That must needs be sport alone;

And those things do best please me

That befall prepost’rously.

⌈They stand apart.⌉

Enter Helena, Lysander ⌈following her⌉

LYSANDER

Why should you think that I should woo in scorn?

Scorn and derision never come in tears.

Look when I vow, I weep; and vows so born,

In their nativity all truth appears.

How can these things in me seem scorn to you,

Bearing the badge of faith to prove them true?

HELENA

You do advance your cunning more and more,

When truth kills truth—O devilish holy fray!

These vows are Hermia’s. Will you give her o’er?

Weigh oath with oath, and you will nothing weigh.

Your vows to her and me put in two scales

Will even weigh, and both as light as tales.

LYSANDER

I had no judgement when to her I swore.

HELENA

Nor none, in my mind, now you give her o’er.

LYSANDER

Demetrius loves her, and he loves not you.

⌈HELENA⌉ ⌈ ⌉

DEMETRIUS (awaking)

O Helen, goddess, nymph, perfect, divine!

To what, my love, shall I compare thine eyne?

Crystal is muddy. O, how ripe in show

Thy lips, those kissing cherries, tempting grow!

That pure congealed white—high Taurus’ snow,

Fanned with the eastern wind—turns to a crow

When thou hold’st up thy hand. O, let me kiss

This princess of pure white, this seal of bliss!

HELENA

O spite! O hell! I see you all are bent

To set against me for your merriment.

If you were civil, and knew courtesy,

You would not do me thus much injury.

Can you not hate me—as I know you do—

But you must join in souls to mock me too?

If you were men, as men you are in show,

You would not use a gentle lady so,

To vow and swear and superpraise my parts

When I am sure you hate me with your hearts.

You both are rivals and love Hermia,

And now both rivals to mock Helena.

A trim exploit, a manly enterprise—

To conjure tears up in a poor maid’s eyes

With your derision. None of noble sort

Would so offend a virgin, and extort

A poor soul’s patience, all to make you sport.

LYSANDER

You are unkind, Demetrius. Be not so.

For you love Hermia; this you know I know.

And here with all good will, with all my heart,

In Hermia’s love I yield you up my part;

And yours of Helena to me bequeath,

Whom I do love, and will do till my death.

HELENA

Never did mockers waste more idle breath.

DEMETRIUS

Lysander, keep thy Hermia. I will none.

If e’er I loved her, all that love is gone.

My heart to her but as guestwise sojourned

And now to Helen is it home returned,

There to remain.

LYSANDER Helen, it is not so.

DEMETRIUS

Disparage not the faith thou dost not know,

Lest to thy peril thou aby it dear.

Enter Hermia

Look where thy love comes; yonder is thy dear.

HERMIA

Dark night, that from the eye his function takes,

The ear more quick of apprehension makes.

Wherein it doth impair the seeing sense,

It pays the hearing double recompense.

Thou art not by mine eye, Lysander, found;

Mine ear, I thank it, brought me to thy sound.

But why unkindly didst thou leave me so?

LYSANDER

Why should he stay whom love doth press to go?

HERMIA

What love could press Lysander from my side?

LYSANDER

Lysander’s love, that would not let him bide:

Fair Helena, who more engilds the night

Than all yon fiery O’s and eyes of light.

Why seek’st thou me? Could not this make thee know

The hate I bare thee made me leave thee so?

HERMIA

You speak not as you think. It cannot be.

HELENA ⌈side⌉

Lo, she is one of this confederacy.

Now I perceive they have conjoined all three

To fashion this false sport in spite of me.—

Injurious Hermia, most ungrateful maid,

Have you conspired, have you with these contrived

To bait me with this foul derision?

Is all the counsel that we two have shared—

The sisters’ vows, the hours that we have spent

When we have chid the hasty-footed time

For parting us—O, is all quite forgot?

All schooldays’ friendship, childhood innocence?

We, Hermia, like two artificial gods

Have with our needles created both one flower,

Both on one sampler, sitting on one cushion,

Both warbling of one song, both in one key,

As if our hands, our sides, voices, and minds

Had been incorporate. So we grew together,

Like to a double cherry: seeming parted,

But yet an union in partition,

Two lovely berries moulded on one stem.

So, with two seeming bodies but one heart,

Two of the first—like coats in heraldry,

Due but to one and crowned with one crest.

And will you rend our ancient love asunder,

To join with men in scorning your poor friend?