The Spanish Bawd (Calisto and Meliboea) (Celestina) · chunk 8 of 205
Mabbe, James / Rojas, Fernando de · published 1631 · first performed or written 1631 (Annals) tragicomedy; literary play T21 Cupid, Venus and the nymphs typicality 0.84 · 494 words
Marked words are the most distinguishing words of T21: cupid, venus, love, ceres, diana, fair, nymphs, goddess, bow, damon.
Ha, ha, ha, Calisto's fire; these, his intolerable pains: As if love had been his bow, shot all his arrows only against him. Oh Cupid, how high and unsearchable are thy mysteries? What reward hast thou ordained for love, since that so necessary a tribulation attends on lovers? Thou hast set his bounds, as marks for men to wonder at: Lovers ever deeming, that they only are cast behind; and that others fill out- 〈◊〉 them: That all men break thorough, but themselves like your ●●ght 〈◊〉 bulls, which being set loose in the place, and ga●●ed with 〈◊〉, take over the 〈◊〉 as soon as they feel themselves 〈◊〉. It is misery enough to have a man's will captivated, and chained to one place only. Thou wotest not what constancy is. Perseverance in ill is not constancy, but obstinacy, or pertinacy, so they call it in my country; however it please you Philosophers of Cupid to phrase it. It is a foul fault for a man to belie that which he teacheth to others: for thou thyself takest pleasure in praising thy Elicia. Do you that good which I say, but not that ill which I do. why dost thou reprove me? Because thou dost subject the dignity and worthiness of a man, to the imperfection and weakness of a frail woman. A woman? O thou blockhead, she's a Goddess. Are you in earnest, or do you but jest? jest? I verily believe she is a Goddess. As Goddesses were of old, that is, to fall below mortality, and than you would hope to have a share in her deity. A 〈◊〉 on thee for a fool, thou makest me laugh, which I thought not to do today. What, would you weep all the days of your life? Yes. And why? Because I love her, before whom I find myself so unworthy, that I have no hope to obtain her. O Coward, baser than the son of a whore: why, Alexander the Great did not only think himself worthy the dominion of one only, but of many worlds. I did not well hear what thou saidst, say it again: repeat it again before thou proceed any further. I said Sir, Should you, whose heart, is greater than Alexander's, despair of obtaining a woman? wherefore many, having been seated in highest estate, have balsely prostituted themselves to the embracements of Muleteers, and stable-grooms, suffering them to breathe in their faces, with their unsavoury breaths, and to embosom them between their breast▪ And othersome not ashamed to have companied with bruit-beasts. Have you not heard of Pasiphae, who played the wanton with a Bull? and of Minerva, how she dallied with a dog? Tusa, I believe it not, they are but fables. And that of your Grandmother and her Ape, that's a fable too: Witness your Grandfathers knife, that killed the villain that did cuckold him. A pox of this coxcomb, what gifts he gives!
nodes 50–72 (positions in the processed text, not lines of the printed book) · chunk 8 of 205 in this edition
Length
494 words · 692 tokens
Topic (seed 42)
T21 — Cupid, Venus and the nymphscross-work theme (confirmed, in the genre comparison) · typicality 0.837 (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)
Ha, ha, ha, Calisto's fire; these, his intolerable paines: As if loue had beene his bow, shot all his arrowes onely against him. Oh Cupid, how high and vnsearchable are thy mysteries? What reward hast thou ordained for loue, since that so necessary a tribulation attends on louers? Thou hast set his bounds, as markes for men to wonder at: Louers euer deeming, that they only are cast behinde; and that others fill out- them: That all men breake thorow, but themselues like your ght bulls, which being set loose in the place, and gaed with , take ouer the as soone as they feele themselues . It is misery inough to haue a mans will captiuated, and chained to one place onely. Thou wot'st not what constancy is. Perseuerance in ill is not constancy, but obstinacy, or pertinacy, so they call it in my countrey; how-euer it please you Philosophers of Cupid to phrae it. It is a foule fault for a man to belye that which he teacheth to others: for thou thy selfe takest pleasure in praysing thy Elicia. Do you that good which I say, but not that ill which I do. Wy dost thou reprooue mee? Because thou dost subiect the dignity and worthinesse of a man, to the imperfection and weakenesse of a fraile woman. A woman? O thou blockhead, she's a Goddesse. Are you in earnest, or doe you but jest? Iest? I verily beleeue she is a Goddesse. As Goddesses were of old, that is, to fall below mortality, and then you would hope to haue a share in her deity. A on thee for a foole, thou makest mee laugh, which I thought not to doe to day. What, would you weepe all the dayes of your life? Yes. And why? Because I loue her, before whom I finde my selfe so vnworthy, that I haue no hope to obtaine her. O Coward, baser then the sonne of a whore: why, Alexander the Great did not onely thinke himselfe worthy the dominion of one onely, but of many worlds. I did not well heare what thou saidst, say it againe: repeate it againe before thou proceed any further. I said Sir, Should you, whose heart, is greater then Alexanders, despaire of obtaining a woman? wherefore many, hauing beene seated in highest estate, haue balsely prostituted themselues to the embracements of Muletteeres, and Stablegroomes, suffering them to breathe in their faces, with their vnsauory breaths, and to imbosome them between their brest ▪ And othersome not ashamed to haue companied with bruite-beasts. Haue you not heard of Pasiphae, who plai'd the wanton with a Bull? and of Minerua, how she dailled with a dogge? Tusa, I beleeue it not, they are but fables. And that of your Grandmother and her Ape, that's a fable too: Witnesse your Grandfathers knife, that kill'd the villaine that did cuckold him. A poxe of this cocks-combe, what gi he giues!