SCENE I. Plains near Rome. Titus Andronicus  Shakespeare homepage  |  Titus Andronicus  | Act 5, Scene 1 

 Previous scene  |  Next scene  SCENE I. Plains near Rome. 

 Enter LUCIUS with an army of Goths, with drum and colours  LUCIUS  Approved warriors, and my faithful friends, 

 I have received letters from great Rome, 

 Which signify what hate they bear their emperor 

 And how desirous of our sight they are. 

 Therefore, great lords, be, as your titles witness, 

 Imperious and impatient of your wrongs, 

 And wherein Rome hath done you any scath, 

 Let him make treble satisfaction. 

 First Goth  Brave slip, sprung from the great Andronicus, 

 Whose name was once our terror, now our comfort; 

 Whose high exploits and honourable deeds 

 Ingrateful Rome requites with foul contempt, 

 Be bold in us: we'll follow where thou lead'st, 

 Like stinging bees in hottest summer's day 

 Led by their master to the flowered fields, 

 And be avenged on cursed Tamora. 

 All the Goths  And as he saith, so say we all with him. 

 LUCIUS  I humbly thank him, and I thank you all. 

 But who comes here, led by a lusty Goth? 



 Enter a Goth, leading AARON with his Child in his arms  Second Goth  Renowned Lucius, from our troops I stray'd 

 To gaze upon a ruinous monastery; 

 And, as I earnestly did fix mine eye 

 Upon the wasted building, suddenly 

 I heard a child cry underneath a wall. 

 I made unto the noise; when soon I heard 

 The crying babe controll'd with this discourse: 

 'Peace, tawny slave, half me and half thy dam! 

 Did not thy hue bewray whose brat thou art, 

 Had nature lent thee but thy mother's look, 

 Villain, thou mightst have been an emperor: 

 But where the bull and cow are both milk-white, 

 They never do beget a coal-black calf. 

 Peace, villain, peace!'--even thus he rates 

 the babe,-- 

 'For I must bear thee to a trusty Goth; 

 Who, when he knows thou art the empress' babe, 

 Will hold thee dearly for thy mother's sake.' 

 With this, my weapon drawn, I rush'd upon him, 

 Surprised him suddenly, and brought him hither, 

 To use as you think needful of the man. 

 LUCIUS  O worthy Goth, this is the incarnate devil 

 That robb'd Andronicus of his good hand; 

 This is the pearl that pleased your empress' eye, 

 And here's the base fruit of his burning lust. 

 Say, wall-eyed slave, whither wouldst thou convey 

 This growing image of thy fiend-like face? 

 Why dost not speak? what, deaf? not a word? 

 A halter, soldiers! hang him on this tree. 

 And by his side his fruit of bastardy. 

 AARON  Touch not the boy; he is of royal blood. 

 LUCIUS  Too like the sire for ever being good. 

 First hang the child, that he may see it sprawl; 

 A sight to vex the father's soul withal. 

 Get me a ladder. 



 A ladder brought, which AARON is made to ascend  AARON  Lucius, save the child, 

 And bear it from me to the empress. 

 If thou do this, I'll show thee wondrous things, 

 That highly may advantage thee to hear: 

 If thou wilt not, befall what may befall, 

 I'll speak no more but 'Vengeance rot you all!' 

 LUCIUS  Say on: an if it please me which thou speak'st 

 Thy child shall live, and I will see it nourish'd. 

 AARON  An if it please thee! why, assure thee, Lucius, 

 'Twill vex thy soul to hear what I shall speak; 

 For I must talk of murders, rapes and massacres, 

 Acts of black night, abominable deeds, 

 Complots of mischief, treason, villanies 

 Ruthful to hear, yet piteously perform'd: 

 And this shall all be buried by my death, 

 Unless thou swear to me my child shall live. 

 LUCIUS  Tell on thy mind; I say thy child shall live. 

 AARON  Swear that he shall, and then I will begin. 

 LUCIUS  Who should I swear by? thou believest no god: 

 That granted, how canst thou believe an oath? 

