Here is the line-by-line modern paraphrase of the monologue:

Original: In Antiochus and his daughter you have heard
Modern: In the story of Antiochus and his daughter, you have witnessed

Original: Of monstrous lust the due and just reward:
Modern: The fitting and deserved punishment for their terrible, sinful desires:

Original: In Pericles, his queen and daughter, seen,
Modern: And in the story of Pericles, his queen, and his daughter, you have seen,

Original: Although assail’d with fortune fierce and keen,
Modern: That even though they were attacked by cruel and harsh misfortune,

Original: Virtue preserved from fell destruction’s blast,
Modern: Good and honorable people can be protected from total ruin and destruction,

Original: Led on by heaven, and crown’d with joy at last:
Modern: Guided by the heavens above, and ultimately rewarded with happiness in the end:

Original: In Helicanus may you well descry
Modern: In the character of Helicanus, you can clearly recognize

Original: A figure of truth, of faith, of loyalty:
Modern: A man who represents honesty, faithfulness, and complete loyalty:

Original: In reverend Cerimon there well appears
Modern: In the wise and respected Cerimon, there is clearly shown

Original: The worth that learned charity aye wears:
Modern: The great value that comes from combining knowledge with genuine kindness and compassion:

Original: For wicked Cleon and his wife, when fame
Modern: As for the evil Cleon and his wife, when the news

Original: Had spread their cursed deed, and honour’d name
Modern: Of their terrible crime had spread, along with the honored reputation

Original: Of Pericles, to rage the city turn,
Modern: Of Pericles, the people of the city turned furious with anger,

Original: That him and his they in his palace burn;
Modern: And they burned Cleon and his wife alive inside their own palace;

Original: The gods for murder seemed so content
Modern: The gods appeared perfectly satisfied to punish them for their murderous intentions,

Original: To punish them; although not done, but meant.
Modern: Even though they had only planned the murder and not fully carried it out.

Original: So, on your patience evermore attending,
Modern: And so, with deep gratitude for your kind attention and patience throughout,

Original: New joy wait on you! Here our play has ending.
Modern: May new happiness find its way to you! And here is where our play comes to a close.

In the Epilogue of “Pericles, Prince of Tyre,” the character of Gower returns to the stage to deliver a closing address to the audience. Gower summarizes the fates of the various characters whose stories have unfolded throughout the play. He reveals that Helicanus and Lysimachus, both virtuous men, are rewarded for their goodness. The villainous Cleon and his wife Dionyza, who had plotted against Marina, meet their end as the people of Tarsus, upon learning of their evil deeds, burn down the palace with the wicked couple inside. Gower also notes that the brothel owners who had held Marina captive meet an unpleasant end as well.

Gower then turns his attention to the triumphant outcomes for the play’s protagonists. Pericles and Thaisa are reunited and restored to happiness, while Marina and Lysimachus are joined together. Gower reflects on the moral arc of the story, noting that virtue is rewarded and wickedness punished. He acknowledges the role that the gods have played in guiding events to their resolution. Gower closes the epilogue by appealing directly to the audience, asking for their goodwill and approval of the tale that has been told, before bidding them farewell and bringing the play to its conclusion.

Pericles, Prince of Tyre follows the wandering journey of Prince Pericles across the Mediterranean. The play opens with Pericles fleeing Antioch after discovering that King Antiochus is engaged in an incestuous relationship with his daughter. Fearing for his life, Pericles leaves his kingdom of Tyre in the care of his trusted advisor Helicanus and sets sail. He arrives in Tarsus during a famine, where he provides grain to the starving people, earning the gratitude of Governor Cleon and his wife Dionyza.

Continuing his travels, Pericles is shipwrecked near Pentapolis, where he washes ashore and participates in a tournament to win the hand of Thaisa, daughter of King Simonides. Pericles wins both the tournament and Thaisa’s love, and they marry. However, news arrives that Antiochus and his daughter have died, making it safe for Pericles to return to Tyre. During the sea voyage home, Thaisa gives birth to a daughter during a violent storm but appears to die in childbirth. The sailors insist her body must be cast overboard, so Pericles places her in a sealed coffin and commits it to the sea.

Thaisa’s coffin washes ashore in Ephesus, where the physician Cerimon revives her. Believing her husband and child are dead, she becomes a priestess in Diana’s temple. Meanwhile, Pericles leaves his infant daughter Marina with Cleon and Dionyza in Tarsus, asking them to raise her. Fourteen years pass, and Marina grows into a beautiful and virtuous young woman, causing Dionyza’s own daughter to pale in comparison. Jealous, Dionyza orders Marina’s murder, but pirates capture her before the deed is done and sell her to a brothel in Mytilene.

In the brothel, Marina’s purity and eloquence convert clients to virtue rather than vice, eventually leading to her release and employment as a teacher. When Pericles returns to Tarsus, Cleon and Dionyza show him a false tomb, claiming Marina died of natural causes. Grief-stricken, Pericles becomes a hermit aboard his ship. His vessel eventually arrives in Mytilene, where the governor Lysimachus brings Marina aboard to cure the melancholy stranger through music. Father and daughter recognize each other, leading to joyful reunion. The goddess Diana then appears to Pericles in a vision, directing him to her temple in Ephesus, where he is reunited with Thaisa. The play concludes with Marina’s betrothal to Lysimachus.