Yvain
Page 9
How had that gown come
To be there? Who could have brought it?
But the sight of his naked flesh
Oppressed him, and bewildered him, and he said
To himself: I am dead, betrayed, 3030
If anyone finds me, and I'm wearing
Nothing, and they know who I am.
And as he spoke he got dressed
And looked toward the forest, watching
To see if anyone came. 3035
He tried to stand up, unaided,
But could not; neither could he walk.
And seeing that he needed help,
And knew it, and was ready to accept it,
Overcome with such intense weakness 3040
That he could scarcely stay on his feet,
The girl decided not to wait
Any longer, but got up on her horse
And rode on by him, pretending
Not to know he was there. And knowing 3045
How badly he needed help,
Someone to bring him to some refuge
And the chance to recover his strength,
And not caring who helped him, he forced
Himself to call to her, as loudly 3050
As he could. And the girl obligingly
Looked all around, as if
Unable to understand what was happening.
And apparently bewildered, she went this way
And then that, not wishing to head 3055
Straight toward him. And he started to call her
Again: “Girl! This way!
This way!” And she let her horse
Go slowly toward him. And pretending
As she had, she made him think 3060
She'd never seen him before
And hadn't the faintest idea
Who he was. It was wisely and courteously
Done. And reaching him, she said:
“Knight! What is it you wish, 3065
Calling me so very urgently?”
“Ah!” he said, “wise girl!
Somehow, by some ill luck,
I find myself in this wood.
For the sake of God and your faith 3070
In Him, I beg you, help me,
Lend me, give me that horse
You're leading behind you.” “Most willingly,
Dear sir. But come with me,
There where I'm going.” “Which is where?” 3075
He said. “Out of this forest,
To a nearby castle.” “Girl!
Tell me: have you some need
Of my service as a knight?” “Yes,”
She answered. “But it seems to me 3080
You're not in good health. For the next
Two weeks, at least, you ought
To be resting. Take the reins
Of this horse I'm leading, and come,
We'll ride to the castle where I live.” 3085
And wishing to do exactly
What she asked, he took it, and mounted,
And off they went. And they came
To a bridge across a swift-flowing
Stream, and the girl threw in 3090
The empty box she was carrying.
She meant to excuse herself
To her mistress, for using too much
Of the ointment. She would tell her that as luck
Had it, passing across 3095
The bridge she'd dropped the box—
Her horse had stumbled under her,
And the box had slipped from her hand,
And what’s more, she'd almost fallen
After it herself, and that 3100
Would have been a greater loss.
She meant to concoct this lie
As soon as she stood in her lady’s
Presence. So they rode on together,
Until they came to the castle, 3105
And the lady gladly welcomed
My lord Yvain, and as soon
As she could she got the girl
Alone and asked for her box
And her magic ointment, and the girl 3110
Told her exactly the lie
She'd invented, not daring to tell her
The truth. And her mistress was fiercely
Angry, and said: “This
Is a very serious loss. 3115
I haven't a doubt in the world
It will never be found. Never.
When a thing is gone, it’s gone;
I shall have to do without it.
How often we wish for something, 3120
And instead of good it turns out
Bad. And I, who expected
Good fortune and joy of this knight,
Have lost my best and most cherished
Possession of all. Ah well: 3125
Despite this, I wish you to serve him
Well; give him what he needs.”
“Ah, my lady! How well
You've spoken! How vulgar it would be
To turn one misfortune into two.” 3130
They said no more of the box,
And did everything they could to help
My lord Yvain, bathing him
And washing his hair, and having it
Clipped, and his face shaved— 3135
For you could have plucked handfuls
Of hair from his face. There was nothing
He wanted that he did not have:
If he asked for armor, he got it;
If he asked for a horse, they immediately 3140
Gave him a great strong beast,
And a beauty. And he stayed there until,
One Tuesday, the count Alier
And all his men came to town,
And set fires, and plundered, and robbed. 3145
And those who lived there mounted
Their horses and took up their weapons
And armed or not they went out
To attack their attackers, who for their part
Were far too proud to flee, 3150
But allowed the defenders to come to them.
