Magda Bogin

This book presents facing page translations of Provancale troubadour poetry by female troubadours.

I read this book several years ago when I was taking a senior undergrad course in medieval literature. The poetry was lively and evocative. The collection really suffers from its editor's handling. For instance, the introduction argues heavily that the work of the female troubadours is essentially different from that of their male counterparts- without including a single example. It was very frustrating for a student like me who has not read troubadour poetry before. Doing a little research, I found many troubadour poems by male poets that were very like those of these female poets.

Lastly, while I cannot read Provancale, I can read Latin, and French. Along with a Spanish classmate of mine, I realised that the poetry was not translated properly. Consulting a professor, this was confirmed. The translation seems to have been skewed in order to support the editor's arguement regarding the differences of male and female troubadour poetry (a line: "...to have you in my naked arms" actually should read "to have you naked in my arms.")

I hope that someone produces a better edition of these poems.… (plus d'informations)