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Lydgate’s Complaynt, Continued, Still

john-lydgate

The end of Lydgate’s “A Complaynt of a Loveres Lyfe” draws ever more near, and here I will be starting from where I left off last time, as the tirade against love continues:

“But Lesynges with her fals flaterye,
Thro her falshed and with her doublenesse,
With tales new and mony feyned lye,
By false semlaunce and contrefet humblesse,
Under colour depeynt with stidfastnesse,
With fraude cured under a pitouse face,
Accept ben now rathest unto grace,

Love is found in the company of Lies, who was also found as one of the representations on the wall of Venus’s temple in Chaucer’s Knight’s Tale (line 1927). Love keeps bad company, and is even described in a manner that Lydgate will use to describe fickle Fortune in the Troy Book who bears “Feyth in hir face & fraude ay in þe tail” (Book I, Line 3314).

These lines also bear resemblance to the “fals semblaunt” in the Romaunt (line 7297).

“And can hemself now best magnifie
With feyned port and presumpsion.
They haunce her cause with fals surquedrie,
Under menyng of double-entencion,
To thenken on in her opynyon
And sey another, to set hemselfe alofte
And hynder Truthe, as hit ys seyn ful ofte.

In continuing with the parallel of fickleness, Love wears a “feyned port” that was also the complaint of the lover in Belle Dame (line 338) who argued that a real lover would surely complain far more. In other words, the false lover can only hope to magnify their own untrue feelings to match that of the real lover, but generally to no avail.

The idea of the lover using words to deceive, along with the contradiction between thought and speech is well documented in other medieval poems (without implying the notion was solely a medieval one, which it most certainly was not, and persists to this day). Some of the potential sources for Lydgate would have been the Romaunt, (lines 2538-2542), and Roman (lines 2409-2410).

Lydgate also borrows from the last part of this stanza in the Troy Book (Book II, Lines 4280-4281).

“The whiche thing I bye now al to dere,
Thanked be Venus and the god Cupide,
As hit is seen by myn oppressed chere
And by his arowes that stiken in my syde,
That, safe the dethe, I nothing abide
Fro day to day – alas, the harde while!
Whenevere hys dart that hym list to fyle,

The idea of Cupide wounding his lover with his arrows has numerous parallels, among which are the Romaunt (lines 1715-1926), and the Metamorphoses where Cupide demonstrates to Apollo the prowess of his weapon, the arrow, by shooting him and Daphne with apposing arrows after Apollo ridicules his choice of weapon. Here Cupide’s arrow flays the lover haphazardly, on a whim, whenever he “list” to do so. The imagery creates another direct reference to Parliament: “Cupide our lord his armes forge and fyle” (line 212), showcasing Cupide’s care for his tools.

“My woful hert for to ryve atwo
For faute of mercye and lake of pité
Of her that causeth al my peyn and woo
And list not ones of grace for to see
Unto my trouthe throgh her cruelté.
And most of al I me compleyn
That she hath joy to laughen at my peyn

Love is as cruel and piercing as Cupide’s arrow, ripping the lover’s heart in two. The stanza echo’s the sentiment in Analida: “And shal I pleyne – alas! the harde stonde – / Unto my foo that yaf myn herte a wounde / And yet desireth that myne harm be more” (lines 238-2-40) and the verbiage earlier in Analida, (that appears at the end of Lydgate’s stanza): “Ryght as him list, he laugheth at my peyne” (line 234).

“And wilfully hath my dethe sworone
Al giltles and wote no cause why,
Safe for the trouthe that I have hade aforne
To her allone to serve feythfully.
O God of Love, unto thee I crie
And to thy blende, double deyté
Of this grete wrong I compleyn me,

The Lydgatean lover laments his lack of reciprocation in the same style as Aurelius in The Merchant’s Tale: “Lo, lord, my lady hath my deeth y-sworn” (lines 1038-1039). The lover, much like Aurelius, remains faithful to the end. He begins to pray to Venus, who is depicted as blind, which, according to Henryson, links Venus directly to Fortune from whom the blindness was transferred. This serves to greater establish the connection between Love and Fortune, hinting at their potentially parallel natures, namely fickleness and mutability.

“And unto thy stormy, wilful variaunce,
Imeynt with chaunge and gret unstablesse:
Now up, now down, so rennyng is thy chaunce
That thee to trust may be no sikernesse,
I wite hit nothinge but thi doublenesse;
And who that is an archer and ys blynde
Marketh nothing, but sheteth by wenynge.

