prosody | miscellaneous |
Ges, si tot ma don' et amors M'an bauzat e mes a lor dan, No.us cugetz qu'ieu n'oblit mon chan Ni qu'en vailla meins ma valors Ni que ja.n lais nuill autr' onrat mestier Ni nuill bon fait que.s tanh' a cavalier, Ni que.m tueilla bona vid' avols mortz, Si coma fes quan passei lai los portz. Galop e trot e saut e cors, Veillars e maltrait et afan Seraun mei sejorn darenan, E sufrirai freitz e calors, Armatz de fer e de fust e d'asier, E mei ostal seraun bosc e semdier E mas chansos sirventes ab descortz, E mantenrai los frevols contra.ls fortz. Mas per o quar mi for' honors, S'ieu trobes dona benestan, Avinen e cueind' e prezan, A cui no plagues ma dolors, Que no.s vires ni crezes lauzengier Ni no.s fezes trop preiar, s'ieu l'enquier, De leis amar fora leus mos acortz, S'ill ames me, c'aitals es mos conortz. Mas qu'ar sobra mon sen folors, Qu'estat n'aurai perdutz un an Per una fals' ab cor truan! Mas jois m'a tan dousas sabors Que.m pot dar gaug e tolre consirier Mal grat d'amor e de mon cor leugier E de midons, c'a totz tres soi estortz, E ponharai com senes els m'esfortz De servir e d'autras lauzors, E de totz bons faitz trair' enan, De pretz e de lans' e de bran, Entre.ls reis e.ls emperadors! Vas Monferrat e sai vas Foncalquier Viurai de guerr' a lei de mainadier! E pos d'amor no.m ve autre cofortz, Partirai m'en, et er sieus totz lo tortz; Car ai proat d'amor tot son mestier: C'aisill que son camjador e leugier Son meils amat, e qui la serf es mortz, Per qu'ieu soi ricx, quar ieu li soi estortz. Na Biatriz, vostre ric prez sobrier Salf Deos e gart, aisi com voill e qier, E qi no.l vol sia desfaiz e morz, Q'a lui no plaz joi, solaz ni deporz. |
Now, albeit my lady, and Love, have degraded and disdained me, don't think that I forget my art because of this, nor that my prowess is diminished, nor that I abandon any other honourable trade nor any good deed that befits a knight, nor that a base death shall take my noble life, as it did when I crossed those passes. Galloping and trotting, jumping and running, nightly watch and discomfort and fatigue will be my entertainment henceforth, and I shall suffer from cold and from heat, armed with iron, with wood and with steel, and woods and roads shall be my lodgings and many songs shall be strident satires and I shall uphold the weak against the strong. But since it'd be an honour for me if I found a lady of distinction, attractive, pleasing and worthy, and who wouldn't enjoy my grievance and who wouldn't be fickle, or believe slanderers and who wouldn't be too hard to win if I wooed her, I should be readily prone to love her, if she loved me, because such is my comfort. But now folly wins over my sense, for I shall have wasted a year for a faithless one with a treacherous heart; but Joy has so many sweet flavours that it can give me bliss and take care away in spite of love and of my fickle heart and of my lady, for I have escaped from all three and without their influence, I shall try to apply myself to service and to other praiseworthy acts and to putting forward all good deeds of valour and lance and sword among the kings and emperors. Yonder in Monferrato and here in Foncalquier I shall live of war as a mercenary! And since love comforts me no further, I shall go away, and it will take all the blame; because I have assayed all sides of love: those who are inconstant and fickle are loved best, and he who serves is lost, so that I'm rich, having escaped from it. Lady Biatriz, your precious, unequalled fame I commend to God, as I wish and pray; and he who opposes this, let him be undone and dead, since he dislikes joy, pleasure and delight. |