The Brazen Age (The Age of Brass) · chunk 25 of 40
Heywood, Thomas · published 1613 · first performed or written 1611 [1610-1611] (Annals) classical legend or myth · Queen Anne's Men T20 Hercules: labours, suffering and virtue typicality 0.84 · 485 words
Marked words are the most distinguishing words of T20: hercules, hercles, ioue, deianeira, alcides, hand, lo, death, skies, hell.
In vain, our forces are dispersed abroad, Nor have we order to withstand their fury: Best were we to immure ourselves in Troy, And trust unto the virtue of our walls. Do not delay your safety, you may hear Their cries, and lofty clamours, threatening Troy: They dog us to our gates, and without speed And expedition, they will enter with us. Come then, our threatened lives we will immure, And think us in our strong built walls secure. Pursue the chase even to the gates of Troy, Then call th'ingrate Laomedon to parley. The perjured King shall pay us for the wrong Done to Alcides in his promised steeds. Better he had the monster had devoured His beauteous daughter, then t'abide our furies. He did exclude our virtue from the City, And now therefore he shall admit our fury. These walls first reared at the great God's expense, we'll ruin to the earth: let's summon him. We will call him to parley. Laomedon, we do not summon thee To parley, but to warn thee guard thy walls, Which (without pause) we now intend to scale. Wilt hear me Hercules? I listened thy perjurious tongue too late. Scale, batter, mount, assault, sack, and deface, And leave (of Troy) nought save the name and place. Thus is the tyrant, that but late awed Troy, Buried amidst his ruins; he chastised, And we revenged: the spoil of this rich Town Rated as high as Iasons Colchian prize, You shall divide: but first these lofty walls, Builded by perjury, and maintained by pride, we'll ruin to the earth: Who saw young Priam? he's fled, and took the way to Samothrace, With him Anchises, that on Venus got The young Aeneas, they are fled together, And left the spoil of all the town to us. Which shall enrich Thebes, and the towns of Greece, And Telamon, to do thy valour right, For mounting first over the walls of Troy, The first and choice of all the spoil be thine. Then let Alcides honour Telamon With this bright Lady, fair Hesione, Sister to Priam, daughter to Laomedon, Whose beauty I prefer before the state And wealth of Troy. Receive her Telamon, She is thine own by gift of Hercules. A present more delighting Telamon, Then were I made Lord of high Ilium's Towers, And heir unto the dead Laomedon. I am a Princess, shall my father's ills Fall on my head? If he offended Hercules, He hath made satisfaction with his life. Oh be not so severe, to stretch his punishment Even after life; hast thou from death redeemed me, To give me captive, and to slave my youth? Things worse than death: rather let Hercules Expose me to the rock, where first he found me, To abide the wrath both of the Sea and Sun. Oh! rather make my body food for monsters, Then brand my birth with bondage.
seed 43: T17 · seed 44: T19 — topic numbers are assigned independently in each run; equal or different numbers say nothing by themselves
Original spelling (EEBO-TCP, unregularized)
In vaine, our forces are disperst abroad, Nor haue we order to withstand their fury: Best were we to immure our selues in Troy, And trust vnto the vertue of our walles. Do not delay your safety, you may heare Their cryes, and lofty clamors, threatning Troy: They dogge vs to our gates, and without speed And expedition, they will enter with vs. Come then, our threatned liues we will immure, And thinke vs in our strong built walles secure. Pursue the chace euen to the gates of Troy, Then call th'ingrate Loamedon to parlee. The periur'd King shall pay vs for the wrong Done to Alcides in his promis'd steeds. Better he had the monster had deuour'd His beauteous daughter, then t'abide our furies. He did exclude our vertue from the Citty, And now therefore he shall admit our fury. These wals first rear'd at the great Gods expence, Wee'l ruine to the earth: let's summon him. We will call him to parlee. Laomedon, we do not summon thee To parlee, but to warne thee guard thy walles, Which (without pause) we now intend to scale. Wilt heare me Hercules? I listen'd thy periurious tongue too late. Scale, batter, mount, assault, sacke, and deface, And leaue (of Troy) nought saue the name and place. Thus is the tyrant, that but late aw'd Troy, Buried amidst his ruines; he chastis'd, And we reueng'd: the spoyle of this rich Towne Rated as high as Iasons Colchian prize, You shall diuide: but first these lofty walles, Builded by periury, and maintain'd by pride, Wee'l ruine to the earth: Who saw yong Priam? Hee's fled, and tooke the way to Samo-thrace, With him Anchises, that on Venus got The yong Aeneas, they are fled together, And left the spoyle of all the towne to vs. Which shall enrich Thebes, and the townes of Greece, And Telamon, to do thy valour right, For mounting first ouer the walles of Troy, The first and choyce of all the spoyle be thine. Then let Alcides honour Telamon With this bright Lady, faire Hesione, Sister to Priam, daughter to Laomedon, Whose beauty I preferre before the state And wealth of Troy. Receiue her Telamon, Shee is thine owne by gift of Hercules. A present more delighting Telamon, Then were I made Lord of high Illiums Towers, And heire vnto the dead Laomedon. I am a Princesse, shall my fathers ils Fall on my head? If he offended Hercules, He hath made satisfaction with his life. Oh be not so seuere, to stretch his punishment Euen after life; hast thou from death redeem'd me, To giue me captiue, and to slaue my youth? Things worse then death: rather let Hercules Expose me to the rocke, where first he found me, To abide the wrath both of the Sea and Sunne. Oh! rather make my body food for monsters, Then brand my birth with bondage.