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|
Act III
 The room at the TESMANS'. The curtains are drawn over the |
| middle doorway, and also over the glass door. The lamp, |
| half turned down, and with a shade over it, is burning on |
| the table. In the stove, the door of which stands open, |
| there has been a fire, which is now nearly burnt out. |
| MRS. ELVSTED, wrapped in a large shawl, and with her feet |
| upon a foot-rest, sits close to the stove, sunk back in |
| the arm-chair. HEDDA, fully dressed, lies sleeping upon |
| the sofa, with a sofa-blanket over her. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| [After a pause, suddenly sits up in her chair, and listens eagerly.Then she sinks back again wearily, moaning to herself.] Not yet!— |
| Oh God—oh God—not yet! |
| BERTA slips cautiously in by the hall door. She has a letter in |
| her hand. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| [Turns and whispers eagerly.] Well—has any one come? |
| BERTA.: |
| [Softly.] Yes, a girl has just brought this letter. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| [Quickly, holding out her hand.] A letter! Give it to me! |
| BERTA.: |
| No, it's for Dr. Tesman, ma'am. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Oh, indeed. |
| BERTA.: |
| It was Miss Tesman's servant that brought it. I'll lay it here on |
| the table. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Yes, do. |
| BERTA.: |
| [Laying down the letter.] I think I had better put out the lamp. |
| It's smoking. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Yes, put it out. It must soon be daylight now. |
| BERTA.: |
| [Putting out the lamp.] It is daylight already, ma'am. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Yes, broad day! And no one come back yet—-! |
| BERTA.: |
| Lord bless you, ma'am—I guessed how it would be. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| You guessed? |
| BERTA.: |
| Yes, when I saw that a certain person had come back to town—and that |
| he went off with them. For we've heard enough about that gentleman |
| before now. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Don't speak so loud. You will waken Mrs. Tesman. |
| BERTA.: |
| [Looks towards the sofa and sighs.] No, no—let her sleep, poor |
| thing. Shan't I put some wood on the fire? |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Thanks, not for me. |
| BERTA.: |
| Oh, very well. [She goes softly out by the hall door. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Is wakened by the shutting of the door, and looks up.] What's |
| that—-? |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| It was only the servant.: |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Looking about her.] Oh, we're here—-! Yes, now I remember. [Sitserect upon the sofa, stretches herself, and rubs her eyes.] What |
| o'clock is it, Thea? |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| [Looks at her watch.] It's past seven. |
| HEDDA.: |
| When did Tesman come home? |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| He has not come.: |
| HEDDA.: |
| Not come home yet? |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| [Rising.] No one has come. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Think of our watching and waiting here till four in the morning—- |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| [Wringing her hands.] And how I watched and waited for him! |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Yawns, and says with her hand before her mouth.] Well well—we might |
| have spared ourselves the trouble. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Did you get a little sleep? |
| HEDDA.: |
| Oh yes; I believe I have slept pretty well. Have you not? |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Not for a moment. I couldn't, Hedda!—not to save my life. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Rises and goes towards her.] There there there! There's nothing to |
| be so alarmed about. I understand quite well what has happened. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Well, what do you think? Won't you tell me? |
| HEDDA.: |
| Why, of course it has been a very late affair at Judge Brack's—- |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Yes, yes—that is clear enough. But all the same—- |
| HEDDA.: |
| And then, you see, Tesman hasn't cared to come home and ring us up in |
| the middle of the night.[Laughing.]Perhaps he wasn't inclined to |
