Seneca, Lucius Annaeus / Neville, Alexander · published 1581 · first performed or written 1563 (Annals) tragedy T1 Death, grief and revenge typicality 0.83 · 502 words
Marked words are the most distinguishing words of T1: death, life, dead, die, blood, revenge, soul, father, heart, heaven.
Spare now. Leave of to speak in vain, spare now O Mother me, By these Relics of my dismembred body I thee pray. By mine unhappy Children pledges left. What shall I say? By all the Gods I thee beseech. By all that in my name Is good or bad, let me alone. Alas you are to blame To trouble me. You see what hell my hapless heart doth pain. You see that in my Conscience ten thousand horrors rain. O dying heart: O sin-drowned soul. Why dost thou faint alas? Why dost thou seek and toil in vain these ills to overpass? What mean these sighs, & scalding tears? why dost thou death refuse? Thou mate of all his mischiefs thou, by whose means only rues The law of nature all: by whom, Ah, Ah, confounded lies, Both God, and man, and beast, and all that either lives or dies. Die thou, dispatch at once thrust through thy vile incestuous breast: Thou hast none other means (alas) to set thine heart at rest. Not thou, if God himself, if he his flaming fires should throw On thee, or mischiefs all by heaps upon thy body strew Couldst once for thy deserved ills due pains or vengeance pay: Some means therefore to wreak God's wrath upon thyself assay. Death, death now best contenteth me, then seek a way to die. So mayst thou yet at length find end for all thy misery. O Son lend me thy hand: sith that thou art a parricide. This labour last of all remains, this labour thee doth bide. Dispatch rid me thy mother dear from all my deadly woe It will not be: no prayers avail. thyself this deed must do. Take up this sword. Go to, with this thy husband late was slain. Husband? thou termest him false: he was thy sire: O deadly pain. Shall I quite through my breast it drive? or through my throat it thrust? Canst thou not choose thy wound? away: die, die, (alas) thou must. This hateful womb then wound (O wretch) this, this with thine own hand Strike, strike it hard: (O spare it not) sith both a husband, and (The same a Son it bore.) Alas, alas, she is slain, she is slain, dispatched with a push: whoever saw the like to this: see how the blood doth gush. O heavy doleful case: who can this direful sight endure Which for the hideousness thereof might tears of stones procure. Thou God, thou teller out of Fates. On thee, on thee, I call, My Father only I did owe, unto the Destinies all. Now twice a Parricide, and worse than I did fear to be: My Mother I have slain. (Alas) the fault is all in me. O OEdipus accursed wretch, lament thine own Calamity, Lament thy state, thy grief lament, thou Caitiff borne to misery. Where wilt thou now become (alas?) thy Face where wilt thou hide: O miserable Slave, canst thou such shameful torments bide?
nodes 1113–1156 (positions in the processed text, not lines of the printed book) · chunk 25 of 26 in this edition
Length
502 words · 687 tokens
Topic (seed 42)
T1 — Death, grief and revengecross-work theme (confirmed, in the genre comparison) · typicality 0.834 (cosine to the topic centroid)
Other seeds
seed 43: T10 · seed 44: unassigned — topic numbers are assigned independently in each run; equal or different numbers say nothing by themselves
Original spelling (EEBO-TCP, unregularized)
Spare now. Leaue of to ſpeake in vayne, ſpare now O Mother mee, By theſe Reliques of my diſmembred body I thee pray. By myne vnhappy Children pledges left. What ſhall I ſay? By all the Gods I thee beſeech. By all that in my name Is good or bad, let mee alone. Alas you are to blame To trouble mee. You ſee what hell my hapleſſe heart doth payne. You ſee that in my Conſcience ten thouſand horrors raine. O dying heart: O ſindrownd ſoule. Why doſt thou faint alas? Why doſt thou ſeeke and toyle in vayne theſe ills to ouerpas? What meane theſe ſighes, & ſcalding teares? why doſt thou death refuſe? Thou mate of all his miſchiefs thou, by whoſe meanes onely rues The law of nature all: by whom, Ah, Ah, confounded lies, Both God, and man, and beaſt, and all that eyther liues or dies. Die thou, diſpatch at once thruſt through thy vile inceſtuous breſt: Thou haſt none other meanes (alas) to ſet thine heart at reſt. Not thou, if God him ſelfe, if he his flaming fiers ſhould throw On thee, or miſchiefs all by heapes vpon thy body ſtrow Couldſt once for thy deſerued ills due paines or vengeaunce pay: Some meanes therefore to wreak Gods wrath vpon thy ſelfe aſſay. Death, death now beſt contenteth mee, then ſeeke a way to dye. So maiſt thou yet at length finde end for all thy miſery. O Son lend mee thy hand: ſith that thou art a Paracyde. This labour laſt of all remaynes, this labour thee doth byde. Diſpatch rid mee thy mother deare from all my deadly woe It will not be: no prayers auaile. Thy ſelfe this deede muſt doe. Take vp this ſword. Goe to, with this thy huſbande late was ſlayne. Huſband? thou term'ſt him falſe: hee was thy ſyer: O deadly payne. Shal I quight through my breſt it driue? or through my throte it thruſt? Canſt thou not chooſe thy wound? away: die, die, (alas) thou muſt. This hateful womb then woūd (O wretch) this, this wt thine own hand Strike, ſtrike it hard: (O ſpare it not) ſith both a huſband, and (The ſame a Son it bare.) Alas, alas, ſhee is ſlaine, ſhe is ſlayne, diſpatched with a puſh: Who euer ſawe the like to this: ſee how the bloud doth guſh. O heauy doulfull caſe: who can this dyrefull ſight enduer Which for the hideouſneſſe thereof might teares of ſtones procuer. Thou God, thou teller out of Fates. On thee, on thee, I call, My Father onely I did owe, vnto the Deſtnies all. Now twiſe a Paracide, and worſe than I did feare to bee: My Mother I haue ſlayne. (Alas) the fault is all in mee. O OEdipus accurſed wretch, lament thine owne Calamity, Lament thy ſtate, thy griefe lament, thou Caitife borne to miſery. Where wilt thou now become (alas?) thy Face where wilt thou hyde: O myſerable Slaue, canſt thou ſuch ſhamefull tormentes byde?