"(Cooing)" "(Woman) Hedvig!" "Hedvig!" " Yes, Mother?" " Hedvig." "You've done quite enough reading for one evening." "Oh, let me go on a little more, please." "No, you put that book away now." "You know your father doesn't like you reading too much." "Besides, he never reads himself in the evening." "No, but then Father doesn't like reading." "(Distant barking)" "Can you remember how much we paid for butter this morning?" " 1.50, I think." " Was it?" "Oh, we do seem to get through an awful lot of butter." "And don't forget the beer." "Er..." "Oh, you're right." "Beer." "That's five..." "It does mount up." "Ten, fifteen..." "Still, I suppose we can't manage on any less." "We didn't need anything hot for dinner, as Father was out." "What's that, dear?" "Huh?" "We didn't need anything hot for dinner, as Father was out." "No, no." "We did save that much." "Sixty-five..." "And I took 8.50 for photographs this morning." "Did you really, Mother?" "All that?" "Mm. 8.50 exactly." "Isn't it lovely to think of Father at a dinner party at Mr. Werle's?" "Mm." "Mr. Werle didn't ask him, though." "No, he was invited by Gregers Werle, his son." "I do hope he isn't long, 'cause he promised he'd ask Mrs. Sorby for something nice for me." "(Clock chimes)" "Well, there's plenty of good things going in that house." "Believe me, I know." "14, 17, 21..." "Well, that's the mark of a good wine." "(Overlapping conversations)" "Tell me, how did you like...?" "I was very disappointed with..." "Werle, I think I bought a remarkably sound wine." "Well, I can vouch for the one you had today." "A most excellent vintage, as no doubt you've noticed." "I did indeed." "It had a remarkably delicate flavor." " That was a good year." " Yes, yes." "Does the year matter with Tokay, then?" "(Laughs) I say, that's a good one." "Well, I'm afraid a good wine is wasted on you, Ekdal." "Tokay and photographs have something in common." " What's that?" " They both need sunshine." "Ah. (Laughs)" "Yes, no doubt light is very important." "(Woman) It's very important to some others, too." "The sunshine of court favor." "Is that not so, Chamberlains?" "Some coffee in the music room, please." "Very good, madam." "Mrs. Sorby, that's a very ancient jest." "Mrs. Sorby is known..." "I don't think any of them have noticed, Gregers." " Noticed what, Father?" " You haven't noticed, then?" " Noticed what?" " We're 13 at table." " 13?" "Are we?" " Yes." "We're usually 12." "Gentlemen, there's coffee and maraschino in the music room." "Splendid." "Did I hear somebody say, "Coffee and maraschino"?" "(Chatting)" "You're both very sweet, gentlemen." "No, I haven't, no." "You keeping well?" "Hjalmar." "You shouldn't have asked me, Gregers." "What?" "Can't ask my oldest friend to a dinner that's in my honor?" "I don't think your father was very happy about it." " You see, I never do come here." " So I gather." "Well, it must be 16 or 17 years since we've seen each other." "How have things been?" "You're looking very well." "You've put on weight." "Oh, I wouldn't say that." "I've filled out a little." "I look a bit more of a man than I used to." "No doubt about it." "The outer man looks very promising." "Oh, yes, but..." "What about the inner man, Gregers?" "Believe me, that's a very different story." "Of course, you know all about the terrible, tragic misfortune which I and my family have had to bear since we last met?" "How is your father now?" "I'd rather we didn't discuss it." "My poor, unfortunate father lives with me now." "He hasn't another soul to turn to." "Tell me about yourself." "How have you been getting on?" "Oh, I've enjoyed the most excellent solitude." "Plenty of time to think about things." "(Piano playing, guests chatting)" "All the same, I am grateful to you for inviting me to your father's table." "It makes me feel at least that you no longer think badly of me." "Where do you get the idea that I thought badly of you?" " Well, you did at first." " At first?" " Mm." "Your father told me." " My father?" "So that was it." "That explains why you never wrote to me." "Not even when you decided to become a photographer." "Yes." "Your father thought it would be better if I didn't write to you about anything." "Yes, well, that was understandable, I suppose." "How's life with you now?" "Reasonably satisfactory?" "Oh, yes." "I have little enough to complain about, really." "Of course, things were a bit strange at first." "It's such a completely different life, but then all the circumstances were so different." "I mean, my father's hopeless ruin and... the shame and degradation of it." "Yes, yes, I know." "Naturally, I had to give up my studies." "There was no money left." "We were up to our eyes in debt, mostly to your father." "(Laughter, talking)" "So I thought it best to make a clean break with the old life." "In fact, it was largely on your father's advice that I did so." "Since he was so generously concerned to help me..." " My father was?" " Surely you knew that." "I mean, where would I have found the money to study photography, equip a studio and go into business?" "Costs a tidy sum, you know." "Father paid for all that?" "I thought he wrote to you and told you." "He never said a word about it to me." "It was really he who enabled me to get married." "Or didn't you know about that either?" "Not a word." "Oh, I..." "I beg your pardon." "I can't tell you how pleased I am to hear all this." "Perhaps I've misjudged my father in some ways." "This at least shows he has a heart, or even a conscience." " A conscience?" " Yes." "Or whatever you like to call it." " Right here." " An interesting shot." "Ah." "Dear me." "(Chatting, laughter)" "That's a good one." "(Clock chimes)" "Ah, no." "No, Hedwig." "Just think of all the lovely things Father will be eating." "He'll be in such a good mood when he comes home." "I wish we could tell him we'd let the room, though." "We don't need to worry about that." "Mm?" "We'd be better off if we had, wouldn't we?" "It's no use to us just standing empty." "No, what I mean is we don't need to worry about it this evening." "He'll be in such a good mood anyway." "Like this, we can save the room till another time." "You like having good news for your father, don't you?" "Makes things more cheerful." "Yes, there's something in that, I suppose." "So, you're a married man, eh, Hjalmar?" "That's more than I shall ever be able to say for myself." "Are you happily married?" " Yes, I've got as cheerful..." " Excuse me." "..and hardworking a wife as any man could wish for." "And she's by no means uneducated, you know." "No, no, of course not." "Of course, life itself is an education." "But in her daily intercourse with me or with some of our very cultured friends, you'd hardly know her for the same Gina." "Gina?" "Yes." "Had you forgotten that was her name?" " Gina?" "What Gina?" " Oh, surely you remember." "She used to work here." " You mean Gina Hansen?" " Of course Gina Hansen." "You mean the girl..." "Just a minute." "All right." "You can stop your crowing and give Erik a lesson." "OK..." " Ah." "Oh, well, not bad." " Aha." "She kept house for us during my mother's last illness." "Yes, I believe so." "But I could have sworn that your father wrote and told you I was married." "Well, yes." "That's right, he did." "But I don't think he ever mentioned that..." " How did you come to know her?" " Oh, quite simply." "Everything was in such a muddle owing to your mother's illness and so on, that, well, I suppose Gina felt that she couldn't cope with it, so she gave notice and left." "That would be about a year before your mother died." " Or maybe it was the same year." " It was the same year." "I remember distinctly." "I was up at the works at the time." "What happened then?" "Mm?" "Oh, well, Gina went back and lived with her mother." "They had a room to let, a nice room, and quite comfortable." " And you got it?" " Yes, it was... your father's idea that I should go there." "There you are." "That's how I got to know Gina." "Before you knew it, you were engaged." "It's never very difficult for young people to fall in love." "When you got engaged, was that when my father..." "Was that when you decided to take up photography?" "Yes." "Your father and I thought photography would be the best thing, and so did Gina." "By fortunate chance," "Gina knew a little bit about retouching photographs." " Mm, that was fortunate." " Wasn't it?" "Extraordinary piece of luck." "My father seems to have been a sort of fairy godmother to you." "At any rate, he didn't abandon his old friend's son in his hour of need." "Come along, Mr. Werle, there's a dear." "It's so much better for you not to be in there with all those bright lights." "You'll only strain your eyes and it's very bad for them." "I think perhaps you're right, my dear." "Ekdal, you've found something to absorb you?" "You seem very interested." "This album has got nice photographs." "It's very much in your line nowadays, isn't it?" "They can contribute handsomely to an evening's entertainment." "Yes." "Haven't you brought any of your own with you?" " No, I'm afraid I haven't." " Oh." "Photographs enjoyed in the sitting position are good for the digestion." "Very good." "All contributions thankfully received." "What they really mean is that when one is invited out to dinner, one must be prepared to do something in return." "(Man) After a good dinner, it should be a pleasure." " You must join in, Hjalmar." " How can I?" "(Chatting)" "Excuse me, sir." " Excuse me, sir." " ..go a little too far." "Excuse me, sir." "I'm sorry to trouble you, but I can't get out." " Are you locked in again?" " I'm really sorry, sir." "I'm afraid Flakstad has gone off with the keys." " You can go through that way." " But I..." "I...have someone with me, sir." "Oh, very well." "But hurry up." "Pay no attention to us." "Evening, Graaberg." "Come on, quickly." "Very sorry." "Sorry, took the wrong way." "Confound that Graaberg." "Give him something to take home with him, something nice." " I'll see to it, madam." " The office door's locked." "Surely that couldn't have been...?" "Who was that?" "Oh, nobody." "Just the book-keeper." "Who was that with him?" " I'm afraid I didn't notice." " Gregers, won't you join us?" " That was really..." " Yes." "You stood there and denied knowing your own father." "What else could I do?" "Put yourself in my place." "Ekdal, how about giving us one of your recitations?" "You used to be quite good at it." "I'm afraid I don't remember anything." "What a pity." "What shall we all do?" "Gregers, I think, if you don't mind, I'll go now." "Will you thank your father and make my apologies?" " Yes." " Are you going straight home?" " You're not going, are you?" " Yes, I really must." " I might look in later." " Oh, don't..." " Remember me to Gina." "Tell her that I'll be coming to see her." "Naturally." "Don't come, Gregers." "My house is such a dreary place." "Especially after all this abundance." "We'll meet somewhere in town." "Go back to your guests, I'll slip out quietly." "Did you take care of him?" "Yes, madam, I