Notes de lecture

53


Le texte de base est celui de ldition de Janet Cowen, Penguin Classics (2 vol.).




BOOK III



CHAPTER 7. How the hart was chased into a castle and there slain,
and how Sir Gawain slew a lady

1 Then Gawain and Gaheris rode more than a pace after the white hart, and let slip at the hart
three couple of greyhounds, and so they chased
1
the hart into a castle, and in the chief place of
the castle they slew the hart. Sir Gawain and Gaheris followed after. Right so there came a knight
out of a chamber with a sword drawn in his hand and slew two of the greyhounds, even in the
sight of Sir Gawain, and the remnant he chased them with his sword out of the castle.
And when he came again, he said, O my white hart, me repenteth that thou art dead, for my sover-
eign lady gave thee to me, and evil have I kept thee, and thy death shall be dear bought and I live.
And anon he went into his chamber and armed him, and came out ercely, and there met he
with Sir Gawain.
Why have ye slain my hounds? said Sir Gawain, for they did but their kind, and lever I had ye had
wroken your anger upon me than upon a dumb beast.
Thou sayest truth, said the knight, I have avenged me on thy hounds, and so I will on thee or thou
go.
Then Sir Gawain alit afoot and dressed his shield, and struck together mightily, and clave
their shields, and stoned their helms, and brake their hauberks that the blood ran down to their
feet. At last Sir Gawain smote the knight so hard that he fell to the earth, and then he cried mer-
cy, and yielded him, and besought him as he was a knight and gentleman, to save his life.
Thou shalt die, said Sir Gawain, for slaying of my hounds.
I will make amends, said the knight, unto my power.
Sir Gawain would no mercy have but unlaced his helm to have stricken o his head. Right so
came his lady out of a chamber and fell over him, and so he smote o her head by misadventure.
Alas, said Gaheris, that is foul and shamefully done, that shame shall never from you; also ye should

1
Ldition de J. Cowen porte chase : simple coquille.
V
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give mercy unto them that ask mercy, for a knight without mercy is without worship.
Sir Gawain was so stonied of the death of this fair lady that he wist not what he did, and said
unto the knight, Arise, I will give thee mercy.
Nay, nay, said the knight, I take no force of mercy now, for thou hast slain my love and my lady that
I loved best of all earthly things.
Me sore repenteth it, said Sir Gawain, for I thought to strike unto thee. But now thou shalt go unto
King Arthur and tell him of thine adventure, and how thou art overcome by the knight that went in the
quest of the white hart.
I take no force, said the knight, whether I live or I die; but so for dread of death he swore to go
unto King Arthur, and he made him to bear one greyhound before him on his horse, and another
behind him.
What is your name, said Sir Gawain, or we depart?
My name is, said the knight, Ablamar of the Marsh.
So he departed toward Camelot.




Le cerf, pourchass, pntre dans la cour dun chteau et y est mis mort ;
sire Gauvain tue une dame

