CHAUCER'S USE OF BOCCACCIO'S "FILOCOLO"

In the passage in Book III of Troilus and Criseyde' recounting the occurrences immediately preceding the first night together of the young lovers, Chaucer departs widely from the account offered him in Il Filostrato."

The passage in the Italian poem may be briefly sketched as follows:

Through Pardaro's agency, Griseida has appointed a night for Troilo's coming to her. Troilo goes secretly but boldly in the dark to an obscure part of Griseida's house, and on his arrival she coughs, as a sign to him that she is aware of his presence. After sending her household to bed, Griseida, with a taper in her hand, goes to Troilo, praying his pardon for having kept him hidden. Troilo refuses to see the discourtesy, and after many embraces they ascend the steps into Griseida's chamber, where with little delay they betake themselves to bed, and "D' amor sentiron l'ultimo valore.”3

This is manifestly no adequate basis for the related passage in Troilus and Criseyde, the general action of which may be sketched as follows:

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With the purpose of bringing Troilus and Criseyde together at his house, Pandarus chooses a night that promises to be dark and rainy, and invites Criseyde to supper. When she has been assured that Troilus is in no way connected with the invitation, and that she shall be secure from the gossip of "goosish peple,' she comes at evening to Pandarus' house, accompanied by a few of her women. While Pandarus and Criseyde sup, sing, make music, and tell tales, Troilus looks on through a little window of an adjoining chamber. On account of the increased rain during the evening, Pandarus has no difficulty at bedtime in persuading

1 Book III, 11. 512-1190. Citations are made from The Complete Works of Geoffrey Chaucer, edited by W. W. Skeat, Vol. II (Oxford, 1894).

2 Parte III, St. 24-32. Citations are made from Opere volgari di Giovanni Boccaccio, Vol. XIII (Firenze [Per Ig. Moutier], 1831).

3 Ibid., III, 32, 8.

4 T. and C., III, 584.

Criseyde to spend the night at his house. Pandarus conducts his niece to her bed in an inner chamber, and provides for her attendants in a passage outside her door; and, after making sure that all are at the point of sleep, he goes to Troilus, scolds courage into him, and draws him through a trap-door into Criseyde's room, concealing him, we may assume, in a dark corner or behind a curtain. Criseyde awakes, but Pandarus checks her attempted outcry, and comforts her by the assurance that he alone is invading her chamber. Gradually and skilfully he reveals to her that Troilus has entered the house by a secret way, and is at the point of madness with jealousy of Orestes, who, according to report, has supplanted him in Criseyde's heart. Criseyde protests that she can never be untrue to Troilus, and offers to Pandarus her ring' with which to comfort the young lover, Pandarus scoffs' at such comforting, and at last persuades Criseyde to remain in bed while Troilus comes to her. Troilus is ready at hand, and while Pandarus sits near by and pretends to read "an old romaunce," Criseyde upbraids Troilus so severely for his unfounded jealousy and shows so poignant grief that Troilus falls in a faint. Pandarus springs impatiently to Troilus, throws him into the bed, and with Criseyde's aid brings him back to consciousness. After taking from Troilus such oaths as she wishes, Criseyde makes no objection to his remaining in bed with her, and Pandarus withdraws, leaving them together for the night. During their night together, in intervals of dallying, they exchange rings, and Criseyde gives Troilus a brooch. At the arrival of "cruel day" the lovers reluctantly separate, and Troilus sorrowfully hastens to his palace.

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Before estimating Chaucer's originality in thus changing what lay before him in Il Filostrato, we should note the resem

Is Chaucer alluding to such magical rings as are used in Filocolo (cf. Moutier, Vol. VII, pp. 110, 111, 147, 148, 152, 170, 263, 352, 353; Vol. VIII, p. 199), in Guido delle Colonne (Historia Troiana [Strassburg, 1489], sig. b 1, verso, cols. 1, 2), and in Roman de Troie (edited by L. Constans, Tome I [Paris, 1904], 11. 1677-1702) Cf. below, p. 177, n. 2.

