Arthurian Romances (67 page)

Before the king had finished these words, he saw the Knight with the Lion and the younger sister beside him; the two of them were approaching alone, for they had slipped away from the lion, who remained where they had spent the night. The king saw the maiden and recognized her immediately; he was pleased and delighted to see her, for he sided with her in this dispute, as he wished to do what was right. In his delight he said to her, as soon as she was near enough to hear: ‘Come forward, fair one, and may God save you!'

When her sister heard these words, she was startled and turned around. Seeing her sister with the knight she had brought to fight for her rights, she turned blacker than the earth. The younger sister was warmly greeted by everyone.

When she caught sight of the king, she came before him and said: ‘God save the king and his court! Sire, if my rights in this dispute can be upheld by a knight, then they will be defended by this knight who, in his kindness, has followed me here. Although this good and well-born knight had much to do elsewhere, he has felt such pity for me that he has put all his other affairs behind him to help me. Now my lady, my dear sister whom I love as much as my own heart, would do the proper and courteous thing if she were to concede to me my rights so that there would be peace between us, for I ask for nothing that is hers.'

‘Nor, in truth, do I ask for anything of yours,' she said: ‘you have nothing and never will! You can talk on as much as you like, but words will get you nothing. You can complain until you run dry!'

And her younger sister, who was very sensible and courteous, and knew what was seemly, replied at once. ‘Indeed,' she said, ‘it troubles me that two brave men such as these will have to fight for the sake of the two of us; though the dispute is quite minor I cannot abandon my claim, for I have great need of it. Therefore I would be grateful if you would grant me my rights.'

‘One would surely have to be a real fool,' said her sister, ‘to accede to your request. May the flames of Hell consume me if I give you anything to
ease your life! The Saône and the Danube rivers will sooner join their banks than I shall spare you the battle!'

‘May God and the right that is mine, in which I have always trusted and trust still to this very day, aid this knight who out of love and generosity has offered himself to my service, though he does not know who I am. He does not know me, nor I him.'

So they argued until nothing remained to be said. Then the knights were led to the middle of the courtyard; and everyone hurried there, just as people are wont to rush up when they are eager to see swordplay and the blows of battle. Those who were to fight did not recognize each other at all, though they had always loved one another.

And did they not love one another now? Yes, I answer you, and no. And I'll prove that each reply is correct. My lord Gawain truly loves Yvain and calls him his companion; and Yvain loves him, wherever he might be. Even here, if he recognized him, he would rejoice at once to see him and would give his head for Gawain, and Gawain his for Yvain, before he would let any harm befall him. Is this not true and total love? Indeed, yes! And the hatred, is it not fully in evidence? Yes, for it is certainly clear that each would like to cut off the other's head, or at least shame him enough to destroy his reputation. By my word, it is truly a miracle that love and mortal hatred can be found so close together! Heavens! How can two such contrary things dwell together in the same lodging? It doesn't seem to me that they could live together, for one could not stay a single evening in the same place as the other without there being a quarrel and fuss, as soon as one knew the other was there. Yet in a single building there are different sections, for there are public rooms and private chambers; this must surely be the case here. Perhaps Love is locked within some secret inner nook, and Hatred is on the balcony above the street, because she wants the folk to notice her. Now Hatred is in the saddle, for she spurs and charges and tramples over Love as hard as she can, while Love does not stir.

Ah, Love! Where are you hidden? Come out and you'll see what an army the enemies of your friends have brought and set against you. The enemies are those very men who love one another with a sacred love; for a love that isn't false or feigned is a precious and holy thing. But now Love is wholly blind and Hatred likewise can see nothing; for Love, had she recognized them, must surely have prevented them from striking one another or doing anything to hurt the other. Therefore Love is blind, vanquished, and confused, for those who by right are hers she does not recognize, though she looks directly at them. And Hatred, unable to say
why the one hates the other, yet wants to start a wrongful fight so each feels a mortal hatred for the other. You can be sure that the man who wishes to shame another and who seeks his death does not love him.

What? Does Yvain then wish to slay his friend, my lord Gawain? Yes, and the desire is mutual. So would my lord Gawain wish to kill Yvain with his own hands, or do even worse than I have said? Not at all, I swear and pledge to you. Neither would want to shame or hurt the other for all that God has done for man, nor for the wealth of all the Roman Empire. But I've told a horrible lie, for it is perfectly obvious that the one with his lance fewtered is ready to attack his adversary, who in turn wants to wound the knight and bring him shame, and both are absolutely intent on this. Now tell me: when one has defeated the other, whom will the one who receives the worst of the blows have to blame? For if they come to blows, I'm quite afraid that they'll continue to fight until one or the other surrenders. Can Yvain rightfully say, if he gets the worst of it, that the man who has hurt and shamed him has counted him among his friends and has never called him anything but ‘friend' and ‘companion'? Or if it should happen by chance that Yvain wounds or overwhelms Sir Gawain, will Gawain have the right to complain? Not at all, for he won't know whom to blame.

Since they did not recognize each other, the two knights drew back for the charge. When they met, their lances shattered, though they were stout and made of ash. Neither knight spoke to the other, yet had they spoken their meeting would have been quite different! There would have been no lance or sword blows struck at that encounter: they would have come running to embrace and kiss each other rather than attack. But now the two friends were striking and injuring one another. Their swords gained no value, nor did their helmets or shields, which were dented and broken. Their blades were chipped and dulled, and they dealt such mighty swipes with the sharp edge, and not the flat part, and struck such blows with the pommels on noseguards, necks, foreheads, and cheeks, that they were all black and blue where the blood gathered beneath the skin. And their hauberks were so torn and their shields so battered that neither knight escaped unharmed; they struggled so hard that both were nearly out of breath. The combat was so heated that all the jacinths and emeralds that decorated their helmets were knocked loose and crushed, for they pummelled their helmets so hard that both knights were stunned and had their brains nearly beaten out. Their eyes gleamed as, with square and mighty fists, strong nerves, and hard bones, they dealt wicked blows to the face as
long as they were able to grip their swords, which were most useful in their vicious hammering.