| show himself either—immediately after a jollification. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| But in that case—where can he have gone? |
| HEDDA.: |
| Of course he has gone to his Aunts' and slept there. They have his |
| old room ready for him. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| No, he can't be with them for a letter has just come for him from |
| Miss Tesman. There it lies. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Indeed?[Looks at the address.]Why yes, it's addressed in Aunt |
| Julia's hand. Well then, he has remained at Judge Brack's. And |
| as for Eilert Lovborg—he is sitting, with vine leaves in his hair, |
| reading his manuscript. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Oh, Hedda, you are just saying things you don't believe a bit. |
| HEDDA.: |
| You really are a little blockhead, Thea. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Oh yes, I suppose I am. |
| HEDDA.: |
| And how mortally tired you look.: |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Yes, I am mortally tired. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Well then, you must do as I tell you. You must go into my room and |
| lie down for a little while. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Oh no, no—I shouldn't be able to sleep. |
| HEDDA.: |
| I am sure you would.: |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Well, but you husband is certain to come soon now; and then I want to |
| know at once—- |
| HEDDA.: |
| I shall take care to let you know when he comes.: |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Do you promise me, Hedda? |
| HEDDA.: |
| Yes, rely upon me. Just you go in and have a sleep in the meantime. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Thanks; then I'll try. [She goes off to the inner room. |
| [HEDDA goes up to the glass door and draws back the curtains. |
| The broad daylight streams into the room. Then she takes a |
| little hand-glass from the writing-table, looks at herself |
| in it, and arranges her hair. Next she goes to the hall |
| door and presses the bell-button. |
| BERTA presently appears at the hall door.: |
| BERTA.: |
| Did you want anything, ma'am? |
| HEDDA.: |
| Yes; you must put some more wood in the stove. I am shivering. |
| BERTA.: |
| Bless me—I'll make up the fire at once.[She rakes the emberstogether and lays a piece of wood upon them; then stops and listens.] |
| That was a ring at the front door, ma'am. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Then go to the door. I will look after the fire. |
| BERTA.: |
| It'll soon burn up. [She goes out by the hall door. |
| [HEDDA kneels on the foot-rest and lays some more pieces of |
| wood in the stove. |
| After a short pause, GEORGE TESMAN enters from the hall. He |
| steals on tiptoe towards the middle doorway and is about to |
| slip through the curtains. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [At the stove, without looking up.] Good morning. |
| TESMAN.: |
| [Turns.] Hedda! [Approaching her.] Good heavens—are you up so |
| early? Eh? |
| HEDDA.: |
| Yes, I am up very early this morning. |
| TESMAN.: |
| And I never doubted you were still sound asleep! Fancy that, Hedda! |
| HEDDA.: |
| Don't speak so loud. Mrs. Elvsted is resting in my room. |
| TESMAN.: |
| Has Mrs. Elvsted been here all night? |
| HEDDA.: |
| Yes, since no one came to fetch her. |
| TESMAN.: |
| Ah, to be sure. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Closes the door of the stove and rises.] Well, did you enjoy |
| yourselves at Judge Brack's? |
| TESMAN.: |
| Have you been anxious about me? Eh? |
| HEDDA.: |
| No, I should never think of being anxious. But I asked if you had |
| enjoyed yourself. |
| TESMAN.: |
| Oh yes,—for once in a way. Especially the beginning of the evening; |
| for then Eilert read me part of his book. We arrived more than an |
| hour too early—fancy that! And Brack had all sorts of arrangements |
| to make—so Eilert read to me. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Seating herself by the table on the right.] Well? Tell me then—- |
| TESMAN.: |
| [Sitting on a footstool near the stove.] Oh, Hedda, you can't |
| conceive what a book that is going to be! I believe it is one of the |
| most remarkable things that have ever been written. Fancy that! |
| HEDDA.: |
| ** |
| Yes yes; I don't care about that—- |
| TESMAN.: |
| I must make a confession to you, Hedda. When he had finished reading |
| —a horrid feeling came over me. |
| HEDDA.: |
| A horrid feeling? |
| TESMAN.: |
| I felt jealous of Eilert for having had it in him to write such a |
