Shakespeare sketch. A Small Rewrite

Correction

R: Come! Bill! Bill! Good to see you!

S: Sorry, I was late. The traffic was a bitch.

R: Good to see you! Well, the play is going well, isn't it? Looks like we gonna get a smash on our hands

S: Well, it seems to be okay, yeah.

R: And I've always seen .. the ones with the snappy titles. Hamlet! Perfect! Perfect!

S: Act Three maybe a bit long, I don't know

R: Act three maybe a bit long? In fact, generally I think we have got a bit a lenth problem.

S: Oh!

R: It's five hours, Bill. .. seats and no toilets this side the Thames

S: Yes, but I've always said the Rose Theatre is a dumb. Frankly, I mean I've always said it .. some .. about it.

R: Exactly. So, that's why I think we should trim some of the dead wood.

S: Dead wood?

R: Yeah, you know, some of that stand up staff in the middle of the action

S: You mean the soliloquys?

R: Yeah. And I think we both know which is the dodgy one

S: Oh, oh, which is the dodgy one?

R: Erm, to be non-bri.. mind mortal .. I wonder. It's boring, Bill. The crowd hates it. Your own ..

S: Oh, well, ... it's my favorite, actually

R: Bill, you said that about the avocado monolog in King Lear. And the Tap

Dance in the end of the Othello

S: Absolutely not. You can't cut .. no word of them ... after play

R: Bill, Bill, the king is going ... the costume ... change down in the one minute. How much .. round about .. God known .. soliloquy .. is already .. wins .. waiting the ... common without very funny com.., waiting

S: Oh, rather, you cut all that speech all together

R: Bill, Bill, why do we have to fight? It's long long long. We could make it so snappy

S: Snappy?

R: Yes, you know, give it some pos... how to begin that speech

S: To be

R: Come on, come on, Bill

S: To be a victim of all life.. walls or not to be a coward .. by his profit hand

R: Well, I'm sure we can get it down

S: No! Absolutely not! It's perfect!

R: How about 'to be a victim or not to be a coward'?

S: It doesn't make sense, does it? To be a victim of what? To be a coward about what?

R: Okay, okay. Take out 'victim'. Take out 'coward'. This .. 'to be or not to be'.

S: Oh, no. You can't say that! It's ...rish

R: But it's short, it's short. Isn't it flows? 'To be or not to be, that is the question' ..

S: You dead right is the question. They won't have any bloody idea about what he is talking about!

R: Okay. let's lead .. one. Blah blah blah blah, 'slings and arrows', good! Actions, the crowd loves it, 'take up arms', brilliant! 'Against those cursed doubts to do play gone man ' .. very wooly that Bill. Plays .. a bit .. at the moment .. actually. 'And .. on the sea of troubles'. This is good, trouble travels very popular. So let us take out the g.. to see what .. .. 'to suffer the slings.. and narrows about .. fortune or to take up arms against the sea of troubles' Good!

S: I'm ..!

R: Bill, it's brilliant!

S: It's absolutely crap! What he is talking about?! He is going ... arrow and put it down to a sea side? This is 'Prince Hamlet' not 'King ..'. .. kill himself because the .. .. with

R: Creative thinking, Bill! Hamlet .. pa.. should top himself

S: In Act One?

R: Well, yeah, look, we must think about bums on seats, Bill. Let's face it, it's the ghost that selling this show at the moment. Joe Public loves the ghosts. He loves the .. fights. He loves the crazy chiken he can see through dress .. and just .. gags .. and then drowns themselves. But no one likes Hamlet, no one.

S: All right, then I'll kill him off for you. 'There is the road to die, to sleep ' Whoops! Hamlet falls off the battlements.

R: Bill, Bill, Bill. I can see, I can see you're annoyed. I'm sorry. Hamlet, Hamlet has his moments, the mad stuff is very funny. It really is, .. but but all I'm saying Shakey is that we, just, let's just shorten this one terribly dull speech.

S: Oh, well, I'm saying is no, you can't cut one word or I'll take my name off the credits

R: All right! How do you do. .. I'll trim this speech and you can put back in those awful cockney gravediggers

S: .. Both of them?

R: Yeah

S: And a skull routine?

R: Yeap, the whole sketch

S: All right then, you've got a deal, and we'll see which one history remembers!

