Jeu-parti

The jeu-parti (plural jeux-partis, also known as parture) is a genre of French lyric poetry composed between two trouvères. It is a cognate of the Occitan partimen (also known as partia or joc partit). In the classic type, one poet poses a dilemma question in the opening stanza, his or her partner picks a side (the 'part') in the second stanza, which replicates the versification of the first and is sung to the same melody. Typically, the jeu-parti has six stanzas, with the two interlocutors alternating stanza by stanza. Many jeux-partis also have final partial stanzas in which one or both of the interlocutors appoint judges and call for judgement. The outcome, however, is virtually never given within the jeu-parti itself and would have been the subject of audience discussion after the jeu-parti's performance. The form was particularly associated with the Puy d'Arras. Over 200 examples survive, of which around 180 are in the classic form.