In Jean Renaut’s early thirteenth-century romance Galeran of Brittany {Galeran de Bretagne}, Galeran had grown to love deeply his childhood friend Fresne. She loved him equally. Events, however, separated them as young adults. Galeran, who became Count of Brittany, lost contact with Fresne. He didn’t even know whether she was still alive.
The eminent castle-holder Brundoré invited Galeran to stay with him for a week at his castle in la Roche-Guyon. Brundoré’s wife Gente warmly welcomed Galeran:
She took Galeran by the hand
into the room, after she had greeted him,
and entertained him for a long time there,
along with Fleurie, who sat at her side.
Then Gente begged him to excuse her
as she went to her husband.
“Lovely daughter, do honor,”
she said, “to my lord the count.”{ Galeren par la main en maine
En chambres, quant salué l’a,
Longuement l’a festoié la,
Et Fleurie qui lez li siet.
Or li prie que ne li griet
Gente, qui va a son seigneur:
“Belle fille, faictes hounour,
Fait elle, a mon seigneur le conte.” }
Gente apparently positioned her daughter Fleurie to gain Galeran as a husband. Fleurie was a confident, courteous, and beautiful young woman. She conversed warmly with Galeran.
Fleurie’s beauty bewildered Galeran. She seemed to him as beautiful as his beloved, lost Fresne. Fleurie was wearing a wimple that covered her golden hair. Galeran was lost in thought:
He said, “Beautiful one, do not be offended.
Remove the wimple from your head,
because I want to see you openly.”
“Sir, that should sit well with me
if that suits you, so I want well to do so.”
She does that, while not displaying any pride.{ Si dist: “Belle, ne vous soit grief,
Ostés la guimple de vo chief,
Qu’apertement vous vueil veoir.”
“Sire, ce me doit bien seoir,
Puis que vous siet, et bien le vueil.”
Fait celle, ou il n’a point d’orgueil. }
Sight of the bare-headed Fleurie was too much for Galeran:
She has removed it. When he sees her,
such has his heart become without sense and without defense
that it doesn’t heed reason or division.
Into his arms he immediately took her,
so to embrace her and kiss her twenty times,
whether to anyone that would be ugly or that would please.{ Ostée l’a. Quant cil l’esgarde,
S’a le cuer sans sens et sans garde,
N’i entent raison ne devise.
Entre ses braz l’a tantost prise,
Si l’acole et vingt foiz la baise,
Cui qu’il soit lait ou cui qu’il plaise }
Persons in medieval Europe weren’t required to secure affirmative consent prior to each and every embrace or kiss. Nonetheless, Galeran embracing and kissing Fleurie twenty times was a grievous wrong under medieval norms:
And Fleurie didn’t know what to think,
she who against him couldn’t defend herself
and wondered to herself how this had happened.
So she said to him: “How does this happen,
lovely sir, that such a brave man
as you are, would be one so overcome
by great folly and great madness?
When you meet a woman whom in your whole life
you have never seen before, nor she you,
you would like to play with her like a husband
would play with his wife? That is ugly work.
Foolish is a lover who doesn’t restrain himself
until he has helped her to explore if an attempt would be suitable.
If you had sought to request my love,
before you had used me so,
you would have sought it with greater honor,
and I would have granted it.
Little can you be proud of
amusing yourself thus, if I didn’t assent to it,
so it seems to me and so I understand it,
because to entertain one in this way bears honor
only when lovers carry themselves entirely
in each other’s delight and make two hearts into one.”{ Et Flourie n’y scet qu’entendre,
Qui ne s’en puetvers li deffendre,
Si se merveille dont ce vient;
Si li a dit: “Comment advient,
Biau sire, de si vaillant homme
Com vous estes, qui si s’asomme
De grant folie et de grant rage?
Quant une fame en vostre aage
N’avez veüe n’ele vous,
S’i vourrez jouer come espoux
Joue a espouse? C’est laide euvre.
Fouls est amans qui ne se cuevre,
Jusques i l’ait a essay mise.
Si d’amours m’eüssiez requise,
Ainçoys que vous me baillissiez,
Greigneur hounour y eüssiez,
Et je le voulsisse octroyer:
Pou pouez voustre esbanoier,
Si com moy semble et je le sens,
Loer, si je ne m’y assens;
Car li deduis si s’onor porte
Quant entierement se deporte
Le paire et met deux cuers en un.” }
Medieval women were confident enough to speak assertively for themselves. Medieval women were strong enough to insist that men cease improper behavior. Galeran was ashamed at what he had done to Fleurie. He promptly left her.