R: Bill! I love you! T.. git

BA: Come. Bill! Bill, good to see you.

bitch noun BrE /bɪtʃ/ ; NAmE /bɪtʃ/

WS: Sorry I was late -- the traffic was a bitch!

BA: Good to see you. Well, the play's going well, isn't it? Looks like we've got a bit of a smash on our hands.

WS: Well, it, er, seems to be OK, yeah.

BA: They always seem to go for the ones with the snappy titles: "Hamlet". Pefect! Perfect.

1. [countable] a female dog

a greyhound bitch

2. [countable] (slang, disapproving) an offensive way of referring to a woman, especially an unpleasant one

You stupid little bitch!

She can be a real bitch.

3. [singular] (slang) a thing that causes problems or difficulties

Life's a bitch.

4. [singular] bitch (about somebody/something) (informal) a complaint about somebody/something or a conversation in which you complain about them

We've been having a bitch about our boss.

see also son of a bitch

snappy adjective BrE /ˈsnæpi/ ; NAmE /ˈsnæpi/ (snappier, snappiest)

1. (of a remark, title, etc.) clever or amusing and short

a snappy slogan

a snappy answer

2. [usually before noun] (informal) attractive and fashionable

a snappy outfit

She's a snappy dresser.

3. (of people or their behaviour) tending to speak to people in a bad-tempered, impatient way

Interruptions make her snappy and nervous.

lively; quick

a snappy tune

Idioms

make it snappy - (informal) used to tell somebody to do something quickly or to hurry

Come in, but make it snappy. I’ve got a meeting to go to.

WS: Act Three may be a bit long, I don't know...

dump noun BrE /dʌmp/ ; NAmE /dʌmp/

BA: Act Three may be a bit long... in fact, generally, I think we've got a bit of a length problem.

WS: Oh?

BA: It's five hours, Bill, on wooden seats, and no toilets this side of the Thames.

WS: Yeah, well, I've always said the Rose Theatre is a dump, frankly. I mean, the sooner they knock it down and build something decent, the better.

BA: Exactly. So that's why I think we should trim some of the dead wood.

WS: "Dead wood"?

BA: Yeah, you know: some of that standup stuff in the middle of the action.

WS: You mean the soliloquies?

see also dumps

for waste

1. a place where waste or rubbish/garbage is taken and left (British English)

a rubbish dump

(North American English) a garbage dump

the municipal dump

a toxic/nuclear waste dump

2. (also mine dump) (South African English) a hill that is formed when waste sand from the production of gold is piled in one place over a period of time

dirty place

3. (informal, disapproving) a dirty or unpleasant place

How can you live in this dump?

for weapons

4. a temporary store for military supplies

an ammunition dump

computing

5. an act of copying data stored in a computer; a copy or list of the contents of this data

see also screen dump

waste from body

5. [countable] (slang) an act of passing waste matter from the body through the bowels

to have a dump

decent adjective BrE /ˈdiːsnt/ ; NAmE /ˈdiːsnt/

1. of a good enough standard or quality

(informal) a decent meal/job/place to live

I need a decent night's sleep.

2. (of people or behaviour) honest and fair; treating people with respect

ordinary, decent, hard-working people

Everyone said he was a decent sort of guy.

3. acceptable to people in a particular situation

a decent burial

That dress isn't decent.

She ought to have waited for a decent interval before getting married again.

4. (informal) wearing enough clothes to allow somebody to see you

I can't go to the door—I'm not decent.

compare indecent

The Rose Theatre

The Rose was an Elizabethan theatre. It was the fourth of the public theatres to be built, after The Theatre (1576), the Curtain (1577), and the theatre at Newington Butts (c. 1580?) – and the first of several playhouses to be situated in Bankside, Southwark, in a liberty outside the jurisdiction of the City of London's civic authorities.

The Rose was built in 1587 by Philip Henslowe and by a grocer named John Cholmley. It was the first purpose-built playhouse to ever stage a production of any of Shakespeare's plays.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rose_(theatre)

http://www.shakespeare-online.com/theatre/therose.html

BA: Yeah, and I think we both know which is the dodgy one.