sent him off with a bottle of cognac." "Couldn't you have done any better than that?" "I don't think so, madam." "It's what he likes best." "Are you ready, Mrs. Sorby?" "Shall we play our duet now?" "By all means." "Good idea." "What shall we play?" "(Door shuts)" "You are late tonight, Grandfather." "Had to wait for Graaberg." " Did they give you more copies?" " Yes." " Oh, that's good." " And you've got another parcel." "Nothing at all." "I've got plenty to keep me busy here and I'll be busy for some time." "Right." "Oh... (Grunts)" "(Footsteps)" "That's right." "OK..." "Ah, look at that." "She's found her way into her own nest." "Oh." "Do you think it will be warm enough for her, Grandfather?" "(Laughing) Warm enough?" "Oh, my goodness me!" "She'll be warm enough in all that straw." "(# Piano)" " Father." " Yes?" "I must have a word with you." "Can't it wait for some more private occasion?" "There may never be such an occasion." "What do you mean?" "How could you let that family go to the dogs like that?" "I presume you mean the Ekdals." "Lieutenant Ekdal was one of your closest friends." "Far too close, as it turned out." "I've been paying for it for years." "Thanks to him, my reputation has been permanently damaged." "Are you quite certain that it was entirely his doing?" "What do you mean?" "You and he were working together in that forestry deal." "Ekdal did the survey and drew the map." "He alone gave the order for felling the timber." "I hadn't the slightest suspicion it was government property." "Nor, I fancy, had Lieutenant Ekdal." "He came out of prison a broken man, past helping." "There are some creatures who, when they get a couple of shots in the body, dive straight to the bottom and never come out again." "I tell you, Gregers, I've done everything possible for the man, short of laying myself open to suspicion and doubt." "Suspicion?" "Oh, yes, I see." "I've given Ekdal copying to do and paid him far more than the job's worth." " Oh, I've no doubt about that." " You smile as though you had." "Naturally, I can't show you in the books." "I never enter payments of that kind." "No, dispersements of that kind are best left unrecorded." "What, precisely, do you mean by that?" "Did you enter the amount you had Hjalmar Ekdal paid to have him taught photography?" "Why should I?" "Because you paid for it, you set him up in business." "And you can say I've done nothing for the Ekdals?" "You wrote to me about that time." "A business letter, naturally." "And in a brief postscript you mentioned that Hjalmar Ekdal had married" " a certain Miss Hansen." " That's perfectly correct." "You didn't mention that she was our former housekeeper," "Gina Hansen." "It never occurred to me that you'd be passionately interested" " in our former housekeeper." " I wasn't." "But there was somebody else in the house who was." " You mean me, don't you?" " Yes." "Weren't you?" "That damned photographer, crawling in here with his..." "Hjalmar never even implied such a thing." "Then who put such an idea in your head?" " My mother." " I might have guessed." "Poor, unhappy woman." "She told me, last time I saw her." "She turned you against me." "She, with all she had to endure." "All the shame..." "She never suffered any more than anybody else." "..brought her to such a miserable end." "You can't do anything with morbid, neurotic creatures." "I know all about that." "And you can go digging up all sorts of ancient rumors against your own father." "I should have thought at your age you'd have found something better to do." "I agree, it's time I did." "You know, I know you better than you think." "And why you go slogging away at the works like some common clerk." "You want to be independent." "You don't want to be indebted to me for anything." "Very well, it so happens the opportunity occurs for you to gain such independence," " to be your own master." " Indeed?" "I'm proposing to offer you a partnership in the firm." " I, a partner?" " It needn't involve our seeing much of each other." "You take charge of the business in town and I can move out to the works." "You at Hoidal?" "The truth is, Gregers," "I'm not so well equipped for the work as I used to be." "I..." "I have to spare my eyes as much as possible." "They've been troubling me." " They always have." " Well, they're a lot worse now." "In certain circumstances, it might be desirable for me to live there." "At any rate, for a time." "It sounds slightly incredible to me." "Listen to me, Gregers." "I know we profoundly disagree about a number of things." "But, er...we are father and son." "I do think it should be possible for us to come to some sort of agreement." "There's something behind all this." " The fact is..." " You want to make use of me." "The fact..." "What do you mean, make use of you?" "Two men so closely connected can always be of use to each other." "That's what they say." "The fact is, I'd greatly appreciate it if you were to come home to me for a time." "I'm a lonely man, my boy, and I need companionship." " You have Mrs. Sorby." " That's true." "In many ways, she's become indispensable to me." "She's pleasant and cheerful and good tempered." "The house is a better place because of her and that's just what I need." "In that case, surely you've already found what you want." "Unfortunately, it can't last." "In such circumstances, a woman often finds herself in a false position in the eyes of the world." "Are you..." "Are you thinking of marrying her?" "If I were, would you be entirely opposed to it?" "Oh, no." "No, I certainly shouldn't." "With your devotion to your mother's memory..." "Oh, well, I'm not neurotic." "Well...whether you are or not, you've certainly taken a great load off my mind." "I'm relieved to think I have your approval." "Oh, now...now I understand what use you have for me." "Why it was so urgently necessary for me to come to town." "You wanted me to provide a family background for the benefit of Mrs. Sorby." "How dare you adopt such a tone?" "The absent son returns on wings of filial piety, just in nice time to see the ageing papa's wedding breakfast." "Then those inconvenient rumors..." "There's nobody in the world... ..about what Mother had to put up with... ..you detest as much as me, Gregers." "I've seen you under too close quarters." "But through your mother's eyes." "Remember, her vision was not always unclouded." "And who brought Mother to that state of mind?" "You and your..." "The last one was that woman you palmed off on Hjalmar Ekdal." "Oh, that's your mother, almost word for word." "And there he is, with the simple trust of a child, living under the same roof with a creature like that, ill suspecting what he calls a home is built upon a lie." "When I look back on all you've done," "I see only a battlefield strewn with broken lives." "Do you know, I think the gulf between us is too wide." "I agree." "That's why I'm going." "Look, Father, you see what game Mrs. Sorby is playing with your guests?" "(Clock chimes)" "(Sniffs)" "Did you want anything in the kitchen, Grandfather?" "Don't you bother, I can manage." "Oh, he's never raking out the fire, surely?" "Oh, go and see what he's up to, Hedvig, there's a good girl." " Did you want some hot water?" " Y..." "Er, yeah, yes, yes." "I've got some writing to do and my ink's as thick as porridge." "(Gina) Grandpa, only do eat your supper first." "It's all ready for you on the tray." "I've got plenty to do without supper." "Yes, you see, I'm..." "I'm in a rush." "I wonder where he got the money from." "(Door closes)" "Hjalmar, you're not back already?" "Fancy being home so early." "Most of the other guests were leaving, so..." "Let me give you a hand." "Me, too." "Were there lots of people there?" "Not so very many." "We were, what, 12 or 14 at table, I suppose." "Did you talk to all of them?" "I had a little word to say to each." "But Gregers wanted me to himself most of the time." " Is he still as gloomy as ever?" " Yes, he looks much the same." "Has..." "Father come back yet?" "Yes." "He's in there, writing." " Did he have anything to say?" " No, nothing particular." "Why?" "Oh, he didn't mention..." "I heard something about him being with Graaberg, that's all." "I shouldn't go in there if I were you." "Why?" "Did he actually say he didn't want me to?" "I don't think he wants anybody in there." "He came out just now and got himself some hot water." "Oh, I see." "Oh, poor old man." "Well, he might as well enjoy himself while he can, hm?" "Oh, he's come home to roost, eh?" "I thought I heard your voice." "Oh, I...just got in, Father." "You didn't see me, I don't suppose." "No, but they told me you'd left so I decided to follow on after you." "Very considerate of you." "What are all those people supposed to be?" "Oh, they were a very mixed bag." "There was Chamberlain Flor and Balle and Chamberlain somebody else" " and one or two..." " Listen to all this, Gina." "They're very grand now." "Did they all give recitations?" "No, they talked rubbish most of the time." "They wanted me to recite, but I refused." "You refused to be drawn in." "I think you might have done." "One doesn't always do as one is asked." "At least, I don't." "Hjalmar's got a mind of his own." "Why should I bother to entertain half society just because I happen to go out once in a while?" "Let them exert themselves." "Why should I always exert myself?" "They've nothing better to do than to go from house to house and table to table every night." "They should be grateful for all the free food and do something in return." "You didn't tell them that, surely?" "They had a great deal to hear." " Even the chamberlains." " Well, they were there." "Oh, and there was an amusing little discussion about Tokay." "That's a wine worth drinking, yes." "Not always, Father." "It depends on how much sunshine the grapes have had." "They didn't disagree with you about that?" "Oh, well, they tried to." "But they were told it's the same with chamberlains." "Some are of a good vintage and others indifferent." "The things you think of!" "Straight to their faces." "Did you hear that, Gina?" "Straight to the chamberlains' faces, yes." "Their faces." "Just fancy." "Oh, Hjalmar." "Yes, but that's between ourselves." "One doesn't repeat..." "Straight to their faces." "I don't know, I..." "It's wonderful to see you in dress coat." "And it suits you splendidly." "I don't think it's too bad." "It's a little tight under the arms, perhaps." "Give me a hand, Hedvig, I'll put on my old jacket." " Do you know where it is, Gina?" " Here you are, dear." "Ah, yeah." "And that's to go back to Molvik in the morning." " Yes, dear, I'll see to it." " That's more like it." "Yes, I think loose-fitting clothes are more suited to my easy-going personality, don't you, Hedvig?" "Yes, I do, really, Father." "Especially when I loosen my tie and leave the ends free, hm?" "That's perfect and it goes so much better with your moustache." "And those nice, curly bits." ""Curly"?" "I think "wavy" would describe them better." "Mm." "Wavy." "Or curly." "Wavy." " Father?" " Well, what