Vida (Occitan literary form)
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Vida is the usual term for a brief prose biography, written in Occitan, of a troubadour or trobairitz.
The word vida means "life" in Occitan. In the chansonniers, the manuscript collections of medieval troubadour poetry, the works of a particular author are often accompanied by a short prose biography. It is sometimes a matter of controversy to what extent these are based on independent sources; there is no doubt that certain assertions are deduced from literal readings of details in the poems.
Additionally, some individual poems are accompanied by razós, explanations of the circumstances in which the poem was composed.
There is a complete collection of vidas, with French translation and commentary, by Boutière and Schutz.
[edit] References
- Biographies des troubadours ed. J. Boutière, A.-H. Schutz. Paris: Nizet, 1964.