| book. Only think, Hedda! |
| HEDDA.: |
| Yes, yes, I am thinking! |
| TESMAN.: |
| And then how pitiful to think that he—with all his gifts—should be |
| irreclaimable, after all. |
| HEDDA.: |
| I suppose you mean that he has more courage than the rest? |
| TESMAN.: |
| No, not at all—I mean that he is incapable of taking his pleasure |
| in moderation. |
| HEDDA.: |
| And what came of it all—in the end? |
| TESMAN.: |
| Well, to tell the truth, I think it might best be described as an |
| orgie, Hedda. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Had he vine-leaves in his hair? |
| TESMAN.: |
| Vine-leaves? No, I saw nothing of the sort. But he made a long, |
| rambling speech in honour of the woman who had inspired him in his |
| work—that was the phrase he used. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Did he name her? |
| TESMAN.: |
| No, he didn't; but I can't help thinking he meant Mrs. Elvsted. You |
| may be sure he did. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Well—where did you part from him? |
| TESMAN.: |
| On the way to town. We broke up—the last of us at any rate—all |
| together; and Brack came with us to get a breath of fresh air. And |
| then, you see, we agreed to take Eilert home; for he had had far more |
| than was good for him. |
| HEDDA.: |
| I daresay.: |
| TESMAN.: |
| But now comes the strange part of it, Hedda; or, I should rather say, |
| the melancholy part of it. I declare I am almost ashamed—on Eilert's |
| account—to tell you—- |
| HEDDA.: |
| Oh, go on—-! |
| TESMAN.: |
| Well, as we were getting near town, you see, I happened to drop a |
| little behind the others. Only for a minute or two—fancy that! |
| HEDDA.: |
| Yes yes yes, but—-? |
| TESMAN.: |
| And then, as I hurried after them—what do you think I found by the |
| wayside? Eh? |
| HEDDA.: |
| Oh, how should I know! |
| TESMAN.: |
| You mustn't speak of it to a soul, Hedda! Do you hear! Promise me, |
| for Eilert's sake.[Draws a parcel, wrapped in paper, from his coatpocket.]Fancy, dear—I found this. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Is not that the parcel he had with him yesterday? |
| TESMAN.: |
| Yes, it is the whole of his precious, irreplaceable manuscript! And |
| he had gone and lost it, and knew nothing about it. Only fancy, |
| Hedda! So deplorably—- |
| HEDDA.: |
| But why did you not give him back the parcel at once? |
| TESMAN.: |
| I didn't dare to—in the state he was then in—- |
| HEDDA.: |
| Did you not tell any of the others that you had found it? |
| TESMAN.: |
| Oh, far from it! You can surely understand that, for Eilert's sake, |
| I wouldn't do that. |
| HEDDA.: |
| So no one knows that Eilert Lovborg's manuscript is in your |
| possession? |
| TESMAN.: |
| No. And no one must know it. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Then what did you say to him afterwards? |
| TESMAN.: |
| I didn't talk to him again at all; for when we got in among the |
| streets, he and two or three of the others gave us the slip and |
| disappeared. Fancy that! |
| HEDDA.: |
| Indeed! They must have taken him home then. |
| TESMAN.: |
| Yes, so it would appear. And Brack, too, left us. |
| HEDDA.: |
| And what have you been doing with yourself since? |
| TESMAN.: |
| Well, I and some of the others went home with one of the party, a |
| jolly fellow, and took our morning coffee with him; or perhaps I |
| should rather call it our night coffee—eh? But now, when I have |
| rested a little, and given Eilert, poor fellow, time to have his |
| sleep out, I must take this back to him. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Holds out her hand for the packet.] No—don't give it to him! Not |
| in such a hurry, I mean. Let me read it first. |
| TESMAN.: |
| No, my dearest Hedda, I mustn't, I really mustn't. |
| HEDDA.: |
| You must not? |
| TESMAN.: |
| No—for you can imagine what a state of despair he will be in when |
| he wakens and misses the manuscript. He has no copy of it, you must |
| know! He told me so. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Looking searchingly at him.] Can such a thing not be reproduced? |
| Written over again? |
| TESMAN.: |
| No, I don't think that would be possible. For the inspiration, you |
| see—- |
| HEDDA.: |
| Yes, yes—I suppose it depends on that—-[Lightly.]But, by-the-bye |
| —here is a letter for you. |
| TESMAN.: |
| Fancy—-! |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Handing it to him.] It came early this morning. |
| TESMAN.: |