“And for that he hath no discrecion
Withoute avise he let his arowe goo,
For lak of syght and also of resoun,
In his shetyng hit happeth oft soo
To hurt his frende rathir then his foo.
So doth this god with his sharpe flon
The trwe sleeth and leteth the fals gon.

Cupide’s inconsistent nature is further noted, relying on common means of viewing him. Lydgate’s Cupide has a stormy temperament much like in Troilus (Book II, line 778) and later in the Troy Book (Book II, lines 2544-2545).

As for Cupid’s blindness, it is not uncommon to depict him this way, as is done in the Romaunt (lines 3702-3703). Considering he is an archer, such imagery plays well into the notion of his “doublenesse” as it can be interpreted that he shoots his arrow haphazardly, without a specific target, leading others to confound his lack of aim for lack of stability.

“And of his woundyng this is the worst of alle:
When he hurteth he dothe so cruel wreche
And maketh the seke for to crie and calle
Unto his foo for to ben his leche;
And herd hit ys for a man to seche
Upon the poynt of dethe in jupardie
Unto his foo to fynde remedye.

“Thus fareth hit now even by me,
That to my foo that gaf my hert a wounde
Mot axe grace, mercie, and pité,
And namely ther wher noon may be founde,
For now my sore my leche wol confounde;
And God of kynde so hath set myn ure
My lyves foo to have my wounde in cure.

The beloved is simultaneously the foe, and the doctor who can provide the necessary remedy. This is a conceit that has it’s roots in Troilus (Book I, line 874), the Canterbury Tales (line 2780), and Anelida (line 272), with the “leche” providing consolation in Belle Dame (line 201).

The lover’s sentiments now shift, and when I continue next time, we will see how his lament turns towards other concerns.

Sources:

Krausser, E. “The Complaint of the Black Knight.”

Henryson, Robert. Testament of Cresseid

MacCracken, Henry Noble, ed. The Complaint of the Black Knight. In The Minor Poems of John Lydgate.

Norton-Smith, John, ed. A Complaynt of a Loveres Lyfe. In John Lydgate, Poems.

More of Lydgate’s Lover

john-lydgate

I left off “A Complaynt of a Loveres Lyfe” last time in the midst of Lydgate’s lengthy catalogue of wronged lovers, from where I will continue here with Arcite.

“Of Thebes eke the fals Arcite,
And Demophon eke for his slouthe,
They had her lust and al that myght delyte
For al her falshede and grete untrouthe.
Thus ever Love, alas, and that is routhe,
His fals legys furthereth what he may
And sleeth the trwe ungoodly day be day.

Arcite is a direct reference to Chaucer’s Arcite from Anelida, in which Arcite seduces Anelida despite not loving her, only to then leave her for another women, hence his moniker here of “fals Arcite.”

Demophon is best known for his relationship with Phyllis, whom he is said to have betrayed the day after their wedding. Phyllis was turned into an almond tree and she is featured earlier in the poem during the procession of trees (lines 68-70) along with Daphne who leads the way. With this, the catalogue begins to turn into a diatribe against love.

“For trwe Adon was slayn with the bore
Amyde the forest in the grene shade,
For Venus love he felt al the sore.
But Vulcanus with her no mercy made;
The foule cherle had many nyghtis glade,
Wher Mars, her worthi knyght, her trewe man,
To fynde mercy, comfort noon he can.

Ovid’s Metamorphoses tells the story of Venus and Adonis that is referenced in the first line of the stanza, but the allusion is buried within multiple layers for both Venus and Adonis. For those unfamiliar with Adonis’s ancestry, he was begot through incest between his mother, Myrrha, and her father who unknowingly was beguiled into bed with her. Myrrha betrayed her filial duties and forsook her father’s paternal love in order to fulfill her lust for him. She was turned into a tree (but unlike Daphne or Phyllis, this was her punishment, not a means of saving her). Her son, Adonis, grew up to be the most attractive man in the world. Venus fell in love with him and enjoyed spending time with him during his favorite activity, hunting, all the while warning him not to chase after animals that are too dangerous. Needless to say he did not heed her warning, and went after a boar that ended up killing him. Venus turned his blood into the flower Anemone. Further, even while Venus was dallying with Adonis, her affair with Mars at the expense of Vulcan is mentioned, underscoring Love’s negative consequence. True love is not rewarded.

