Lines 1309-1454 Summary

The dance ends and the narrator watches as the couples go apart for dalliance. The narrator goes to explore the garden further. Cupid prepares his golden arrows and orders Sweet-Looking to string his golden bow. The narrator describes the trees, the animals, and the fountains (wells) that he passes, but Cupid stalks him like a hunter.

Lines 1309-1454 Analysis

On the allegorical level, this passage is very easy to interpret. The young man at court is surrounded by happy couples, although he is unattached. He also looks around at the beauties of the court . Possibly the wells symbolize the unattached women of the court. The metaphor of a fountain or well for a beloved woman is also found in the Biblical Song of Solomon immediately adjacent to the metaphor of a garden. This interpretation is backed by the somewhat sexual terms...