Stanza 1
“You’ve asked, my lords, for song:
I sing for my reply
Yet never sing for long-
I’ve lost the heart to try.
How should a troubadour
Sing when his luck’s run dry?
Has love, then, gone awry?
No; better than before.
Then why feel so heartsore?”
“my lords”: refers to the lords of Ventadorn, who is
requesting for more songs to be sung
“I sing for my reply”: He sings because he has to
“Yet never sing for long”: He only sings for the amount that
he has to. He never sings more than is required of him
“I’ve lost the heart to try””: He has no motivation because
he has lost his love in his life. This love refers to his lord’s wife Marguerite.
“His luck’s run dry?”: his luck has run out because he got
caught with his lord’s wife and got kicked out for having an affair with her.
“Has love, the, gone awry?”: He contemplates the fact that
maybe he won’t find another love and that Marguerite will stop loving him.
“No; better than before.”: Reassures himself that their love
has no been set back but instead is stronger than before now that they are
apart.
Stanza 2
“With gifts beyond compare
The Lord has honored me;
I love a lady, fair,
Who loves me faithfully.
Yet while I languish here
I can’t so much as tell
If she fares ill or well
Which fills my thoughts with care
Since I dare not go there.”
“With gifts beyond compare”: the lords that he sings for has
showered him nicely with gifts for his work while in their home
“The Lord has honored me”: The Lord in this case refers to
God. God has rewarded Ventadorn nicely in his life
“I love a lady, fair, who loves me faithfully”: their love
is mutual and not one sided. Ventadorn loves Marguerite but she also
reciprocates the love.
“I languish here”: he is stuck in a position that he doesn't
want to be in. This position can refer to his singing in the palace for the
lords and also that he is in affair with his employer’s wife
“I can’t so much as tell if she fares ill or well”:
Ventadorn no longer has access to the lord’s wife so he can't tell if she is
doing alright or not.
“which fill my thought with care”: he is genuinely worried
about her which shows that he is actually deeply in love with her and has her
best interest at heart
“since I dare not go there”: he knows not to break his
lord’s orders and go and find her. He knows that there would be consequences if
he were to defy his command.
Stanza 3
“ Through her, such joys I find
That if men shout or call
While she invests my mind,
I’d never hear at all.
So subtly does she snare
The heart out of my breast
That men swear and attest
That they all see me here
Though my best part’s still there.”
“Through her, such joys I find”: He is happiest when he is
with her. She has the ability to life his spirits and the joy refers to both
being in love but also having sexual relations with her.
“If men shout or call while she invest my mind, I’d never
hear at all”: He is so in love and entranced with her that when she’s on his
mind, everything else goes to blur. He phases out everything and can only
concentrate on her. He doesn't notice anything else”
“So subtly doe she snare the heart out of my breast”: She
has stolen his heart from him
“Though men swear and attest that they all see me here
though my best part’s still there”: He is physically standing in front of the people
but his mind and heart is with his lover.
Stanza 4
“Oh Love, what shall I do?
Shall we two live in strife?
The griefs that must ensue
Would surely end my life.
Unless my Lady might
Receive me in that place
She lies in, to embrace
And press against me, tight,
Her body, smooth and white.”
“shall we two live in strife?”: questions whether they both
should live in agony despite both wanting to be with each other. They can't
because of the lord
“the griefs that must ensue would surely end my life”: without
her in his life, he feels like there is no purpose in living anymore because
she isn’t there to fill his world with joy. He has no purpose for living. He is
too deep in love with her to live without her.
“Unless my lady might receive me in that place”: there is a
way to stop the grief. If she could help sneak him into the palace so that they
could be together then everything would be good again
“She lies in, to embrace and press against me, tight”: everything
would be good if they could go back to having their affair and having sex again
where they did originally
Stanza 5
“I’ll not renounce my love
For troubles or love’s pains.
When God who reigns above
Gave much, I took my gains;
Now when his gifts abate,
I’ll suffer that as much,
Seeing the times are such
Those far apart must wait
To overcome their fate.”
“I’ll not renounce my love for troubles or love’s pains”: He
is not going to stop loving her or take back his love just because things are
difficult now
“when God who reigns above gave much, I took my gains”: he
makes it seem as if his lover was a gift from God and if God allowed for this
to happen then he is not going to reject this love and woman that was presented
to him
“I’ll suffer that as much”: he is going to be hurt and feel
heartbroken for the time being
“Those far apart much wait to overcome their fate”: they
have to wait out the time that they are apart and be patient because they will
eventually come together again
Stanza 6
“Good Lady, thank you for
Your love so true and fine;
I swear I love you more
Than all past loves of mine.
I bow and join my hands
Yielding myself to you;
The one thing you might do
Is give me one sweet glance
If sometime you’ve the chance”
“”thank you for your love so true and fine”: he is thanking
his lover for being committed to their relationship even when they got caught
and are separated
“I swear I love you more than all past loves of mine”: Shows
to what degree his love for her is. She is the love of his life
“I bow and join my hand yielding myself to you”: puts
himself submissive to her. She has a certain power over him because he is so in
love with her that he would do anything for her
“the one thing you might do is give me one sweet glance”:
All he wants is to be able to see her face again. He misses her so much that a
glance will mean so much to him to get him through this struggle
Stanza 7
“May God give heart and mind
To Escudor and me
Wandering endlessly.”
“May god give heart and mind”: asking God for help to help
reunite the two and so that he may be with her again. But he also wishes for
God to help him recover from this situation so that he may function and be
whole again. He is lost without her.
Stanza 8
“He’ll bring what he can find
To keep him company;
My magnet goes with me.”
“He’ll bring what he can find”: God will try his best to
help Ventadorn out
“My magnet goes with me”: could refer to his soul or heart
that he will carry with him. He will not let someone else be in control of that
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