“Also the yonge, fressh Ipomones,
So lusty fre as of his corage,
That for to serve with al his hert ches
Athalans, so feire of her visage.
But Love, alas, quyte him so his wage
With cruel daunger pleynly at the last,
That with the dethe guerdonlesse he past.

Here we get a reference to Atlanta and Hippomenes, whose story is told by Venus to Adonis in the Metamorphoses right before Adonis’s death. Atlanta wanted to know who she should marry, and decided to consult the oracle who told her not to marry at all as it would be her downfall. Since her question was not answered (at least not the way she wanted) she decided to hosting a race in which she would marry any man who could outrun her (while killing all those who didn’t win).

As she is preparing to race, Hippomenes sees her and falls in love. He immediately challenges her to a race in hopes of winning her hand in marriage. She is flustered by his request since she actually likes him and would not wish to see him die, but nevertheless she acquiesces to race him. Hippomenes realizes the severity of his situation and prays to Venus for help. Since this story is originally related by Venus to Adonis, she recalls how she happened to have been carrying three golden apples, and so she hands them to him. During the race Hippomenes and Atlanta remain relatively close because Atlanta is torn between her desire for him, and her desire to win. In other words, she is allowing him to maintain the lead, but then decides against doing so and takes off, leaving him behind. Hippomenes throws the first apple, sending Atlanta off course chasing the shinny trinket, which allows him to gain a lead. He maintains it the best he can, but she catches up and moves ahead of him once more. He uses the second apple. They are both closing in on the end, and it appears she will undoubtedly win when he sends her off course one last time in chase of the third apple while he crosses the finish line. They marry, and remain perfectly happy and in love with each other. However, they forget to thank Venus for her assistance, which angers her. One day, as they pass by a temple of Cybele (mother of the gods), Venus engenders within Hippomenes an uncontrollable desire for Atlanta, who he then takes into the back room of Cybele’s shrine. Needless to say, Cybele becomes irate with the two of them and turns them into lions that she then harnesses to her chariot. The oracle was probably right, and Atlanta should not have gotten married.

The part of the story Lydgate fixates upon is the “cruel daunger” that arises from love such as Hippomenes’s decision to enter a race that could potentially lead to his death (without even mentioning the men who died in the endeavor before him). Love leads to further reckless behavior as Hippomenes takes Atlanta into the back room of the temple. The oracle cautions against marriage, and Lydgate’s catalogue escalates the warning to encompass all love unions.

“Lo, her the fyne of lovers servise!
Lo, how that Love can his servantis quyte!
Lo, how he can his feythful men dispise
To sle the trwe men and fals to respite!
Lo, how he doth the suerde of sorowe byte
In hertis suche as must his lust obey
To save the fals and do the trwe dey!

The first part of this stanza recalls Troilus in two separate instances of Book V. First, as a means of demonstrating another instance where false love is rewarded and championed:

Swich fyn hath, lo, this Troilus for love!
Swich fyn hath al his grete worthynesse!
Swich fyn that his estat real above!
Swich fyn his lust, swich fyn hath his noblesse!
Swych fyn hath false worldes brotelnesse! (Book V, lines 1828-1832).

Then, as discussed in an earlier note (concerning  line 371 of Lydgate’s poem) where Lo is mentioned:

Lo here, of payens corsed olde rites,
Lo here, what alle hire goddes may auaille;
Lo here, thise wrecched worldes appetites;
Lo here, the fyn and guerdoun for trauaille
Of Ioue, Appollo, of Mars, of swich rascaille;
Lo here, the forme of olde clerkis speche
In poetrie, if the hire bokes seche (Book V, lines 1849-1854).

False and true love (specifically the love of Christ) are juxtaposed. It is the last stanza of Troilus, and while it serves as a warning against false love, it also reminds us of our inherent faults that prevent us from ascending to absolute truth, or absolutely pure love.

The second half of the stanza recalls Chaucer’s Anelida: “Thogh that the swerd of sorwe byte / My woful herte” (lines 270-271). While this is a common phrase in Middle English, it is generally reserved for religious texts in connection to Mary’s lament over Christ’s death. Lydgate follows Chaucer’s secular usage of the terminology, placing it in connection with love.

“For feythe nor othe, worde ne assuraunce,
Trwe menyng, awayte, or besynesse,
Stil port, ne feythful attendaunce,
Manhode, ne myght in armes, worthinesse,
Pursute of wurschip, nor high prouesse,
In straunge londe rydinge ne travayle –
Ful lyte or noght in love dothe avayle.