| It's from Aunt Julia! What can it be?[He lays the packet on theother footstool, opens the letter, runs his eye through it, and jumpsup.]Oh, Hedda—she says that poor Aunt Rina is dying! |
| HEDDA.: |
| Well, we were prepared for that. |
| TESMAN.: |
| And that if I want to see her again, I must make haste. I'll run in |
| to them at once. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Suppressing a smile.] Will you run? |
| TESMAN.: |
| Oh, my dearest Hedda—if you could only make up your mind to come with |
| me! Just think! |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Rises and says wearily, repelling the idea.] No, no don't ask me. I |
| will not look upon sickness and death. I loathe all sorts of ugliness. |
| TESMAN.: |
| Well, well, then—-![Bustling around.]My hat—-? My overcoat—-? |
| Oh, in the hall—-. I do hope I mayn't come too late, Hedda! Eh? |
| HEDDA.: |
| Oh, if you run—- [BERTA appears at the hall door. |
| BERTA.: |
| Judge Brack is at the door, and wishes to know if he may come in. |
| TESMAN.: |
| At this time! No, I can't possibly see him. |
| HEDDA.: |
| But I can.[To BERTA.]Ask Judge Brack to come in. [BERTA goes out. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Quickly, whispering.] The parcel, Tesman! |
| [She snatches it up from the stool. |
| TESMAN.: |
| Yes, give it to me! |
| HEDDA.: |
| No, no, I will keep it till you come back. |
| [She goes to the writing-table and places it in the bookcase. |
| TESMAN stands in a flurry of haste, and cannot get his |
| gloves on. |
| JUDGE BRACK enters from the hall.: |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Nodding to him.] You are an early bird, I must say. |
| BRACK.: |
| Yes, don't you think so![To TESMAN.]Are you on the move, too? |
| TESMAN.: |
| Yes, I must rush of to my aunts'. Fancy—the invalid one is lying at |
| death's door, poor creature. |
| BRACK.: |
| Dear me, is she indeed? Then on no account let me detain you. At |
| such a critical moment—- |
| TESMAN.: |
| Yes, I must really rush—- Good-bye! Good-bye! |
| [He hastens out by the hall door. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Approaching.] You seem to have made a particularly lively night of |
| it at your rooms, Judge Brack. |
| BRACK.: |
| I assure you I have not had my clothes off, Mrs. Hedda. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Not you, either? |
| BRACK.: |
| No, as you may see. But what has Tesman been telling you of the |
| night's adventures? |
| HEDDA.: |
| Oh, some tiresome story. Only that they went and had coffee somewhere |
| or other. |
| BRACK.: |
| I have heard about that coffee-party already. Eilert Lovborg was not |
| with them, I fancy? |
| HEDDA.: |
| No, they had taken him home before that. |
| BRACK.: |
| Tesman too? |
| HEDDA.: |
| No, but some of the others, he said. |
| BRACK.: |
| [Smiling.] George Tesman is really an ingenuous creature, Mrs. Hedda. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Yes, heaven knows he is. Then is there something behind all this? |
| BRACK.: |
| Yes, perhaps there may be. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Well then, sit down, my dear Judge, and tell your story in comfort. |
| [She seats herself to the left of the table. BRACK sits near |
| her, at the long side of the table. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Now then? |
| BRACK.: |
| I had special reasons for keeping track of my guests—last night. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Of Eilert Lovborg among the rest, perhaps? |
| BRACK.: |
| Frankly, yes. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Now you make me really curious—- |
| BRACK.: |
| Do you know where he and one or two of the others finished the night, |
| Mrs. Hedda? |
| HEDDA.: |
| If it is not quite unmentionable, tell me. |
| BRACK.: |
| Oh no, it's not at all unmentionable. Well, they put in an appearance |
| at a particularly animated soiree. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Of the lively kind? |
| BRACK.: |
| Of the very liveliest—- |
| HEDDA.: |
| Tell me more of this, Judge Brack—- |
| BRACK.: |
| Lovborg, as well as the others, had been invited in advance. I knew |
| all about it. But he had declined the invitation; for now, as you |
| know, he has become a new man. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Up at the Elvsteds', yes. But he went after all, then? |
| BRACK.: |
| Well, you see, Mrs. Hedda—unhappily the spirit moved him at my rooms |
| last evening—- |
| HEDDA.: |
| Yes, I hear he found inspiration. |
| BRACK.: |
| Pretty violent inspiration. Well, I fancy that altered his purpose; |
