Friday, April 22, 2022
The Days of My Youth
François Villon (1431-?), Le Grant Testament 169-176 (stanza XXII; tr. Galway Kinnell):
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I mourn the days of my youthGaller = s'amuser. Some editors surround lines 170-171 with parentheses, to show more clearly that the antecedent of qui in line 172 is le temps de ma jeunesse in line 169. I don't have access to the commentary of Jean Rychner and Albert Henry. See Jacques T.E. Thomas, Lecture du Testament Villon: huitains I à XLV et LXXVIII à LXXXIV (Genève: Librairie Droz S.A., 1992), pp. 72-73.
When more than most I had my fling
Until age came upon me
They gave no warning they would leave
They didn't go away on foot
Or on horseback, alas how then?
All of a sudden they took flight
And didn't leave anything behind
Je plaings le temps de ma jeunesse,
Ouquel j'ay plus qu'autre gallé 170
Jusqu'a l'entrée de viellesse,
Qui son partement m'a celé:
Il ne s'en est a pié allé
N'a cheval: helas! comment don?
Soudainement s'en est vollé 175
Et ne m'a laissié quelque don.