Wearied after a long struggle, with helmets caved in and hauberks ripped asunder from the hammering of their swords and with shields split and broken, they both withdrew a little to let their muscles rest and catch their breath again. But they did not stop long, and soon each rushed upon one another more fiercely than before, and everyone acknowledged that two more courageous knights had never been seen: ‘They're not fighting in jest, but in deadly earnest. They'll never receive the merits and rewards they've both earned on this field.'

The two friends overheard these words as they were fighting and understood that they referred to the reconciliation of the two sisters, but that no one could find a way to persuade the elder to make peace. Though the younger had agreed to accept without question whatever the king decided, the elder was so obstinate that even Queen Guinevere and all the knights, and the king, the ladies, and the townspeople, sided with the younger sister. They all came to beg the king to give a third or quarter of the land to her, despite her elder sister, and to separate the two knights; for both were so valiant that it would be a terrible thing if one were to injure the other or even slightly reduce his honour. But the king replied that he would never attempt a reconciliation, for the elder sister was such a wicked creature that she would have no part of it.

The two knights, whose blows were so bitter that it was a marvel to behold, overheard this whole discussion. The battle was so even that there was no way to determine who was getting the better, or who the worse. Even the two who were fighting, purchasing honour by their suffering, were amazed and astounded; they fought on such equal terms that each one wondered greatly who could withstand his onslaught with such bravery. They had fought so long that day was fading into night, and both knights had weary arms and sore bodies. Their warm blood bubbled out from many wounds and flowed beneath their hauberks. It was no wonder that they wished to desist, for both were in great pain.

At last the two ceased fighting, for each realized that, although it had been a long time coming, he had finally met his match. They both rested for a long while, for they did not dare resume the combat. They had no more desire to fight, both because dark night was nearing and because each had developed great respect for the other; these two reasons kept them apart and summoned them to make peace. But before leaving the field, they would learn each other's identity and feel both joy and pity. My lord
Yvain, who was very brave and courteous, spoke first. Yet his good friend still did not recognize him by his voice, for in his suffering he could not speak loudly and his voice was broken, weak, and hoarse, because all his blood was pulsating from the blows he had been dealt.

‘Sir,' said Yvain, ‘night is falling; I don't believe we would be blamed or reproached if night were to part us. And I can state, for my part, that I respect and esteem you greatly, and that I have never in my life suffered so much in any fight or encountered any knight I would rather meet and know. I have every admiration for you because you had me on the brink of defeat. You know how to strike good blows and make them count!
¹⁶
No knight I've ever met knew how to pay out such blows; I'm sure I've never before received as many as you've lent me today! Your blows have totally exhausted me.'

‘By my word,' said my lord Gawain, ‘I am even more stunned and weakened than yourself! And if I acknowledged my debt, you would perhaps not be displeased: if I've lent anything of mine, you've paid back the account, both capital and interest; for you were more generous in your repayment than I was in acceptance of it. But however it may be, since you would be pleased to hear the name by which I'm known, I shall not hide it from you: I'm called Gawain, son of King Lot.'

When my lord Yvain heard this news, he was both stunned and dismayed: angrily he cast to the earth his bloody sword and broken shield; he dismounted from his horse and said: ‘Alas! What misfortune! A most dreadful misunderstanding has brought on this combat, in which we did not recognize one another. If I had recognized you, I swear I would never have fought against you, but would have declared myself defeated before the first blow.'

‘What!' said my lord Gawain. ‘Who are you?'

‘I am Yvain, who loves you more than any man in any part of this wide world, for you have always loved me and shown me honour in every court. But I would like to honour you and make amends in this affair by declaring myself utterly defeated.'

‘You would do this for me?' asked the gentle Sir Gawain. ‘I would be presumptuous indeed if I accepted such a settlement. This honour will not be mine, but yours, for I leave it to you.'

‘Ah, good sir! Say no more, for this could never happen. I can't stand up any longer, I'm so weak and overcome.'

‘Surely you have no cause to say this,' said his friend and companion. ‘It is I who am wounded and defeated; and I don't say it just to flatter you, for
there's not a total stranger in this world to whom I'd not say as much rather than endure more blows.'

Speaking in this way, they dismounted; each threw his arms around the other's neck and they embraced. But even this did not prevent each claiming to have been defeated. The quarrel did not desist until the king and the barons came rushing up from every side. They saw them rejoicing together and were very eager to discover what this could mean, and who these knights were who had such joy in each other.

‘My lords,' said the king, ‘tell us who has so suddenly brought about this friendship and reconciliation between you, when all day long I have witnessed such enmity and discord.'

‘Sire, the misfortune and ill luck that brought on this combat shall not be hidden from you,' replied his nephew, my lord Gawain. ‘Since you are waiting here now to learn the cause of it, there will certainly be someone to tell you the truth. I, your nephew Gawain, did not recognize here present my companion, my lord Yvain, until he, as fortunately it was pleasing to God, asked my name. We have told each other our names and have recognized one another after a hard battle. We battled hard, and had we fought just a little longer it would have been too much for me because, by my head, his strength and the evil cause of the woman who had engaged me as her champion would have killed me. But I would rather have my companion defeat me in battle than slay me.'

At that all my lord Yvain's blood stirred and he said to my lord Gawain: ‘My dear sir, so help me God you are quite wrong to say this! Let my lord the king understand clearly that I am the one who was overwhelmed in this battle and utterly defeated.'