FIRST BOOK.

May God grant that my wit and my tongue acquire such honor that they may worthily speak of You. For you will always have a protector and most loyal defender of your merits; and to show this openly, I come now to the description of the Game of Love, which I promised to dedicate to you along with these others.

I desire, then, that once the honored troop of Gentlemen and pleasant Gentlewomen who intend to play have taken their seats, the Lord of the feast and of the game—Love—be chosen from among the whole fair number. This shall be the man or woman to whom the most hearts Likely physical tokens or slips of paper shaped like hearts, common in Renaissance parlor games. have been given. Each person shall elect him with these words: "Because you are our God of Love, I give you my heart." Once Love is chosen, two of those who gave their heart shall take him by the hand on each side; amidst the rejoicing of all, and followed by the others who elected him, they shall lead him to sit upon an adorned and somewhat elevated seat, prepared beforehand for such an occasion. If a woman were chosen, as being more deserving and more similar to Love, let something be placed upon her head to give her the appearance of a male While women were the muses of love, the deity Cupid/Amor was traditionally depicted as a boy; this cross-dressing element adds a layer of theatrical play common in 16th-century Italian courts.. Immediately, the whole company shall go to do her reverence and kiss her hand, giving her some small bouquet or other token of courtesy as a sign of goodwill and Love. Then, without waiting further, Love shall distribute the names of his Kingdom, saying to this one: "You shall be named Thought," and to another, "Vanity," and to this one "Fleeting Delight," and to this other "Constant Boredom," and continuing to the others, let him say:

Idleness
Error
Dreams
Slippery Hope
False Opinions
Tired Rest
Rested Grief
Harmful Gain
Useful Harm
Enchanted Valley
Fiery Ice
Blind Labyrinth

Clear Dishonor
Obscure Glory
Treacherous Faith
Anxious Fury
Lazy Reason
Certain Pain
Uncertain Joy
Difficult Entrance
Dark Prison
Certain Fear
Weak Strength
Wise Folly These titles are "Petrarchan oxymorons"—contradictory phrases used by poets like Francesco Petrarch to describe the agonizing yet sweet nature of romantic love.