Collected French Translations: Prose

by Ashbery, John

  When the fairies learned of my father’s actions, their indignation knew no bounds; and after dispatching into his six kingdoms all the ills that could render them desolate, they unleashed a horrendous dragon who scattered venom wherever he passed, devoured grown men and children, and with his breath caused trees and plants to die.

  The king was sunk in the deepest despair; he consulted all the sages in his realm to learn what he should do to protect his subjects from the misfortunes in which he saw them engulfed. They advised him to seek throughout the world for the finest doctors and the surest remedies, and, on the other hand, to release criminals condemned to die so that they might combat the dragon. Quite satisfied with this opinion, the king acted on it but received no consolation, for the death toll continued to grow, and no one could approach the dragon without being devoured, so that at last he had recourse to a fairy who had protected him from his earliest childhood. She was very old, and scarcely ever left her bed anymore; he betook himself to her dwelling and reproached her a thousand times for having let destiny persecute him without coming to his aid. What do you want me to do, she said, you have annoyed my sisters; they have as much power as I, and it is very rarely that we act against each other. Think of appeasing them by giving them your daughter, that little princess belongs to them. You have shut up the queen in a prison cell: What has that lovable woman done to you for you to treat her thus? Decide then to keep the word she gave, and I guarantee that you will be showered with blessings.

  The king my father loved me dearly, but seeing no other way to save his kingdoms and be rid of the fatal dragon, he told his old friend that he had resolved to believe her, that he would agree to hand me over to the fairies, since she assured him I would be cherished and raised as a princess of my rank; that he would also send for the queen, and that the old fairy had only to tell him to whom he should deliver me to have me brought to the fairies’ castle. She replied that I must be carried in my cradle to the top of the mountain of flowers; you may even stay in the region, she said, to be a spectator of the celebration that will be held there. The king told her he would go there in a week’s time with the queen, and that she should notify her sister fairies, so that they might do whatever might seem fitting to them.

  No sooner had he returned to the palace when he had the queen summoned with a tenderness and pomp equal to the wrath and fury with which he had her made prisoner. She was so changed and dejected that he could scarcely recognize her, had not his heart assured him that this was the same person he had loved so much. With tears in his eyes he begged her to forget the grief he had caused her, assuring her that it would be the last she would ever suffer on his account. She replied that she had brought it on herself through the imprudence of promising her child to the fairies; and if anything could plead in her behalf, it was the state she was in; at last he informed her that he would place me in their hands. The queen in turn fought against this proposal; it seemed that some fatality must have been in all this, and that I would always be an object of discord between my father and my mother. After she had wept and moaned for a long time, without his granting her wish (for the king saw only too well the tragic consequences, and that his subjects would continue to die, as though it were they who had brought misfortune on the family), she agreed to everything he wanted, and preparations for the ceremony began.

  I was placed in a cradle made of mother-of-pearl, ornamented with as much elegance as art can summon. Garlands of flowers and festoons hung round it, and the flowers were precious stones of different colors which flashed so brightly when the sun struck them that one had to look away. The magnificence of my costume surpassed, if it were possible, that of the cradle. My swaddling bands were fashioned from enormous pearls; twenty-four princesses of the blood carried me on a sort of finely wrought litter; their robes were unmatched, but they were allowed to wear no other color but white, in keeping with my innocence. The whole court accompanied me, each according to his rank.

  * * *

  As we all started up the mountain, a melodious orchestra was heard approaching; at last the fairies appeared, thirty-six in all; they had invited their closest lady-friends to accompany them; each was seated in a shell of pearl, larger than the one on which Venus emerged from the sea; sea-horses, which travel with difficulty on land, drew them in their chariots; they acted more pompous than the greatest queens in the universe, but were in fact exceeding old and ugly. They brought an olive branch, to show the king that his submission found favor with them; and when they held me, they caressed me so fondly that it seemed they no longer wished to live with any goal but that of making me happy.

  The dragon they had employed to avenge themselves on my father followed behind them, bound with diamond chains; they held me in their arms, bestowed a thousand caresses on me, and endowed me with numerous advantages; then began the fairies’ dance. It was a sprightly one indeed; and it was amazing to see these old ladies hop and gambol. Thereupon the dragon who had devoured so many people approached. The three fairies to whom my mother had promised me perched on him with my cradle between them; he spread his enormous scaly wings, finer than crêpe and shot through with a thousand bizarre colors, and thus we traveled back to the castle. My mother, seeing me in the air, exposed on the back of that furious dragon, couldn’t prevent herself from uttering several piercing cries. The king consoled her, reminding her of the promise his friend had given that no harm would befall me and that they would take as good care of me as I would receive in his own palace. She calmed herself, even though it was most painful for her to contemplate losing me for so long, and to be the only cause of it; for if she hadn’t desired to eat the fruits in that garden, I would have remained in the kingdom of the king my father, and would not have had to endure all the sorrows that I have still to recount to you.

