The Atheist's Tragedy, or The Honest Man's Revenge · chunk 15 of 41
Tourneur, Cyril · published 1611 · first performed or written 1611 [1607-1611] (Annals) tragedy · Unknown T1 Death, grief and revenge typicality 0.66 · 497 words
Marked words are the most distinguishing words of T1: death, life, dead, die, blood, revenge, soul, father, heart, heaven.
Our opposition will but trouble him. The grief that melts to tears, by itself is spent, Passion resisted, grows more violent. Here's a sweet Comedy. T'begins with O dolentis, and concludes with ha, ha, he. Ha, ha, he. O my echo! I could stand reverberating this sweet musical air of joy, till I had perished my sound lungs with violent laughter. Lovely Night-Raven! thoust seized a carcase. Put him out on's pain. I lay so fitly underneath the bank from whence he fell; that e'er his faltering tongue could utter double Oo; I knocked out's brains with this fair Ruby. And had another stone just of this form and bigness ready: that I laid i'the broken skull upo'the ground for's pillow; against the which they thought he fell and perished. Upon this ground I'll build my Manor-house; And this shall be the chiefest corner stone. 'thas crowned the most judicious murder, that The brain of man was e'er delivered of. I. Mark the plot. Not any circumstance That stood within the reach of the design, Of persons, dispositions, matter, time or place, But by this brain of mine, was made An Instrumental help; yet nothing from Th'induction to th'accomplishment seemed forced, Or done o'purpose, but by accident. First, my report that Charlemont was dead, Though false; yet covered with a mask of truth. ay, and delivered in as fit a time. When all our minds so wholly were possessed With one affair, that no man would suspect A thought employed for any second end. Then the Precisian to be ready, when Your brother spoke of death, to move his Will. His business called him thither; and it fell Within his office; unrequested to't. From him it came religiously; and saved Our project from suspicion: which if I Had moved had been endangered. Then your healths. Though seeming but the ordinary rites, And ceremonies due to festivals:— Yet used by me to make the servants drunk. An instrument the plot could not have missed. 'twas easy to set drunkards by the ears: they'd nothing but their torches to fight with; And when those lights were out; Then darkness did Protect the execution of the work, Both from prevention and discovery. Here was a murder bravely carried, through The eye of observation, unobserved. And those that saw the passage of it, made The Instruments yet knew not what they did. That power of rule Philosophers ascribe To him they call the supreme of the Stars; Making their influences governors Of Sublunary Creatures; when their selves Are senseless of their operations. What! Dost start at thunder? Credit my belief, 'tis a mere effect of nature. An exhalation hot and dry, involved within a watery vapour i'the middle religion of the air. Whose coldness congealing that thick moisture to a cloud: the angry exhalation shut within a prison of contrary quality, strives to be free; and with the violent eruption through the grossness of that cloud; makes this noise we hear.
nodes 757–807 (positions in the processed text, not lines of the printed book) · chunk 15 of 41 in this edition
Length
497 words · 671 tokens
Topic (seed 42)
T1 — Death, grief and revengecross-work theme (confirmed, in the genre comparison) · typicality 0.658 (cosine to the topic centroid)
Other seeds
seed 43: T10 · seed 44: T1 — topic numbers are assigned independently in each run; equal or different numbers say nothing by themselves
Original spelling (EEBO-TCP, unregularized)
Our opposition will but trouble him. The griefe that melts to teares, by it selfe is spent, Passion resisted, growes more violent. Here's a sweete Comedie. T'begins with O dolentis, and concludes with ha, ha, he. Ha, ha, he. O my eccho! I could stand reuerberating this sweete musicall ayre of ioy, till I had perish'd my sound lungs with violent laughter. Louely Night-Rauen! th'ast seaz'd a carkasse. Put him out on's paine. I lay so fitly vnderneath the bancke from whence he fell; that e'er his faltring tongue could vtter double Oo; I knock'd out's braines with this faie Rubie. And had another stone iust of this forme and bignesse ready: that I laid i'the broken skull vpo'the ground for's pillow; against the which they thought he fell and perish'd. Vpon this ground Ile build my Manour-house; And this shall be the chiefest corner stone. T'has crown'd the most iudicious murder, that The braine of man was e'er deliuer'd of. I. Marke the plot. Not any circumstance That stood within the reach of the designe, Of persons, dispositions, matter, time or place, But by this braine of mine, was made An Instrumentall help; yet nothing from Th'induction to th'accomplishment seem'd forc'd, Or done o'purpose, but by accident. First, my report that Charlemont was dead, Though false; yet couer'd with a masque of truth. I, and deliuer'd in as fit a time. When all our mindes so wholy were possess'd With one affaire, that no man would suspect A thought imploi'd for any second end. Then the Precisian to be ready, when Your brother spake of death, to moue his Will. His businesse cal'd him thither; and it fell Within his office; vnrequested to't. From him it came religiously; and sau'd Our proiect from suspition: which if I Had mou'd had beene endanger'd. Then your healths. Though seeming but the ordinarie rites, And ceremonies due to festuals:— Yet vs'd by me to make the seruants drunke. An instrument the plot could not haue miss'd. T'was easie to set drunkards by the eares: Th'ad nothing but their torches to fight with; And when those lights were out; Then darkenesse did Protect the execution of the worke, Both from preuention and discouerie. Here was a murther brauely carryed, through The eye of obseruation, vnobseru'd. And those that saw the passage of it, made The Instruments yet knew not what they did. That power of rule Philosophers ascribe To him they call the supreame of the Starres; Making their influences gouernours Of Sublunarie Creatures; when their selues Are senselesse of their operations. What! Doest start at thunder? Credit my beliefe, t'is a meere effect of nature. An exhalation hot and dry, inuolu'd within a watrie vapour i'the middle religion of the ayre. Whose coldnesse congealing that thicke moysture to a cloud: the angry exhalation shut within a prison of contrary qualitie, striues to be free; and with the violent eruption through the grossenesse of that cloud; makes this noyse we heare.