Razó (Occitan literary form)
Encyclopedia
A razó or razo was a short piece of Occitan prose
detailing the circumstances of a troubadour
composition. A razó normally introduced an individual poem, acting as a prose preface and explanation; it might, however, share some of the characteristics of a vida
(a biography of a troubadour, describing his origins, his loves, and his works) and the boundary between the two genres was never concrete.
The word razó means "reason" in Occitan. In the chansonnier
s, the manuscript collections of medieval troubadour poetry, some poems are accompanied by a prose explanation whose purpose is to give the reason why the poem was composed. These texts are occasionally based on independent sources. To that extent they supplement the vidas in the same manuscripts and are useful to modern literary and historical researchers. Often, however, it is clear that assertions in the razós are simply deduced from literal readings of details in the poems. Most of the surviving razó corpus is the work of Uc de Saint Circ
, composed in Italy between 1227 and 1230.
There is a complete collection of razós, with French translation and commentary, by Boutière and Schutz.
Biographical explications of poems are not unknown in other literatures. For a Latin example contemporary with the earliest razós see Linquo coax ranis
. In a manuscript from Bergamo
there is an explanatory Latin rubric preceding the Occitan partimen
Si paradis et enfernz son aital by Girard Cavalaz
and Aycart del Fossat
.
Prose
Prose is the most typical form of written language, applying ordinary grammatical structure and natural flow of speech rather than rhythmic structure...
detailing the circumstances of a troubadour
Troubadour
A troubadour was a composer and performer of Old Occitan lyric poetry during the High Middle Ages . Since the word "troubadour" is etymologically masculine, a female troubadour is usually called a trobairitz....
composition. A razó normally introduced an individual poem, acting as a prose preface and explanation; it might, however, share some of the characteristics of a vida
Vida (Occitan literary form)
Vida is the usual term for a brief prose biography, written in Old Occitan, of a troubadour or trobairitz.The word vida means "life" in Occitan languages. In the chansonniers, the manuscript collections of medieval troubadour poetry, the works of a particular author are often accompanied by a...
(a biography of a troubadour, describing his origins, his loves, and his works) and the boundary between the two genres was never concrete.
The word razó means "reason" in Occitan. In the chansonnier
Chansonnier
A chansonnier is a manuscript or printed book which contains a collection of chansons, or polyphonic and monophonic settings of songs, hence literally "song-books," although some manuscripts are so called even though they preserve the text but not the music A chansonnier is a manuscript or...
s, the manuscript collections of medieval troubadour poetry, some poems are accompanied by a prose explanation whose purpose is to give the reason why the poem was composed. These texts are occasionally based on independent sources. To that extent they supplement the vidas in the same manuscripts and are useful to modern literary and historical researchers. Often, however, it is clear that assertions in the razós are simply deduced from literal readings of details in the poems. Most of the surviving razó corpus is the work of Uc de Saint Circ
Uc de Saint Circ
Uc de Saint Circ or Hugues de Saint Circq was a troubadour from Quercy. Uc is perhaps most significant to modern historians as the probable author of several vidas and razos of other troubadours, though only one of Bernart de Ventadorn exists under his name...
, composed in Italy between 1227 and 1230.
There is a complete collection of razós, with French translation and commentary, by Boutière and Schutz.
Biographical explications of poems are not unknown in other literatures. For a Latin example contemporary with the earliest razós see Linquo coax ranis
Linquo coax ranis
Linquo coax ranis are the first words of a two-line poem in internally rhymed hexameters by Serlo of Wilton. The complete text is:The legend was investigated by the French novelist and philologist Marcel Schwob in his pamphlet La légende de Serlon de Wilton ....
. In a manuscript from Bergamo
Bergamo
Bergamo is a town and comune in Lombardy, Italy, about 40 km northeast of Milan. The comune is home to over 120,000 inhabitants. It is served by the Orio al Serio Airport, which also serves the Province of Bergamo, and to a lesser extent the metropolitan area of Milan...
there is an explanatory Latin rubric preceding the Occitan partimen
Partimen
The partimen is a genre of Occitan lyric poetry composed between two troubadours, a subgenre of the tenso or cobla exchange in which one poet presents a dilemma in the form of a question and the two debate the answer, each taking up a different side. It was especially popular in poetic contests....
Si paradis et enfernz son aital by Girard Cavalaz
Girard Cavalaz
Girardo Cavallazzi or Cavallazzo was an Italian troubadour from Lombardy. His only surviving work is four coblas of a partimen he exchanged with Aycart del Fossat concerning the nature of Heaven and Hell: Si paradis et enfernz son aital....
and Aycart del Fossat
Aycart del Fossat
Aycart or Aicart del Fossat or Aicardo de Fossato was a troubadour from Le Fossat in Ariège. To him are attributed one sirventes and a partimen with Girard Cavalaz....
.