QUID AUTEM DE DIGNITATIBUS. — Prosa 6
"But what schal I seye of dignytes and of powers, the
whiche ye men, that neither knowen verray dignyte ne verray
powere,
areysen hem as heyghe as the hevene? The whiche dignytees and
poweres yif thei comen to any wikkid man, thei doon as greet
damages and destrucciouns as doothe the flaumbe of the mountaigne
Ethna whan the flaumbe walweth up, ne no deluge ne doth so cruele
harmes. Certes the remembreth wel, as I trowe, that thilke
dignyte that men clepyn the imperie of consulers, the whiche that
whilom was begynnynge of fredom, yowr eldres coveyteden to han
don awey that dignyte for the pride of the consulers. And ryght
for the same pride yowr eldres byforn that tyme hadden doon awey
out of the cite of Rome the kynges name (that is to
seyn, thei nolden han no lengere no kyng).
"But now, if so be that dignytees and poweris ben yyven
to gode men, the whiche thyng is ful zelde, what aggreable
thynges is ther in tho dignytees or powers but oonly the
goodnesse of folk that usen hem? And therfore it is thus that
honour ne cometh nat to vertu for cause of dygnite, but,
ayenward, honour cometh to dignyte for cause of vertu. But whiche
is thilke your derworthe power that is so cleer and so
requerable? O, ye erthliche bestes, considere ye nat over whiche
thyng that it semeth that ye han power? Now yif thou saye a mows
among othere mysz that chalanged to hymself-ward ryght and power
over alle othere mysz, how gret scorn woldestow han of it!
](Glosa. So fareth it by men [that the
wikkid men
have power over the wikkid men; that is to seye], the body hath
power over the body.) For yif thou looke wel upon the body
of a
wyght, what thyng schaltow fynde more freele than is mankynde;
the whiche men ful ofte ben slayn with bytynge of smale flyes,
or elles with the entrynge of crepynge wormes into the pryvetees
of mannes body? But whet schal men fynden any man that mai
exercen or haunten any ryght upon another man, but oonly on his
body, or elles upon thynges that ben lowere than the body, the
whiche I clepe fortunous possessiouns? Maystow evere have any
comaundement over a free corage? Maystowe remuwen fro the estat
of his propre reste a thought that is clyvynge togidre in hymself
by stedfast resoun? As whilom a tyraunt wende to confownde a fre
man of corage, and wende to constreyne hym by
torment to maken hym discoveren and accusen folk that wisten of
a conjuracioun (which I clepe a
confederacye)
that was cast ayens this tyraunt; but this fre man boot of his
owene tonge, and caste it in the visage of thilk wode tyraunt.
So that the tormentz that this tyraunt wende to han maked matere
of cruelte, this wise man maked it matere of vertu. But what
thing is it that a man may doon to an other man, that he ne may
resceyven the same thyng of
other folk in hymself?
(Or thus: what may a man don to folk,
that folk ne
may don hym the same?) I have herd told of Busyrides, that
was wont to sleen his gestes that herberweden in his hous, and
he was slayn hymself of Ercules that was his gest. Regulus hadde
taken in bataile manye men of Affryke and cast hem into feteres,
but sone after he most yyve hise handes to ben bownde with the
cheynes of hem that he hadde whilom overcomen. Wenestow thanne
that he be myghty that hath no power to doon a thyng that othere
ne mai doon in hym that he doth in othere?
"And yit moreover, yif it so were that thise dygnytes or
poweris hadden any propre or naturel goodnesse in hemself, nevere
nolde they comen to schrewes. For contrarious thynges ne ben nat
wont to ben ifelaschiped togydre. Nature refuseth that
contrarious thynges ben ijoygned. And so, as I am in certeyn that
ryght wykkyd folk han dignytees ofte tyme, thanne scheweth it wel
that dignytees and poweres ne ben nat gode of hir owene kynde,
syn that they suffren hemselve to cleven or joynen hem to
schrewes. And certes the same thyng mai I most digneliche juggen
and seyn of alle the yiftes of Fortune that most plentevously
comen to schrewes. Of the whiche yiftes I trowe that it oughte
ben considered, that no man douteth that he ne is strong in whom
he seeth strengthe; and in whom that swyftnesse is, sooth it is
that he is swyft; also musyke maketh mucisyens, and phisyk maketh
phisicyeens, and rethoryke, rethoriens. Forwhy the nature of
every thyng maketh his proprete, ne it is nat entremedlyd with
the effectz of contrarious thynges, and as of wil it chaseth out
thynges that to it ben contrarie. But certes rychesse mai nat
restreyne avarice unstaunched; ne power ne maketh nat a man
myghty over hymselve, whiche that vicyous lustes holden
destreyned with cheynes that ne mowen nat ben unbownden. And
dignytees that ben yyven to schrewide folk nat oonly ne maketh
hem nat digne, but it scheweth rather al opynly that they been
unworthy and undigne. And whi is it thus? Certes for ye han joie
to clepen thynges with false names, that beren hem al in the
contrarie; the whiche names ben ful [ethe] reproved by the effect
of the same thynges; so that thise ilke rychesses ne oughten nat
by ryghte to ben cleped rychesses, ne swyche power ne aughte nat
ben clepyd power, ne swiche dignyte ne aughte nat ben clepyd
dignyte. And at the laste, I may conclude the same thyng of alle
the yyftes of Fortune, in whiche ther nys nothyng to ben desired,
ne that hath in hymselve naturel bownte, as it es ful wel yseene.
For neither thei ne joygnen hem nat alwey to gode men, ne maken
hem alwey gode to whom they been ijoyned.
