Desire and Generic Differentiation in Trouvere Song

Masculine desire in trouvère song is a product of generic differentiation, posed as opposition. The generic affiliation of a song is linked to the relation of the lyric subject to the object of his desire, in particular through the difference made by the inclusion or exclusion of narrative elements in songs. Two songs, representative of two trouvère genres, the chanson and the pastourelle, are examined in some detail, with the aim of distinguishing between the claims of the lyric subject and the hidden desire which emerges against his claims. Lacanian psychoanalytic theory assists in bringing these hidden desires to the light.