1 Gauvain et Guerrehet chevauchrent alors bride abattue la poursuite du cerf blanc, lchrent
ses trousses trois lvriers coupls, qui poursuivirent le cerf jusqu lintrieur dun chteau et l,
dans la salle principale, mirent le cerf mort. Cest alors que sire Gauvain et sire Guerrehet les re-
joignirent. ce moment-l surgit dune chambre un chevalier, lpe la main, qui, sous les yeux de
sire Gauvain, tua deux des lvriers et pourchassa le restant, toujours lpe la main, pour quils sen-
fuient du chteau.
son retour, il scria : mon cerf blanc ! que jai de regret que tu sois mort, car cest ma souveraine
dame qui tavait donn moi ; je tai bien mal gard et, au risque de ma vie, je ferai chrement payer ta mort.
ces mots, il regagna sa chambre et sy arma, ressortit lair farouche et se retrouva face face
avec sire Gauvain.
Pourquoi avez-vous tu mes chiens ? demanda ce dernier, car ils nont fait quagir selon leur nature, et
jaurais prfr que vous passiez votre colre sur moi plutt que sur une bte brute.
Tu dis vrai, repartit le chevalier, je me suis veng sur tes chiens, et je ferai de mme sur toi avant que tu
ne quittes ces lieux.
Sire Gauvain descendit alors de cheval, ajusta son bouclier, et [les deux adversaires] changrent
des coups violents, rent clater leurs boucliers, crasrent leurs casques, et brisrent leurs hauberts,
au point que le sang coula jusqu leurs pieds. Sire Gauvain nit par porter un tel coup lautre cheva-
lier que celui-ci seondra sur le sol, cria merci
1
et le supplia, en sa qualit de chevalier et de gentil-
homme, de lpargner.
Tu vas mourir, annona sire Gauvain, pour avoir tu mes chiens.
Je suis tout dispos faire rparation, dclara le chevalier, dans la mesure de mes moyens.
Impitoyable, sire Gauvain dlaa le casque du chevalier pour le dcapiter. Au mme instant
jaillit dune chambre la dame du chevalier qui se laissa tomber sur le vaincu et Gauvain dcapita
donc malencontreusement la dame.
Sire Gauvain tait en proie une telle sidration provoque par la mort de cette belle dame quil
ne savait plus ce quil faisait et dit au chevalier : Relve-toi, je consens te faire grce.
Non, non, scria le chevalier, il mest maintenant indirent dtre graci, puisque tu as tu celle que
jaime, la dame que jaimais plus que tout ici-bas.
Je le regrette profondment, assura sire Gauvain, car cest toi que je croyais frapper. Mais tu vas main-
tenant aller trouver le roi Arthur et lui raconter ton aventure, comment tu es vaincu par le chevalier qui est parti
en qute du cerf blanc.
Peu mimporte, rpliqua le chevalier, de vivre ou de mourir. Pourtant, par peur de la mort, il t

1
demanda grce.
serment de se prsenter au roi Arthur et [Gauvain] lobligea mettre, en travers de la selle de son che-
val, [le cadavre d]un lvrier devant lui et un autre derrire.
Comment vous appelez-vous, demanda sire Gauvain, avant que nous ne partions
1
?
Ablamor du Marais.
Et il partit alors pour Camelot.



Le manuscrit de Winchester, lendroit correspondant ce dbut de chapitre (folio 38r, ligne 27
et suiv.), comporte une double omission :



dede A eyde Gaherys that was a myghty troke of a yonge knyght
LACUNE Than Sir Gawayne & Gaherys folowed atir LACUNE Ryght o er com a
knyght oute of a chambir with a werde drawyn in hys honde and
lew ij of the gray houndes evyn in the yght of Sir Gawayne and e
remanente he chaced with hys werde oute of the catell And whan
he com a gayne he eyde a my whyght herte me repentis at ou
Autre omission : for they did but their kind.




Tutoie-/vouvoiement dans tout le chapitre.

1 me repenteth Winchester : repentis
2 ye had wroken your anger upon me cf. I, 10 1 awroke cf. to wreak, vieil-anglais
wrecan (prtrit wrc, participe pass wrecen), moyen-anglais wrken.
Middle English Dictionary : Forms in -o- in the p.pl. and p.ppl. are, by analogy with the cor-
responding forms of class 4 strong verbs such as bren (1), brken, etc., derived from
the -o- of the OE p.ppl.
3 or thou go (cf. I, 2, 25) avant que (comme le laisse prvoir le subjonctif)
4 Sir Gawain alit afoot and dressed his shield, and struck together mightily rupture de
construction : alit et dressed ont pour sujet Sir Gawain ; struck, clave, stoned et brake ont
pour sujet un pronom personnel pluriel they non-exprim ou omis.

1
Ou bien : avant que nous ne nous sparions .
5 stoned their helms moyen-anglais stnen, forme aphrse de astnen to smash
(sth.) with a blow (de lancien-franais estoner) ; cf. astounded (et, plus bas, stonied =
stunned)
6 to have stricken o his head struck (mais le participe pass vieil-anglais tait stric-
en)
7 of all earthly things J. Cowen : of all earthly thing. Pour Malory, le pluriel de thyng
peut tre soit thynge, soit thyngis, thynges.
8 I thought to strike unto thee Winchester : I mente the troke unto the.
9 thine adventure (Winchester) J. Cowen : thine adventures
10 Ablamar of the Marsh


What ys youre name eyde Sir Gawayne or we departe my name ys
eyde the knyght Blamoure of the marye And o he departed towarde