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A Short History of French Literature

George Saintsbury

Tant que li jors vet declinant, Et vienent au pon de l'espee Apres none, vers la vespree. Au pie del' pont, qui molt est max, Sont descendu de lor chevax, Et voient l'eve felenesse Noire et bruiant, roide et espesse, Tant leide et tant espoantable Com se fust li fluns au deable; Et tant perilleuse et parfonde Qu'il n'est riens nule an tot le monde S'ele i cheoit, ne fust alee Ausi com an la mer betee. Et li ponz qui est an travers Estoit de toz autres divers, Qu'ainz tex ne fu ne james n'iert. Einz ne fu, qui voir m'an requiert, Si max pont ne si male planche: D'une espee forbie et blanche Estoit li ponz sor l'eve froide. Mes l'espee estoit forz et roide, Et avoit deus lances de lonc. De chasque part ot uns grant tronc Ou l'espee estoit cloffichiee. Ja nus ne dot que il i chiee. Porce que ele brist ne ploit. Si ne sanble-il pas qui la voit Qu'ele puisse grant fes porter. Ce feisoit molt desconforter Les deus chevaliers qui estoient Avoec le tierz, que il cuidoient Que dui lyon ou dui liepart Au chief del' pont de l'autre part Fussent lie a un perron. L'eve et li ponz et li lyon Les metent an itel freor Que il tranblent tuit de peor. * * * * * * Cil ne li sevent plus que dire, Mes de pitie plore et sopire Li uns et li autres molt fort. Et cil de trespasser le gort Au mialz que il set s'aparoille, Et fet molt estrange mervoille, Que ses piez desire et ses mains. N'iert mie toz antiers ne sains Quant de l'autre part iert venuz. Bien s'iert sor l'espee tenuz, Qui plus estoit tranchanz que fauz, As mains nues et si deschauz Que il ne s'est lessiez an pie Souler ne chauce n'avanpie. De ce gueres ne s'esmaioit S'es mains et es piez se plaioit; Mialz se voloit-il mahaignier Que cheoir el pont et baignier An l'eve dont james n'issist. A la grant dolor con li sist S'an passe outre et a grant destrece: Mains et genolz et piez se blece. Mes tot le rasoage et sainne Amors qui le conduist et mainne: Si li estoit a sofrir dolz. A mains, a piez et a genolz Fet tant que de l'autre part vient. [Sidenote: Romances of Antiquity. Chanson d'Alixandre.] About the same time as the flourishing of the Arthurian cycle there began to be written the third great division of Jean Bodel, 'la matiere de Rome la grant[55].' The most important beyond all question of the poems which go to make up this cycle (as it is sometimes called, though in reality its members are quite independent one of the other) is the Romance of _Alixandre_. Of the earliest French poem on this subject only a few fragments exist. This is supposed to have been a work of the eleventh or very early twelfth century, composed in octosyllabic verses, and in the mixed dialect common at the time in the south-east, by Alberic or Auberi of Besancon or Briancon. The _Chanson d'Alixandre_ is, however, in all probability a much more important work than Alberic's. It is in form a regular Chanson de Geste, written in twelve-syllabled verse, of such strength and grace that the term Alexandrine has cleaved ever since to the metre. Its length, as we have it[56], is 22,606 verses, and it is assigned to two authors, Lambert the Short[57] and Alexander of Bernay, though doubt has been expressed whether any of the present poem is due to Lambert; if we have any of his work, it is not later than the ninth decade of the twelfth century. Lambert, Alexander, and perhaps others, are thought to have known not Alberic, but a later ten-syllabled version into Northern French by Simon of Poitiers. The remoter sources are various. Foremost among them may undoubtedly be placed the Pseudo-Callisthenes, an unknown Alexandrian writer translated into Latin about the fourth century by Julius Valerius, who fathered upon the philosopher a collection of stories partly gathered from Plutarch, Quintus Curtius, and a hundred other authorities, partly elaborated according to the fashion of Greek romancers. Some oriental traditions of Alexander were also in the possession of western Europe. Out of all these, and with a considerable admixture of the floating fables of the time, Lambert and Alexander wove their work. There is, of course, not the slightest attempt at antiquity of colour. Alexander has twelve peers, he learns the favourite studies of the middle ages, he is dubbed knight, and so forth. Many interesting legends, such as that of the Fountain of Perpetual Youth, make their first appearance in the poem, and it is altogether one of extraordinary merit. A specimen _laisse_ may be given:-- En icele forest, dont vos m'oez conter, nesune male choze ne puet laianz entrer. li home ne les bestes n'i ozent converser, onques en nesun tans ne vit hon yverner ne trop froit ne trop chaut ne neger ne geler. ce conte l'escripture que hom n'i doit entrer, se il nen at talent de conquerre ou d'amer. les deuesses d'amors i doivent habiter, car c'est lor paradix ou el doivent entrer, li rois de Macedoine en a oi parler, qui cercha les merveilles dou mont et de la mer, et ce fist il meismes enz ou fons avaler en un vessel de voirre, ce ne puet n'on fausser, qu'il fist faire il meismes fort et reont et cler et enclorre de fer qu'il ne peust quasser, s'il l'esteust a roche ou aillors ahurter, et si que il poet bien par mi outre esgarder, por veoir les poissons tornoier et joster et faire lor agaiz et sovent cembeler. et quant il vint a terre, nou mist a oublier: la prist la sapience dou mont a conquester et faire ses agaiz et sa gent ordener et conduire les oz et sagement mener, car ce fust toz li mieudres qui ainz peust monter en cheval