his identity and says Piso can do just 1606 that; his younger daughter will marry Havelittle. He produces the murder victims, still alive, and bestows them on Nan and Susan.