To her marriage meant the
permission to shine and be adored by a man who was not her husband. "It
is an undeniable fact," propounded Andreas as _regula amoris_, "that
there is no room for love between husband and wife," and Fauriel
translated a passage as follows: "A husband who proposed to behave to
his wife as a knight would to his lady, would propose to do something
contrary to the canons of honour; such a proceeding could neither
increase his virtue nor the virtue of his lady, and nothing could come
of it but what already properly exists."--Another judgment maintained
"that a lady lost her admirer as soon as the latter became her husband;
and that she was therefore entitled to take a new lover." At the court
of love of the Viscountess Ermengarde, of Narbonne, the problem whether
the love between husband and wife or the love between lovers were the
greater, was decided as follows: "The affection between a married couple
and the tender love which unites two lovers are emotions which differ
fundamentally and according to custom.
Pages:
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231