WS: [getting upset] Oh? Oh? Which is "the dodgy one"?

soliloquy noun BrE /səˈlɪləkwi/ ; NAmE /səˈlɪləkwi/ [countable, uncountable]

(pl. soliloquies)

BA: Erm... "To be ... nobler in the mind ... mortal coil ..."; that one. It's boring, Bill. The crowd hates it -- Yawnsville.

a speech in a play in which a character, who is alone on the stage, speaks his or her thoughts; the act of speaking thoughts in this way

Hamlet’s famous soliloquy, ‘To be or not to be…’

the playwright’s use of soliloquy

compare monologue

monologue noun (North American English also monolog) BrE /ˈmɒnəlɒɡ/ ; NAmE /ˈmɑːnəlɔːɡ/ , /ˈmɑːnəlɑːɡ/

1. [countable] a long speech by one person during a conversation that stops other people from speaking or expressing an opinion

He went into a long monologue about life in America.

2. [uncountable, countable] a long speech in a play, film/movie, etc. spoken by one actor, especially when alone

3. [countable, uncountable] a dramatic story, especially in verse, told or performed by one person

a dramatic monologue

compare dialogue, soliloquy

dodgy adjective BrE /ˈdɒdʒi/ ; NAmE /ˈdɑːdʒi/ (British English, informal)(dodgier, dodgiest)

1. seeming or likely to be dishonest

synonym suspicious

He made a lot of money, using some very dodgy methods.

I don't want to get involved in anything dodgy.

Travel websites that offer dodgy deals have been uncovered in a worldwide investigation.

2. not working well; not in good condition

I can't play—I've got a dodgy knee.

The marriage had been distinctly dodgy for a long time.

3. involving risk, danger or difficulty

If you get into any dodgy situations, call me.

We had a few dodgy moments at the start, but everything went well in the end.

noble adjective BrE /ˈnəʊbl/ ; NAmE /ˈnoʊbl/ (nobler BrE /ˈnəʊblə(r)/ ; NAmE /ˈnoʊblər/ , noblest BrE /ˈnəʊblɪst/ ; NAmE /ˈnoʊblɪst/ )

1. having fine personal qualities that people admire, such as courage, honesty and care for others

a noble leader

noble ideals

He died for a noble cause.

It was very noble of you to go so far to take him home.

compare ignoble

2. very impressive in size or quality

synonym splendid

a noble building

3. belonging to a family of high social rank (= belonging to the nobility)

synonym aristocratic

a man of noble birth

one of the noblest families in Portugal

ignoble adjective BrE /ɪɡˈnəʊbl/ ; NAmE /ɪɡˈnoʊbl/ (formal)

not good or honest; that should make you feel shame

synonym base

ignoble thoughts

an ignoble person

opposite noble

coil noun BrE /kɔɪl/ ; NAmE /kɔɪl/

1. a series of circles formed by winding up a length of rope, wire, etc.

a coil of wire

2. one circle of rope, wire, etc. in a series

Shake the rope and let the coils unwind.

a snake’s coils

a length of wire, wound into circles, that can carry electricity

3. = IUD

WS: Well, I don't know about that. It happens to be my favorite, actually.

BA: Bill, you said that about the avocado monologue in "King Lear", and the tap dance at the end of "Othello".

WS: Absolutely not! You cut one word of that, and I'm off the play.

BA: Bill, Bill... the King has got his costume change down to one minute. Hamlet's out there ranting on about God-knows-what in that soliloquy of yours, and Claudius is already in the wings waiting to come on with that very funny codpiece -- waiting!

WS: [very upset; stands] All right, all right, you can just cut the whole speech altogether!

BA: Bill, Bill, Bill... Why do we have to fight? It's long, long, long. We could make it so snappy...

WS: "Snappy"?

BA: Yeah, you know: give it some pizzaz. How's it begin, that speech?

WS: [sits] "To be."

IUD noun BrE /ˌaɪ juː ˈdiː/ ; NAmE /ˌaɪ juː ˈdiː/ (also coil)

the abbreviation for ‘intrauterine device’ (a small plastic or metal object placed inside a woman’s uterus (= where a baby grows before it is born) to stop her becoming pregnant)

Yawnsville

A party where nothing is happening

"like dudes, this places is so Yawnsville..."

yawn noun BrE /jɔːn/ ; NAmE /jɔːn/

1. an act of yawning

She stifled another yawn and tried hard to look interested.

2. [usually singular] (informal) a boring event, idea, etc.

The meeting was one big yawn from start to finish.

It happens to be my favorite

1. I went to the park for a walk. In the Park, I met Tom, who happened to be there for a picnic.

This means: I went to the park for one reason. Tom was there for a reason not related to my reason. So, our meeting was not planned. We met 'by accident'.