And Yvain rushed at them, and struck at them,
Having rested so long that his strength
Had returned. And he hit so hard,
Right through a knight’s shield, that according 3155
To my sources he tumbled both knight
And horse together in a heap,
From which that knight would never
Rise, again, for his heart
Was ruptured, deep in his guts, 3160
And his backbone was crushed. And then
Yvain drew back a bit,
Before he attacked once more,
And protecting himself with his shield
Began to sweep the invaders 3165
Away. And it would have been hard
To count from one to four
Before you could have seen him
Cast down four knights, quickly
And completely. And those who were with him 3170
Were suddenly encouraged, and turned
Into warriors, for many a mean-spirited
Wretch, and a coward, seeing
A brave man take on a difficult
Struggle right in front of his eyes, 3175
Is attacked by shame, overwhelmed,
And throws his miserable heart
Out of his body and acquires
A true knight’s spirit, brave
And noble and strong. And all 3180
The defenders became brave, and each of them
Held his ground well, there
In that battle, and fought with honor.
And the lady, standing high
In her castle tower, saw 3185
The battle and the assault, the struggle
For land and for right, saw more
Than enough men lying on the ground,
Some wounded, some dead, some
Of her own men, and some of the enemy’s, 3190
But more of the others than hers,
For my lord Yvain, courteous
And brave and good, made them
Beg for his mercy, like a falcon
Hunting freshwater ducks. 3195
And those who stood on the castle
Walls, men and women
Alike, watching the fighting,
All said: “What a splendid soldier!
How he makes his enemies surrender, 3200
How fiercely he attacks them! He rushes
Among them like a lion hunting
Deer, impelled by pain
And hunger. And because of him all
Our other knights are braver 3205
And bolder—and indeed, if it weren't
For him, and only for him,
No spear would ever have been splintered,
No sword lifted and swung.
Love and cherish so noble 3210
A man, when there’s one to be found.
Just see how he proves himself,
Just see how he holds our lines
Together, see how his spear
And his sword are splashed with blood, 3215
See how he chases them down,
See how he drives them off,
How he comes and goes and goes at them,
How he steps back, when he must,
But only for a little rest, 3220
And quickly back into battle.
See how he wins his honor,
Not worrying about his shield,
Letting them cut it to bits.
He shows them no mercy—none! 3225
See how eagerly he gives them
Back the blows they give him.
If all the Argonne forest
Were cut down to make his spears,
There'd be none of them left by nightfall, 3230
For all of the spearheads they give him
He breaks—and calls for more.
Just see how he swings his sword,
When he needs to use it. Roland
Himself never slaughtered so many, 3235
Slashing with Durendal, his sword,
Not even at Roncevaux or in Spain!
If only he had with him some comrades
As good as himself, that villain
Who’s given us such cause for complaint 3240
Would be beaten, today, and he'd run—
Or be utterly shamed, if he stayed.”
And they said that anyone who'd given
Her love to such a man
Would be blessed—a man so powerful 3245
In battle, recognized over all
Other men, like a torch among candles,
Or the moon against the stars,
Or the sun against the moon.
And each of them said to the other 3250
That they wished as hard as they could,
Seeing his strength and his skill,
That he were married to their lady
And ruled their people and their land.
So everyone who saw him praised him, 3255
And simply told the truth—
For he'd laid into their enemies
So well that one outran
The other. And he followed them fiercely,
And all his comrades with him, 3260
All of them feeling as safe
At his side as if enclosed
In a high, a thick stone wall.
The chase was long, and hard,
Until the hunted grew weary, 3265
And the hunters cut them to pieces,
And cut the guts from their horses,
And the living rolled on the dead,
Stabbing at each other, and killing.
The slaughter was ghastly, was murderous. 3270
And still the Count kept running,
And lord Yvain ran after him,
Never faltering at his heels.
And on they ran, until
At the foot of a steep hill 3275
He caught him, close to the entrance
Of one of the Count’s forts.
And so the Count was captured,
And no one could possibly help him,
And without a great many words 3280
He surrendered to my lord Yvain.
For as soon as he had him in his hands,
And they stood alone, man to man,
There was no way the Count could escape,
Or hide, or defend himself. 3285
And so he swore to surrender
To the lady of Noroison,
And make himself her prisoner,
And accept such peace as she gave him.
And after he'd sworn his surrender, 3290
Yvain obliged him to give up
His helmet, drop the shield
From his neck, and hand over his sword.
