Arnaut Daniel, “Lancan son passat li giure” (BdT 29.11)

The article provides a commentary of Arnaut Daniel’s “Lancan son passat li giure”, a moralistic song whose main theme is ‘fals’Amor’ (sensual love). The song holds strong intertextual relations with Raimbaut d’Aurenga’s “Apres mon vers vueilh sempr’ordre”, as is shown primarily by the use of the same rhymes ‘-il’ et ‘-iure’, which do not appear elsewhere in the troubadour corpus. Raimbaut’s song, whose verses 37-54 are interpreted differently by W. T. Pattison, its main editor, also deals with ‘fals’Amor’. But if Raimbaut praises the pleasures of physical love, which is portrayed as an irresistible cajoler, Arnaut condems and refuses it, after having experienced it. In this instance, “Lancan son passat li giure” seems to be a kind of polemic reply to “Apres mon vers”. In Arnaut’s view anyway, ‘fals’Amor’, though criticized, turns out to be the winning pattern of courtly behaviour, given its seductive and persuasive skill, to which it is difficult to resist. The text of Arnaut’song is the one established by M. Eusebi, with substantial modifications.