  Know then, king’s son, that my guardians had had a tower built expressly for me, in which there were a thousand handsome apartments for all the seasons of the year, magnificent furniture, delightful books, but no door: One could enter only through the windows, which were prodigiously high. There was a lovely garden on top of the tower, decked with flowers, fountains, and nooks of greenery which protected one from the heat of the most scorching dog days. It was here that the fairies brought me up with attentions that surpassed all that they had promised the queen. My clothes were of the latest fashion, and so magnificent that, seeing me, one would have thought it were my wedding day. They taught me everything suitable to my age and rank; I gave them very little trouble, for I learned almost everything with great facility; they found my gentle temperament most agreeable, and since I had never seen anyone but them, I might have stayed quietly in this situation for the rest of my life.

  They always came to visit me astride the furious dragon of whom I have already told; they never spoke to me of the king or the queen; they called me their daughter, and I thought I was. Not a soul lived with me in the tower, except for a parrot and a little dog that they gave me for my playmates, for they had the gift of reason and were marvelously well spoken.

  One side of the tower was built alongside a sunken road, so encumbered with trees and ruts that I had never seen anyone on it since they had confined me there. But one day, as I was at the window chatting with my parrot and my dog, I heard a noise. Looking around I perceived a young knight who had stopped to listen to our conversation; I had never before seen a man except in pictures. I was by no means vexed that a chance encounter provided me with this opportunity, so that, not fearing in the least the danger that comes with the satisfaction of seeing an amiable object, I drew closer to look at him, and the more I looked at him, the more pleasure I experienced. He made me a deep bow and fixed his gaze on me, seeming at a loss how to converse with me, for my window was so high up that he feared being overheard, and he well knew that I was in the fairies’ castle.

  Suddenly, night fell; or rather, it arrived without our noticing; he blew two or three times on his horn, and delighted me with several fanfares, the
n he left without my being able to discern even the direction he took, so thick was the darkness. I remained plunged in a waking dream; I no longer experienced the same pleasure in chatting with my parrot and my dog. They recounted me the most delightful things imaginable, for fairy animals become very witty, but my thoughts were elsewhere, and I hadn’t learned the art of controlling myself. Sinbad the parrot noticed this, for he was clever, and didn’t mention what was on his mind.6

  I didn’t fail to arise at daybreak. I ran to my window, and was agreeably surprised to find the young knight at the foot of the tower. He was sumptuously clad, and I flattered myself that I was partly the cause, nor was I mistaken. He spoke to me through a kind of trumpet which carried his voice up to me, and by this means he told me that, having been indifferent until now to all the beautiful women he had seen, he suddenly felt so powerfully stricken with me that he couldn’t live unless he were to see me every day of his life. I was highly pleased by this compliment, and most disturbed that I was unable to respond to it, for I should have had to shout at the top of my voice, and put myself in danger of being heard better by the fairies than by him. I was holding a few flowers which I threw down to him; he caught them as though they were a distinguished favor, kissed them several times and tendered me his thanks. Then he asked me if I thought it wise that he come every day at the same time and stand beneath my windows, and that if I did so, to throw him an object of some kind. I had a turquoise ring which I quickly removed from my finger and threw down to him in haste, signaling him to go away as fast as possible, for I had just heard the fairy Violenta on the other side of the tower, who had mounted her dragon to bring me my breakfast.

  The first thing she said on entering was: I smell a man’s voice here: Dragon, look for him. Ah! I had guessed right! I was terrified that the beast might fly through the other window and follow the knight, in whose fortunes I already took a lively interest. Truly, good mother, I said (for the fairy wished that I address her thus), you are making sport of me. Does a voice smell of something? And if it did, is there a mortal bold enough to venture to climb this tower? You speak truly, child, she replied, and I am delighted to see you reason so prettily; I suppose it must be the hatred I have for all men that sometimes persuades me they can’t be far off. She gave me my breakfast and my distaff. When you have eaten you must get back to your spinning, she told me, for you did nothing yesterday, and my sisters will be angry. In truth, I had been so preoccupied with the stranger that it had been impossible for me to spin.

  As soon as she left I threw down the distaff with a mutinous little gesture, and climbed up to my terrace to gaze as far off into the countryside as I could. I had an excellent telescope; nothing blocked my view, I peered about on all sides, and discovered my knight at the top of a mountain. He was resting under an opulent tent made of cloth-of-gold, and was attended by a large retinue. I had no doubt that he was the son of some king of the region of the fairies’ castle. Since I feared that if he returned to the tower he might be discovered by the terrible dragon, I picked up my parrot and told him to fly as far as the mountain, that he would find the stranger who had spoken to me there, and to beg him on my behalf not to come back again, for I dreaded the vigilance of my guardians, and feared lest they cause him harm.

  The parrot fulfilled his assignment with his inborn cleverness. Everyone was surprised to see him fly straight to his destination and perch on the prince’s shoulder so as to whisper in his ear. The prince experienced the joy and pain of this embassy. The precautions I had taken for him flattered his heart; but the obstacles that prevented him from speaking with me crushed him, without being able to dissuade him from carrying out the plan he had devised for pleasing me. He asked Sinbad a thousand questions, and Sinbad for his part asked him a hundred others, for he was by nature inquisitive. The prince gave him a ring for me in exchange for my turquoise; it too was a turquoise, but much more beautiful than mine; it was carved into a heart shape and set with diamonds. It is only right for me to treat you as an ambassador, he added: Here is my portrait; take it and show it only to your lovely mistress. He fastened the portrait under Sinbad’s wing and placed the ring in his beak.

