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Equitan is a king who falls in love with the wife of his seneschal (a kind of chief administrative official). However, though the seneschal’s wife seems to reciprocate his feelings, she resists his romantic advances. This speech reveals her reasoning and also gives some interesting insights on courtly love.
Typically in medieval courtly love tales, a knight attempts to woo a lady of higher status. In the story of Equitan, the situation is reversed: the king falls in love with the wife of his vassal, somebody who serves him. The seneschal’s wife slyly suggests that this dynamic isn’t going to…