And honor had come to Yvain,
Capturing the Count and giving him 3295
Into his enemies' hands,
Who made no secret of their pleasure.
And the news travelled before them,
Coming to town before
They arrived. And everyone went out 3300
To meet them, and the lady first
Of all. And Yvain held
His prisoner by the hand, and gave him
To her. And the Count gave in
At once to everything she asked, 3305
And swore the most solemn oaths
To keep his promises. And the pledges
He gave her, and swore to, promised
Eternal peace between them,
And compensation for her losses 3310
(Providing she offered good proof),
And reconstruction of all
The houses he'd levelled to the ground.
And when all these things were arranged
Exactly as the lady deserved, 3315
Yvain requested permission
To leave her. She'd never have agreed,
Had he been willing to have her
As his mistress, or take her as his wife.
And Yvain forbade them to escort him 3320
Or follow him a single step,
But left them as fast as he could:
Nothing they said persuaded him.
And off he went, retracing
His path, and leaving the lady 3325
Miserable, though at first he'd made her
So happy. And the happier he'd made her,
The more he distressed and afflicted her,
Refusing to stay any longer,
For she wished she could honor him, she'd gladly 3330
Have made him, if only he'd consent,
Lord of everything she owned,
Or given him some immense reward,
In return for the service he'd rendered her,
As huge a reward as he'd take. 3335
But he wished to listen to no one,
No man and no woman. And he left
The lady and her knights, all of them
Deeply unhappy, no one
Able to keep him among them. 3340
And then my lord Yvain,
Thoughtful, travelled through
A deep wood, and there he heard
A great loud cry, and hurried
Directly toward it, following 3345
The sound. And when he arrived
At that place, he saw a clearing
In the forest, and a lion, and a snake,
Which had the lion by the tail
And was burning him up, consuming him 3350
With sheets of intense hot flame.
My lord Yvain didn't waste
Much time watching this wonder.
He asked himself which
Of the two he ought to help, 3355
Then told himself to help
The lion, for a venomous and treacherous
Beast should not be permitted
To do evil. And snakes are venomous,
And fire leaps from their mouths, 3360
Overflowing with treachery. And so
My lord Yvain thought
Of killing the snake first.
He drew his sword and stepped forward,
Holding his shield in front of 3365
His face, to keep the flames
From harming him, fire pouring
From its jaws, gaping wider
Than a boiler. And then, if the lion
Attacked him, there'd be plenty of fighting. 3370
But whatever happened, he'd made up
His mind to help the lion,
For pity urged him on,
Begging him to rescue that noble,
Highborn beast. And swinging 3375
His sword, which cut so smoothly,
He began to attack the snake,
Cutting him clean through to the ground,
Then slicing him in half, and striking him
Over and over, till he'd chopped him 3380
To tiny pieces. But because
The snake had gripped the lion’s
Tail in his poisonous teeth,
He was forced to chop a piece
From the tail, but he cut only 3385
As much as he had to, and he had
No choice, there was no other way.
And when he'd freed the lion
He was sure the animal would attack him,
And he'd have to fight, but fighting 3390
Was not what the lion intended.
Now hear what that lion did!
Showing his nobility and goodness,
He began to make it clear
That he surrendered himself to Yvain: 3395
Placing his front feet together,
He stood erect on his hind legs
And bowed his face toward the earth.
And then he knelt again,
And his face was wet all over 3400
With humble tears. And my lord
Yvain knew without doubt
That the lion was offering him thanks
And humbling himself before
His deliverer, who in killing the snake 3405
Had saved him from certain death.
And Yvain was deeply pleased.
He dried his sword, stained
With the snake’s venom, and its filth,
Then thrust it back in its scabbard 3410
And went on his way. And the lion
Began to walk beside him,
Determined never to leave,
But always to go where he went,
To serve and protect him. And so 3415
He set out in front of Yvain,
Until as he trotted along
The wind blew him the scent
Of wild beasts grazing, and hunger
And natural instinct set him 3420
Running and hunting for his food:
And that was simply nature’s
Way, he did what he had to.
He'd begin to follow a trail,
As if to show his master 3425
That he'd found the scent of some wild
Animal, met it on the wind.
Then, watching Yvain, he would stop,
Wanting to please him, not wanting
In any way to go 3430