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30. Balade: «Quant je pense a vo doulce figure»

GRANSON, 30. BALADE: «QUANT JE PENSE A VO DOULCE FIGURE»: EXPLANATORY NOTES

ABBREVIATIONS: A: Lausanne, Bibliothèque Cantonale et Universitaire, MS 350; B: Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, f. fr. 1727; C: Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, f. fr. 1131; D: Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, f. fr. 24440; E: Barcelona, Biblioteca de Catalunya, MS 8, Catalan, 1420–30; F: Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale, f. fr. 2201; K: Lausanne, Bibliothèque Cantonale et Universitaire, IS 4254; N: Brussels, Bibliothèque royale Albert 1er, MS 10961–10970, c. 1465; P: Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania, Van Pelt Library, MS Codex 902 (formerly Fr. MS 15), 1395–1400; 100B: Les Cent Ballades; Basso: “L’envol et l’ancrage”; BD: Chaucer, The Book of the Duchess; Berguerand: Berguerand, Duel; Boulton: Song; Braddy: Braddy, Chaucer and Graunson; Carden: “Le Livre Messire Ode d’Oton de Grandson; CA: Gower, Confessio Amantis; DL: Guillaume de Machaut, Dit dou lyon; DLA: Guillaume de Machaut, Dit de l’alerion; FA: La fonteinne amoureuse; FC: Wimsatt, French Contemporaries; GW: Granson, Poésies, ed. Grenier-Winther; LGW: Chaucer, The Legend of Good Women; PA: Froissart, Paradis d’Amour; PF: Chaucer, The Parliament of Fowls; Piaget: Grandson, Vie et poésies, ed. Piaget; PL: Guillume de Machaut, Poésies Lyriques; Poirion: Poirion, Poète et prince; TC: Chaucer, Troilus and Criseyde; RR: Guillaume de Lorris and Jean de Meun, Le Roman de la rose; VD: Guillaume de Machaut, Le livre dou voir dit.

8 figure. On figure, see the note to 2.9.

GRANSON, 30. BALADE: «QUANT JE PENSE A VO DOULCE FIGURE»: TEXTUAL NOTES


Abbreviations: A: Lausanne, Bibliothèque Cantonale et Universitaire, MS 350; B: Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, fr. 1727; C: Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, fr. 1131; D: Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, fr. 24440; E: Barcelona, Biblioteca de Catalunya, MS 8, Catalan, 1420–30; F: Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale, fr. 2201; G: London, Westminster Abbey Library, MS 21; H: Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, fr. 833, c. 1500; J: Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, fr. 1952; K: Lausanne, Bibliothèque Cantonale et Universitaire, IS 4254; L: Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, Rothschild MS I.I.9; M: Carpentras, Bibliothèque Inguimbertine, MS fr. 390; N: Brussels, Bibliothèque royale Albert 1er, MS 10961–10970, c. 1465; O: Karlsruhe, Badische Landesbibliothek, MS 410, c. 1430; P: Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania, Van Pelt Library, MS Codex 902 (formerly Fr. MS 15), 1395–1400; Q: Berne, Burgerbibliothek da la Bourgeoisie, MS 473, 1400–40; R: Turin, Archivio di Stato, MS J. b. IX. 10; S: Paris, Bibliothèque nationale, fr. 24404, 13th century (16th century addition); T: Besançon, Bibliothèque Municipale, MS 556, 1826; V: Carpentras, Bibliothèque Inguimbertine, MS 411; W: Brussels, Bibliothèque royale Albert 1er, MS IV 541, 1564–81; Y: Turin, Biblioteca Nazionale e Universitaria, MS L.II.12.

For each poem, we provide the following:

Other editions: The location of the poem in the editions of Grenier-Winther (GW) and Piaget.

Base MS: The manuscript from which our text is taken, using the sigla listed on this page.

Other copies: The other manuscripts in which the poem appears, with the line numbers for excerpts.

Selected variants: Most of the notes record the editors’ emendations. A small number (for instance, regarding the titles) record alternative readings when we did not emend the base text. We do not, however, provide a complete list of variants, for which one may consult Grenier-Winther’s edition. Each note consists of a line number, a lemma (the reading from our text), the manuscript source for the reading that we have chosen, selected readings from other manuscripts; and the reading from the base manuscript when it was rejected. If no manuscript source is listed following the lemma, the adopted reading is the editors’ conjecture.

Other comments on the text, as required.

GW65, Piaget p. 357.
Base MS A. No other copies.

9 mets. A: met.


 






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30. Balade: «Quant je pense a vo doulce figure»

Vostre gent corps, vostre plaisant viayre,
Et le regart de voz rians yeux,
Vostre parler courtois et debonnaire,
Vo bel maintien, jolis et gracieux,
Contraint mon cuer que je soye amoureux
De vous, dame, par qui sans la pointure
Amoureuse qui me fait tresjoyeux,
Quant je pense a vo doulce figure.

Se mon cuer mets en vous, je le doy faire.
Par droit souhait ne pourroit estre mieulx.
S’en loe Amours qui la l’a voulu traire,
Et sy m’en tien assez plus eureux.
Or vueil estre desormais songneux
De vous amer de vraye amour pure
Car, par ma foy, j’en suis tresdesireux,
Quant je pense a vo doulce figure.

Pour quoy vous pry humblement que desplaire
Ne vous doye, se de cuer tres piteux
Je vous requiers ce qu’il me doit tant plaire.
C’est vostre amour dont je suis famillieux.
Sy ne me soit vo franc cuer rigoreux,
Belle et bonne ou j’ay mise ma cure.
Des dons d’amours ne suis pas souffreteux
Quant je pense a vo doulce figure.
 
30. Ballade: “When I think upon your gentle person”

Your graceful body, your charming face,
And the look from your laughing eyes,
Your speech, courteous and well-bred,
Your fair demeanor, pretty and gracious,
Constrain my heart so that I am in love
With you, lady, from whom I feel the wound
Of love, which makes me very joyful
When I think upon your gentle person.

If I place my heart on you, I ought to do so.
By proper wish, it could not be better.
Thus I praise Love, who wished to draw it there,
And thus I consider myself rather more fortunate.
I wish to be attentive from now on
To love you with a true, pure love,
For by my faith, I very much desire it,
When I think upon your gentle person.

For which I pray you humbly that
I not displease you, if with very piteous heart
I ask of you that which must please me so.
It is your love that I am hungry for.
Thus let not your generous heart be harsh towards me,
Fair and good one in whom I have placed my care.
I am not in want of the gifts of love
When I think upon your gentle person.
 









(see note)

(t-note)
















 


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