troilus and criseyde-第1章
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Troilus and Criseyde
by Geoffrey Chaucer
BOOK I
The double sorwe of Troilus to tellen; 1
That was the king Priamus sone of Troye;
In lovinge; how his aventures fellen
Fro wo to wele; and after out of Ioye;
My purpos is; er that I parte fro ye。 5
Thesiphone; thou help me for tendyte
Thise woful vers; that wepen as I wryte!
To thee clepe I; thou goddesse of torment;
Thou cruel Furie; sorwing ever in peyne;
Help me; that am the sorwful instrument 10
That helpeth lovers; as I can; to pleyne!
For wel sit it; the sothe for to seyne;
A woful wight to han a drery fere;
And; to a sorwful tale; a sory chere。
For I; that god of Loves servaunts serve; 15
Ne dar to Love; for myn unlyklinesse;
Preyen for speed; al sholde I therfor sterve;
So fer am I fro his help in derknesse;
But nathelees; if this may doon gladnesse
To any lover; and his cause avayle; 20
Have he my thank; and myn be this travayle!
But ye loveres; that bathen in gladnesse;
If any drope of pitee in yow be;
Remembreth yow on passed hevinesse
That ye han felt; and on the adversitee 25
Of othere folk; and thenketh how that ye
Han felt that Love dorste yow displese;
Or ye han wonne hym with to greet an ese。
And preyeth for hem that ben in the cas
Of Troilus; as ye may after here; 30
That love hem bringe in hevene to solas;
And eek for me preyeth to god so dere;
That I have might to shewe; in som manere;
Swich peyne and wo as Loves folk endure;
In Troilus unsely aventure。 35
And biddeth eek for hem that been despeyred
In love; that never nil recovered be;
And eek for hem that falsly been apeyred
Thorugh wikked tonges; be it he or she;
Thus biddeth god; for his benignitee; 40
So graunte hem sone out of this world to pace;
That been despeyred out of Loves grace。
And biddeth eek for hem that been at ese;
That god hem graunte ay good perseveraunce;
And sende hem might hir ladies so to plese; 45
That it to Love be worship and plesaunce。
For so hope I my soule best avaunce;
To preye for hem that Loves servaunts be;
And wryte hir wo; and live in charitee。
And for to have of hem compassioun 50
As though I were hir owene brother dere。
Now herkeneth with a gode entencioun;
For now wol I gon streight to my matere;
In whiche ye may the double sorwes here
Of Troilus; in loving of Criseyde; 55
And how that she forsook him er she deyde。
It is wel wist; how that the Grekes stronge
In armes with a thousand shippes wente
To Troyewardes; and the citee longe
Assegeden neigh ten yeer er they stente; 60
And; in diverse wyse and oon entente;
The ravisshing to wreken of Eleyne;
By Paris doon; they wroughten al hir peyne。
Now fil it so; that in the toun ther was
Dwellinge a lord of greet auctoritee; 65
A gret devyn that cleped was Calkas;
That in science so expert was; that he
Knew wel that Troye sholde destroyed be;
By answere of his god; that highte thus;
Daun Phebus or Apollo Delphicus。 70
So whan this Calkas knew by calculinge;
And eek by answere of this Appollo;
That Grekes sholden swich a peple bringe;
Thorugh which that Troye moste been for…do;
He caste anoon out of the toun to go; 75
For wel wiste he; by sort; that Troye sholde
Destroyed ben; ye; wolde who…so nolde。
For which; for to departen softely
Took purpos ful this forknowinge wyse;
And to the Grekes ost ful prively 80
He stal anoon; and they; in curteys wyse;
Hym deden bothe worship and servyse;
In trust that he hath conning hem to rede
In every peril which that is to drede。
The noyse up roos; whan it was first aspyed; 85
Thorugh al the toun; and generally was spoken;
That Calkas traytor fled was; and allyed
With hem of Grece; and casten to ben wroken
On him that falsly hadde his feith so broken;
And seyden; he and al his kin at ones 90
Ben worthy for to brennen; fel and bones。