Betraying with Fleurie his love for Fresne upset Galeran most of all. Humans, however, are rationalizing animals. Galeran justified to himself his wrongful behavior:
I dishonor my love? I have certainly not done so,
because I didn’t do it for myself,
and she isn’t angry about it.
If I kiss the likeness of my beloved,
have I actually done such a large outrage?
Do I not often kiss the image
that she has portrayed of herself on the sleeve?
What reason have I drawn before?
Fresne has embroidered the sleeve with her hands,
so as to have made there not more nor less
than what she had in her, so it resembles her.
By my faith, it seems to me better reason
to have the young women right here,
than to have the image, which is nothing
compared to her. She presents to me
Fresne, such is her beauty and her nobility,
and I want to love her for Fresne.
She bears the likeness of Fresne in her eyes,
her nose, her mouth, and her face,
her head, her arms, and her figure,
and in her many other aspects.
When I have this reminder of her,
if she is to me dead or lost,
she isn’t totally taken from me,
and for me that is necessary to endure the loss.
In her I see such an opening
by which I can recover her.
God! How well nature knows to work
so as to make for me Fresne revived!
And since this one would make living to me
what I have lost for so long,
if she would like it or she would accept it,
I do not repent that I kissed her.{ J’abays m’amour? Certes non faz,
Ne de moy pour ce ne le faz
N’ele ne s’en courroucie mie.
Si je bays le semblant m’amie,
Ay je dont fait si grant oultrage?
Enne bays je souvent s’ymage
Qu’elle a en sa manche pourtraicte?
Quelle raison ay avant traite?
Fresne l’a tyssue a ses mains,
S’en y a fait ne plus ne mains
Qu’il a en li, si la ressemble.
Par foy, greindre resons me semble
A la pucelle de ceens
Qu’a l’ymage, qui est nïens
Envers li, qu’elle me presente
Fresnain, tant est et belle et gente,
Et pour Fresnain amer la vueil.
Le semblant Fresnain porte en l’ueil,
En nes, en bouche et en visage,
En chief, en braz et en coursage,
Et en mainte autre contenance:
Quant j’en ay ceste congnoissance,
S’elle m’est ou morte ou faillie,
Ne m’est pour ce toute tollie,
Si m’en estuet souffrir la perte.
En ceste la voy si apperte
Que par li la puis recovrer.
Dieu! com scet bien Nature ovrer,
Qu’ainsi me fait Fresnein revivre!
Et puis que ceste en soy me livre
Ce que j’ay perdu si grant piece,
Ou li soit bel ou il li siesse,
Ne m’en repens de li baisier }
Fleurie loved Galeran. But she didn’t like or accept him kissing her improperly. Moreover, kissing one woman because she looks like another woman is shallow and cruel.
Fleurie’s ardent love for Galeran made the matter worse. She blamed herself for speaking harshly to him about him suddenly kissing her twenty times. With the bold initiative more characteristic of medieval women than women today, Fleurie went to Galeran and sat beside him:
The conversation she now renewed,
and she said to him: “Sir, forgive me!
I do not want to leave from here
if I would not be reconciled with you.
Much you have looked at me this day,
and you have displayed great pleasure in me.
One whom Love takes in its bond
cannot well control himself.
You should not have fear of me.
I will not speak wickedly to you again.
Since you play without baseness,
I want to endure the play again.
I have come to offer myself to you,
which I have done at my mother’s command,
who said that I should be bright for you
and make for you honor and festivity.”{ La parolle ra maintenue,
Si li a dit: “Sire, mercy!
Je ne me vueil partir de cy,
Si me soie a vous racordee.
Moult m’avez or huy regardee,
Si m’avez moustré grant soulaz;
Cil cui Amours prent a son laz
Ne se puet mie bien donter;
Ne vous estuet de moy doubler,
Ne vous diray mais felenie.
Quant vous jouez sans villanie
Je vueil ausques d’un jeu souffrir.
A vous me suis venue offrir,
Que je l’ay du commant ma mere,
Qui dit que je vous fusse clere
Et vous feïsse hounour et feste.” }
Mothers ruled in medieval Europe. But Fleurie’s insinuation that her mother had made her go to Galeran and pardon him surely wasn’t true. One shouldn’t condemn absolutely non-hurtful deception in love. Women commonly use cosmetics today.