| for we menfolk are unfortunately not always so firm in our principles |
| as we ought to be. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Oh, I am sure you are an exception, Judge Brack. But as to Lovborg—-? |
| BRACK.: |
| To make a long story short—he landed at last in Mademoiselle Diana's |
| rooms. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Mademoiselle Diana's? |
| BRACK.: |
| It was Mademoiselle Diana that was giving the soiree, to a select |
| circle of her admirers and her lady friends. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Is she a red-haired woman? |
| BRACK.: |
| Precisely.: |
| HEDDA.: |
| A sort of a—singer? |
| BRACK.: |
| Oh yes—in her leisure moments. And moreover a mighty huntress—of |
| men—Mrs. Hedda. You have no doubt heard of her. Eilert Lovborg was |
| one of her most enthusiastic protectors—in the days of his glory. |
| HEDDA.: |
| And how did all this end? |
| BRACK.: |
| Far from amicably, it appears. After a most tender meeting, they |
| seem to have come to blows—- |
| HEDDA.: |
| Lovborg and she? |
| BRACK.: |
| Yes. He accused her or her friends of having robbed him. He declared |
| that his pocket-book had disappeared—and other things as well. In |
| short, he seems to have made a furious disturbance. |
| HEDDA.: |
| And what came of it all? |
| BRACK.: |
| It came to a general scrimmage, in which the ladies as well as the |
| gentlemen took part. Fortunately the police at last appeared on the |
| scene. |
| HEDDA.: |
| The police too? |
| BRACK.: |
| Yes. I fancy it will prove a costly frolic for Eilert Lovborg, crazy |
| being that he is. |
| HEDDA.: |
| How so? |
| BRACK.: |
| He seems to have made a violent resistance—to have hit one of the |
| constables on the head and torn the coat off his back. So they had |
| to march him off to the police-station with the rest. |
| HEDDA.: |
| How have you learnt all this? |
| BRACK.: |
| From the police themselves.: |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Gazing straight before her.] So that is what happened. Then he had |
| no vine-leaves in his hair. |
| BRACK.: |
| Vine-leaves, Mrs. Hedda? |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Changing her tone.] But tell me now, Judge—what is your real reason |
| for tracking out Eilert Lovborg's movements so carefully? |
| BRACK.: |
| In the first place, it could not be entirely indifferent to me if it |
| should appear in the police-court that he came straight from my house. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Will the matter come into court then? |
| BRACK.: |
| Of course. However, I should scarcely have troubled so much about |
| that. But I thought that, as a friend of the family, it was my duty |
| to supply you and Tesman with a full account of his nocturnal exploits. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Why so, Judge Brack? |
| BRACK.: |
| Why, because I have a shrewd suspicion that he intends to use you as |
| a sort of blind. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Oh, how can you think such a thing! |
| BRACK.: |
| Good heavens, Mrs. Hedda—we have eyes in our head. Mark my words! |
| This Mrs. Elvsted will be in no hurry to leave town again. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Well, even if there should be anything between them, I suppose there |
| are plenty of other places where they could meet. |
| BRACK.: |
| Not a single home. Henceforth, as before, every respectable house |
| will be closed against Eilert Lovborg. |
| HEDDA.: |
| And so ought mine to be, you mean? |
| BRACK.: |
| Yes. I confess it would be more than painful to me if this personage |
| were to be made free of your house. How superfluous, how intrusive, |
| he would be, if he were to force his way into—- |
| HEDDA.: |
| —-into the triangle? |
| BRACK.: |
| Precisely. It would simply mean that I should find myself homeless. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Looks at him with a smile.] So you want to be the one cock in the |
| basket(12)—that is your aim. |
| BRACK.: |
| [Nods slowly and lowers his voice.] Yes, that is my aim. And for |
| that I will fight—with every weapon I can command. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Her smile vanishing.] I see you are a dangerous person—when it |
| comes to the point. |
| BRACK.: |
| Do you think so? |
| HEDDA.: |
| I am beginning to think so. And I am exceedingly glad to think—that |
| you have no sort of hold over me. |
| BRACK.: |
| [Laughing equivocally.] Well well, Mrs. Hedda—perhaps you are right |