is it?" "You know perfectly well what it is." "No, really, I don't." "Oh, Father, do stop pretending." "Where are they?" "All the nice things you promised to bring me, remember?" "Where did you put them?" "Bless me if I haven't forgotten all about them." "Do stop teasing." "It is naughty of you." " No, truly." " Where did you hide them?" "I forgot." "Perhaps I didn't quite forget." "I'll have a look." "Maybe I have got something for you, Hedvig." "Oh, Mother!" "There you are." "Just give him time." "Oh." " Oh, yes, here it is." " That's only a bit of old card." "No, Hedvig, it's much more than that." "It's the bill of fare." "The menu." "See, it's written right across the top, "menu"." "That means...bill of fare." "What there is to eat." "But didn't you bring anything else?" "I forgot all about the other things." "Anyway, you may take my word, such delicacies are hardly worth eating." "Now, you come and sit at the end of the table and read out the names of the dishes and I'll see if I can remember how each of them...tasted." " You'll..." "like that." " Thank you." "Really, it's absurd!" "The number of things a father is supposed to remember." "He's only got to forget the most insignificant item and he's treated to nothing but black looks and long faces." "Did you go in there tonight, Father?" "Yes, I did, when I got home." "And she found her way to her nest." "She found her own way?" "She must be getting used to it, then." "I told you she was." "You know, there are a lot of things to be done." "All those little improvements." "Why don't we run through them now?" "Let's make ourselves comfortable on the sofa...and we can..." "Yes, well, I'll just fill my pipe." "I'll give it a good clean while I'm about it." " Cleaning his pipe!" " Yes, I know, Gina." "Leave him to it." "We might as well get all those improvements done tomorrow." "I don't see where you're going to find the time." "Yes, he will, Mother." "There are all these photographs to be retouched." "They've been sending round for them again and again." "All these prints." "Infernal prints." "I'll soon get those done." " Any new orders this afternoon?" " No such luck." "And tomorrow I've only got those two coming I told you about." " Is that all?" " Mm." "Well, I suppose if people won't make an effort..." "And I suppose nobody's called to look at the room, either." "Not so far, they haven't, no." "What do you expect if people won't put themselves out?" "You really must make an effort, Gina." "Shall I get your flute, Father?" "What?" "No, no, I don't think you'd better." "The pleasures of this world are not for me." "Work." "Nothing but work." "That's my lot." "Well, tomorrow I'll work." "I didn't mean it like that, Hjalmar." "Let me get you some beer, then." "What?" "No." "No, I want nothing, Hedvig, thank you." "Nothing for me." "Nothing at all." " Did you say beer?" " Yes, Father." "Lovely, cool, beautiful, bubbly beer." "Yes, dear." "Well, since you're so pressing, perhaps just one bottle." "Yes, you do that." "Then we'll make ourselves nice and comfy." " Oh, Hedvig, my little darling." " Oh, dear, darling Father." "You mustn't call me that, I don't deserve it." "Here have I been sitting at the rich man's table... gorging myself off a festive board and I couldn't even remember to bring you..." "Oh, now, Hjalmar, don't talk so silly." "No, but it's not silly." "For all that, you mustn't think badly of me cos I do love you, you know." "Dearly." "And we love you, too, Father." "Oh, so much." "So very much." "No beer tonight." "No, bring me my flute." "That's it." "My flute in my hands..." "and you two beside me." "(# Plaintive tune)" "(Cooing)" "This place may be poor and humble, Gina, but it is home." "And I want you to know that my real happiness is always here." "(Dog barks outside)" "(Knock on door)" "There's always something!" " I beg your pardon." " Oh!" "Doesn't Mr. Ekdal, the photographer, live here?" "Er, yes." "Yes, he does." "Yes." "Is that you, Gregers?" "I thought I recognized your voice." "Well, this is a pleasant surprise." "Come in." "Well, I told you I might come along." "Yes, but I...hardly expected to see you this evening." "Have you left the party?" "Not only the party." "I've left my father's house." "Good evening, Mrs. Ekdal." "I don't suppose you recognize me." "Oh, yes, of course I recognize you, Mr. Gregers." "I resemble my mother, I believe." "And of course you remember her." "Did you say you'd left the party?" " Yes." "And gone to an hotel." " Really?" "Well, erm..." "Now you're here, come in and take off your coat." "Sit down." "(Clock chimes)" "So...this is your home, eh, Hjalmar?" "Er, yes, yes." "It's also the studio, as you can see." "Er, we did have a more luxurious place but this one has the advantage of having spare rooms." "Yes." "We've even got one we can let across the passage." "So, you let rooms, too, do you?" "Well, not so far." "Good tenants aren't so easy to come by." "If you want them, you have to be prepared to make some effort." "What happened to that beer, Hedvig?" " Is that your daughter?" " Erm, yes." "Yes, that's Hedvig." " Your only child?" " Yes, our only child." "Our greatest joy." "And, I grieve to say, our deepest sorrow." "Oh?" "In what way?" "Well, she's in immediate danger of losing her sight." "She's going blind?" "Yes, but it's only in its early stages." "It may be some time before she realizes it herself, poor child." "However, according to the doctor, and he's warned us, it's quite inevitable." "How terrible for you both." "How did it happen?" " It's hereditary, I'm afraid." " Hereditary?" "My husband's mother had very weak sight." "So my father told me." "I don't remember." "Poor child." "How did she take it?" "We haven't..." "We haven't had the courage to tell her." "She hasn't the faintest inkling." "She's as happy as a lark, singing all day and fluttering her way into the never-ending night." "It's a terrible cross for me to bear." "Would you like some bread and butter?" "I don't think we want any." "Unless you'd care for some, Gregers." "No, not for me, thank you." "Well, perhaps just a couple of slices." "Or, Hedvig, if you've got an old crust, that'll do nicely." "And, erm, and plenty of butter, hm?" "She seems quite well in other respects." "How old is she now?" "Oh, she's...14, as near as makes no matter." " It's her birthday tomorrow." " Tall for her age, isn't she?" "Oh, yes." "She's shot up something wonderful this past 12 months." "Certainly makes one realize one's own age to see these youngsters growing up." "Let me see." "You two have been married how long?" "It must be..." "Well, we were married in..." "Why, it's 15 years." " Is it really as long as that?" " Yes, it is." "Here I am, Hjalmar." "Come in and sit down." "Oh, Father, we...have a guest." "I don't know if you remember Gregers Werle." "Werle." "Werle..." "Nonsense, my boy, that's not Werle, but his son." "What does he want with me?" "Not you, Father." "He has come to see me." "There's nothing the matter, is there?" "No, no, nothing's wrong." "Not that it would rack me if there was." "I'm afraid of nothing..." "I bring you greetings from your old hunting grounds, that's all." "Where was that?" "You remember the forest at Hoidal and the works." "Eh?" "Oh, yes, yes." "I...knew every stick of the forest." "You were a great sportsman in those days." "That's a fact, I was." "I believe you." "What's that you're eyeing?" "My cap?" "I can wear it at home if I want to." "So long as I don't take it out with me and nobody sees me, what does it matter?" "Have a glass of beer, Father." "Help yourself, Gregers." "Thank you." "Ah, my dear." "Do you remember, Lieutenant Ekdal, how Hjalmar and I used to come to the works in the holidays?" "No, I don't." "I remember the bears." "I used to shoot 'em all hours of the day and night." "Hundreds of them." "I was a very good shot." "I shot nine bears." "I don't suppose you get any shooting now." "Oh, you don't know." "I..." "I get some shooting." "Not in the old way, of course." "Er, forest, forest." "Yeah, yes, I remember." "How are yours up there now?" "Oh, not what it was, I'm afraid." "They've been thinned out since your time." "Thinned out?" "Oh, that's dangerous." "Things c..." "Thinning out trees in a forest." "Things come out of them." "Forests get their own back." "Have some more beer, Father." "I can't think how an open-air man like you, Lieutenant Ekdal, can bear to live cooped up within four walls in the middle of a stuffy town like this." "Oh, it's not bad, not bad at all." "But what about the woods and the hills, the animals and birds?" "Hjalmar, shall we let him see it?" " No, Father." "Not this evening." " What is it he wants me to see?" "Oh, it's nothing, really." "Some other time, perhaps." "You know, Lieutenant Ekdal," "I'm bound to be going back to the works fairly soon." "Now, why don't you come along with me, hm?" "Mm?" "I'm sure there'd be plenty of copying for you to do up there." "Anyway, a man like you who has always answered the call of the wild..." "Oh, he's got to see it." "What's the point?" "It's so dark in there." "Bosh, what's wrong with the moon?" "I say he's got to see it." " Out of my way, Hjalmar." " Oh, Father, let him, please." "Oh, very well." "Help him, Hedvig." "What have they got up there?" "You mustn't expect marvels." "Right, step...step right inside." "Yeah." "Yeah." "Ah, yeah." "Aah." "This is all Father's department, you understand, Gregers." "You keep poultry, Lieutenant Ekdal?" "I shouldn't be at all surprised." "They're having a good roost now, but you should see them in the morning." " Oh, and we've got..." " Not so fast." "It can wait." " Pigeons, too." " I believe we have, yes, yes." "They like to nest as high as they can get, in the roof." "Do you mean to say you keep rabbits, as well?" "What do you think the hutches are for?" "Where would we be without rabbits, eh?" "Asking if we keep rabbits, Hjalmar, eh?" "!" "Now... the real thing." "Out of the light, Hedvig." "There." " Isn't it a duck?" " Of course it's a duck." "What sort of a duck is it, Gregers?" "It's not just an ordinary sort of duck." "Shh." "Quiet there." "Well, it's certainly not a Turkish duck." "No, Mr. Werle, my boy, it's not a Turkish duck." " It's a wild duck." " Really?" "A wild duck?" "Yes." "That "bird", as you call it, is a live wild duck." " Our wild duck." " My wild duck." "She's mine." "She manages to thrive up here?" "She has water to splash about in." "The water is changed every other day." "(Gina) Hedvig!" "It's bed time." "That means lights out." "Ah, well." "Perhaps it's just as well to get a good night's sleep." "Go on, Hedvig." "Push, push, push." " Push the door." " (Clucking)" "Ah, never mind." "Next time we'll have a proper look, eh?" "Oh, they're queer fish, wild duck." "How did you manage to catch her, Lieutenant Ekdal?" "We didn't." "There's one particular man we have to be thankful for in this town." " Not my father, by any chance?" " Hit him on the nail." "That one and lone man, that particular man, is none other than your father." "How odd that you