in Time Vindicated to Himself and to His Honors — Jonson, Ben
Metadata
Play
Time Vindicated to Himself and to His Honors
Author
Jonson, Ben
Year (catalogued)
1623
First performance
1623
Decade
1620s
Genre
Masque
Play type
Occasional
Theater
before the Court;
Speech prefix(es)
EIES. | EISE. | EYES. | EIES
Words
360
Characters
1895
Typicality
0.43 (cosine to cluster centroid)
TCP id
B00230
BritDrama no.
2034
Cluster
Cluster 20 — Conjurers, witches & physicians
Important excerpts
No keyword-matching excerpt could be extracted (the cluster label doesn't share vocabulary with this character's speech).
Full speech
Or eyes? We come to spy. It may be. We may spy out, that, which you never meant. Yes. We needs no interpreter, on, what of Time? His days of feast, and liberty again. Slaves of their lords. This will be better. I spy it coming, peace, all the impostures, The prodigies, diseases, and distempers, The knaveries of the Time, we shall see all now. My four eyes itch for it. That which the Time is presently to show us. This Man ofwarre i'the rear, He is both Trumpet And Champion to his Muse. Now Fame, how Like you this? And this will deify him, to despite you. What gambols? what devises? what new sports? Pox, then it's nothing. I had now a fancy We might have talked of the King. Censured the counsel, ever they censure us. No, the Man In the moon dance a Corranto, his bush At's back, a fire; and his dog piping Lachrimae. What? And talking of all men they never herd of, And, when the matter is at hottest, then All fallen a sleep. Oh, that we shall never do. Hath been oft called from it, to be their Lord of misrule. Yes Fame must know him, all the Town admires him. We know, Sir: but the Time's now come about. We shall do what we list. You'll see. That he ha favourers, Fame, and great ones too, That unctuous Bounty, is the Boffe of Belinsgate, She labours, and lies in of his inventions, And is no sooner foaled, but will neigh sulphur: The ragged rascals? Mere rogues, you' world thinke'em rogues, but they are friends, One is his Printer in disguise, and keeps His press in a hollow tree, where to conceal him, He works by glowworm light, the Moon's too open. The other zealous Rag is the Compositor, Who in and angle, where the ants inhabit, (The Emblem's of his Labours) will fit curled Whole days, and nights, and work his eyes out for him. To little, or no purpose. But see, there be no cause, as you will answer it. Why, if not those, then something to make sport. Or impossible.
Plot summary
Plot — Time Vindicated to Himself and to His Honors
Time sends Fame to summon an audience to witness a spectacle. Among the curious comers are the Eyes, Ears, and Nose, but also Chronomastix, a Satyr who hates the present time and is adored by a crowd of fools. Eyes, Ears, and Nose ask Fame what kind of spectacle it is to be, hoping for something novel and sportful. She rewards them with a performance by tumblers and jugglers. Venus asks Saturn (Time’s alter-ego) to release the glories of the time, the masquers, who have been shut up by the moon goddess. Saturn obliges and dancing ensues. Cupid attempts to seduce the ladies in the audience, while his companion, a Sport, undercuts him. Diana arrives in search of the masquers, having ‘taken offence that Venus believed her guilty of base - covetousness. She explains that in fact she was training the masquers for their vocation as Time’s servants.