Lyly, John · published 1592 · first performed or written 1585 [1583-1585] (Annals) comedy · Children of Paul's (first) (?) · before the Court T21 Cupid, Venus and the nymphs typicality 0.86 · 439 words
Marked words are the most distinguishing words of T21: cupid, venus, love, ceres, diana, fair, nymphs, goddess, bow, damon.
Alas Galathea, to consider the causes of change, thou art too young, and that I should find them out for thee, too too fortunate. The destiny to me cannot be so hard as the disguising hateful. To gain love, the Gods have taken shapes of beasts, and to save life art thou coy to take the attire of men? They were beastly gods, that lust could make them seem as beasts. In health it is easy to counsel the sick, but it's hard for the sick to follow wholesome counsel. Well let us depart, the day is far spent. Fair Nymph, are you strayed from your company by chance, or love you to wander solitarily on purpose? Fair boy, or god, or whatever you be, I would you knew these woods are to me so well known, that I cannot stray though I would, and my mind so free, that to be melancholy I have no cause. There is none of Diana's train that any can train, either out of their way, or out of their wits. What is that Diana a goddess? what her nymphs virgins? what her pastimes hunting? A goddess? who knows it not? Virgins? who thinks it not? Hunting? who loves it not? I pray thee sweet wench, amongst all your sweet troup, is there not one that followeth the sweetest thing. Sweet love? Love good sir, what mean you by it? or what do you call it? A heat full of coldness, a sweet full of bitterness, a pain full of pleasantness, which maketh thoughts have eyes, and heart's ears, bred by desire, nursed by delight, weaned by jealousy, killed by dissembling, buried by ingratitude, and this is love, fair Lady will you any? If it be nothing else, it is but a foolish thing. Try, and you shall find it a pretty thing. I have neither will nor leisure, but I will follow Diana in the Chase, whose virgins are all chaste, delighting in the bow that wounds the swift Heart in the Forest, not fearing the bow that strikes the soft heart in the Chamber. This difference is between my Mistress Diana, and your Mother (as I guess) Venus, that all her nymphs are amiable and wise in their kind, the other amorous and too kind for their sex; and so farewell little god. Diana, and thou, and all thine, shall know that Cupid is a great god, I will practise a while in these woods, and play such pranks with these nymphs, that while they aim to hit others with their Arrows, they shall be wounded themselves with their own eyes.
nodes 20–35 (positions in the processed text, not lines of the printed book) · chunk 3 of 27 in this edition
Length
439 words · 563 tokens
Topic (seed 42)
T21 — Cupid, Venus and the nymphscross-work theme (confirmed, in the genre comparison) · typicality 0.855 (cosine to the topic centroid)
Other seeds
seed 43: T21 · seed 44: T24 — topic numbers are assigned independently in each run; equal or different numbers say nothing by themselves
Original spelling (EEBO-TCP, unregularized)
Alas Gallathea, to consider the causes of change, thou art too young, and that I should find them out for thee, too too fortunate. The destenie to me cannot be so hard as the disguising hatefull. To gaine loue, the Gods haue taken shapes of beastes, and to saue life art thou coy to take the attire of men? They were beastly gods, that lust could make them seeme as beastes. In health it is easie to counsell the sicke, but it's hard for the sicke to followe wholesome counsaile. Well let vs depart, the day is farre spent. Faire Nimphe, are you strayed from your companie by chaunce, or loue you to wander solitarily on purpose? Faire boy, or god, or what euer you bee, I would you knew these woods are to me so wel known, that I cannot stray though I would, and my minde so free, that to be melancholy I haue no cause. There is none of Dianaes trayne that any can traine, either out of their waie, or out of their wits. What is that Diana a goddesse? what her Nimphes virgins? what her pastimes hunting? A goddesse? who knowes it not? Virgins? who thinkes it not? Hunting? who loues it not? I pray thee sweete wench, amongst all your sweete troope, is there not one that followeth the sweetest thing. Sweete loue? Loue good sir, what meane you by it? or what doe you call it? A heate full of coldnesse, a sweet full of bitternesse, a paine ful of pleasantnesse, which maketh thoughts haue eyes, and harts eares, bred by desire, nursed by delight, weaned by ielousie, kild by dissembling, buried by ingratitude, and this is loue, fayre Lady wil you any? If it be nothing els, it is but a foolish thing. Try, and you shall find it a prettie thing. I haue neither will nor leysure, but I will followe Diana in the Chace, whose virgins are all chast, delighting in the bowe that wounds the swift Hart in the Forrest, not fearing the bowe that strikes the softe hart in the Chamber. This difference is betweene my Mistris Diana, and your Mother (as I gesse) Venus, that all her Nimphes are amiable and wise in theyr kinde, the other amorous and too kinde for their sexe; and so farewell little god. Diana, and thou, and all thine, shall knowe that Cupid is a great god, I will practise a while in these woodes, and play such pranckes with these Nimphes, that while they ayme to hit others with their Arrowes, they shall be wounded themselues with their owne eyes.