Troilus and Crisyde | Page 6

tak this, that ye loveres ofte eschuwe,?Or elles doon of good entencioun, 345?Ful ofte thy lady wole it misconstrue,?And deme it harm in hir opinioun;?And yet if she, for other enchesoun,?Be wrooth, than shalt thou han a groyn anoon:?Lord! wel is him that may be of yow oon!' 350
But for al this, whan that he say his tyme,?He held his pees, non other bote him gayned;?For love bigan his fetheres so to lyme,?That wel unnethe un-to his folk he fayned?That othere besye nedes him destrayned; 355?For wo was him, that what to doon he niste,?But bad his folk to goon wher that hem liste.
And whan that he in chaumbre was allone,?He doun up-on his beddes feet him sette,?And first be gan to syke, and eft to grone, 360?And thoughte ay on hir so, with-outen lette,?That, as he sat and wook, his spirit mette?That he hir saw a temple, and al the wyse?Right of hir loke, and gan it newe avyse.
Thus gan he make a mirour of his minde, 365?In which he saugh al hoolly hir figure;?And that he wel coude in his herte finde,?It was to him a right good aventure?To love swich oon, and if he dide his cure?To serven hir, yet mighte he falle in grace, 370?Or elles, for oon of hir servaunts pace.
Imagininge that travaille nor grame?Ne mighte, for so goodly oon, be lorn?As she, ne him for his desir ne shame,?Al were it wist, but in prys and up-born 375?Of alle lovers wel more than biforn;?Thus argumented he in his ginninge,?Ful unavysed of his wo cominge.
Thus took he purpos loves craft to suwe,?And thoughte he wolde werken prively, 380?First, to hyden his desir in muwe?From every wight y-born, al-outrely,?But he mighte ought recovered be therby;?Remembring him, that love to wyde y-blowe?Yelt bittre fruyt, though swete seed be sowe. 385
And over al this, yet muchel more he thoughte?What for to speke, and what to holden inne,?And what to arten hir to love he soughte,?And on a song anoon-right to biginne,?And gan loude on his sorwe for to winne; 390?For with good hope he gan fully assente?Criseyde for to love, and nought repente.
And of his song nought only the sentence,?As writ myn autour called Lollius,?But pleynly, save our tonges difference, 395?I dar wel sayn, in al that Troilus?Seyde in his song, lo! every word right thus?As I shal seyn; and who-so list it here,?Lo! next this vers, he may it finden here.
Cantus Troili.
`If no love is, O god, what fele I so? 400?And if love is, what thing and whiche is he!?If love be good, from whennes comth my wo??If it be wikke, a wonder thinketh me,?Whenne every torment and adversitee?That cometh of him, may to me savory thinke; 405?For ay thurst I, the more that I it drinke.
`And if that at myn owene lust I brenne,?Fro whennes cometh my wailing and my pleynte??If harme agree me, wher-to pleyne I thenne??I noot, ne why unwery that I feynte. 410?O quike deeth, O swete harm so queynte,?How may of thee in me swich quantitee,?But-if that I consente that it be?
`And if that I consente, I wrongfully?Compleyne, y-wis; thus possed to and fro, 415?Al sterelees with inne a boot am I?A-mid the see, by-twixen windes two,?That in contrarie stonden ever-mo.?Allas! what is this wonder maladye??For hete of cold, for cold of hete, I deye.' 420
And to the god of love thus seyde he?With pitous voys, `O lord, now youres is?My spirit, which that oughte youres be.?Yow thanke I, lord, that han me brought to this;?But whether goddesse or womman, y-wis, 425?She be, I noot, which that ye do me serve;?But as hir man I wole ay live and sterve.
`Ye stonden in hire eyen mightily,?As in a place un-to youre vertu digne;?Wherfore, lord, if my servyse or I 430?May lyke yow, so beth to me benigne;?For myn estat royal here I resigne?In-to hir hond, and with ful humble chere?Bicome hir man, as to my lady dere.'
In him ne deyned sparen blood royal 435?The fyr of love, wher-fro god me blesse,?Ne him forbar in no degree, for al?His vertu or his excellent prowesse;?But held him as his thral lowe in distresse,?And brende him so in sondry wyse ay newe, 440?That sixty tyme a day he loste his hewe.
So muche, day by day, his owene thought,?For lust to hir, gan quiken and encrese,?That every other charge he sette at nought;?For-thy ful ofte, his hote fyr to cese, 445?To seen hir goodly look he gan to prese;?For ther-by to ben esed wel he wende,?And ay the ner he was, the more he brende.
For ay the ner the fyr, the hotter is,?This, trowe I, knoweth al this companye. 450?But were he fer or neer, I dar seye this,?By night or day, for wisdom or folye,?His herte, which that is his brestes ye,?Was ay on hir,