  I awaited the return of my little green messenger with an impatience I had never felt before. He told me that he to whom I had dispatched him was a great king, that he had received him as hospitably as could be, that I could be sure he no longer wished to live except for my sake, and that despite the great peril of coming to the foot of the tower, he was determined to undertake anything rather than renounce seeing me again. This news intrigued me very much, and I started to cry. Sinbad and Fido consoled me as best they could, for they loved me tenderly; then Sinbad presented me with the prince’s ring, and showed me the portrait. I confess I had never been so delighted as I was at being able to contemplate close up him whom I had hitherto perceived only from a distance. He seemed even more attractive than before; a hundred thoughts flooded my mind, some agreeable, others sad, giving me an appearance of extreme restlessness. The fairies who came to see me noticed this. They told each other that doubtless I was growing bored, and that it was time to think of finding me a husband of the race of fairies. They mentioned several, and settled on little King Migonnet, whose kingdom lay five hundred thousand leagues from their palace, but that was of scant importance. Sinbad listened to this learned council and came to tell me of it, saying: Ah! how I pity you, dear mistress, if you become Queen Migonnet! He’s a frightful-looking scarecrow, I regret to tell you; in truth the king who loves you wouldn’t have him as his flunkey. Then you’ve seen him, Sinbad! I should say I have, he continued; I was brought up on a branch alongside him. What, on a branch? I continued. Yes, he replied, for he has the claws of an eagle.

  Such a tale afflicted me strangely; I gazed on the charming portrait of the young king, I esteemed that he had given it to Sinbad only so that I might find a way to see him; and when I compared his face with Migonnet, I no longer hoped for anything from life, and resolved to die rather than marry him.

  I slept not a wink all night. Sinbad and Fido chatted with me; toward morning I dozed off a little; and, since my dog had a keen nose, he sensed that the prince was at the front of the tower. He woke Sinbad: I’ll wager, he said, that the king is down there. Be still, chatterbox; since you almost always have your eyes open and your ears cocked, you’re annoyed when others sleep. But let’s wager, brave Fido insisted, I know that he’s there. And as for me, I know he’s not; haven’t I forbidden him to come here on behalf of our noble mistress? Ah, this is too much, you’re getting on my nerves with your excuses, cried my dog; a man of passion consults only his heart; and thereupon he began to tug so hard at Sinbad’s wings that the parrot grew furious. Their quarreling awoke me; they told me its cause; I ran or rather flew to the window; I saw the king stretching out his arms to me, telling me with his trumpet that he could no longer live without me, beseeching me to find a way to leave my tower or to let him enter it, that he called on all the gods and the elements to witness that he would marry me at once, and that I would be one of the greatest queens in the universe.

  I ordered Sinbad to go and tell him that what he wished seemed all but impossible; that nonetheless, in view of the promise he had given me and the oaths he had tendered, I would work diligently to help him realize his wishes; that I begged him not to come every day, lest he be finally spied by someone, and that the fairies were pitiless.

  He withdrew overcome with joy, thanks to the flattering hopes I held out to him while I found myself in the worst predicament I had ever known, when I reflected on what I had just promised. How could I leave this tower, which had no doors? And with only the help of Sinbad and Fido? And I so young, so inexperienced, so fearful? I therefore resolved not to undertake anything which had no hope of success, and I sent Sinbad to tell the king. He was ready to kill himself before Sinbad’s very eyes, but finally he ordered him to persuade me either to come and watch him die, or to comfort him. Sire, cried the winged ambassador
, my mistress is sufficiently convinced, she lacks only power.

  When he came to tell me all that had happened, I was more afflicted than before. Fairy Violenta arrived; seeing how my eyes were red and swollen, she said that I had wept, and that if I didn’t tell her why she would burn me, for all her threats were always terrible. I answered, trembling, that I was tired of spinning, and that I longed to have nets to catch the little birds who came to peck at the fruits in my garden. What you desire shall cost you no more tears, my daughter; I shall bring you all the cords you need; and in fact I received them that very evening; but she cautioned me to think less of work and more about making myself beautiful, since King Migonnet would soon be arriving. I shuddered at this disturbing news, and answered nothing.

  As soon as she left I began to work on two or three bits of netting, but my real endeavor was to fashion a rope ladder which would be skillfully made, even though I had never seen one. It is true that the fairy never supplied me with as much cord as I needed, and she kept repeating: But daughter, your weaving is like Penelope’s, it never progresses, and you are continually asking me for more supplies. O! Good mother, I said, it’s easy enough for you to talk! Can’t you see that I’m inexperienced, and that I keep spoiling my work and throwing it into the fire? Are you afraid of my impoverishing you with my string? My simple airs delighted her, even though she had a most disagreeable and cruel nature.