From Geoffrey Chaucer's "The Canterbury Tales", The Knight's Tale, lines 1580-1624

From The Canterbury Tales:
The Knight's Tale
lines 1580-1624: The gods quarrel but Saturn decides that Palamon shall have his lady Emily

1580	And right anon swich strif ther is bigonne
	For thilke grauntyng, in the hevene above
	Bitwixe Venus, the Goddesse of Love,
	And Mars the stierne God armypotente,
	That Jupiter was bisy it to stente;
1585	Til that the pale Saturnus the colde,
	That knew so manye of aventures olde,
	Foond in his olde experience an art
	That he ful soone hath plesed every part.
	As sooth is seyd, elde hath greet avantage;
1590	In elde is bothe wysdom and usage;
	Men may the olde atrenne, and noght atrede.
	Saturne anon, to stynten strif and drede,
	Al be it that it is agayn his kynde,
	Of al this strif he gan remedie fynde.

1580	But thereupon such quarrelling was begun,
	From this same granting, in the heaven above,
	Between lovely Venus, goddess of all love,
	And Mars, the iron god armipotent,
	That Jove toiled hard to make a settlement;
1585	Until the sallow Saturn, calm and cold,
	Who had so many happenings known of old,
	Found from his full experience the art
	To satisfy each party and each part.
	For true it is, age has great advantage;
1590	Experience and wisdom come with age;
	Men may the old out-run, but not out-wit.
	Thus Saturn, though it scarcely did befit
	His nature so to do, devised a plan
	To quiet all the strife, and thus began:

1595	"My deere doghter Venus," quod Saturne,
	"My cours, that hath so wyde for to turne,
	Hath moore power than woot any man.
	Myn is the drenchyng in the see so wan,
	Myn is the prison in the derke cote,
1600	Myn is the stranglyng and hangyng by the throte,
	The murmure, and the cherles rebellyng,
	The groynynge, and the pryvee empoysonyng.
	I do vengeance and pleyn correccioun,
	Whil I dwelle in the signe of the leoun.
1605	Myn is the ruyne of the hye halles,
	The fallynge of the toures and of the walles
	Upon the mynour, or the carpenter.
	I slow Sampsoun, shakynge the piler,
	And myne be the maladyes colde,
1610	The derke tresons, and the castes olde;
	My lookyng is the fader of pestilence.
	Now weep namoore, I shal doon diligence
	That Palamon, that is thyn owene knyght,
	Shal have his lady, as thou hast him hight.
1615	Though Mars shal helpe his knyght, yet nathelees
	Bitwixe yow ther moot be somtyme pees,
	Al be ye noght of o compleccioun-
	That causeth al day swich divisioun.
	I am thyn aiel, redy at thy wille,
1620	Weep now namoore, I wol thy lust fulfille."
	Now wol I stynten of the goddes above,
	Of Mars and of Venus, goddesse of Love,
	And telle yow, as pleynly as I kan,
	The grete effect for which that I bygan.

1595	"Now my dear daughter Venus," said Saturn,
	"My course, which has so wide a way to turn,
	Has power more than any man may know.
	Mine is the drowning in sea below;
	Mine is the dungeon underneath the moat;
1600	Mine is the hanging and strangling by the throat;
	Rebellion, and the base crowd's murmuring,
	The groaning and the private poisoning,
	And vengeance and amercement- all are mine,
	While yet I dwell within the Lion's sign.
1605	Mine is the ruining of all high halls,
	And tumbling down of towers and of walls
	Upon the miner and the carpenter.
	I struck down Samson, that pillar shaker;
	And mine are all the maladies so cold,
1610	The treasons dark, the machinations old;
	My glance is father of all pestilence.
	Now weep no more. I'll see, with diligence,
	That Palamon, who is your own true knight,
	Shall have his lady, as you hold is right.
1615	Though Mars may help his man, yet none the less
	Between you two there must come sometime peace,
	And though you be not of one temperament,
	Causing each day such violent dissent,
	I am your grandsire and obey your will;
1620	Weep then no more, your pleasure I'll fulfill."
	Now will I cease to speak of gods above,
	Of Mars and Venus, goddess of all love,
	And tell you now, as plainly as I can,
	The great result, for which I first began.

Explicit Tercia Pars
(Here ends the third part)