2. ... Moktar Ouane, who happened to be in Paris on an official visit, arrived at the scene a few hours later.

This means that Mr. Ouane went to Paris for a reason that was not connected to the loss of the Malians. While he was there, the deaths occurred, so he was able to go to the scene.

3. I met a person at the conference who happened to be a friend of Martin.

It seems the words 'happen to be' have different meanings

This means: his friendship with Martin was not the reason that this person was at the conference, nor was it the reason that I was at the conference, nor was it the reason I was talking to this person.

In simple terms, think of it as an accidental occurrence, or a coincidence.

rant verb BrE /rænt/ ; NAmE /rænt/

[intransitive, transitive] rant (on) (about something) | rant at somebody | + speech (disapproving) to speak or complain about something in a loud and/or angry way

codpiece noun BrE /ˈkɒdpiːs/ ; NAmE /ˈkɑːdpiːs/

a piece of cloth, especially a decorative one, attached to a man’s lower clothing and covering his genitals, worn in Europe in the 15th and 16th centuries

гульфик

BA: Come on, come on, Bill.

(wait) in the wings

to be ready to do something when the opportunity comes

Other companies were waiting in the wings to sell similar drugs at much lower prices.

The novel has sold well in the hardcover edition, and a paperback edition waits in the wings.

Etymology: based on the idea of an actor who waits in the wings (areas to each side of a stage) before appearing on stage

pizzazz noun BrE /pɪˈzæz/ ; NAmE /pɪˈzæz/ [uncountable](informal)

a lively and exciting quality or style

synonym flair

We need someone with youth, glamour and pizzazz.

earthly adjective BrE /ˈɜːθli/ ; NAmE /ˈɜːrθli/ [usually before noun]

1. (literary) connected with life on earth and not with any spiritual life

earthly desires

the sorrows of this earthly life

2. (often used in questions and negatives for emphasis) possible

There's no earthly reason why you shouldn't go.

What earthly difference is my opinion going to make?

He didn't have an earthly chance of getting the job.

1) земной; мирской, суетный; приземлённый, материальный

2) уст. земляной

3) разг. возможный; абсолютный, малейший

woe noun BrE /wəʊ/ ; NAmE /woʊ/ (old-fashioned or humorous)

1. woes [plural] the troubles and problems that somebody has

financial woes

Thanks for listening to my woes.

2. [uncountable] great unhappiness

synonym misery

a tale of woe

1) поэт. горе, напасть, несчастье

2) (woes) беды, напасти, проблемы

proffer verb BrE /ˈprɒfə(r)/ ; NAmE /ˈprɑːfər/ (formal)

1. proffer something (to somebody) | proffer somebody something to offer something to somebody, by holding it out to them

‘Try this,’ she said, proffering a plate.

He bent forward to kiss her proffered cheek.

2. to offer something such as advice or an explanation

proffer something (to somebody) What advice would you proffer to someone starting up in business?

proffer somebody something What advice would you proffer her?

proffer itself A solution proffered itself.

gibberish noun BrE /ˈdʒɪbərɪʃ/ ; NAmE /ˈdʒɪbərɪʃ/ [uncountable](informal)

1. words that have no meaning or are impossible to understand

synonym nonsense

You were talking gibberish in your sleep.

After a while I stopped listening to his stream of gibberish.

She was mumbling a strange gibberish as she prepared the mixture.

невнятная, непонятная, бессвязная речь; тарабарщина; неграмотная речь

bloody1 adjectiveadverb BrE /ˈblʌdi/ ; NAmE /ˈblʌdi/ [only before noun]

(British English, taboo, slang) a swear word that many people find offensive that is used to emphasize a comment or an angry statement

Don't be such a bloody fool.

That was a bloody good meal!

What bloody awful weather!

She did bloody well to win that race.

He doesn't bloody care about anybody else.

‘Will you apologize?’ ‘Not bloody likely!’ (= Certainly not!)

The rail strike is a bloody nuisance.

I can’t get this bloody stupid thing to work.

What the bloody hell do you think you’re doing?

WS: "To be a victim of all life's earthly woes, or not to be a coward and take Death by his proferred hand."

BA: There, now; I'm sure we can get that down!

WS: No! Absolutely not! It's perfect.

BA: [preparing to write] How about "To be a victim, or not to be a coward"?