should guess, Gregers." "We didn't get it from Mr. Werle himself." "He went for a shoot in his boat and he missed her." "His sight." "He's losing it, you know." "He winged her." "Oh, I see." "Some stray shot in the body, eh?" "A couple of shots, I rather fancy." "One went under the wing, so she couldn't fly away." "Don't they dive straight to the bottom?" "They do, wild duck, yes." "Hook themselves onto the weeds and muck they find down there, make certain they never come to the surface again." "Yours came to the surface again." "Your father's dog..." "dived in after this little duck." "He dived in after her and brought her to the surface." " And you took her in?" " Well, not exactly." "Your father ordered Pettersen to destroy her." "Pettersen..." "Father knew Pettersen slightly." "When he heard about it, he persuaded him to hand her over." " She actually thrives up there." " Yes, indeed." "She..." "She..." "As long as she never gets a glimpse of the sea or the sky." "Well, I think perhaps I'd better not stay any longer." "I think your father's going to sleep." " Oh, I wouldn't worry." " By the way, you mentioned something about having a room to let." " Yes." "Why..." " Could I have that room?" "Oh, no, Mr. Gregers, not you." "I'd like it, if there's no objection." "I'd like to move in first thing in the morning." "Of course." "It'll be a pleasure to have you in the house." "It's not at all the sort of room you're accustomed to." "How can you say that?" "It's a very pleasant room." "It's decently furnished, with a charm of its own." "Let me show you." "But what about those two he'll have underneath him?" " What two are they?" " Well, there's that, erm..." "One of them, who's a tutor, his name's Molvik." "Got some sort of a degree, I believe." "And the other one's a doctor." "His name's Relling." "Oh, I believe I used to know him." "He practiced for a bit up at Hoidal." "They're a proper pair of good-for-nothings." "They're out all night, then they come in at all hours..." "I can put up with that." "I shall try to emulate the wild duck." "Well, I..." "I'd sleep on it, if I were you." "I believe you are reluctant to have me in the house." "Oh!" "Well, no, no." "No, gracious me, no." "Are you thinking of staying in town for some time, then?" "Yes." "I'm thinking of remaining." "(Clock chimes)" "Well, it's all settled, then." "I'll move in first thing in the morning." " Well..." " No need to worry." "I'm quite used to doing for myself." "We'll sort out the sordid details tomorrow, shall we?" "Good night, Mrs. Ekdal." " Good night." " Good night." "Wait a moment, I'll light you down." "Good night, Mr. Werle." "The lamp was still on downstairs." "And now, at last, one can get something to eat." "You see, Gina, what happens when you keep your wits about you?" "What do you mean, "wits"?" "We've been able to let that room." "And to an old friend like Gregers." "Well, I don't know what to say about that." "It'll be such fun, Mother, you'll see." "At last, I know my mission in life and I intend fulfilling it." " Oh, yes, Father, you must." " And fulfill it I shall." "That's why it's so important I've been able to let that room." "Don't you see how much more independent it makes me?" "And that's as it should be." "A man with a mission in life has to be independent." "Oh, poor old Father." "Poor old, white-haired Father." "Your Hjalmar will carry your burden for you, never fear." "His shoulders are broad enough." "Or strong enough, at any event." "One fine day, you'll wake up and..." " You believe it, don't you?" " Yes, of course, dear." "Hadn't we better be getting him to bed?" "What?" "Oh, I suppose so." " Come on, Father." " Come on." "Wake up." " Come on." " (Groans)" "Come on." "(Mumbles drunkenly)" "(Cock crows)" "(Cooing)" "Hedvig!" "Oh, Mrs. Ekdal." "I've just seen Hjalmar." "Very kind of you." "I'll be there at lunch time." "Thank you." "Oh." "Oh, not at all." "Not at all." " Hedvig!" " Back already?" "Hedvig?" "Oh, there you are." "You look after this." "Got such a lot to do." "Going in to see how Gregers is getting on?" "I looked in on him for a few minutes, just after you left." "Mm." "So he said." "And you had to go and ask him to dinner." "Luncheon, Gina, luncheon." "Not dinner." "Just provide us something." "You've got something in the house, I imagine." "Oh, I'll manage to scrape up something, I dare say." "It had better be more than a bit of something." "I wouldn't be surprised if Relling and Molvik didn't show." "I saw Relling on the stairs and I felt I had to ask him." "Oh, did you?" "So we've got those two as well, have we?" "A couple more or less can't make all that difference." "Are you busy, Hjalmar?" "What is it?" "Is there something..." "No, no, nothing." "It doesn't matter." "See he doesn't go sneaking out." "Yes, all right." "Erm, Gina..." "I think a little herring salad might be a good idea." "I understand Relling and Molvik made rather a night of it." "Yes, all right." "As long as they don't come before I'm ready." "In the meantime, it wouldn't hurt you to do a bit of work." "What else am I doing?" "I'm working as hard as I can." "Then you'll get it finished all the sooner." "(Exhales angrily)" "Aye..." "Hjalmar, are you still busy?" "Yes, I'm still slaving away at these photographs." "Never mind." "If you're such a slave as all that..." "(Tuts)" "Father, are you busy?" "If you're slaving away, I'm slaving away." "Oh, all right!" "Dear Hjalmar, there's a lot to be done in there." " We've got to get on with it." " Just what I was thinking." "We haven't much time." "Isn't the party tomorrow?" "Yes, it is tomorrow." "There you are, Father." "Now you can get on with it." " Aren't you coming in?" " Yes, I don't see why..." "Er...no, I'd better not." "I've got so much work to do." "All these photographs." "Look, I'll just show you how it works." "Like that, you see." "There you are." "Now perhaps I can have a few minutes' peace and quiet and be able to get on with my work." "(Father humming)" "(Whispers)" "Now, what do you want?" "Only to be with you, Father." "You've been sent in here to keep an eye on me, is that it?" "No, of course not." " What's your mother doing?" " She's making a herring salad." " Oh." " Is there something I could do?" "Hm?" "No, I'd rather do it by myself, as long as I'm able to." "You needn't bother as long as your father can keep his strength." "Oh, Father, you mustn't say such horrible things." "What's your grandfather doing?" "He's laying a new path to the water trough." "He'll never manage that by himself." " I've got to sit here and..." " Give me the brush, Father." "I can do it." "I know just how." "Nonsense." "You'll only hurt your eyes." "No, I won't." "Not a bit." "Please give me the brush." "Well, it would only take two or three minutes." "Well, then, what harm can it possibly do?" "But you're not to do it for too long." "I won't be answerable." "You're doing this on your own responsibility, you understand?" "Yes." "Yes, of course." "You're very quick, Hedvig." "You're very good at it." "(Banging outside)" "Just for a few minutes, mind." "Father..." "Ah." "Now, I'll show you what I mean." "Father, that is much too..." "The angle is too steep." "She'll never manage because she's broken her leg." "I'll see if I can get some..." "Hedvig, pass me the pincers and the chisel, please." "Just as well I came up." "He never would have managed it himself." "Thank you, my dear, that's what I want." "Ah, yes." "Now, Father, I'll tell you..." "Oh!" "Good morning." "Do please come in." "Thank you." "It's only Father and Grandfather." "I'll tell them you're here." "Oh, no, no, don't do that." "Let me wait till they've finished." "I'm afraid it's dreadfully untidy in here." "Please don't move them on my account." "Oh, they're... prints in the process of being finished." "Yes, a few I was helping my father with." "Well, don't let me disturb you." "Well, if you don't mind." "(Banging, sawing)" "How's the wild duck this morning?" "Did she sleep well?" "Yes, thank you." "I think so." "It must look very different in there in the daylight." "Yes, it's always changing." "It's quite different in the morning from the afternoon." "And different when it's sunny from when it rains." " You've noticed that." " You can't help noticing it." "Do you like being in there with the wild duck?" " Yes, when I can manage it." " Yes." "I don't suppose you get much spare time." "You're still at school, aren't you?" "No." "Father took me away." "He was afraid of it hurting my eyes." "Oh, I see." "Then he reads with you himself?" "No, he hasn't had time." "He's been too busy." "Oh." "Is there no one else who can help you?" "Yes, there's Molvik." "Only he's always..." " Well, sometimes he's not..." " Mm." "Not always sober, eh?" "Yes, I expect that's what it is." "You must have plenty of time to do as you like." "I suppose it's a sort of..." "other world in itself, in there." "Yes, it is." "And it has such wonderful things in it." "Really?" "Yes, there are cupboards full of books." "And a lot of the books have got pictures in them." "And there's an old clock, with little men and women that go running in and out whenever it strikes." "When it did strike." "It doesn't now because it doesn't go." "So, time has stood still in there with the wild duck." "Yes." "(Distant barking)" "(Chuckles)" "And there's an old paint box." "And...all kinds of things." "And, of course, the books." "Where do all these treasures come from?" "They belonged to an old sea captain who once lived here." "He went away and he hadn't taken the things with him." "Oh, I see." "Tell me, when you're in there looking at the pictures, don't you wish you could go sailing round the world?" "See all those wonderful sights for yourself?" "No." "I want to stay at home always and help Mother and Father." " And retouch photographs?" " Well, not only that." "What I'd like to do most of all would be to engrave pictures, like the ones in the picture books." "Mm." "What does your Father think about that?" "I don't think he likes the idea very much." "He's funny about things like that." "He wants me to learn basket- making and straw-plaiting." " I don't see what use that is." " No, nor do I." "But he's right when he says that if I'd learnt to make baskets" "I could have made the new one for the wild duck." "Yes, true." "After all, you'd be the proper person to do it." " Yes." "Cos she's my wild duck." " Oh, she is?" "Yes, she's all mine." "And she's been down to the depths of the ocean." "Why do you say "the depths of the ocean"?" "Why, what should I say?" "You could have said "the bottom of the sea"." " Isn't it the same thing?" " No, it's not that." "But it's odd to hear somebody else talk about" ""the depths of the ocean"." "Why?" "Why is it odd?" "Now, tell me." " No, I can't." "It's silly." " I'm not so sure about that." "Why did you smile just now?" "Well...you know, it's because... whenever it really comes home to me what is in there," "I always think of the whole place and everything in it as being the depths of the ocean." "And that's just silly." "Oh, I