Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District-Act Two Scene Five

Katerina's bedroom. Katerina and Sergey are lying in bed. Sergey is asleep. KATERINA Sergey, Seryozha! He's still asleep. SERGEY waking up What? KATERINA Wake up! SERGEY What do you want? KATERINA Wake up! SERGEY Well? KATERINA Kiss me! Sergey kisses her. Not like that, not like that; kiss me so it hurts my lips and the blood rushes to my head and the icons fall from their shelves. Sergey kisses her. Oh! Seryozha! SERGEY Katya, our love is nearing its end. KATERINA Why? SERGEY Zinoviy Borisych will be coming back, your lawful husband, how do you think I'm going to feel, seeing you go to bed with your lawful husband? KATERINA That won't happen. SERGEY Katerina Lvovna, Katenka, I'm not like other men, who don't care about anything, so long as they've got a woman's soft body to caress. I'm a sensitive person, you know, I can feel what love is. Oh why did I fall in love with you and burn with passion just for you? Can it really be an honour for you, an eminent merchant's wife, to be my mistress? Oh Katya, what I'd give to become your husband in God's eyes! As it is, we can meet only at night and in daylight we're afraid to show our faces to the world. KATERINA Don't upset yourself, Sergey, I'll make you a merchant and we'll live together properly. SERGEY How will you manage that? KATERINA That's not your worry. It's your business to kiss me hard, like this. Sergey kisses her, then falls asleep. KATERINA He's asleep again. Oh Sergey, can you really sleep, when your lover's lips are so close? Oh, Sergey, I'll not fear anyone, I'll make you my husband, I'll not be afraid of anyone. Boris Timofeyich tried to interfere and he's gone: dead, buried and forgotten, only I remember him at nights. His fearful face often appears before me. The ghost of Boris appears. There he is in the corner! GHOST OF BORIS Katerina Lvovna, you murderess! I've come to find out how you and Sergey are keeping my son's bed warm. KATERINA You can't frighten me; look at me sleeping with Sergey. GHOST OF BORIS My eyes cannot see, look, in my eyes is but emptiness and fire. Katerina, Katerina, a curse on you forever! KATERINA Oh, Sergey, wake up! Sergey wakes up. SERGEY Well? What do you want? KATERINA Sergey, Seryozha, look and see, the fearful ghost of Boris Timofeyich standing there. Sergey cannot see the ghost. SERGEY Nonsense, there's no one there, calm down, Katya. KATERINA I'm scared, Seryozha, kiss me, kiss me, kiss me; darling, dearest one, press me closer to your heart! The ghost disappears, Katerina and Sergey fall asleep. Later Katerina wakes up and rouses Sergey. in a whisper Listen, Sergey, Sergey! SERGEY Well? KATERINA Can you hear it? SERGEY What? KATERINA Someone's walking softly, softly. SERGEY It's your imagination again. KATERINA No, no. The dogs didn't bark, so it's someone they know; can you hear? Someone's coming. SERGEY Yes, I can. KATERINA Hide somewhere, it's Zinoviy Borisych, my husband. Sergey whistles. SERGEY Now we're really in the soup! KATERINA Hide quick, hide! Sergey hides. He's listening at the door, the swine, just you wait! ZINOVIY outside the door Katerina! KATERINA Who's there? ZINOVIY Open the door! KATERINA I can't make it out... Who's there? ZINOVIY It's me... KATERINA Who? ZINOVIY Me, can't you hear? KATERINA I can't make it out. ZINOVIY Look, it's me, Zinoviy Borisovich. Katerina opens the door. Enter Zinoviy And how are you getting on? KATERINA I haven't been going to any theatres, nor to any balls either. ZINOVIY noticing Sergey's trousers So you've been at home all the time? KATERINA Yes, l have. ZINOVIY I see! Well, that's fine then, but how did my dad die? KATERINA Well, he just died; we gave him a good funeral. ZINOVIY And why is the bed made up for two? KATERINA I was expecting you any time. ZINOVIY Thanks for that anyway. noticing Sergey's belt And what might that thing be? KATERINA Where? ZINOVIY Here! From what I can make out, it's a man's belt. KATERINA I found it in the garden and fastened my skirt with it. ZINOVIY We've been hearing some things about your skirts, about your skirts. KATERINA What have you heard then? ZINOVIY We've heard a lot about your affairs … KATERINA What have you heard? ZINOVIY We've heard everything. KATERINA What have you heard? ZINOVIY We've heard it all, we've heard it all, we've heard it all, just everything! KATERINA I don't like people talking to me in that insolent way. Kindly explain what "affairs" you're talking about. You know absolutely nothing about it, I'm the one who knows it all. I won't allow you or anyone else to talk to me about my "affairs". It's not for you to judge me. Hands off, you disgusting, pathetic creature; I can't even call you a husband, you're as lifeless as a lump of wood, a feeble weakling and as cold as a fish. You disgust me. Ugh, you pathetic tradesman! ZINOVIY Look here, Katerina, that's very fine language coming from you, just like you'd read in books! What's it all about? Where have you got such insolent manners from? There must be some truth in the rumour that you've been unfaithful to me. Just you wait, Katerina, I'll get to the bottom of it, never fear, just you wait, Katerina, I'll get to the bottom of it and then I'll give you sheer hell, absolute, sheer hell. I'll beat the living daylights out of you. I am your husband before God and the Tsar. I am responsible for the family's honour. I demand the truth! KATERINA What good'll that do you? ZINOVIY I demand the truth! KATERINA I don't even want to talk to you, after all you're nothing more than a pathetic tradesman, you'd never understand anything! Zinoviy beats Katerina with the belt. ZINOVIY Take that, and that, and another! KATERINA Oh! oh! Sergey, Sergey, he's beating me! Come out and protect me! ZINOVIY Who's this Sergey? Who is it? Where is he? Who's this Sergey? Enter Sergey. Katerina rushes to him and kisses him. KATERINA Sergey, my dearest love! ZINOVIY Murder! Come here, everybody! He runs to the window. KATERINA You won't get away! Katerina catches up with Zinoviy, pushes him on the floor and begins to strangle him. Sergey runs up and holds Zinoviy on the floor. Zinoviy struggles. ZINOVIY I ... knew it ... all... KATERINA Hold him tighter, Sergey! ZINOVIY You swine! Help! Oh, they're strangling me! weakly Get a priest... SERGEY I'll give you priest all right! Sergey hits Zinoviy over the head with a heavy candlestick. KATERINA He's choking... Zinoviy dies. SERGEY Well, that's the end of that... KATERINA Take him to the cellar. I'll light the way. Sergey lifts Zinoviy's body on to his shoulders and carries it into the cellar. Katerina lights the way with a candle. When they come to the cellar, Sergey rolls away some stones and puts Zinoviy's body in the hole. SERGEY Let's have some light, Katya. KATERINA Hurry up, oh do hurry up! Sergey replaces the stones. SERGEY Just finishing. That's all ... it's done... KATERINA Kiss me, kiss me, kiss me. They kiss. SERGEY Katya... KATERINA Now you are my husband. Katerina and Sergey stand locked in an embrace.