The Complete Works of William Shakespeare - Israel Gollancz William Shakespeare [1644]
Well said Dorastus, thou keepest a right decorum, base desires and homely attires: thy thoughtes are fit for none but a shepheard, and thy apparell such as only become a shepheard. A strange change from a Prince to a pesant. What is it thy wretched fortune or thy wilful folly: Is it thy cursed destinies? Or thy crooked desires, that appointeth thee this penance? Ah Dorastus thou canst but loue, and vnlesse thou loue thou art like to perish for loue[.] Yet, fond foole, choose flowers, not weedes: Diamonds, not peables: Ladies, which may honour thee: not shepheards which maie disgrace thee. Venus is painted in silkes, not in ragges: and Cupid treadeth on disdaine, when he reacheth at dignity. And yet Dorastus shame not at thy shepheards weede: the heauenly Gods haue sometime earthly thoughtes: Neptune became a Ram, Iupiter a Bull, Apollo a shepheard: they Gods, and yet in loue: and thou a man appointed to loue.
Deuising thus with himselfe, hee drew nigh to the place where Fawnia was keeping her sheepe, who casting her eie aside, and seeing such a manerly shepheard, perfectly limmed, and comming with so good a pace, she began halfe to forget Dorastus, and to favor this pretie shepheard, whom she thought she might both loue and obtaine: but as she was in these thoughtes, she perceiued then, it was the yong prince Dorastus, wherfore she rose vp and reuerently saluted him. Dorastus taking her by the hand, repayed her curtesie with a sweete kisse, and praying her to sit downe by him, he began thus to lay the battery.
If thou marvell Fawnia at my strange attire, thou wouldest more muse at my vnaccustomed thoughts: the one disgraceth but my outward shape, the other disturbeth my inward sences. I loue Fawnia, and therefore what loue liketh I cannot mislike. Fawnia, thou hast promised to loue, and I hope thou wilt performe no lesse: I fulfilled thy request, and nowe thou canst but grant my desire. Thou wert content to loue Dorastus when he ceast to be a Prince, and to become a shepheard, and see I haue made the change, and therefore not to misse of my choice.
Truth, quoth Fawnia, but all that weare cooles are not Monkes: painted Eagles are pictures, not Eagles, Zeusis Grapes were like Grapes, yet shadowes: rich cloathing make not princes: nor homely attire beggers: shepheardes are not called shepheards, because they weere hookes and bags, but that they are borne poore, and liue to keep sheepe, so this attire hath not made Dorastus a shepherd, but to seeme like a shepheard.
Well Fawnia, answered Dorastus: were I a shepherd I could not but like thee, and being a prince I am forst to loue thee. Take heed Fawnia, be not proud of beauties painting, for it is a flower that fadeth in the blossome. Those which disdaine in youth, are despised in age: Beauties shadowes are trickt vp with times colours, which being set to drie in the sunne are stained with the sunne, scarce pleasing the sight ere they begin not to be worth the sight, not much vnlike the herbe Ephemeron, which flourisheth in the morning and is withered before the sunne setting: if my desire were against law, thou mightest iustly deny me by reason, but I loue thee Fawnia not to misuse thee as a concubine, but to vse thee as my wife: I can promise no more, and meane to performe no lesse.
Fawnia hearing this solemne protestation of Dorastus, could no longer withstand the assault, but yeelded vp the fort in these friendly tearmes.
Ah Dorastus, I shame to expresse that thou forcest me with thy sugred speech to confesse: my base birth causeth the one, and thy high dignities the other. Beggars thoughts ought not to reach so far