WS: It doesn't make sense, does it? To be a victim of what? To be a coward about what?

BA: OK, OK. Take out "victim"; take out "coward". Just start "To be, or not to be."

WS: You can't say that! It's gibberish!

BA: But it's short, William, it's short! Listen, it flows: "To be, or not to be; that is the question." D'de, d'de de de, d'de d'de de de! OK?

WS: You're damn right it's the question -- they won't have any bloody idea what he's talking about!

BA: Well, let's leave that and go on. "Blah blah blah blah blah, slings and arrows" -- good! Action; the crowds love it -- "take up arms" -- brilliant -- "against those cursed doubts that do plague on man" -- eugh... Getting very wooly there, Bill. Plague's a bit tasteless at the moment -- we've had letters, actually. "...and set sail on a sea of troubles" -- this is good: travel; travel's very popular. So let's just take out the guff and see what we've got. "To suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take up arms against a sea of troubles" Good!

plague noun BrE /pleɪɡ/ ; NAmE /pleɪɡ/

woolly adjective BrE /ˈwʊli/ ; NAmE /ˈwʊli/ (North American English also wooly)

(woollier, woolliest)

1. covered with wool or with hair like wool

woolly monkeys

2. (informal, especially British English) made of wool; like wool

synonym woollen

a woolly hat

3. (of people or their ideas, etc.) not thinking clearly; not clearly expressed

synonym confused

woolly arguments

The Government have been woolly about the exact meaning of their proposals.

You should challenge any vague and woolly replies.

3) неясный, путаный, расплывчатый, смутный, нечёткий

guff noun BrE /ɡʌf/ ; NAmE /ɡʌf/ [uncountable](informal)

ideas or talk that you think are stupid

synonym nonsense

He gave me a load of guff about how his wife didn’t understand him.

пустая болтовня

potter verb BrE /ˈpɒtə(r)/ ; NAmE /ˈpɑːtər/

(British English) (North American English putter) [intransitive] + adv./prep. to do things or move without hurrying, especially when you are doing something that you enjoy and that is not important

I spent the day pottering around the house.

Cnut the Great (995 – 12 November 1035), more commonly known as Canute, was a king of Denmark, England, Norway and parts of Sweden, together often referred to as the Anglo-Scandinavian or North Sea Empire.

BA: Well, yeah, well, we must think about bums on seats, Bill. Let's face it: It's the ghost that's selling this show at the moment. Joe Public loves the ghost; he loves the swordfights; he loves the crazy chick in the see-through dress who does the flower gags and then drowns herself. But no-on likes Hamlet -- no-one.

top (one)self

1. To commit suicide. Primarily heard in UK.

A: "Did you hear that his father topped himself over the weekend?"

B: "Yeah, I can't believe it. Everyone is still in shock.

2. To outdo or outperform one's previous effort(s) or achievement(s). Primarily heard in US.

Wow, you've really topped yourself with these cupcakes, Stephen!

bum noun BrE /bʌm/ ; NAmE /bʌm/ (informal)

1. (British English) the part of the body that you sit on

synonym backside, behind, bottom

2. (especially North American English) a person who has no home or job and who asks other people for money or food

a beach bum (= somebody who spends all their time on the beach, without having a job)

3. a lazy person who does nothing for other people or for society

He's nothing but a no-good bum!

1. сущ.; разг.

1) разг. бездельник, лентяй, лодырь

2) амер.; разг. бродяга, бездомный, бомж

3) фанат

rub noun BrE /rʌb/ ; NAmE /rʌb/

1. [countable, usually singular] an act of rubbing a surface

She gave her knee a quick rub.

2. the rub [singular] (formal or humorous) a problem or difficulty

The hotel is in the middle of nowhere and there lies the rub. We don't have a car.

WS: [disgusted] All right, then, I'll kill him off for you. [picks up paper and quill] Ermm...[reads] "Aye; there's the rub. To die, to sleep..." [writes] "Whoops! (Hamlet falls off the battlements)" [puts down paper and quill]

BA: Bill, Bill, Bill; I can see you're annoyed. I'm sorry. Hamlet has his moments. The mad stuff is very funny. It really is hysterical. But all I'm saying, Shakey, is let's just shorten this one terribly long speech.

WS: ...and all I'm saying is no. You cut one word, and you can take my name off the credits.

BA: All right. I'll tell you what I'll do: I'll trim his speech, and you can put back in those awful cockney gravediggers.

