by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616)
Here's a knocking indeed! If a man were
Language: English
Porter Here's a knocking indeed! If a man were porter of Hell Gate, he should have old turning the key. (Knock.) Knock, knock, knock! Who's there, i' the name of Beelzebub? Here's a farmer, that hang'd himself on th' expectation of plenty. Come in time! Have napkins enow about you; here you'll sweat for't. (Knock.) Knock, knock! Who's there, in the other devil's name? Faith, here's an equivocator, that could swear in both the scales against either scale, who com- mitted treason enough for God's sake, yet could not equivocate to heaven. O, come in, equivocator. (Knock.) Knock, knock, knock! Who's there? Faith, here's an English tailor come hither, for stealing out of a French hose: come in, tailor; here you may roast your goose. (Knock.) Knock, knock! Never at quiet! What are you? But this place is too cold for hell. I'll devil-porter it no further: I had thought to have let in some of all professions that go the primrose way to the everlasting bonfire. (Knock.) Anon, anon! [Opens the gate.] I pray you, remember the porter.
About the headline (FAQ)
Authorship:
- by William Shakespeare (1564 - 1616), no title, appears in Macbeth, Act 2, Scene 3 [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- [ None yet in the database ]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Friedrich von Schiller (1759 - 1805) , "Frühgesang" [an adaptation] FRE ITA ; composed by Wilhelm Reinhard Berger, Leopold Lenz, Wilhelm Taubert.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- FRE French (Français) (François-Victor Hugo) , no title
- ITA Italian (Italiano) (Carlo Rusconi) , no title, first published 1858
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2008-07-01
Line count: 22
Word count: 179