Now hadde Calkas left; in this meschaunce;
Al unwist of this false and wikked dede;
His doughter; which that was in gret penaunce;
For of hir lyf she was ful sore in drede; 95
As she that niste what was best to rede;
For bothe a widowe was she; and allone
Of any freend to whom she dorste hir mone。
Criseyde was this lady name a…right;
As to my dome; in al Troyes citee 100
Nas noon so fair; for passing every wight
So aungellyk was hir natyf beautee;
That lyk a thing immortal semed she;
As doth an hevenish parfit creature;
That doun were sent in scorning of nature。 105
This lady; which that al…day herde at ere
Hir fadres shame; his falsnesse and tresoun;
Wel nigh out of hir wit for sorwe and fere;
In widewes habit large of samit broun;
On knees she fil biforn Ector a…doun; 110
With pitous voys; and tendrely wepinge;
His mercy bad; hir…selven excusinge。
Now was this Ector pitous of nature;
And saw that she was sorwfully bigoon;
And that she was so fair a creature; 115
Of his goodnesse he gladed hir anoon;
And seyde; ‘Lat your fadres treson goon
Forth with mischaunce; and ye your…self; in Ioye;
Dwelleth with us; whyl you good list; in Troye。
‘And al thonour that men may doon yow have; 120
As ferforth as your fader dwelled here;
Ye shul han; and your body shal men save;
As fer as I may ought enquere or here。'
And she him thonked with ful humble chere;
And ofter wolde; and it hadde ben his wille; 125
And took hir leve; and hoom; and held hir stille。
And in hir hous she abood with swich meynee
As to hir honour nede was to holde;
And whyl she was dwellinge in that citee;
Kepte hir estat; and bothe of yonge and olde 130
Ful wel beloved; and wel men of hir tolde。
But whether that she children hadde or noon;
I rede it naught; therfore I late it goon。
The thinges fellen; as they doon of werre;
Bitwixen hem of Troye and Grekes ofte; 135
For som day boughten they of Troye it derre;
And eft the Grekes founden no thing softe
The folk of Troye; and thus fortune on…lofte;
And under eft; gan hem to wheelen bothe
After hir cours; ay whyl they were wrothe。 140
But how this toun com to destruccioun
Ne falleth nought to purpos me to telle;
For it were a long digressioun
Fro my matere; and yow to longe dwelle。
But the Troyane gestes; as they felle; 145
In Omer; or in Dares; or in Dyte;
Who…so that can; may rede hem as they wryte。
But though that Grekes hem of Troye shetten;
And hir citee bisegede al a…boute;
Hir olde usage wolde they not letten; 150
As for to honoure hir goddes ful devoute;
But aldermost in honour; out of doute;
They hadde a relik hight Palladion;
That was hir trist a…boven everichon。
And so bifel; whan comen was the tyme 155
Of Aperil; whan clothed is the mede
With newe grene; of lusty Ver the pryme;
And swote smellen floures whyte and rede;
In sondry wyses shewed; as I rede;
The folk of Troye hir observaunces olde; 160
Palladiones feste for to holde。
And to the temple; in al hir beste wyse;
In general; ther wente many a wight;
To herknen of Palladion servyse;
And namely; so many a lusty knight; 165
So many a lady fresh and mayden bright;
Ful wel arayed; bothe moste and leste;
Ye; bothe for the seson and the feste。
Among thise othere folk was Criseyda;
In widewes habite blak; but nathelees; 170
Right as our firste lettre is now an A;
In beautee first so stood she; makelees;
Hir godly looking gladede al the prees。
Nas never seyn thing to ben preysed derre;
Nor under cloude blak so bright a sterre 175
As was Criseyde; as folk seyde everichoon
That hir behelden in hir blake wede;
And yet she stood ful lowe and stille alloon;
Bihinden othere folk; in litel brede;
And neigh the dore; ay under shames drede; 180
Simple of a…tyr; and debonaire of chere;
With ful assured loking and manere。
This Troilus; as he was wont to gyde
His yonge knightes; ladde hem up and doun
In th