“Peril of dethe, nother in se ne londe,
Hungre ne thrust, sorowe ne sekenesse,
Ne grete emprises for to take on honde,
Shedyng of blode, ne manful hardynesse,
Nor ofte woundynge at sawtes by distresse,
Nor jupartyng of lyfe, nor dethe also –
Al ys for noghte, Love taketh non hede therto.

These two stanzas follow suit with the complaint against Love’s uncaring nature, who will slay all followers regardless of circumstance. The tirade against love will continue onward from here, and next time we will see more of the narrator’s laments.

Sources:

Krausser, E. “The Complaint of the Black Knight.”

MacCracken, Henry Noble, ed. The Complaint of the Black Knight. In The Minor Poems of John Lydgate.

Norton-Smith, John, ed. A Complaynt of a Loveres Lyfe. In John Lydgate, Poems.

Lydgate’s “Loveres Lyfe”

john-lydgate

Before Kzoo I wanted to finish off another segment of Lydgate’s “A Complaynt of a Loveres Lyfe,” in keeping with my goal of successfully completing it by the end of summer. Last time I left off in the middle of the lover’s catalogue of faithful lovers who were undeservingly punished, and now I will continue with Phebus and Piramus.

“Phebus also, for al his persaunt lyght,
When that he went her in erthe lowe
Unto the hert with Venus sight
Ywounded was thro Cupides bowe;
And yet his lady list him not to knowe,
Thogh for her love his hert did blede;
She let him go and toke of him non hede.

The reference is to the story of Phebus and Daphne. For those unfamiliar with the story, Phebus mocked Cupid for his use of a bow and arrows, causing Cupid to demonstrate the power of his tools. Phebus, shot with a golden arrow, uncontrollably falls in love with Daphne, a nymph, who was pierced by a lead arrow designed to induce hatred. A chase ensues, and as Apollo is about to catch Daphne she calls for her father (sometimes Jupiter or Zeus, depending on the version) who then helps her by converting her into a tree to escape Phebus’s grasp. While this saves her from his pursuit, she unfortunately will remain in this form for eternity.

This reference within the catalogue of true lovers is a little problematic considering the origin of the love, and its manifestation. There is nothing to insinuate Phebus’s love would have occurred or proliferated without Cupid’s intervention, nor were his intentions terribly virtuous. Further, it is impossible to know Daphne’s prerogatives aside from those induced by the lead arrow. Perhaps of her own accord she would not have spurned Phebus, and consequently would not have been encased within a tree trunk for the rest of her life. All conjectures aside, this is a very shady depiction of true love.

“What shal I say of yong Piramus?
Of trwe Tristram for al his high renoune?
Of Achilles or of Antonyas?
Of Arcite or of him, Palamoune?
What was the ende of her passion
But after sorowe, dethe, and then her grave?
Lo, her the guerdon that lovers have!

Piramus is mentioned in earlier Chaucerian works: in the Legend of Good Women (line 724), and he appears on the wall of Venus’s temple in Parlement. All of these sources ultimately draw their inspiration from Ovid’s Metamorphoses (Par IV) that tells the story of Piramus and Thisbe.

In the original, Piramis and Thisbe were neighbors, and fell in love. However, their families would not allow them to wed due to a familial feud, relegating the lovers to communicate through a hole in an adjoining wall. They make plans to meet late one evening, and Thisbe arrives first. She spots a lion wandering around, bloodied from its recent kill. Frightened, she runs away, allowing her cloak to fall on the ground. The bloodied lion ravages the coat, tearing it to shreds. When Piramus arrives and sees the rent garment he immediately recognizes it is Thisbe’s, and believes she has been slaughtered by the beast. In an act of passion he slays himself with his own sword. Thisbe returns and finds his body. She mourns, and uses the same sword to kill herself. Neither lover is spurned, per se, but they both suffer unjustly.

In the second line of the stanza, Tristram is a reference to Tristan and Isolde who also found suffering in love. Tristan was commissioned by King Marc to go overseas and fetch Isolde so she may become Marc’s wife. En route, both Tristan and Isolde ingest the love potion that had been intended for Marc and Isolde on their wedding night. Unfortunately the two fall in love. Isolde marries Marc, and continues her affair with Tristan. Neither are ever fully happy with the arrangement. Once again love is obtained through alternate means, leaving room for conjectures as to who each person would actually love had they been given the option. Here, too, resides the question of fate and free will. Did the potion negate their free will, or was it fate for them to fall in love, and the potion was only an agent of a larger scheme? Did the potion have its desired effect, or did they fall in love of their own volition only believing the potion had worked? Essentially there are several alternatives to consider, but regardless of the path chosen, the end was unfortunate.