wouldn't go so far as that." "Of course it's silly." "It's only an attic." "Are you so sure?" " What, that it's an attic?" " Yes." "Oh, I'm afraid I've come too early." "Well, you've got to be somewhere, haven't you?" "Besides, we're nearly ready now." "I hear you do retouching, Mrs. Ekdal." "Hm?" "Sorry?" "Ah, yes, yes, I can." " That was fortunate, wasn't it?" " How do you mean, fortunate?" "Well, it was, since Hjalmar was to take up photography." "Mother can take photographs, too." "Oh, yes, yes, I had to learn to do that, as well." "(Gunshot)" "Good Lord!" "What was that?" "It's them in there shooting again." "Shooting?" "In there?" "(Hedvig) Yes." "That's how they go out shooting." "What?" " What are you shooting?" " What?" "Oh, it's you." "I didn't know." "I was so taken up and Hedvig didn't tell us." " Do you go shooting in here?" " Oh, only with this." "You've become a sportsman, as well, eh?" "I join Father, potting a few rabbits." "Men!" "Always need something to amuse themselves with." "Yes, we must always have something to amuse ourselves." "Fortunately you can't hear the firing from the rest of the house." "You're not to touch this." "One barrel is still loaded." " Is lunch nearly ready?" " Yes, almost on the table." "Hedvig, can you help me in the kitchen in a minute, dear?" "Oh, I wouldn't stand staring at Father if I were you, Gregers." "He doesn't like being watched." "Oh, shoo, shoo." "Shoo." "It's a useful little dodge, isn't it?" "I invented it myself." "You see, Gina doesn't like having rabbits and fowls" " running loose in the studio." " Yes, I can well believe it." "After all, the studio is very much your wife's concern." "Well, I usually leave her to cope with the more pedestrian aspects of the business while I segregate myself in the parlor to give my mind over to more important things." "What things, Hjalmar?" "I'm surprised you haven't asked me that before." "But then, I daresay you haven't heard about my new invention." "Invention?" "No, I can't say I have." "Haven't you?" "Really?" "Well, I suppose, living off the map..." "Do you really mean to say you've invented something?" "Well, it's not exactly finished yet." "But when I decided to give over my whole life to photography, it wasn't to take ordinary photographs of ordinary people." "No, of course not." "No, I vowed if I were going to dedicate my powers to this trade" "I would raise it to the level of an art." "And a science." "So I decided to apply my whole mind to perfecting this great invention." "What is this invention?" "I mean, what does it do?" "Gregers, you mustn't ask me questions like that." "These things take time, you know." "And I'm not doing it just for myself, oh no." "It's my mission in life that beckons me." "Day and night." "And what is that mission?" "Have you forgotten that silver-haired old man in there?" "Your poor old father?" "Well, what exactly can you hope to do for him?" "Well, at least I can revive his self-respect by restoring honor and dignity to the name of Ekdal." "Ah, I see." "I must save that shipwrecked old warrior." "For he was shipwrecked." "You know that pistol, the one we use for the rabbits there?" "That pistol has played its part in the tragedy of the house of Ekdal." " Indeed?" " Mm." "When sentence was pronounced and he was to go to prison, he was found..." "with that pistol in his hand." "Was he really?" "But he couldn't bring himself to it." "So demoralized was he, so broken in spirit." "Can you understand that, Gregers?" "I mean, a man like that, a soldier, big-game hunter with nine bears to his credit." "Descended from two lieutenant colonels." "Well, one after the other, of course." "But can you understand it, Gregers?" " Oh, yes, I can." "Quite easily." " Well, I can't." "That pistol has played yet another part in the history of our family." "Yes, when he was under lock and key and in his prison gray... then I, too, had my hour of agony, and in that same hour," "Hjalmar Ekdal turned that pistol upon his own breast." " You mean that you too...?" " Yes." "But you didn't pull the trigger." "No." "At the last moment, I gained victory over myself and I..." "I chose life." "Believe me, Gregers, it takes a certain amount of courage to choose life in those circumstances." "Yes." "Rather depends on which way you look at it." "How soon do you suppose your invention will be ready?" "My dear Gregers, you can't tie me down to a definite date." "It's all a question of intuition." "Yes." "But I mean, all these very ingenious things you're inventing for the attic, don't they tend to deflect you from the big things?" "Oh no, not at all." "You mustn't say that." "No man could pursue that train of thought all day long." "I mean, I must have some relaxation." "You know, my dear Hjalmar," "I'm inclined to think there's something of the wild duck in you." "What on earth do you mean, Gregers?" "You've dived straight to the bottom and hooked yourself in the muck." "You've been trapped in a poisonous marsh, Hjalmar." "And there you've contracted an insidious disease and because of it you've dived straight to the bottom to die in the dark." "I?" "Die in the dark?" "Really, Gregers, what nonsense you do talk." "No, don't be alarmed." "I'll bring you to the surface somehow." "You see, I, too, have a mission." "I came upon it yesterday." "That's very kind of you, Gregers, but..." "Ah." "Ah, there you are, you two, just at the right moment." "Once Molvik knew there was herring salad, there was no holding him." "Gregers, meet Mr. Molvik and Dr..." "Oh, but you know him." "Mr. Werle junior, isn't it?" "We crossed swords more than once up at Hoidal." " You've just moved in?" " Yes, this morning." "We are underneath you, so when you want the doctor and the priest it's not far to send." "Stranger things have happened." "Last night, we were 13 at table." "Come now, Gregers." "Come, let's eat, drink and be merry." "Aren't we going to wait for your father?" "No, he'll have his in his room later on." "Let's start, shall we?" "Molvik was revoltingly drunk again yesterday." "Oh, not again, surely." "Didn't you hear me bringing the body up the stairs?" " No, I can't say that I did." " A good thing, too." "Molvik was revolting last night." "You weren't really, were you, Mr. Molvik?" "Let us draw a veil over the doings of last night." "Such behavior is not the product of my better self." "Takes him by storm, he's like a man possessed." "So much so that I can't let him out of my sight." "You see, Mr. Molvik is a demoniac." " Demoniac?" " Oh, yes." " Molvik's a demoniac." " Oh." "Demoniacs don't walk in a straight line." "They sway a bit." "Do you still grind away at those unsavory works up at Hoidal?" "I've done so up to now." "Open the door, Hedvig." "I think Grandfather wants to come out." "Gina, can I have some butter, please?" "And a nice, fat slice of pork for Molvik." "Not pork." "Good morning, gentlemen." "Excellent sport today." "Shot a real beauty." "Oh, you skinned it without waiting for me." "I'll get it salty, too." "A lovely, tender meat, rabbit is." "Sweet as sugar." "Excuse me, I don't think I should..." "I have to go downstairs at once." "Have some soda water, you ass." "I think that calls for a toast to the old hunter." "To the hardy old hunter who's been face to face with death." "You know, Ekdal, fundamentally you're a happy man." "You have this great mission in life to work for." "And I do work, believe me." "And you've a wife in a million." "I do, yes." "I could have chosen no truer companion for the rough roads of life." " Don't catechize me." " And you have your Hedvig." "Oh, my little girl, my darling, yes." "Come over here, my angel." "Come to me, darling." "Now, tell me, what day is it tomorrow?" "Oh, Daddy, you mustn't tell them." "Please." "It's like a knife in my heart to think what a dreary little business it will have to be." "Just a little party up there in the attic." " That's just what I want." " Oh, you..." "Don't you find it pleasant, sitting at a well-furnished table with a happy family?" "These little occasions mean very much to me." "For my part, I don't thrive in the odors of the marsh." "Oh, now, Gregers, don't start that again." "Odors of the marsh?" "Good gracious me!" "There are no odors in this house, Gregers Werle." "This house gets a thoroughly good airing every day." "Not all the airing in the world can clear the odor I have in mind." "Well!" "Did you hear what he said, Hjalmar?" "But might not you yourself be carrying the infection with you from the mines up there?" "I should expect you to call what I bring here "infection"." "Werle, I have a nasty feeling you're still going around with that claim of the ideal in your pocket." "I carry it in my breast." "Wherever you carry it, don't start blackmailing anyone here with it." "What if I do?" "You'll go headfirst downstairs." "All right, Relling." "Throw me out." "(Gina) No." "No, Doctor, please." "We don't want anything like that in here." "(Knock on door)" "Oh." "Oh." "Oh, dear." "Er, I beg your pardon." "I believe my son is staying here." "Oh." "Mr. Werle, won't you come in, sir?" "No, thank you." "I only want to speak to my son." "Well, here I am." "I'd prefer to speak to you in the privacy of your room." "In the light of your sudden move into this house..." "I've been reconsidering certain things you let fall last night and I'm driven to the conclusion that you intend me some mischief." "I intend opening Hjalmar Ekdal's eyes, that's all." "It's high time he realized his position." "Is it I who warped your mind, Gregers?" "You've warped my whole life." "I don't mean all that about Mother." "It's entirely thanks to you that I'm prey to a guilty conscience." "Oh, it's your conscience, is it?" "I should have stood up to you when you laid your trap for Hjalmar." "I should have warned him." "That would have been the time to speak." "I had a vague notion of what was going on." "I had neither the moral nor physical courage..." "You've made an excellent recovery." "I couldn't see him for years afterwards." "The wrong done to Lieutenant Ekdal can never be undone." "But at least I can deliver Hjalmar from the lies and deceit which are strangling him." " You think that'll help him?" " I'm sure of it." " Well, we shall see." " Yes." "I must find some cure for my sick conscience." "You never will." "You've had the disease since you were a child." "Got it from your mother." "It's about all you did get from her." "Haven't you forgiven her yet for the mistake you made in marrying her for the money she hadn't got?" "Don't let's concern ourselves with irrelevancies." "Obviously, there's no point in my asking you to return with me." "None whatever." "And you won't join the firm either?" " No." " Very well." "Since I'm about to remarry, your share of the estate will come to you at once." "Oh, no, no, no, I don't want any of that." "And you don't intend to return to the works." "No, I no longer consider myself in your employ." "What are you going to live on?" "I've saved a little from my salary." " How long will that last?" " It will last my