Molière
The Middle-Class Gentleman (Act 5 Scene 3)
SCENE III (Monsieur Jourdain, Dorante, Dorimène)
DORANTE:
Sir, we come to pay homage, Madame and I, to your new dignity, and to rejoice with you at the marriage between your daughter and the son of the Grand Turk.
MONSIEUR JOURDAIN:
(After bowing in the Turkish way) Sir, I wish you the strength of serpents and the wisdom of lions.
DORIMÈNE:
I was very glad, Sir, to be among the first to come to congratulate you upon rising to such a high degree of honor.
MONSIEUR JOURDAIN:
Madame, I wish your rosebush to flower all year long; I am infinitely obliged to you for taking part in the honors bestowed upon me; and I am very happy to see you returned here, so I can make very humble excuses for the ridiculous behavior of my wife.
DORIMÈNE:
That's nothing. I excuse her jumping to conclusions: your heart must be precious to her, and it isn't strange that the possession of such a man as you should inspire some jealousy.
MONSIEUR JOURDAIN:
The possession of my heart is a thing that has been entirely gained by you.
DORANTE:
You see, Madame, that Monsieur Jourdain is not one of those men that good fortune blinds, and that he still knows, even in his glory, how to recognize his friends.
DORIMÈNE:
It is the mark of a completely generous soul.
DORANTE:
Where then is His Turkish Highness? We want, as your friends, to pay him our respects.
MONSIEUR JOURDAIN:
There he comes, and I have sent for my daughter in order to give him her hand.