| there. If I had, who knows what I might be capable of? |
| HEDDA.: |
| Come come now, Judge Brack! That sounds almost like a threat. |
| BRACK.: |
| [Rising.] Oh, not at all! The triangle, you know, ought, if possible, |
| to be spontaneously constructed. |
| HEDDA.: |
| There I agree with you.: |
| BRACK.: |
| Well, now I have said all I had to say; and I had better be getting |
| back to town. Good-bye, Mrs. Hedda. [He goes towards the glass door. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Rising.] Are you going through the garden? |
| BRACK.: |
| Yes, it's a short cut for me. |
| HEDDA.: |
| And then it is a back way, too. |
| BRACK.: |
| Quite so. I have no objection to back ways. They may be piquant |
| enough at times. |
| HEDDA.: |
| When there is ball practice going on, you mean? |
| BRACK.: |
| [In the doorway, laughing to her.] Oh, people don't shoot their tame |
| poultry, I fancy. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Also laughing.] Oh no, when there is only one cock in the basket—- |
| [They exchange laughing nods of farewell. He goes. She closes |
| the door behind him. |
| [HEDDA, who has become quite serious, stands for a moment |
| looking out. Presently she goes and peeps through the |
| curtain over the middle doorway. Then she goes to the |
| writing-table, takes LOVBORG'S packet out of the bookcase, |
| and is on the point of looking through its contents. BERTA |
| is heard speaking loudly in the hall. HEDDA turns and |
| listens. Then she hastily locks up the packet in the drawer, |
| and lays the key on the inkstand. |
| EILERT LOVBORG, with his greatcoat on and his hat in his |
| hand, tears open the hall door. He looks somewhat confused |
| and irritated. |
| LOVBORG.: |
| [Looking towards the hall.] and I tell you I must and will come in! |
| There! |
| [He closes the door, turns, sees HEDDA, at once regains his self- |
| control, and bows. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [At the writing-table.] Well, Mr Lovborg, this is rather a late hour |
| to call for Thea. |
| LOVBORG.: |
| You mean rather an early hour to call on you. Pray pardon me. |
| HEDDA.: |
| How do you know that she is still here? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| They told me at her lodgings that she had been out all night.: |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Going to the oval table.] Did you notice anything about the people |
| of the house when they said that? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| [Looks inquiringly at her.] Notice anything about them? |
| HEDDA.: |
| I mean, did they seem to think it odd? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| [Suddenly understanding.] Oh yes, of course! I am dragging her down |
| with me! However, I didn't notice anything.—I suppose Tesman is not |
| up yet. |
| HEDDA.: |
| No—I think not—- |
| LOVBORG.: |
| When did he come home? |
| HEDDA.: |
| Very late.: |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Did he tell you anything? |
| HEDDA.: |
| Yes, I gathered that you had had an exceedingly jolly evening at |
| Judge Brack's. |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Nothing more? |
| HEDDA.: |
| I don't think so. However, I was so dreadfully sleepy—- |
| MRS. ELVSTED enters through the curtains of the middle doorway. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| [Going towards him.] Ah, Lovborg! At last—-! |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Yes, at last. And too late! |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| [Looks anxiously at him.] What is too late? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Everything is too late now. It is all over with me. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Oh no, no—don't say that! |
| LOVBORG.: |
| You will say the same when you hear—- |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| I won't hear anything! |
| HEDDA.: |
| Perhaps you would prefer to talk to her alone? If so, I will leave |
| you. |
| LOVBORG.: |
| No, stay—you too. I beg you to stay. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Yes, but I won't hear anything, I tell you. |
| LOVBORG.: |
| It is not last night's adventures that I want to talk about. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| What is it then—-? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| I want to say that now our ways must part.: |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Part! |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Involuntarily.] I knew it! |
| LOVBORG.: |