por conquerre ne de lance joster, li gentiz et li larges et ii prex por doner. la forest des puceles ot oi deviser, cil qui tot volt conquerre i ot talent d'aler: souz ciel n'a home en terre qui l'en peust torner. While the figure of Alexander served as centre to one group of fictions, most of which were composed in Chanson form, the octosyllabic metre, which had made the Arthurian romances its own, was used for the versification of another numerous class, most of which dealt with the tale of Troy divine. [Sidenote: Roman de Troie.] Here also the poems were neither entirely fictitious, nor on the other hand based upon the best authorities. Dares Phrygius and Dictys Cretensis, with some epitomes of Homer, were the chief sources of information. The principal poem of this class is the _Roman de Troie_ of Benoist de Sainte More (_c._ 1160). This work[58], which extends to more than thirty thousand verses, has the redundancy and the long-windedness which characterise many, if not most, early French poems written in its metre. But it has one merit which ought to conciliate English readers to Benoist. It contains the undoubted original of Shakespeare's Cressida. The fortunes of Cressid (or Briseida, as the French trouvere names her) have been carefully traced out by MM. Moland, Hericault[59], and Joly, and form a very curious chapter of literary history. Nor is this episode the only one of merit in Benoist. His verse is always fluent and facile, and not seldom picturesque, as the following extract (Andromache's remonstrance with Hector) will show:-- Quant elle voit qe neant iert, o ses dous poinz granz cous se fiert, fier duel demaine e fier martire, ses cheveus trait e ront e tire. bien resemble feme desvee: tote enragiee, eschevelee, e trestote fors de son sen court pour son fil Asternaten. des eux plore molt tendrement, entre ses braz l'encharge e prent. vint el pales atot arieres, o il chaucoit ses genoillieres. as piez li met e si li dit 'sire, por cest enfant petit qe tu engendras de ta char te pri nel tiegnes a eschar ce qe je t'ai dit e nuncie. aies de cest enfant pitie: james des euz ne te verra. s'ui assembles a ceux de la, hui est ta mort, hui est ta fins. de toi remandra orfenins. cruelz de cuer, lous enragiez, par qoi ne vos en prent pitiez? par qoi volez si tost morir? par qoi volez si tost guerpir et moi e li e vostre pere e voz serors e vostre mere? par qoi nos laisseroiz perir? coment porrons sens vos gerir? lasse, com male destinee!' a icest not chai pasmee a cas desus le paviment. celle l'en lieve isnelement qi estrange duel en demeine: c'est sa seroge, dame Heleine. [Sidenote: Other Romances on Classical subjects.] The poems of the Cycle of Antiquity have hitherto been less diligently studied and reprinted than those of the other two. Few of them, with the exception of _Alixandre_ and _Troie_, are to be read even in fragments, save in manuscript. _Le Roman d'Eneas_, which is attributed to Benoist, is much shorter than the _Roman de Troie_, and, with some omissions, follows Virgil pretty closely. Like many other French poems, it was adapted in German by a Minnesinger, Heinrich von Veldeke. _Le Roman de Thebes_, of which there is some chance of an edition, stands to Statius in the same relation as _Eneas_ to Virgil. And _Le Roman de Jules Cesar_ paraphrases, though not directly, Lucan. To these must be added _Athis et Prophilias_ (Porphyrias), or the Siege of Athens, a work which has been assigned to many authors, and the origin of which is not clear, though it enjoyed great popularity in the middle ages. The _Protesilaus_ of Hugues de Rotelande is the only other poem of this series worth the mentioning. Neither of these two classes of poems possesses the value of the Chansons as documents for social history. The picture of manners in them is much more artificial. But the Arthurian romances disclose partially and at intervals a state of society decidedly more advanced than that of the Chansons. The _bourgeois_, the country gentleman who is not of full baronial rank, and other novel personages appear. * * * * * _Note to Third Edition._--Since the second edition was published M. Gaston Paris has sketched in _Romania_ and summarised in his _Manuel_, but has not developed in book form, a view of the Arthurian romances different from his father's and from that given in the text. In this view the importance of 'Celtic' originals is much increased, and that of Geoffrey diminished, Walter Map disappears almost entirely to make room for divers unknown French trouveres, the order of composition is altered, and on the whole a lower estimate is formed of the literary value of the cycle. The 'Celtic' view has also been maintained in a book of much learning and value, _Studies on the Legend of the Holy Grail_ (London, 1888), by Mr. Alfred Nutt. I have not attempted to incorporate or to combat these views in the text for two reasons, partly because they will most probably be superseded by others, and partly because the evidence does not seem to me sufficient to establish any of them certainly. But having given some years to comparative literary criticism in different languages and periods, I think I may be entitled to give a somewhat decided opinion against the 'Celtic' theory, and in favour of that which assigns the special characteristics of the Arthurian cycle and all but a very small part of its structure of incident to the literary imagination of the trouveres, French and English, of the twelfth century. And I may add that as a whole it seems to me quite the greatest literary creation of the Middle Ages, except the _Divina