GREGORY SAMPSON The fight is between our masters, and we men 'Tis all one. The quarrel is between our masters and us their men. push the Montague men into the street and the GREGORY Montague women up against the wall. That’s why girls get pushed up push Montague’s men from the wall, and thrust his against walls-they’re weak. SAMPSON 'Tis true, and therefore women, being the weaker SAMPSON vessels, are ever thrust to the wall. weaklings get pushed up against the wall.
No Fear Shakespeare – Romeo and Juliet (by SparkNotes) -2- Original Text Modern TextAct 1, Scene 1, GREGORY GREGORY That shows thee a weak slave, for the weakest goes That means you’re the weak one, because to the wall.
If I pass one of them on the street, I’ll take the side closer to the wall and let him walk in the gutter. SAMPSON A dog from that house will make me angry enough to take a stand. One of those dogs from the Montague house can make me angry. I will SAMPSON take the wall of any man or maid of Montague’s. SAMPSON10 A dog of that house shall move me to stand. GREGORY Therefore if thou art moved thou runn’st away. GREGORY To move is to stir, and to be valiant is to stand. SAMPSON A dog of the house of Montague moves me. GREGORY GREGORY Maybe you should focus on pulling yourself out of But thou art not quickly moved to strike. SAMPSON What I mean is, if they make us angry we’ll pull SAMPSON out our swords.5 I strike quickly, being moved. GREGORY Ay, while you live, draw your neck out of collar. (teasing SAMPSON) No, because then we’d be garbagemen. SAMPSON GREGORY I mean, an we be in choler, we’ll draw. SAMPSON GREGORY Gregory, I swear, we can’t let them humiliate us. Gregory, on my word, we’ll not carry coals. ExitAct 1, Scene 1 Enter SAMPSON and GREGORY of the house of SAMPSON and GREGORY, servants of the Capulet, with swords and bucklers Capulet family, enter carrying swords and small SAMPSON shields. What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend. If you listen to us patiently, we’ll make Is now the two hours' traffic of our stage- up for everything we’ve left out in this prologue The which, if you with patient ears attend, onstage. For the next two hours, we will watch the The fearful passage of their death-marked love story of their doomed love and their parents'10 And the continuance of their parents' rage, anger, which nothing but the children’s deaths Which, but their children’s end, naught could remove, could stop. Their Whose misadventured piteous overthrows unfortunate deaths put an end to their parents' Doth with their death bury their parents' strife. Two unlucky children of these enemy A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life, families become lovers and commit suicide. stain their hands with the blood of their fellow5 From forth the fatal loins of these two foes citizens. CHORUS CHORUS Two households, both alike in dignity In the beautiful city of Verona, where our story (In fair Verona, where we lay our scene), takes place, a long-standing hatred between two From ancient grudge break to new mutiny, families erupts into new violence, and citizens Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean. No Fear Shakespeare – Romeo and Juliet (by SparkNotes) -1- Original Text Modern TextPrologue Enter CHORUS The CHORUS enters.