Geoffrey Chaucer - The Canterbury Tales

Save only me, and wrecched Palamoun,

That Theseus martyreth in prisoun.

And over al this, to sleen me utterly,

Love hath his fyry dart so brenningly

1565

Y-stiked thurgh my trewe careful herte,

[46: T. 1568-1602.]

That shapen was my deeth erst than my sherte.

Ye sleen me with your eyen, Emelye;

(710)

Ye been the cause wherfor that I dye.

Of al the remenant of myn other care

1570

Ne sette I nat the mountaunce of a tare,

So that I coude don aught to your plesaunce!'

And with that word he fil doun in a traunce

A longe tyme; and after he up-sterte.

1551. Cm. Pt. Hl. lyne. 1556. Cp. Pt. Ln. Hl. owne; E. owene. 1557. highte] Hl. hote. 1560. E. kynrede; rest lynage (lignage). 1563. Hl. vtterly; E. outrely. 1573. So E.; rest afterward ( for after). Hl. om he.

This Palamoun, that thoughte that thurgh his herte

1575

He felte a cold swerd sodeynliche glyde,

For ire he quook, no lenger wolde he byde.

And whan that he had herd Arcites tale,

(720)

As he were wood, with face deed and pale,

He sterte him up out of the buskes thikke,

1580

And seyde: 'Arcite, false traitour wikke,

Now artow hent, that lovest my lady so,

For whom that I have al this peyne and wo,

And art my blood, and to my counseil sworn,

As I ful ofte have told thee heer-biforn,

1585

And hast by-iaped here duk Theseus,

And falsly chaunged hast thy name thus;

I wol be deed, or elles thou shalt dye.

(730)

Thou shalt nat love my lady Emelye,

But I wol love hir only, and namo;

1590

For I am Palamoun, thy mortal fo.

And though that I no wepne have in this place,

But out of prison am astert by grace,

I drede noght that outher thou shalt dye,

Or thou ne shalt nat loven Emelye.

1595

Chees which thou wilt, for thou shalt nat asterte.'

1579. Hl. bussches; Cm. boschis; Ln. boskes. 1581. E. Hn. artow; rest art thou. 1584. told] E. Cm. seyd. 1589. E. Hn. namo; Hl. Cm. no mo. 1595. E. Hn. wolt. Hl. for; rest or.

This Arcitë, with ful despitous herte,

Whan he him knew, and hadde his tale herd,

(740)

As fiers as leoun, pulled out a swerd,

And seyde thus: 'by God that sit above,

1600

Nere it that thou art sik, and wood for love,

[47: T. 1603-1639.]

And eek that thou no wepne hast in this place,

Thou sholdest never out of this grove pace,

That thou ne sholdest dyen of myn hond.

For I defye the seurtee and the bond

1605

Which that thou seyst that I have maad to thee.

What, verray fool, think wel that love is free,

And I wol love hir, maugre al thy might!

(750)

But, for as muche thou art a worthy knight,

And wilnest to darreyne hir by batayle,

1610

Have heer my trouthe, to-morwe I wol nat fayle,

With-outen witing of any other wight,

That here I wol be founden as a knight,

And bringen harneys right y-nough for thee;

And chees the beste, and leve the worste for me.

1615

And mete and drinke this night wol I bringe

Y-nough for thee, and clothes for thy beddinge.

And, if so be that thou my lady winne,

(760)

And slee me in this wode ther I am inne,

Thou mayst wel have thy lady, as for me.'

1620

This Palamon answerde: 'I graunte it thee.'

And thus they been departed til a-morwe,

When ech of hem had leyd his feith to borwe.

1598. E. Hn. his; rest a. 1599. E. sit; Cm. set; rest sitteth. 1604. Hl. seurte; Cp. sewrte; E. seurete; Hn. seuretee. 1609. Cp. derreyne; Hl. dereyne. 1614. Hn. chees; Cm. Hl. ches; rest chese.

