Tuesday, November 4, 2014

You've Asked, My Lords, For Song

·      Stanza 1
o   Ventadorn sings a song as requested by his lord. However, hes lost his motivation. He cant seem to explain why—love has not mistreated him, yet he feels how hed feel if it had.
·      Stanza 2
o   He elaborates on his situation of love. Hes blessed to love a lady who loves him back (not too common in Verses of the Troubadour)
o   However the theme of distance resurfaces
§     He cant tell of her well-being but he dares not go there
·      Wherever there is, is not where he is (distance)
§     He is preoccupied with concerns for her well-being from afar
·      Stanza 3
o   She preoccupies his thoughts so completely, that he wouldnt hear men yelling to him while shes on his mind
o   She has such a hold on him
§     Physically he may be one place, but his heart, his mind is elsewhere (with her)
·      Stanza 4
o   Ventadorn is unsure how he should handle their situation
o   The griefs (pain of being apart) will continue unless she welcomes him to be with her (in her home?)
·      Stanza 5
o   These difficulties (the distance) wont deter him from loving her
o   Their love is a gift from God which he accepted
o   When his gift dissolves, (when he no longer has her love) hell suffer
·      Stanza 6
o   He appreciates her love and vows he loves her more than all past loves
o   He yields to her
§     like Catullus, he takes a passive role in their love
§     He asks her to give him a glance, like Catullus asks Lesbia for a kiss
§     She has the active role in their relationship here
·      Stanza 7
o   Asking God to give him presence of heart and mind (maybe because his love for her leaves him in the opposite affect)
·      Stanza 8
o   Magnet
§     Maybe his love?
§     God will find something/someone else to keep him company as a replacement for Magnet because she stays with Ventadorn. God cant have her.

·      Elevating Magnet to divine status (she was with God)

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