Original: No, I defy all counsel, all redress,
Modern: No, I reject all advice and solutions,

Original: But that which ends all counsel, true redress,
Modern: Except for the one thing that ends all problems—true relief—

Original: Death, death; O amiable lovely death!
Modern: Death, death! Oh sweet, lovely death!

Original: Thou odouriferous stench! sound rottenness!
Modern: You fragrant stink! You perfect decay!

Original: Arise forth from the couch of lasting night,
Modern: Rise up from the bed of eternal darkness,

Original: Thou hate and terror to prosperity,
Modern: You enemy and fear of all happiness,

Original: And I will kiss thy detestable bones
Modern: And I will kiss your disgusting bones

Original: And put my eyeballs in thy vaulty brows
Modern: And place my eyes in your hollow eye sockets

Original: And ring these fingers with thy household worms
Modern: And wear your graveyard worms like rings on my fingers

Original: And stop this gap of breath with fulsome dust
Modern: And fill my mouth with rotting dirt

Original: And be a carrion monster like thyself:
Modern: And become a decaying monster just like you:

Original: Come, grin on me, and I will think thou smilest
Modern: Come, show me your skull’s grin, and I’ll pretend you’re smiling

Original: And buss thee as thy wife. Misery’s love, O, come to me!
Modern: And kiss you like your bride. Oh suffering’s companion, come to me!

Original: No, no, I will not, having breath to cry:
Modern: No, no, I won’t be quiet while I can still speak:

Original: O, that my tongue were in the thunder’s mouth!
Modern: Oh, if only my voice could be as loud as thunder!

Original: Then with a passion would I shake the world;
Modern: Then I would shake the entire world with my fierce emotion;

Original: And rouse from sleep that fell anatomy
Modern: And wake up that cruel skeleton

Original: Which cannot hear a lady’s feeble voice,
Modern: Who cannot hear a woman’s weak voice,

Original: Which scorns a modern invocation.
Modern: Who ignores ordinary prayers.

Original: Thou art not holy to belie me so;
Modern: You’re not holy enough to call me a liar;

Original: I am not mad: this hair I tear is mine;
Modern: I am not crazy: this hair I’m pulling belongs to me;

Original: My name is Constance; I was Geffrey’s wife;
Modern: My name is Constance; I was Geoffrey’s wife;

Original: Young Arthur is my son, and he is lost:
Modern: Young Arthur is my son, and he is gone:

Original: I am not mad: I would to heaven I were!
Modern: I am not mad: I wish to God I were!

Original: For then, ‘tis like I should forget myself:
Modern: Because then I would probably forget who I am:

Original: O, if I could, what grief should I forget!
Modern: Oh, if I could do that, what sorrow I would forget!

Original: Preach some philosophy to make me mad,
Modern: Teach me some wisdom that will drive me crazy,

Original: And thou shalt be canonized, cardinal;
Modern: And you’ll be made a saint, cardinal;

Original: For being not mad but sensible of grief,
Modern: Because I’m not crazy, just fully aware of my pain,

Original: My reasonable part produces reason
Modern: My rational mind comes up with logical thoughts

Original: How I may be deliver’d of these woes,
Modern: About how I can escape from these troubles,

Original: And teaches me to kill or hang myself:
Modern: And tells me to kill myself or hang myself:

Original: If I were mad, I should forget my son,
Modern: If I were crazy, I would forget my son,

Original: Or madly think a babe of clouts were he:
Modern: Or insanely think a cloth doll was him:

Original: I am not mad; too well, too well I feel
Modern: I am not mad; I feel too clearly, too clearly

Original: The different plague of each calamity.
Modern: The distinct torture of each disaster.

In Act III, Scene 4 of “King John,” Pandulph, the papal legate, encounters King Philip of France and Louis the Dauphin following their military defeat at the hands of King John’s forces. The French are despondent over their losses, particularly the capture of Arthur, Duke of Brittany, whom they had been championing as the rightful heir to the English throne. Constance, Arthur’s mother, enters in a state of profound grief and despair over her son’s imprisonment. She refuses comfort from King Philip and Cardinal Pandulph, expressing her anguish through wild declarations and wishes for death, rejecting their attempts to console her with rational or religious arguments. She eventually exits, leaving the others concerned for her mental state.

After Constance’s departure, Pandulph works to restore French morale and redirect their purpose. He assures King Philip that all is not lost and suggests that King John, now holding the young Arthur prisoner, will likely have the boy killed to secure his own throne, as Arthur’s mere existence poses a continual threat to John’s legitimacy. Pandulph argues that Arthur’s death would actually provide the Dauphin Louis with an opportunity, as Louis has a claim to the English throne through his marriage to Blanche, John’s niece. The cardinal convinces Louis that John’s anticipated murder of Arthur will turn English sentiment against him, creating the perfect moment for a French invasion of England. Inspired by this reasoning, Louis commits to raising an army for the conquest of England.

King John opens with King Philip of France supporting Arthur, the young son of John’s deceased brother Geoffrey, as the rightful heir to the English throne. John’s mother, Queen Eleanor, and the French court engage in heated disputes over legitimacy. Meanwhile, the Bastard (Philip Faulconbridge), illegitimate son of Richard the Lionheart, joins John’s cause after being legitimized. War breaks out between England and France, with the strategic town of Angiers caught between the two armies.

The conflict temporarily resolves when John’s niece Blanche marries the French Dauphin Lewis, uniting the two kingdoms. However, Cardinal Pandulph arrives from Rome and excommunicates John for refusing to accept Stephen Langton as Archbishop of Canterbury. The Cardinal persuades France to break the peace and resume war against the excommunicated English king. In the ensuing battle, Arthur is captured by John’s forces.

John orders Hubert to kill the young Arthur, but Hubert cannot bring himself to murder the child and instead hides him. When Arthur later dies attempting to escape from his prison tower, the English nobles believe John has murdered him and defect to join the invading French forces led by the Dauphin. As John faces rebellion from within and invasion from without, he submits to the Pope’s authority to regain legitimacy. However, he falls ill and is poisoned by a monk at Swinstead Abbey.

The Bastard rallies the remaining English forces and discovers that the French nobles plan to kill their English allies after victory. This intelligence helps reconcile the English lords to their king. John dies, and his young son Henry is crowned King Henry III. The Dauphin withdraws his forces, and Cardinal Pandulph negotiates peace. The play concludes with the Bastard delivering a patriotic speech about England’s strength when united against foreign threats.