 AARON  What if I do not? as, indeed, I do not; 

 Yet, for I know thou art religious 

 And hast a thing within thee called conscience, 

 With twenty popish tricks and ceremonies, 

 Which I have seen thee careful to observe, 

 Therefore I urge thy oath; for that I know 

 An idiot holds his bauble for a god 

 And keeps the oath which by that god he swears, 

 To that I'll urge him: therefore thou shalt vow 

 By that same god, what god soe'er it be, 

 That thou adorest and hast in reverence, 

 To save my boy, to nourish and bring him up; 

 Or else I will discover nought to thee. 

 LUCIUS  Even by my god I swear to thee I will. 

 AARON  First know thou, I begot him on the empress. 

 LUCIUS  O most insatiate and luxurious woman! 

 AARON  Tut, Lucius, this was but a deed of charity 

 To that which thou shalt hear of me anon. 

 'Twas her two sons that murder'd Bassianus; 

 They cut thy sister's tongue and ravish'd her 

 And cut her hands and trimm'd her as thou saw'st. 

 LUCIUS  O detestable villain! call'st thou that trimming? 

 AARON  Why, she was wash'd and cut and trimm'd, and 'twas 

 Trim sport for them that had the doing of it. 

 LUCIUS  O barbarous, beastly villains, like thyself! 

 AARON  Indeed, I was their tutor to instruct them: 

 That codding spirit had they from their mother, 

 As sure a card as ever won the set; 

 That bloody mind, I think, they learn'd of me, 

 As true a dog as ever fought at head. 

 Well, let my deeds be witness of my worth. 

 I train'd thy brethren to that guileful hole 

 Where the dead corpse of Bassianus lay: 

 I wrote the letter that thy father found 

 And hid the gold within the letter mention'd, 

 Confederate with the queen and her two sons: 

 And what not done, that thou hast cause to rue, 

 Wherein I had no stroke of mischief in it? 

 I play'd the cheater for thy father's hand, 

 And, when I had it, drew myself apart 

 And almost broke my heart with extreme laughter: 

 I pry'd me through the crevice of a wall 

 When, for his hand, he had his two sons' heads; 

 Beheld his tears, and laugh'd so heartily, 

 That both mine eyes were rainy like to his : 

 And when I told the empress of this sport, 

 She swooned almost at my pleasing tale, 

 And for my tidings gave me twenty kisses. 

 First Goth  What, canst thou say all this, and never blush? 

 AARON  Ay, like a black dog, as the saying is. 

 LUCIUS  Art thou not sorry for these heinous deeds? 

 AARON  Ay, that I had not done a thousand more. 

 Even now I curse the day--and yet, I think, 

 Few come within the compass of my curse,-- 

 Wherein I did not some notorious ill, 

 As kill a man, or else devise his death, 

 Ravish a maid, or plot the way to do it, 

 Accuse some innocent and forswear myself, 

 Set deadly enmity between two friends, 

 Make poor men's cattle break their necks; 

 Set fire on barns and hay-stacks in the night, 

 And bid the owners quench them with their tears. 

 Oft have I digg'd up dead men from their graves, 

 And set them upright at their dear friends' doors, 

 Even when their sorrows almost were forgot; 

 And on their skins, as on the bark of trees, 

 Have with my knife carved in Roman letters, 

 'Let not your sorrow die, though I am dead.' 

 Tut, I have done a thousand dreadful things 

 As willingly as one would kill a fly, 

 And nothing grieves me heartily indeed 

 But that I cannot do ten thousand more. 

 LUCIUS  Bring down the devil; for he must not die 

 So sweet a death as hanging presently. 

 AARON  If there be devils, would I were a devil, 

 To live and burn in everlasting fire, 

 So I might have your company in hell, 

 But to torment you with my bitter tongue! 

 LUCIUS  Sirs, stop his mouth, and let him speak no more. 



 Enter a Goth  Third Goth  My lord, there is a messenger from Rome 

 Desires to be admitted to your presence. 

 LUCIUS  Let him come near. 



 Enter AEMILIUS  Welcome, AEmilius	what's the news from Rome? 

 AEMILIUS  Lord Lucius, and you princes of the Goths, 

 The Roman emperor greets you all by me; 

 And, for he understands you are in arms, 

 He craves a parley at your father's house, 

 Willing you to demand your hostages, 

 And they shall be immediately deliver'd. 

 First Goth  What says our general? 

 LUCIUS  AEmilius, let the emperor give his pledges 

 Unto my father and my uncle Marcus, 

 And we will come. March away. 



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