Galeran similarly spoke misleadingly. Galeran responded to Fleurie’s apology with longing for Fresne:
He looked at her face, her head,
her throat, her neck, her arms, her body.
So he saw her as Fresne on the outside
and nearly went so far as to believe she was.
After he had taken such a long study of her,
he said to her: “My young lady,
the heart of one who loves flies in many places,
in many places thinks, in many places goes.
If my having pleasure today grieved you,
I pray that you don’t blame me,
but you blame that on my beloved,
who has made me do this outrage.”{ Cil la regarde en vis, en teste,
En gorge, en coul, en braz, en corps,
Si la voit Fresnein par dehors
Et prez va qu’en li ne la cuide.
Quant tant y a mise s’estuide,
Si li a dit: “Ma damoiselle,
Cuers qui aime en maint lieu oysele,
En maint lieu pence, en maint lieu va.
Se mes deduiz huy vous greva,
A moy ne vous en prenez mie,
Mais prenez vous en a m’amie,
Qui m’a fait cest oultrage faire.” }
In medieval Europe, a male gazing upon a woman wasn’t regarded as a grave offense. Fleurie thought that Galeran loved her. He actually loved her long-lost twin sister Fresne.
Just as many men have been throughout history, Galeran was pressed into marriage. His companion Brun noticed his lovesickness for a long-lost woman. Brun advised a well-established cure for lovesick men: find another woman, or many other women. Brun insisted that Galeran should have a child-heir. Over time Brun pointed out ten or twelve noble young women who would make a suitable wife for Galeran. Ultimately he insisted that Galeran name a woman that he would marry:
And Galeran responded: “I do not love her,
yet she bears the resemblance of my beloved.
I desire her more than to have
a woman of greater authority.
She is the daughter of Brundoré.”{ Et cil respont: “Je ne l’aim mie,
Ainz porte le semblant m’amie;
Si la desir plus a avoir
Que fame de greigneur pouoir:
Ce est la fille Brundoré.” }
Fleurie was delighted to marry Galeran. Her father Brundoré happily approved their marriage. Fleurie didn’t know that Galeran was marrying her mainly for her looks. Wrongly marrying a woman is much worse than wrongly kissing her twenty times.
Medieval literature represents men acting despicably. Representations of women acting despicably are commonly called misogyny, particularly if those representations don’t prominently highlight the disclaimer: “Not All Women Are Like That (NAWALT).” Meninist literary criticism thus insists on noting that not all men are like that. Not all men are like Galeran. Not all men are so superficial as to marry a women because they love her identical twin. Even dogs don’t typically love like that.
* * * * *
Read more:
- Esmerée courageously offered healing to lovesick Galeran
- Marie de France depicted medieval women’s generous love for men
- medieval hero Ille shows problem of men’s self-esteem
Notes:
This story is from Jean Renaut’s medieval romance Galeran de Bretagne. Regarded as a relatively realistic writer, Jean Renaut had keen insight into human nature and gender. For information about how the story ends, see my post on women’s relational aggression in Galeran de Bretagne.
All the quotes above are from Galeran de Bretagne, with the Old French text of Foulet (1925) and my English translations, benefiting from that of Beston (2008). The quotes are Galeran de Bretagne vv. 5206-13 (She took Galeran by the hand…), 5227-32 (He said, “Beautiful one,”…), 5233-8 (She has removed it…), 5239-61 (And Fleurie didn’t know what to think…), 5289-5321 (I dishonor my love?…), 5340-55 (The conversation she now renewed…), 5356-67 (He looked at her face, her head…), 6419-23 (And Galeran responded…).
[images] (1) Chocolate-serving hostess (Liotard’s “Chocolate girl {Schokoladenmädchen}”). Painted by Jean-Étienne Liotard about 1744. Preserved as assession # Gal.-Nr. P 161 in Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden (Germany). Via Wikimedia Commons. (2) Portrait of a young woman with a nosegay. Painted by Francesco Ubertini, called Bacchiacca, about 1525. Preserved as accession # P15e13 in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (Boston, USA). Via Wikimedia Commons.
References:
Beston, John, trans. 2008. An English Translation of Jean Renaut’s Galeran de Bretagne, a Thirteenth-Century French Romance. Lewiston, NY: Edwin Mellen Press.
Foulet, Lucien, ed. 1925. Jean Renaut. Galeran de Bretagne: Roman du XIIIe Siècle. Paris: É. Champion. Alternate source.
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