O Cupide, out of alle charitee!

O regne, that wolt no felawe have with thee!

1625

Ful sooth is seyd, that love ne lordshipe

Wol noght, his thankes, have no felaweshipe;

Wel finden that Arcite and Palamoun.

(770)

Arcite is riden anon un-to the toun,

And on the morwe, er it were dayes light,

1630

Ful prively two harneys hath he dight,

Bothe suffisaunt and mete to darreyne

The bataille in the feeld bitwix hem tweyne.

And on his hors, allone as he was born,

He carieth al this harneys him biforn;

1635

And in the grove, at tyme and place y-set,

This Arcite and this Palamon ben met.

Tho chaungen gan the colour in hir face;

[48: T. 1640-1675.]

(780)

Right as the hunter in the regne of Trace,

That stondeth at the gappe with a spere,

1640

Whan hunted is the leoun or the bere,

And hereth him come russhing in the greves,

And breketh bothe bowes and the leves,

And thinketh, 'heer cometh my mortel enemy,

With-oute faile, he moot be deed, or I;

1645

For outher I mot sleen him at the gappe,

Or he mot sleen me, if that me mishappe:'

So ferden they, in chaunging of hir hewe,

(790)

As fer as everich of hem other knewe.

Ther nas no good day, ne no saluing;

1650

But streight, with-outen word or rehersing,

Everich of hem halp for to armen other,

As freendly as he were his owne brother;

And after that, with sharpe speres stronge

They foynen ech at other wonder longe.

1655

Thou mightest wene that this Palamoun

In his fighting were a wood leoun,

And as a cruel tygre was Arcite:

(800)

As wilde bores gonne they to smyte,

That frothen whyte as foom for ire wood.

1660

Up to the ancle foghte they in hir blood.

And in this wyse I lete hem fighting dwelle;

And forth I wol of Theseus yow telle.

1626. E. hir; rest his. 1634. E. the; Hn. Cm. Hl. this. 1637. Hl. Tho; rest To. 1638. Hl. honter us ; rest hunters, hunterys; ed. 1542, hunter. 1640. E. and; rest or. 1651. Cm. halp; Cp. hilp; E. Hn. heelp; Hl. Pt. helpeth; Ln. helpe. Hl. Ln. om. for. 1652. E. owene. 1656. Tyrwhitt ins. as bef. a. 1659. E. Hn. whit. 1660. E. anclee. 1662. E. wole.

The destinee, ministre general,

That executeth in the world over-al

1665

The purveyaunce, that God hath seyn biforn,

So strong it is, that, though the world had sworn

The contrarie of a thing, by ye or nay,

(810)

Yet somtyme it shal fallen on a day

That falleth nat eft with-inne a thousand yere.

1670

For certeinly, our appetytes here,

Be it of werre, or pees, or hate, or love,

Al is this reuled by the sighte above.

This mene I now by mighty Theseus,

[49: T. 1676-1712.]

That for to honten is so desirous,

1675

And namely at the grete hert in May,

That in his bed ther daweth him no day,

That he nis clad, and redy for to ryde

(820)

With hunte and horn, and houndes him bisyde.

For in his hunting hath he swich delyt,

1680

That it is al his Ioye and appetyt

To been him-self the grete hertes bane;

For after Mars he serveth now Diane.

1672. this] Hl. it.

Cleer was the day, as I have told er this,

And Theseus, with alle Ioye and blis,

1685

With his Ipolita, the fayre quene,

And Emelye, clothed al in grene,

On hunting be they riden royally.

(830)

And to the grove, that stood ful faste by,

In which ther was an hert, as men him tolde,

1690

Duk Theseus the streighte wey hath holde.

And to the launde he rydeth him ful right,

For thider was the hert wont have his flight,

And over a brook, and so forth on his weye.

This duk wol han a cours at him, or tweye,

1695

With houndes, swiche as that him list comaunde.