Achilles, who was previously mentioned in medieval literature by Chaucer in Duchess (lines 1067-1071), while also appearing on the wall in Venus’s temple in Parlement.  and by Gower in Confessio (Part IV, lines 1693-1701 and Part VIII, lines 2571-2577), was in love with Polyxena who betrayed him. Visit the Getty for more information and a lovely depiction of Polyxena’s sacrifice by Pittoni.

In the same line, the reference to Antonyas and Cleopatra is well known, and was mentioned by Chaucer in the Legend of Good Women (lines 575-705) and Gower in the Confessio (Part VIII, lines 2571-2577). For more information on the couple, here is a nice segment from NPR.

Arcite and Palomoune in the next line is a direct reference to the Knight’s Tale (that was itself adapted from Boccaccio) in which the two nobles are imprisoned together and manage to fall in love with the same woman, Emelye, who they spot in the garden outside their cell window. While Emelye scorns both of them throughout, and does not wish to marry either suitors, Arcite dies and Palomoune gets to marry her. Thus, unlike the other lovers, Palomoune actually succeeds in fulfilling his wish for love.

The last lines of this stanza directly echo Troilus:

Lo here, of payens corsed olde rites,
Lo here, what alle hire goddes may auaille;
Lo here, thise wrecched worldes appetites;
Lo here, the fyn and guerdoun for trauaille
Of Ioue, Appollo, of Mars, of swich rascaille;
Lo here, the forme of olde clerkis speche
In poetrie, if ȝe hire bokes seche (Book V, lines 1849-1854).

False and true love (specifically the love of Christ) are juxtaposed. It is the last stanza of Troilus, and while it serves as a warning against false love, it also reminds us of our inherent faults that prevent us from ascending to absolute truth, or absolutely pure love.

“But false Jasoun with his doublenesse,
That was untrwe at Colkos to Medé;
And Tereus, rote of unkyndenesse;
And with these two eke the fals Ené.
Lo, thus the fals ay in oon degré
Had in love her lust and al her wille,
And save falshed ther was non other skille.

The catalogue continues on, but here reaches a turning point. Until now the list was concerned with men who had been unjustly denied love despite their loyalty and unfaltering devotion to those they loved. They were unacknowledged by their lovers, and punished by the gods, losing everything, even their lives at times. However, the list of lovers now shifts to focus on the men who wronged women in history, providing a perfect mini companion to the Legend of Good Women.

Medé, or Medea is best remembered for having killed her own children, but it is often forgotten that her despair at Jason’s unfaithfulness drove her there (which is not to justify her actions, but to shed light on a different part of the story). Lydgate’s approach in this stanza is very direct – blame is bluntly distributed.

Tereus evokes another image of a woman murdering her own child, that of hiswife Procne who in Ovid’s Metamorphoses (Part VI, lines 424-674) served their son, Itys, for dinner. Yet here Procne is not mentioned, as her crime was also the result of fury. Tereus raped Procne’s sister, Philomela, and then cut out her tongue to prevent her from relating the incident to anyone. Philomela weaved the tale of assault and had it sent to Procne who then exacted revenge against Tereus. Much like Jason, he brought his sorrow upon himself. Chaucer and Gower make mention of the tale in the Legend of Good Women (line 2288) and Confessio (Part V, line 5551 and Part VIII, lines 2583-2586), respectively.

The next line references Ené, or Aeneas from Virgil’s Aeneid, who abandoned Dido at Carthage in order to go off and found Rome. Dido committed suicide, cursing Aeneas and his descendants. Chaucer and Gower also make mention of this in Legend (line 924), Fame (line 240) and Confessio (Part IV, line 77 and Part VIII, lines 2552-2553).

Through repetition of similar examples the catalogue allows for a clear illustration of an author’s point, and once we reach the end of this extremely rich compilation of names, Lydgate’s larger theme will emerge. Next time we will continue with Arcite, and look to the ways his woes are defined in the Lydgatean universe.

Sources:

Krausser, E. “The Complaint of the Black Knight.”

MacCracken, Henry Noble, ed. The Complaint of the Black Knight. In The Minor Poems of John Lydgate.

Norton-Smith, John, ed. A Complaynt of a Loveres Lyfe. In John Lydgate, Poems.