| You can be of no more service to me, Thea. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| How can you stand there and say that! No more service to you! Am I |
| not to help you now, as before? Are we not to go on working together? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Henceforward I shall do no work.: |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| [Despairingly.] Then what am I to do with my life? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| You must try to live your life as if you had never know me.: |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| But you know I cannot do that! |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Try if you cannot, Thea. You must go home again—- |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| [In vehement protest.] Never in this world! Where you are, there |
| will I be also! I will not let myself be driven away like this! I |
| will remain here! I will be with you when the book appears. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Half aloud, in suspense.] Ah yes—the book! |
| LOVBORG.: |
| [Looks at her.] My book and Thea's; for that is what it is. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Yes, I feel that it is. And that is why I have a right to be with |
| you when it appears! I will see with my own eyes how respect and |
| honour pour in upon you afresh. And the happiness—the happiness— |
| oh, I must share it with you! |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Thea—our book will never appear. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Ah! |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Never appear! |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Can never appear.: |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| [In agonised foreboding.] Lovborg—what have you done with the |
| manuscript? |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Looks anxiously at him.] Yes, the manuscript—-? |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Where is it? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| The manuscript—-. Well then—I have torn the manuscript into a |
| thousand pieces. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| [Shrieks.] Oh no, no—-! |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Involuntarily.] But that's not—- |
| LOVBORG.: |
| [Looks at her.] Not true, you think? |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Collecting herself.] Oh well, of course—since you say so. But it |
| sounded so improbable—- |
| LOVBORG.: |
| It is true, all the same. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| [Wringing her hands.] Oh God—oh God, Hedda—torn his own work to |
| pieces! |
| LOVBORG.: |
| I have torn my own life to pieces. So why should I not tear my life- |
| work too—-? |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| And you did this last night? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Yes, I tell you! Tore it into a thousand pieces—and scattered them |
| on the fiord—far out. There there is cool sea-water at any rate— |
| let them drift upon it—drift with the current and the wind. And |
| then presently they will sink—-deeper and deeper—as I shall, Thea. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Do you know, Lovborg, that what you have done with the book—I shall |
| think of it to my dying day as though you had killed a little child. |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Yes, you are right. It is a sort of child-murder. |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| How could you, then—-! Did not the child belong to me too? |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Almost inaudibly.] Ah, the child—- |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| [Breathing heavily.] It is all over then. Well well, now I will go, |
| Hedda. |
| HEDDA.: |
| But you are not going away from town? |
| MRS. ELVSTED. |
| Oh, I don't know what I shall do. I see nothing but darkness before |
| me. [She goes out by the hall door. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Stands waiting for a moment.] So you are not going to see her home, |
| Mr. Lovborg? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| I? Through the streets? Would you have people see her walking with |
| me? |
| HEDDA.: |
| Of course I don't know what else may have happened last night. But |
| is it so utterly irretrievable? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| It will not end with last night—I know that perfectly well. And |
