QUOTES FROM THE BARD

PLAY: Troilus and Cressida
ACT/SCENE: 5.5
SPEAKER: Nestor
CONTEXT:
NESTOR
Go, bear Patroclus’ body to Achilles;
And bid the snail-paced Ajax arm for shame.
There is a thousand Hectors in the field:
Now here he fights on Galathe his horse,
And there lacks work; anon he’s there afoot,
And there they fly or die, like scaled sculls
Before the belching whale; then is he yonder,
And there the strawy Greeks, ripe for his edge,
Fall down before him, like the mower’s swath:
Here, there, and every where, he leaves and takes,
Dexterity so obeying appetite
That what he will he does, and does so much
That proof is called impossibility.
ULYSSES
O, courage, courage, princes! great Achilles
Is arming, weeping, cursing, vowing vengeance:
Patroclus’ wounds have roused his drowsy blood,
Together with his mangled Myrmidons,
That noseless, handless, hacked and chipped, come to him,
Crying on Hector. Ajax hath lost a friend
And foams at mouth, and he is armed and at it,
Roaring for Troilus, who hath done to-day
Mad and fantastic execution,
Engaging and redeeming of himself
With such a careless force and forceless care
As if that luck, in very spite of cunning,
Bade him win all.

DUTCH:
Hier, daar, alomme, spaart hij en verderft;
En kloekheid staat zijn strijdlust zoo ter zij,
Dat, wat hij wil, hij ‘t doet, en zooveel doet,
Dat zelfs wie ‘t ziet, het nog onmoog’lijk noemt.

MORE:
Scull=Shoal of fish
Belching=Spouting
Edge=Blade
Swath=Sweep of the scythe ( Nestor picturing Hector as a Grim Reaper figure)
Appetite=Inclination
Proof=Fact
Mangled=Gored
Fantastic=Extravagant
Engaging=(1) Binding, pledging; (2) Close fighting
Careless force=Reckless strength
Forceless care=Effortless diligence
Compleat:
Belch=Oprisping
Edge=Snee van een mes
To swathe=Zwachtelen, in de luyeren vinden, bakeren
Appetite=Graagte, lust, begeerte, trek
Proof=Beproeving
Mangled=Opgereeten, van een gescheurd, gehakkeld
Fantastick=Byzinnig, eygenzinnig, grilziek
To engage=Verpligten, verbinden, verpanden. To engage in war=Zich in oorlog inwikkelen
To engage in an actoin=Zich in eenig bedryf mengen, zich in iets steeken
Careless=Zorgeloos, kommerloos, achteloos, onachtzaam

Topics: skill/talent, conflict, anger, courage