by
Pierre de Ronsard (1524 - 1585)
Beauté dont la douceur pourroit vaincre...
Language: French (Français)
Beauté dont la douceur pourroit vaincre les Rois,
Renvoyez moy mon coeur qui languist en servage,
Ou si le mien vous plaist, baillez le vostre en gage:
Sans le vostre ou le mien vivre je ne pourrois.
Quand mort en vous servant sans mon coeur je serois,
Ce me seroit honneur, à vous seroit dommage,
Dommage en me perdant, à moy trop d'avantage.
J'en jure par vos yeux, quand pour vous je mourrois,
Pourveu que mon trespas vous plaise en quelque chose,
Il me plaist de mourir, mon trespas poursuyvant,
Sans emporter mon coeur, dont le vostre dispose:
Et veux que sur ma lame Amour aille escrivant,
CELUY QUI GIST ICY, SANS COEUR ESTOIT VIVANT,
ET TRESPASSA SANS COEUR, ET SANS COEUR IL REPOSE.
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Text Authorship:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
[ None yet in the database ]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in French (Français), [adaptation] ; composed by Anthoine de Bertrand.
Other available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (David Wyatt) , "Beauty, whose softness could conquer kings", copyright © 2012, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [
Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2010-03-23
Line count: 14
Word count: 124
Beauty, whose softness could conquer kings
Language: English after the French (Français)
Beauty, whose softness could conquer kings,
Send me back my heart which languishes in servitude
Or if mine pleases you, deposit your own as a pledge in return:
Without yours or mine I could not live.
If I died in serving you without my heart
I would deem it an honour, though for you a loss --
Loss in losing me, but a great gain for me.
I swear it by your eyes, if I could die for you
Provided my death would please you in some way,
I am happy to die and to pursue my death
Without taking back my heart which is at the disposal of yours;
But I hope that on my gravestone Love would write
HE WHO DWELT HERE, LIVED WITHOUT A HEART
AND DIED WITHOUT A HEART, AND RESTS HERE WITHOUT A HEART.
Text Authorship:
- Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2012 by David Wyatt, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
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Based on:
This text was added to the website: 2012-05-22
Line count: 14
Word count: 138
