in A Christian Turned Turk (The Two Famous Pirates) — Daborne, Robert
Metadata
Play
A Christian Turned Turk (The Two Famous Pirates)
Author
Daborne, Robert
Year (catalogued)
1612
First performance
1610
Decade
1610s
Genre
Tragedy
Play type
Boys Professional
Company
Unknown
Speech prefix(es)
Aliz. | Page. | Frans.
Words
455
Characters
2388
Typicality
0.47 (cosine to cluster centroid)
TCP id
A19757
BritDrama no.
1642
Cluster
Cluster 5 — Romantic leads (high style)
Important excerpts
Passages from this character's speech that contain the most distinguishing words for Cluster 5 (griselda, mephastophilis, rsini, zelmane, hapless, orgalio…). Matches are highlighted.
love a maiden die. Rather to death: Nature this comfort gave, No place so miserable, but yields a graven To wretchedness. As you are virtuous keep from slavery. A hapless, hapless maid. My brother, my deer deer brother. What misery remains to add to mine, My brother lost his life in my defence; And with his life, my sex and liberty,
Full speech
Wretched Alizia, little thinks young Raimond His Brid's so near unto captivity. Be gentle yet you seas, and swallow me, Since I am denied his arms, let my virginity Be offered unto him in sacrifice. IT will be some comfort, his love a maiden die. Rather to death: Nature this comfort gave, No place so miserable, but yields a graven To wretchedness. As you are virtuous keep from slavery. A hapless, hapless maid. My brother, my deer deer brother. What misery remains to add to mine, My brother lost his life in my defence; And with his life, my sex and liberty, I stand deprived of. Are not these wounds sufficient To let out my weak breath? Thou flinty breast, Art thou impenetrable? or is that thing call worser death Too great a good for such a wretch as I am? It is, it is, And that's the cause so many Misery's Do stop the way too't. This Diamond binds me to't, by this I swear. It's here. Captain, you are the man I seek, I have a suit to you, Concerning her that hates you for my sake Neglects your merit, this night gives full revenge To all her injuries. Know her vassaliat lust hath long pursued, And with such violence attempted me, That with my oaths this night to sat her heat I hardly have delayed her. It follow's, give me but way Through your Castle there's a Hollander This evening makes from hence That gives them passage. I have tied him to't I'll speak your worth yet, in spite of fame About three, watch the word Fidel oh. Nay then my joys do flow, How fearful is the night, heaven's angry sure, And having drawn the day up, chid her thus For giving light to men's impieties. It's much about the hour of my appoint, Wh to sad groan wounds my ear S, Fid l oh, Raimond, friend F worser lio. It's not his voice, thou liest false thoughts, Ray mond, Fidelio. No marvel though thou thunderest heaven; And darts thy flashes down, o! why is not This world a vniuer all fire? what one good Keeps back thy lames? My friend, my Raimond by my means murdered I have lived too long, too long. Alas I am nothing, nothing. I will, my name's Alizia, thy constant loyal, loyal friend, that in her passage unto thee will not be long Wish me not so much ill, I love thee better. Miracle of thy sex, o let me embrace thee yet. No other good is known to me but death, moritur My heart I think would break But that in steed of words, mine eyes thus speak. My thoughts now have their ends,
Plot summary
Plot — A Christian Turned Turk (The Two Famous Pirates)
By a ruse, the pirate Ward takes prisoner two French merchants, Ferdinand and Albert. He attacks the ship taking Alizia to her bridegroom, Young Raymond, and kills her brother; she escapes by disguising herself as a ship-boy, Fidelio. Another pirate, Francisco, challenges him for the spoils; they engage in single combat, and ultimately agree to share the booty. During the fight, Ward’s men Gismund and Gallop mutiny and steal a ship, and make for Tunis, taking the disguised Alizia with them. Ward swears vengeance, seizes further prisoners, among them Alizia’s fiancé, and sells them into slavery in Tunis. Gallop makes his peace with Ward by pretending he was abducted, like ‘Fidelio’. The Turkish authorities in Tunis attempt to convert Ward to Islam. He is initially reluctant, but agrees when Voada offers herself as his wife; even so, he evades circumcision by putting an ape’s tail under the knife instead of his penis. He marries Voada as planned and gives her ‘Fidelio’ as her page; but in fact ‘Fidelio’ has been the object of her affections all along, and she has no sexual interest in Ward. ‘Fidelio’ agrees to sleep with her if she arranges for a particular slave to escape, claiming him to be a brother (though of course it is really Young Raymond). To evade the sexual part of the bargain, ‘Fidelio’ then makes an alternative arrangement with Ward, who agrees to help her, but then double-crosses her by telling his wife. Voada kills Raymond, thinking he is trying to rob her of ‘Fidelio’, then Alizia kills herself. Seeking revenge, Voada tries to attack Ward; she is slightly wounded when he defends himself, but exaggerates the injury in order to get him arrested. (The Tunisian authorities are uninterested in the murder of the two Christians.) Ward stabs himself, and dies cursing Turkish treachery. In the other plot, Gallop makes a date for sex with Agar. Her jealous husband Benwash allows the tryst to go ahead, since he needs definite proof of adultery if he is to end the marriage. Meanwhile, the reformed pirate Dansiker has been offered a pardon by the French King, but wishes to do something positive to redeem his past crimes, rather than passively accept forgiveness; so he plans to rid Tunis of its pirates by blowing up the town. Gallop keeps his date with Agar, but thieves steal his clothes and rope ladder while he is busy enjoying himself. The couple are disturbed by Dansiker’s explosion, which sets the house on fire, and Gallop has to escape in a state of…