Chaitivel (or The Four Sorrows and The Unfortunate One) is a lai written by Marie de France. It tells of a young woman who takes four lovers. It is unique for its slight metafictional elements.
Characters[]
- The lady
- The fourth lover
- The three other lovers
Plot[]
In the city of Nantes lived an especially beautiful woman wooed by many men. Four of these men did everything in their power to love her and claim her for himself, and the lady loved each lover equally.
During a tournament shortly after Easter, the four knights took part alongside other competitors from across France. During the tournament, the four knights stopped an attack by four foreign knights before three of the knights were accidentally killed in the middle of the tournament. The fourth is maimed, and is given the best care possible by the lady after she enshrines the slain knights.
The survivor's injury has left him impotent. While visiting him, the lady thinks of his slain comrades. She decides to write a lai (presumably the basis for this lai) about her four lovers. She initially titles it "The Four Sorrows" but the survivor has her change it to "The Unfortunate One" after himself, maimed and left barren with no way to make love to the lady.