Original: And why, I pray you? Who might be your mother,
Modern: And why should you act this way? Who raised you,

Original: That you insult, exult, and all at once,
Modern: That you can mock and celebrate at the same time,

Original: Over the wretched? What though you have no beauty,–
Modern: Over someone who’s miserable? Just because you’re not beautiful,–

Original: As by my faith, I see no more in you
Modern: And honestly, I don’t see anything in you

Original: Than without candle may go dark to bed,–
Modern: More attractive than someone who could go to bed in the dark without a candle,–

Original: Must you be therefore proud and pitiless?
Modern: Does that mean you have to be so arrogant and cruel?

Original: Why, what means this? Why do you look on me?
Modern: What’s this supposed to mean? Why are you staring at me?

Original: I see no more in you than in the ordinary
Modern: I don’t see anything special in you beyond the ordinary

Original: Of nature’s sale-work. Od’s my little life!
Modern: Cheap goods that nature mass-produces. Good Lord!

Original: I think she means to tangle my eyes too.
Modern: I think she’s trying to bewitch me as well.

Original: No, faith, proud mistress, hope not after it:
Modern: No way, you arrogant woman, don’t count on it:

Original: ‘Tis not your inky brows, your black silk hair,
Modern: It’s not your dark eyebrows, your black silky hair,

Original: Your bugle eyeballs, nor your cheek of cream,
Modern: Your beady black eyes, or your pale white cheeks,

Original: That can entame my spirits to your worship.
Modern: That could ever make me fall under your spell.

Original: You foolish shepherd, wherefore do you follow her,
Modern: You stupid shepherd, why do you chase after her,

Original: Like foggy south puffing with wind and rain?
Modern: Like a stormy south wind bringing fog and rain?

Original: You are a thousand times a properer man
Modern: You are a thousand times more handsome

Original: Than she a woman: ‘tis such fools as you
Modern: Than she is a woman: it’s fools like you

Original: That make the world full of ill-favour’d children:
Modern: That fill the world with ugly children:

Original: ‘Tis not her glass, but you, that flatters her;
Modern: It’s not her mirror, but you, that makes her feel beautiful;

Original: And out of you she sees herself more proper
Modern: And because of your attention she sees herself as prettier

Original: Than any of her lineaments can show her.
Modern: Than any of her actual features could make her appear.

Original: But, mistress, know yourself: down on your knees,
Modern: But listen, lady, face reality: get down on your knees,

Original: And thank heaven, fasting, for a good man’s love:
Modern: And thank God, while fasting, for a good man’s love:

Original: For I must tell you friendly in your ear,
Modern: Because I need to tell you honestly,

Original: Sell when you can; you are not for all markets.
Modern: Take what you can get; you won’t appeal to everyone.

Original: Cry the man mercy; love him; take his offer:
Modern: Beg the man’s forgiveness; love him; accept his proposal:

Original: Foul is most foul, being foul to be a scoffer.
Modern: Ugliness becomes even uglier when it’s used for mocking others.

Original: So take her to thee, shepherd. Fare you well.
Modern: So go ahead and take her, shepherd. Goodbye to you both.

In Act III, Scene 5 of “As You Like It,” Silvius pleads with the shepherdess Phebe to show him mercy and return his love, but she cruelly rejects his advances and mocks his passionate declarations. Rosalind, still disguised as the young man Ganymede and accompanied by Celia (disguised as Aliena), witnesses this exchange and becomes frustrated with Phebe’s heartless treatment of the devoted shepherd. Rosalind intervenes, harshly criticizing Phebe for her pride and vanity, telling her that she is not beautiful enough to be so disdainful and that she should accept Silvius’s love while she can.

However, Rosalind’s intervention backfires dramatically when Phebe immediately falls in love with Ganymede upon hearing these sharp words. Despite Rosalind’s attempts to discourage this new infatuation and her advice that Phebe should marry Silvius, the shepherdess becomes completely smitten with the disguised woman. The scene concludes with Phebe asking Silvius to deliver a letter to Ganymede, though she tells him it will contain harsh words meant to drive the young man away, when in reality she plans to write a love letter. Silvius, still desperately in love with Phebe, agrees to serve as her messenger despite the pain it causes him.

As You Like It follows the story of Rosalind, daughter of the banished Duke Senior, who lives at court with her cousin Celia under the rule of the usurping Duke Frederick. When the young nobleman Orlando defeats the court wrestler Charles, Rosalind and Orlando fall instantly in love. However, Duke Frederick suddenly banishes Rosalind, fearing her popularity threatens his power. Celia chooses to flee with her beloved cousin, and together they escape to the Forest of Arden where Rosalind’s father lives in exile with his loyal followers.

To ensure their safety during their journey and life in the forest, Rosalind disguises herself as a young man named Ganymede, while Celia takes the identity of a shepherdess called Aliena. Meanwhile, Orlando, having been warned by the faithful servant Adam that his jealous older brother Oliver plans to kill him, also flees to the forest. In Arden, Orlando encounters “Ganymede” and, not recognizing his beloved Rosalind, agrees to cure his lovesickness by wooing the disguised young man as if he were Rosalind herself.

The forest becomes a place of romantic confusion and resolution, populated by various couples including the melancholy Jaques, the fool Touchstone (who pursues the country wench Audrey), and the shepherdess Phebe (who falls for “Ganymede” while spurning her devoted Silvius). The play’s complications multiply when Oliver arrives in the forest, transformed by Orlando’s heroic rescue of him from a lioness, and immediately falls in love with Celia. In the final act, Rosalind orchestrates the resolution of all romantic entanglements by revealing her true identity, leading to multiple marriages. Duke Frederick experiences a religious conversion and restores his brother to power, allowing the court characters to choose between returning to civilization or remaining in the pastoral world of Arden.