Bibliotheca Arnamagnæana - 01.06.1981, Side 186
ac quality of Tristram’s words in the Norwegian version can be apprecia-
ted if one compares them with the English translation above, in which the
stately rhythm of the Icelandic is wanting.
Comparison of the passage above with the corresponding French text
as extant in the Douce Fragment reveals another aspect of the passage.
The material has been transformed not only stylistically but also structur-
ally and contextually:
Dune a Tristran si grant dolur
Unques n’out, n’avrad maiir,
E turne sei vers la parei,
Dune dit: “Deus salt Ysolt e mei!
Quant a moi ne volez venir,
Pur vostre amur m’estuet murrir.
Jo ne puis plus tehir ma vie;
Pur vus muer, Ysolt, bele amie.
N’avez pité de ma langur,
Mais de ma mort avrez dolur.
fo m’est, amie, grant confort
Que pité avrez de ma mort.”
“Amie Ysolt” trei fez dit,
A la quarte rent 1’esprit. (vv. 1757-70)
(Then Tristran experienced such great suffering as never before;
nor would he ever have worse. And he turns toward the wall, and
says: “God save Ysolt and me! Since you would not come to me, I
must die for love of you. I can no longer hold on to life. For you I
die, Ysolt, fair love. You do not pity me my suffering but you will
mourn my death. This is to me a great comfort, beloved, that you
will grieve my death. My love, Ysolt,” three times he said, at the
fourth he gave up his spirit.)
A superficial comparison of the translation with the French text is decep-
tive. One has the vague impression that the Norwegian version is a rela-
tively accurate translation that differs primarily because of the change of
structure of the language occasioned by the transformation of verse into
prose. Perhaps for that reason Leach commented that “when Robert
does translate he is so faithful that if both [that is, Thomas’ text and
Tristrams saga] were rendered into English, they would be nearly identi-
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