time." "What do you mean?" "Don't ask me any more questions." "Very well." "Goodbye, Gregers." "Goodbye." " Has your father gone?" " Yes." "Well, that's ruined our lunch party." "Get your hat and coat, Hjalmar." "I want you to come for a long walk with me." "Yes, of course." "What did your father want?" "Anything to do with me?" "Oh, come along." "I've got a lot to say to you." "I'll meet you downstairs." "I shouldn't go with him if I were you, Hjalmar." "She's right." "Stay here with us." "Oh, what nonsense." "When my oldest friend feels the need to confide in me?" "(Cooing)" "(Door closes)" "Oh." "Hjalmar." "You've been gone a long while." "Longer than usual, I admit." "No, thank you." "Did you have your erm..." "Did you have your dinner with Gregers Werle, then?" " No." " Oh, I'll get you something." "No, no, nothing now." "I require nothing, thank you." "Aren't you feeling very well, Father?" "Well, I'm feeling all right, I suppose, but, er, Gregers took me for rather a long walk." "You shouldn't have gone with him." "You're not used to walking, that's what it is." "One has to get used to a great many things in this world." " Any new orders?" " No, no, not today." "There will be some tomorrow, Father." "You'll see." "Well, I sincerely hope so." "As from tomorrow, I propose to start work in real earnest." "I shall do all the work myself." "I want no assistance." "Oh, Hjalmar, why ever should you?" "You'll only make your life a misery again." "And like this, I can look after the photograph side of things and you can get on with your invention." "Don't forget the wild duck and the chickens and rabbits." "Don't talk to me about that rubbish." "From tomorrow, I shall never set foot in that attic again." "Father, you promised we were going to have a party." "Oh, yes, so I did." "Well, then, from the day after tomorrow." "And as for that damn wild duck I could wring its neck." " What a thing to say!" " Father, it's my wild duck." "Yes, I know it is and..." "that's why I shan't do it." "I haven't the heart to." "But something deep inside me tells me that I ought to." "I oughtn't to allow anything that has... passed through those hands to remain under my roof." "Just because Grandpa happened to get it off that Pettersen..." "There are certain claims..." "What can I say?" "..claims of the ideal which a man cannot ignore except to the detriment of his own soul." "You better go out for your evening walk now, Hedvig." "It's stopped raining and it's dark enough for you." " You needn't stay out long." " I don't want to go out." "Oh, run along." "Your eyes look as if they've been watering again." "It's the atmosphere in this place." "I'll get my coat and hat." "Bad for you." "Like all the air in here." "Father." "You mustn't hurt the wild duck while I'm out." "Not so much as a feather of its head." "Oh, Hedvig...you and I, we two..." "Run along now." " Er, Gina." " (Door closes)" " Yes?" " Erm..." "As...as from tomorrow, or rather, the day after tomorrow," "I, er...want to keep all the household accounts myself." "Keep the household accounts?" "I want to keep an account of everything that comes in." "Well, Lord, that won't take you long." "I'm not sure." "You make the money go a surprisingly long way." "How do you manage to do it?" "That's because Hedvig and I manage on so little." "Is it true that Father is paid very liberally for the copying work he does for Mr. Werle?" "Oh, I don't know about it being liberal." "I don't rightly know what they do pay for that kind of work." "How much does he get, approximately?" "Well, it's all according to..." "Well, it's just enough to cover his keep and a bit over for pocket money." "Enough to cover his keep!" "Why didn't you tell me this before?" "How could I?" "You were so proud to think that everything he got came from you." "Whereas, in fact, it came from Mr. Werle." "Well, he's got plenty, goodness knows." "Well..." "Well." "I think you'd better light the lamp." "Anyway, we don't know for sure it does come from Mr. Werle." "It could be that Graaberg." "Why try and put it onto Graaberg?" "Well, I don't know." "I just thought that..." "It wasn't me that got Grandpa that copying job." "It was Bertha Sorby, just after she went to work there." "Your voice, Gina, seems to me to be trembling a little bit." "Does it?" "And your hands seem to be trembling." "Look, you might as well come straight out with it, Hjalmar." "What's he been saying to you about me?" "Is it true?" "Can it possibly be true that there was something between... you and Mr. Werle when you were in service there?" "No, it isn't." "It's not true." "Well, not when I was working there, anyway." "Oh, Mr. Werle was after me, all right." "She soon saw it and she didn't half create." "She made things as hard for me as she could." "She took to knocking me about and it got to such a pitch that I gave notice." " It was afterwards, then." " Well, I went home." "My mother..." "She wasn't at all the nice sort of woman you took her for." "She just went on and on at me about one thing and another..." "Well, Mr. Werle was a widower by then." "Go on." "Well, it's best you should know, I suppose." "Well, he wouldn't let me alone." "He gave me no peace until he got what he wanted." "And this is the mother of my child." "Look, I know it was wrong of me." "I ought to have told you about it long ago." "You should have told me from the start." "Then I should have known the sort of woman you were." "Would you have married me?" "How can you ask such a question?" "Well, no." "That's why I never dared say anything to you." "You see, I'd come to care for you by then." "And..." "This is the mother of my Hedvig." "To think that everything I see about me, everything I thought was my home, I owe to your ex-lover." "Oh, well, I... just you tell me this, Hjalmar Ekdal, just listen to this." "I mean, where would you have found a wife like me?" "Like you?" "A nice sort of life you were leading." " You haven't the faintest..." " You'd got into bad habits." "..how a man suffers when he's miserable." "Perhaps I haven't!" "But just as we've got everything nice and cozy..." "Right in the middle of a morass of deceit!" "(Crying) I wish to God that hateful man had never come here!" "I, too, thought I had a happy home." "Well, that was a delusion." "Now where am I to find that buoyant flexibility of spirit so vital to me if I'm to put my invention into terms of reality?" "Well, it was only a dream." "It's all over now." "All over." " It doesn't matter." " (Door opens)" " May I come in?" " Oh." "Yes, Gregers, come in, do." "Well, my good friend..." " Haven't you done it yet?" " Yes, it's done, it's done." " It is?" " (Dishes clattering)" "I've just lived through the bitterest moment of my life." "And also the noblest, I hope." "Anyway, it's over now, for the time being" "May God forgive you, Gregers Werle!" " I don't understand." " What don't you understand?" "After such a great moment of redemption, a moment that... was to initiate a real friendship based on truth and purity..." "Yes, Gregers, I know all about that." "I was convinced that I should see faces shining with new life, but all I see is apathy and depression." "You need time." "That I realize." "But you, Hjalmar, surely you feel newly consecrated after such a moment?" "Oh, yes, I do, Gregers, of course I do." "In a way." "I mean..." "I mean, I do, indeed." "For there's nothing finer in this world than to forgive." "Do you think a man can..." "recover from such a bitter cup?" "Not for an ordinary man, but for a man like you..." "Good heavens, I know that, but you must give me time." "There's a great deal of the wild duck in you, Hjalmar." "Wild duck's still on the agenda, huh?" "Werle's badly winged victim." " Is he the burning topic?" " Both he and us." " Why don't you go to the devil?" " What was that?" "I'm hoping this quack will clear out before he has time to make a mess of your lives." "No mess will be made of their lives, Dr. Relling." "Hjalmar I needn't speak for, we know him." "As for her, I'm sure that at the bottom of her heart she is honorable and sincere." "Then you might as well have left me as I was!" "Is it too much to ask what you really want in this house?" "I want to lay the foundations of a true marriage." "Well, I've never been married, so I can't very well be dogmatic." "One thing I do know, you two are grown-up people." "Whatever mess you make of your own lives, it's your business." "But let me warn you, have a care where Hedvig's concerned." "You may do her a terrible harm." "May I come in?" "Good evening." "Oh!" "Bertha, it's you." "(Chuckling) Yes, dear, of course it's me." "I hope this isn't an inconvenient moment." "Not at all." "I..." "To tell you the truth," "I had rather hoped to find you on your own at this time." "I...just wanted to run in and have a little chat and... say goodbye." " Are you going away, then?" " Yes." "First thing tomorrow morning, up to Hoidal." "Mr. Werle left this afternoon." "He sent you his kind regards." "Mr. Werle left for Hoidal and you're going after him?" "Yes." "And what do you say to that, Hjalmar?" "I say take care, that's all." "I'd better explain." "Mrs. Sorby and my father are to be married." " Married?" " Surely this can't be true." "Yes, my dear doctor, it's perfectly true." "Tonight I shall go out with Molvik." "Oh, don't do that." "You mustn't." "Please, for my sake." "There's nothing else for it." "Why not join us, Hjalmar?" "Goodbye, Mrs. Werle." "I had no idea that you and Dr. Relling were such close friends." "Oh, yes." "We've known each other for years." "At one time it seemed as if our friendship might have ripened into something." "Luckily for you, it didn't." "You can put it that way if you like." "It may seem to you that I have done rather well for myself and so I have, in a way." "All the same, I don't think I'm getting any more than I'm giving." "At least I shall never leave him." "And I can..." "look after him and care for him as no one else can." "Now that he'll soon be helpless." "Helpless?" "There's no need to mention that here." "It's no good trying to conceal it any longer." " Mr. Werle's going blind." " Going blind?" "And you can imagine what that means to a businessman." "Well..." "I must be going." "Oh, and I was to tell you, Hjalmar, that if there's anything Mr. Werle can do for you, you have only to apply to Graaberg." "An offer which I'm sure Mr. Ekdal will decline." "Really?" "Times have changed, then." "He never used to." "No, it's quite true, Bertha." "Hjalmar doesn't want anything more from Mr. Werle now." "Kindly convey my compliments to your future husband and tell him that I shall be taking an early opportunity of calling upon Mr. Graaberg." "Calling, I say, upon this Mr. Graaberg and asking him to furnish me with an accurate account of my financial liability to his employer." "This debt of honor... "Debt of honor", that is rather funny." "However, it shall be paid, in full," " and with 5% interest." " We haven't got the money." "Something has happened in this house." "It certainly has." "Very