| the thing is that now I have no taste for that sort of life either. |
| I won't begin it anew. She has broken my courage and my power of |
| braving life out. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Looking straight before her.] So that pretty little fool has had |
| her fingers in a man's destiny.[Looks at him.]But all the same, |
| how could you treat her so heartlessly. |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Oh, don't say that I was heartless! |
| HEDDA.: |
| To go and destroy what has filled her whole soul for months and years! |
| You do not call that heartless! |
| LOVBORG.: |
| To you I can tell the truth, Hedda. |
| HEDDA.: |
| The truth? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| First promise me—give me your word—that what I now confide in you |
| Thea shall never know. |
| HEDDA.: |
| I give you my word.: |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Good. Then let me tell you that what I said just now was untrue. |
| HEDDA.: |
| About the manuscript? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Yes. I have not torn it to pieces—nor thrown it into the fiord. |
| HEDDA.: |
| No, no—-. But—where is it then? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| I have destroyed it none the less—utterly destroyed it, Hedda! |
| HEDDA.: |
| I don't understand. |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Thea said that what I had done seemed to her like a child-murder.: |
| HEDDA.: |
| Yes, so she said. |
| LOVBORG.: |
| But to kill his child—that is not the worst thing a father can do to |
| it. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Not the worst? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Suppose now, Hedda, that a man—in the small hours of the morning— |
| came home to his child's mother after a night of riot and debauchery, |
| and said: "Listen—I have been here and there—in this place and in |
| that. And I have taken our child with—to this place and to that. |
| And I have lost the child—utterly lost it. The devil knows into |
| what hands it may have fallen—who may have had their clutches on it." |
| HEDDA.: |
| Well—but when all is said and done, you know—this was only a book—- |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Thea's pure soul was in that book. |
| HEDDA.: |
| Yes, so I understand. |
| LOVBORG.: |
| And you can understand, too, that for her and me together no future |
| is possible. |
| HEDDA.: |
| What path do you mean to take then? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| None. I will only try to make an end of it all—the sooner the better. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [A step nearer him.] Eilert Lovborg—listen to me.—Will you not try |
| to—to do it beautifully? |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Beautifully?[Smiling.]With vine-leaves in my hair, as you used to |
| dream in the old days—-? |
| HEDDA.: |
| No, no. I have lost my faith in the vine-leaves. But beautifully |
| nevertheless! For once in a way!—Good-bye! You must go now—and |
| do not come here any more. |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Good-bye, Mrs. Tesman. And give George Tesman my love. |
| [He is on the point of going. |
| HEDDA.: |
| No, wait! I must give you a memento to take with you. |
| [She goes to the writing-table and opens the drawer and the |
| pistol-case; then returns to LOVBORG with one of the pistols. |
| LOVBORG.: |
| [Looks at her.] This? Is this the memento? |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Nodding slowly.] Do you recognise it? It was aimed at you once. |
| LOVBORG.: |
| You should have used it then.: |
| HEDDA.: |
| Take it—and do you use it now. |
| LOVBORG.: |
| [Puts the pistol in his breast pocket.] Thanks! |
| HEDDA.: |
| And beautifully, Eilert Lovborg. Promise me that! |
| LOVBORG.: |
| Good-bye, Hedda Gabler. [He goes out by the hall door. |
| [HEDDA listens for a moment at the door. Then she goes up to |
| the writing-table, takes out the packet of manuscript, peeps |
| under the cover, draws a few of the sheets half out, and |
| looks at them. Next she goes over and seats herself in the |
| arm-chair beside the stove, with the packet in her lap. |
| Presently she opens the stove door, and then the packet. |
| HEDDA.: |
| [Throws one of the quires into the fire and whispers to herself.] |
| Now I am burning your child, Thea!—Burning it, curly-locks! |
| [Throwing one or two more quires into the stove.] Your child and |
| Eilert Lovborg's.[Throws the rest in.]I am burning—I am burning |
| your child. |
|
|
||||
|
