Friar Laurence's Soliloquy
Romeo and Juliet Translation assignment
Act II, scene iii, 1 – 16 (Friar Laurence)
Original text
1 Now, ere the sun advance his burning eye,
The day to cheer and night's dank dew to dry,
I must up-fill this osier cage of ours
With baleful weeds and precious-juiced flowers.
5 The earth that's nature's mother is her tomb;
What is her burying grave that is her womb,
And from her womb children of divers kind
We sucking on her natural bosom find,
Many for many virtues excellent,
10 None but for some and yet all different.
O, mickle is the powerful grace that lies
In plants, herbs, stones, and their true qualities:
For naught so vile that on the earth doth live
But to the earth some special good doth give;
15 Nor aught so good but, strain'd from that fair use,
Revolts from true birth, stumbling on abuse.
Paraphrased
(Speech in modern English)
Now, before the sun shines to bring day, before the night leaves,
I must full up our willow basket with harmful weeds and precious juiced flowers.
the earth is nature’s mother, where all living grows; it is also their tomb after they die;
where the earth is the grave of the dead, it is also the womb where all life begins;
and from her womb, creatures of many different kind rises
we humans extract what ever resources we find from the earth.
Many of mother earth’s creatures have many good qualities, and have excellent uses,
all creatures have some sort of good quality, and yet all the creatures are different.
O, so much powerful divine qualities lie in plants, herbs, stones, and their true qualities.
For nothing really awful lives on earth
but to the earth the awful things might give some special good;
awful things are actually good, but are just perverted from their good use,
if things are misused they evolve from their true use, and find some harmful form.
Questions
q. 1
This speech is the first speech that Friar Laurence makes and this introduces us to the character of the Friar. We learn that Friar Laurence is a hard working, busy man, who make good use of his time, he works before the sun rises and do his job carefully. The Friar does not skip his chores; and does them at his best potential; he does not...