well, then." "There's something else I wanted to talk to you about, but it will have to wait." "Right." "Goodbye." "(Hjalmar) At last I'm lifting the burden of debt from my shoulders." "(Gregers) Anyway, you soon will, I am sure." " I think my attitude may be called correct." " You're the man I've always taken you for." "There are certain times, Gregers, when the claims of the ideal cannot be ignored." "All the same...as the breadwinner of the family, it's no joke for a man of limited means to undertake to discharge a debt which has grown up over a long period of years." "And over which the dust of oblivion has settled." "Be that as it may, the man in me demands his rights." "Now, my dear Hjalmar, wasn't it a good thing I came?" "It certainly was." "Why, Hedvig, you haven't been long." "I didn't feel like staying out long." "It was a good thing I didn't because I met someone at the door." " Mrs. Sorby, I suppose." " Yes." "Well, it's the last you'll be seeing of her." " Father..." " Mm-hm?" "Mrs. Sorby brought me something." " What is it?" " Something for tomorrow." "Bertha always does give you something on your birthday." " What is it?" " You're not to see it yet." "Mother's going to give it to me tomorrow." "A conspiracy to keep me in the dark, is that it?" " You may see it." "It's a letter." " A letter?" "Yes, just a letter." "The other is coming on later, I expect." "But just think, a letter." "I've never had a letter before." "And it's addressed to me." "It's got "Miss" on the envelope." ""Miss Hedvig Ekdal"." "That's me." " Can I see?" " Here." "This is Mr. Werle's handwriting." "Are you sure, Hjalmar?" "Well, have a look." "Now, what would I know about that?" "Hedvig, can I open this letter and read it?" " Of course, if you want to." " No, not tonight, Hjalmar." " Oh, please let him read it." " No, it's for tomorrow." "Oh..." "Go on, Father." "I'm longing to know what it says." "Very well." "What in the world...?" " What does it say?" " Be quiet for a moment." "Hedvig, this is a deed of gift." "A gift?" "A present?" "Well, what is it?" "Well, see for yourself." "It says it's for Grandfather." "Can you understand this, Gina?" " No, I can't." "What's it about?" " Mr. Werle writes to Hedvig that her grandfather need not concern himself with the copying as, in future, he may draw 100 krone a month from the office." " 100 krone, Mother!" " That's nice for Grandfather." "For as long as he needs it." "That means as long as he lives." " Well, then, he's provided for." " But that's not all." "You didn't read far enough." "Afterwards, the gift passes to you." " To me?" "What, all of it?" " Yes." "It says here it's to be for the same sum and for the rest of your life." "Did you hear that, Gina?" "Yes, I heard." "All that money, for me?" "Oh, Father, Father, aren't you pleased?" "Pleased?" "What a perspective it reveals!" "It's Hedvig!" "Hedvig for whom he provides so generously." " It's Hedvig's birthday." " You shall have it, Father." "I shall give it all to you and Mother." "To your mother, that's just it!" " This is a trap he is setting." " You'd better go to your room." "This morning he said," ""Hjalmar Ekdal is not at all the man you take him for."" " Not the man?" " Yes." "He said, "You'll see."" "He thinks I can be bought off, is that it?" "Now we shall see who was right, he or I." " Well, there's my answer." " Ah, that's what I expected." "Now, Gina, you've got to speak the truth." "If it was all over between you and him when you came to care for me, why did he do so much to help us get married?" "I don't know." "Wasn't he afraid of a certain eventuality?" "What do you mean?" "I want to know whether your child has the right to live under my roof!" " You ask me that?" " Yes, and you've got to answer!" "Is Hedvig my child or...well...?" " I don't know!" " You don't know?" "Well, how would I know, a woman like me?" "There's nothing more for me in this house!" "Just a minute." "Don't be hasty, think what you're doing!" "There's nothing to keep a man like me in this house!" "There's a great deal." "The three of you must be together if you're to achieve the self-sacrifice of forgiveness." "I don't care, I don't want it!" "Oh, where's my hat?" "My home is in ruins now, Gregers." "I have no child now." " Father?" "What are you saying?" " No, stay away from me." "Don't come near me, Hedvig." "No." "I can't bear to see you." "Will you look at her?" "Look at her!" "I can't!" "I must get out of here!" " I must get out of this house!" " He's going away." "He's going away and he'll never come back!" " Mother..." " Don't cry, Hedvig, don't cry." " He'll never come back." " He will." "He'll come back." "Your father will come back, of course he'll come back." " What have I done to him?" " Don't cry." "Oh, Mother, go after him, bring him back." "Yes, I'll go." "I meant all for the best." "And you must stop crying, dear." "I shall find him." "Come on." "Now, promise me..." "promise me no more tears, dear." "I promise, if only Father comes back." "There's a good girl." "Hadn't you better let him fight his battles for himself?" "There's time for that afterwards." "The first thing is the child." "What's it all about?" "Why doesn't Father want me anymore?" "You mustn't ask that till you're all grown up." "I believe I know what it is." "Perhaps I don't really belong to Father after all." " How should that be?" " They might have found me." "And Father's only just heard about it." "I know things like that happen in books." "Well..." "And supposing that were true?" "I think he might love me just as much, all the same." "Or more, perhaps." "After all, the wild duck was given to us as a present." " And I love her very much." " Tell me more about her." "The poor wild duck." "He can't bear to see her, either." "Just think, he wanted to wring her neck." "Oh, but he'd never do that, I'm sure." "No, but he said he'd like to." "And I think it was horrid of Father even to say it." "Because I pray for the wild duck every night that her days may be long and that she may be delivered from evil." "You say your prayers every night?" "Yes." "And who taught you to do that?" "I taught myself when Father was very ill." "You say your prayers in the morning, as well?" " No, of course not." " Why not?" "Because it's light in the morning and there's nothing to be afraid of." "And yet your father wanted to wring its neck." "No." "He said he could almost, but he wouldn't, for my sake." "I think that was nice of Father." "But supposing you were to sacrifice the wild duck?" "Of your own free will." "And for his sake." " The wild duck?" " Yes." "Supposing you were to sacrifice, for his sake, the greatest treasure you have in the world?" "You think it would help?" "Try it, Hedvig." "Yes." "Yes, I will try it." "I'll ask Grandfather to do it in the morning." "Yes." "You see, you, too, are a sick man." "Oh, yes, you're quite right." "I am." "Exactly." "But your case is a complicated one." "First of all, you've got this tiresome rash of righteousness and, even worse, you're in a delirium of hero worship." "You've got to find something outside yourself to deify." "Yes, must be something outside myself." "You make bloody silly mistakes about these demigods you think you've discovered." "You've come to the workman's cottage, presented your claim on the ideal, only to find the tenants are bankrupt." "If you have so poor an opinion of Hjalmar Ekdal, what possible satisfaction can you derive from spending time in his company?" "Oh, it's simple." "You see, for my sins I'm supposed to be a kind of doctor and I feel bound to do what I can for the sick who are living in the same house." "Mm." "Oh, really?" "Hjalmar Ekdal is sick, too, is he?" "Most people are, I'm afraid." "What sort of treatment are you giving him?" "My usual one, helping him to keep up his own special fantasy." "What I call a "life lie"." ""Life lie"?" "May I ask by what life lie Hjalmar has to be sustained?" "No, you may not." "I don't divulge professional secrets to quacks." "You'd only get him into a worse mess than he's in already." "But my method's infallible." "Look at Molvik." "I made him out to be a demoniac." "That's the blue pill I've given him." "Well...then he's not a demoniac?" "What the devil does "demoniac" mean anyway?" "It's just mumbo-jumbo I cooked up to give the poor fellow something to live for." "Without it, he'd have succumbed to self-contempt and despair years ago." "The old lieutenant, he's another one." "He's found his cure." "Mm, well, he's sick, too, is he?" "You've diagnosed him, as well?" "Ex-bear hunter shutting himself in an attic to shoot rabbits." "Yet there's not a happier sportsman in the whole world than that old man up there." "The withered Christmas trees he's got up there are the same to him as the forest of Hoidal." "The few fowls are the game in the treetops, the rabbits hopping about are the bears he has to encounter." "How has the mighty hunter fallen." "Poor old Ekdal." "He's certainly had to temper the ideals of his youth." "While I think of it, don't use that foreign word, "ideals"." "We've got a perfectly satisfactory word - "lies"." "You think the two things are connected?" "Yes." "Like typhus and putrid fever." "Dr. Relling, I shan't rest till I've delivered Hjalmar Ekdal from your clutches." "So much the worse for him." "(Clucking, twittering)" "(Knock on door)" "Is Father with you?" "No, he's still in Relling's room." "I can see you haven't done it." "Done what?" "Oh, you mean the wild duck." "No." "I suppose your courage failed you at the last minute." "No, not exactly." "You see, when I woke up this morning" "I thought about all we'd been saying, um..." " Well, it all seemed so silly." " Silly?" "Yes." "I don't know." "Last night, at the time, it sounded so...beautiful." "But this morning, after I'd been asleep and thought about it, well, it didn't seem to make sense." "I ought not to have expected you grow up in this household without having something spoiling you." "I don't care about that, if only Father would come." "What a pity it is your eyes have never been opened to the valuable things in life." "If only you had that true joy, a brave spirit of sacrifice." "You'd soon see how quickly he'd come." "I still have faith in you, Hedvig." "It's not much fun, I can tell you, having to do the morning rounds by yourself." " Aren't you going shooting?" " It's not shooting weather." "It's so overcast in there you can hardly see an inch in front of your nose." "Wouldn't you ever like to shoot something else besides rabbits?" "Why, what's wrong with rabbits?" "Aren't they good enough for you?" "Yes, but the wild duck." "Uh?" "You're afraid I'll shoot your wild duck?" "Not on your life, little one." "Never." "Perhaps you couldn't." "They say wild duck are very difficult to shoot." "Oh, couldn't I?" "I should jolly well think I could." "How would you do it, Grandfather?" "Eh?" "Er..." "Not with my wild duck, of course, but somebody else's." "Well, firstly, I'd take care to shoot in the right place." "That's always the best." "That's the way." "The only other thing