WS: The both of them?

BA: Yeah.

5) разг. затруднение, препятствие, помеха; камень преткновения

battlements noun BrE /ˈbætlmənts/ ; NAmE /ˈbætlmənts/ [plural]

a low wall around the top of a castle with spaces in it that people inside could shoot through

WS: And the skull routine?

temperamental adjective BrE /ˌtemprəˈmentl/ ; NAmE /ˌtemprəˈmentl/

BA: Yep -- the whole sketch.

WS: All right then; you've got a deal -- and we'll see which one history remembers. [turns to leave]

BA: Bill, I love you!

[WS exits]

BA: Tempermental git.

1. (usually disapproving) having a tendency to become angry, excited or upset easily, and to behave in an unreasonable way

You never know what to expect with her. She's so temperamental.

2. (figurative) The printer's being temperamental this morning.

He’s a temperamental player (= he plays well or badly according to his mood).

3. connected with somebody’s nature and personality

They are firm friends in spite of temperamental differences.

1) свойственный определённому темпераменту

2) живой, темпераментный, страстный, бурный

git noun

BrE /ɡɪt/ ; NAmE /ɡɪt/ (British English, slang)

Add to my wordlist

a stupid or unpleasant man

мерзавец

Orig

To be, or not to be, that is the question:

Translation (Лозинский М.)

Быть или не быть, - таков вопрос;

Whether 'tis Nobler in the mind to suffer

The Slings and Arrows of outrageous Fortune,

Or to take Arms against a Sea of troubles,

And by opposing end them: to die, to sleep

No more; and by a sleep, to say we end

The Heart-ache, and the thousand Natural shocks

That Flesh is heir to? 'Tis a consummation

Devoutly to be wished. To die, to sleep,

To sleep, perchance to Dream; aye, there's the rub,

For in that sleep of death, what dreams may come,

When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,

Must give us pause. There's the respect

That makes Calamity of so long life:

For who would bear the Whips and Scorns of time,

The Oppressor's wrong, the proud man's Contumely, [F: poor]

The pangs of despised Love, the Law’s delay, [F: disprized]

The insolence of Office, and the Spurns

That patient merit of the unworthy takes,

When he himself might his Quietus make

With a bare Bodkin? Who would Fardels bear, [F: these Fardels]

To grunt and sweat under a weary life,

But that the dread of something after death,

The undiscovered Country, from whose bourn

No Traveller returns, Puzzles the will,

And makes us rather bear those ills we have,

Than fly to others that we know not of.

Thus Conscience does make Cowards of us all,

And thus the Native hue of Resolution

Is sicklied o'er, with the pale cast of Thought,

And enterprises of great pitch and moment, [F: pith]

With this regard their Currents turn awry, [F: away]

And lose the name of Action. Soft you now,

The fair Ophelia? Nymph, in thy Orisons

Be all my sins remembered

Что благородней духом - покоряться

Пращам и стрелам яростной судьбы

Иль, ополчась на море смут, сразить их

Противоборством? Умереть, уснуть, -

И только; и сказать, что сном кончаешь

Тоску и тысячу природных мук,

Наследье плоти, - как такой развязки

Не жаждать? Умереть, уснуть. - Уснуть!

И видеть сны, быть может? Вот в чем трудность;

Какие сны приснятся в смертном сне,

Когда мы сбросим этот бренный шум,

Вот что сбивает нас; вот где причина

Того, что бедствия так долговечны;

Кто снес бы плети и глумленье века,

Гнет сильного, насмешку гордеца,

Боль презренной любви, судей неправду,

Заносчивость властей и оскорбленья,

Чинимые безропотной заслуге,

Когда б он сам мог дать себе расчет

Простым кинжалом? Кто бы плелся с ношей,

Чтоб охать и потеть под нудной жизнью,

Когда бы страх чего-то после смерти, -

Безвестный край, откуда нет возврата

Земным скитальцам, - волю не смущал,

Внушая нам терпеть невзгоды наши

И не спешить к другим, от нас сокрытым?

Так трусами нас делает раздумье,

И так решимости природный цвет

Хиреет под налетом мысли бледным,

И начинанья, взнесшиеся мощно,

Сворачивая в сторону свой ход,

Теряют имя действия. Но тише!

Офелия? - В твоих молитвах, нимфа,

Да вспомнятся мои грехи.