2 T. and C., III, 980.

3 T. and C., III, 1450.

blance between Chaucer's account and a passage in Boccaccio's Filocolo,' which may be outlined as follows:

The enamored Florio, under his new name, Filocolo, has followed Biancofiore to Alexandria. Having ingratiated himself with Sadoc, the guardian of the tower in which Biancofiore with her attendant, Glorizia, is confined, Florio arranges to be conveyed into the tower by concealing himself in a basket of flowers that the Ammiraglio is to send to Biancofiore on an approaching gala-day. On the appointed day, Glorizia succeeds in conveying Florio into the tower without his being discovered, and when she has deposited him in one of Biancofiore's rooms and has locked the door, the ardent young lover demands his inamorata. Glorizia explains to him that in his immediate appearance to his lady there is involved the twofold danger of scandal and of disaster to Biancofiore from sudden joy. Therefore Glorizia arranges to conceal Florio in an adjoining chamber, from which he can observe Biancofiore and her attendants in their merry-making, and promises later to conduct him from the side-chamber and conceal him behind the curtains of Biancofiore's bed, where he must await his lady's going to sleep before revealing himself. Glorizia warns him that Biancofiore will be severely frightened when she awakes, but that her fear will soon give way to joy, and Glorizia promises herself to be near at hand to prevent any miscarriage of her plan. Glorizia arouses the melancholy Biancofiore to taking part in the festivities of the day, and comforts her by recounting a dream in which she saw Florio appear in Biancofiore's chamber. Biancofiore and her maids celebrate the day with flowers and music, while Florio looks on through a little hole from the adjoining chamber. At night Glorizia arranges

Biancofiore's bed and conceals Florio behind the curtains. While Biancofiore prepares for bed, Glorizia arouses her feelings for Florio, by suggesting now the possibility, and again the impossibility, of his coming. Glorizia goes so far as to suggest to Biancofiore that some other man might please her in Florio's absence; a suggestion that Biancofiore passionately repudiates, while referring with sorrow to Florio's groundless jealousy of

1 Libro IV, Vol. VIII (Moutier, Firenze, 1829), pp. 165–83.

Fileno. When Glorizia leaves her, Biancofiore lies down, but only after she is exhausted by sighs for Florio does she give herself up to sleep. Florio advances and caresses her as she sleeps, and finally embraces her at the very moment when she dreams of being in his arms. When she awakes in fright, she attempts to call for Glorizia, but Florio prevents her, and at last convinces her of the reality of his presence. She inquires by what way he has reached her, and he, attributing all to the gods, urges that they delay their delight no longer. Taking her ring and calling Hymen, Juno, and Venus to witness, Florio is ready for the espousal. At Biancofiore's suggestion they take vows before an image of Cupid in her room, after which Florio places the ring upon her finger and the marriage is consummated. After they have waked Glorizia to rejoice with them, the lovers retire and spend the night together.

In spite of the divergent external circumstances of the two accounts, one must admit at least that the passage in Filocolo offers the general situation of the related passage in Troilus and Criseyde. In both stories a third person is arranging for the meeting of two lovers secretly, at night, in the bed-chamber of the inamorata, the latter being unaware that her lover is concealed near at hand. In one case the go-between resorts to concealment in order to avert scandal and personal disaster to the lady, in the other to avert scandal and to overcome the lady's scruples. The fact that in one case the inamorata frankly desires the meeting, while in the other she does not, happens not to affect the general procedure. Criseyde's scruples do, however, demand more delicate and persistent manipulation on the part of her uncle, and thus we readily account for the more subtle and prominent rôle of Pandarus in Chaucer's account.' The fact that Chaucer's go-between is a man and Boccaccio's a woman makes no perceptible change in the action, for Pandarus and Glorizia show their respective charges precisely the same intimate personal attention.2

1That the Glorizia of Boccaccio is quite capable of undertaking the more difficult rôle of Pandarus is indicated by her own words: "Se altro forse avvenisse io vi sarò vicina, e lei caccerò col mio parlare d'ogni errore." (Moutier, Vol. VIII, p. 169.)

2 Moreover, Chaucer did not deliberately choose to give to a man the rôle of go-between in this episode; he merely used the character already provided by his story of Troilus and Criseyde.