you've got to be careful about is to shoot against the lay of the feathers not with them." " See?" " Would it die then?" "Yes, if you shoot straight." "Well, now you know all about it." "Now, Hedvig, don't stand there rummaging among your father's things." " You know he doesn't like it." " I was only tidying up." "Well, you'd be far better off in the kitchen, watching the coffee so it doesn't boil over." "I'll take him some coffee down when I go." "(Clock chimes)" "Hjalmar, you've come back, then." "Yes, I've come back but..." "only to go away again." "Yes." "I suppose so." " Oh, what a sight you look." " A sight?" "Your best winter coat." "It's ruined." "Mother, hadn't I better..." "Oh!" "Father!" "No, no." "Stay away." "Keep her away from me." "(Sighs) You'd better go in the other room, Hedvig." " Where are my books?" " What books?" "All my scientific...books with all the periodicals I need for my invention, of course." "Where are they?" " Are these the ones?" " Well, of course they are." "Do you want me to get Hedvig to cut the papers?" "I don't require to have them cut, thank you." "So, you're really going, then?" "I should have thought that was obvious." "I'm not staying here to get a knife in my heart every hour." "Well..." "What about Grandpa?" "What's to become of him?" "I need no one to teach me my duty, thank you." "My poor, destitute father comes with me." "I shall make the necessary arrangements." "I suppose no one found my hat on the stairs?" "No, why?" "You haven't gone and lost it, have you?" "I was wearing it when I came in last night, but this morning it seems to have disappeared." "Wherever did you get to last night with those two drunks?" "Don't bother me with these questions." "You think I can remember such stuff in my state?" "Well, I hope you haven't caught cold, Hjalmar, that's all." "Blast you, Relling, you're a swine and a loafer!" "Here you are." "I've brought you a cup of something hot and a bit of bread and butter and cold meat." "Food." "Oh, no thank you." "I haven't had so much as a bite of solid food for the last 24 hours but it doesn't matter." "Now, where are my papers and the opening chapters of my autobiography?" "And my diaries and all my important papers!" "Where are they?" "Oh, she's in there now!" "(Gina) The girl's got to be somewhere!" "Come out of there." "I wish to be spared the presence of interlopers." " Does he mean me?" " Go into the kitchen, Hedvig." "Or, no, you go into your bedroom." "Hjalmar, don't start turning those drawers upside down." "I know where everything is." "The wild duck." "(Hjalmar) This portmanteau is quite useless." "I've got 101 things to drag around." "(Gina) You don't have to take everything." "You can come back." "All you need now is a clean vest and a clean shirt." "Oh, blast this packing, I'm exhausted." "That coffee will be stone cold by now." "Hm?" "Yes." "You'll have a job finding an attic big enough to take those rabbits." "Oh, I haven't got to take all those rabbits with me, as well?" "I don't see Grandpa managing without his rabbits." "He's going to have to, that's all." "I'm sacrificing far greater things than rabbits." "Do you want me to put your flute in your portmanteau?" " No, but give me the pistol." " You want that?" "Yes." "Well, I can't see it, it's not here." "He must have it with him in there." " Is he in the attic?" " Of course he is." "Oh, poor, lonely, old man." "Mm." "You know, I dare say you could... manage in the parlor for a couple of days if you wanted to." "You'd have it to yourself." "Never." "Oh..." " Now what is it?" " More butter." "All right, I'll get you some." "It won't take a minute." "No, dry bread's quite good enough for me." "There you are." "There." "Could I..." "Could I, if I had no intrusion from anyone, anyone, manage in the parlor for a couple of days?" "You know very well you could." "Because, as it is, I don't see the remotest possibility of moving all Father's things out at such short notice." "No, especially with the weather as terrible as it is outside." "I see this document's still lying around." "Yes." "I haven't touched it." "Well, it's so much waste paper as far as I'm concerned." "Well, I've no intention of using it." "At the same time, it...it might be just as well not to lose it." "What with all this moving, it might easily get..." "Yes, well, I'll see that it's put away." "It is, in the first instance, made out to Father." "It's up to him whether he wants to avail himself of it." "Well, yes." "Poor, old man." "Well, just to be on the safe side, where did you put the gum?" "Mm?" "Oh." "And erm...and the brush." "Er, just a strip of paper down the back..." "Far be it from me to lay hands on other people's property." "Least of all, a poor, destitute old man or... anyone else, for that matter." "There." "That'll do, I think." "I'll leave it there till it gets dry, then put it away safely." "I never wish to set eyes on that paper again." "Never." " Why, Hjalmar..." " Oh, Gregers." "I'm just relaxing for a few minutes." "I mean, the claims of the body have to be met sometimes." "What have you decided to do?" "Well, for a man like me, there's only one thing to do." "I-I'm just sorting through my most important papers." "As you know, it's tiring work and it takes time." "Now, do you want me to pack that portmanteau or to get the room ready for you?" "Er, pack and get the room ready." "All right, then." "I'll just get you a clean vest and shirt." "Hjalmar, I never imagined it would end like this." "Do you feel bound to leave?" "What else would you have me do?" "I'm not built for bearing unhappiness, Gregers." "I must have peace and a sense of security in my life." "Couldn't you have all that here?" "I mean, why not try it?" "It seems to me that at last you have solid foundations on which to build and to make a fresh start." "And remember, you've got the invention to live for." "Don't talk to me about the invention." "It might well be years before it matures." " Really?" " What do you want me to invent?" "Almost everything's already been invented by someone or other." "It's getting more difficult every day." "But you've worked so hard." "It was that swine, Relling, who put me up to it." "It was he who first revealed to me my ability to make some great scientific discovery" " in the field of photography." " Oh, Relling!" "I've known such happiness in the work." "Not so much for the invention itself but because Hedvig believed in it, believed in it with all a child's enthusiasm." "At least, I was foolish enough to think so." "You can't really believe that Hedvig would." "I can't believe anything." "It's Hedvig who stands in my way." "She will blot out the sun for me always." "How could she ever blot out the sun?" "I have loved that child so unspeakably." "I've been so unspeakably happy." "Whenever I came back into this poor room... she ran towards me and looked at me with her sweet, short-sighted eyes." "What a fool I've been... to succumb to the idea that she loved me in return." "And you call that a delusion?" " (Gunshot) - (Squawking)" "Hjalmar!" "Listen to him, shooting at a time like this!" "Grandpa's in there, shooting by himself again." "Oh, well, I better go in and see how he is." "No, wait." "Do you know what that was?" " Well, of course I do." " No, you don't." "But I do." " That was the proof you wanted." " Proof?" "What proof?" "It was the child's sacrifice." "She's got your father to shoot the wild duck." " Shoot the wild duck?" " What?" "But whatever for?" "She wanted to sacrifice her greatest treasure for you." "Then, she thought, surely you would come to love her again." " Oh, poor child." " The things she thinks of." "She only wanted your love again, Hjalmar." "Without it, she felt she couldn't live." "Oh, there you are, Hjalmar, you can see for yourself." "Gina, where is she?" "Hedvig, come here." "Come to me, Hedvig." "Oh, she's not here." "She's in her own room." "Hedvig?" "Hedvig..." "No, she's not here, either." "She must have gone out." "You wouldn't have her anywhere in the house." "If only she was here now so that I could tell her that everything will be all right." "Now, Gregers, I believe we can make a fresh start." "I knew it." "I knew that child would bring it about." "I thought you were on your own there, Hjalmar." "Have you been shooting in your room?" "Father, are you there?" "Wasn't it you who fired that shot?" "She shot the wild duck herself!" "What's that?" "Hedvig..." "Hedvig?" "(Gina) Oh, God!" "Dr, Relling!" "Dr. Relling!" "Dr. Relling, come quickly!" "Really, she's all right." "What is it?" "I can't see anything." " She's all right." " Dr. Relling!" "Hedvig's had an accident." "She's all right, isn't she, Doctor?" "See, there's nothing wrong with her." "There's very little blood." " How did this happen?" " Well, I..." "I've no idea." "She wanted to shoot the wild duck." "The pistol must have gone off in her hand." "The forests get their own back." "But I'm not afraid of them." "But she..." "Why don't you say something, Relling?" "She's shot in the breast." "(Hjalmar) But she's going to be all right." "(Relling) Can't you see that Hedvig's dead?" "(Hjalmar) No, no, she must live." "I mean, she must live, just so that I can tell her I loved her." "The shot must have entered the heart." "Death must have been instantaneous." "I drove her away like a wild animal." "She was frightened." "So she came in here and shot herself..." " Oh, shh, shh." " (Crying) ..for love of me." "I'll never be able to make it up to her." "No, no, leave that, Doctor." "I'll never be able to..." "Gina, how can you bear it?" "We must help each other now." "Now..." "Well...she can't...she can't..." "lie here to be made a show of." "Now, come on, Hjalmar." "Come on, help me move her." "Now, gently." "(Molvik) Blessed be the Lord." "Earth to earth... (Relling) Shut up, you fool, you're drunk." "Nothing will ever lead me to believe that shot was an accident." "No one can say how this terrible thing happened." "There were powder marks on the breast." "She must have put the muzzle to her breast and fired." "Hedvig hasn't died in vain." "You saw how sorrow brought out all that is noble in him." "Most people are ennobled by the presence of death." "How long do you expect it to last?" "It will last all his life." "And grow greater." "Six months from now, little Hedvig will be no more to him than an exquisite theme for declamation." "You dare say that of Hjalmar Ekdal?" "We'll talk about it when the first grass has withered on her grave." "Then you'll hear him holding forth about the beloved child untimely ripped from her father's heart." "Then you'll see him soaking himself in warm floods of sentimentality and self-pity, self-admiration." "You wait and see." "If you're right and I'm wrong, then life isn't worth living." "Life wouldn't be so bad if only we were rid of people like you who keep on badgering us poor folk with claims of the ideal." "In that case, I'm glad my destiny is what it is." "Tell me, what is your destiny?" " To be 13th at table." " I can well believe it." "(Twittering, clucking)"