Your two great eyes will slay me suddenly;
Their beauty shakes me who was once serene;
Straight through my heart the wound is quick and keen.
Only your word will heal the injury
To my hurt heart, while yet the wound is clean -
Your two great eyes will slay me suddenly;
Their beauty shakes me who was once serene.
Upon my word, I tell you faithfully
Through life and after death you are my queen;
For with my death the whole truth shall be seen.
Your two great eyes will slay me suddenly;
Their beauty shakes me who was once serene;
Straight through my heart the wound is quick and keen.
What wonderful beautiful eyes, we could search all our lives, and never find such eyes. The eyes are the window to the soul, what an exceptional soul.
I love reading anything by Chaucer, but he was mare than his Canterbury Tales; his skills weren't limited to poetic travails. He was a businessman, diplomat, and courtier, dealing with wartime rival France with all that entails. I love reading anything by Chaucer, but he was more than his Canterbury Tales. I recommend a book by his biographer Marchette Gaylor Chute (try Amazon sales if your local bookstore fails) . I love reading anything by Chaucer, but he was more than his Canterbury Tales; his skills weren't limited to poetic travails.
What is the power of beautiful eyes? Chaucer has beautifully expressed about it in this nice poem!
I wish that Chaucer’s original version could also appear on this page, and that the version you now quote could be credited as someone else’s adaptation. Both poets deserve their own credit for their own words.
BECAUSE we have forgotten our ancestors Our children no longer give us honer Kneeling in perilous undergrowth
A rondel is written to demonstrate a poet's skill in composing a difficult French verse form. Those who take it to heart are missing the fun of the whole thing. The poet is using such a form as a practice in prosody. Concentrate on the rime-scheme and the repetition of certain lines in the refrain. It's similar to a problem in math, only words replace numbers! Don't get all emotional and lose your power of speaking, please! Enjoy it for what it is - a 14th century Middle English poem modeled on a French love poem!