Reading through Orlando Furioso right now. The 8th canto starts off:
Oh quante sono incantatrici, oh quanti
incantator tra noi, che non si sanno!
Che con lor arti uomini e donne amanti
di sé, cangiando i visi lor, fatto hanno.
Non con spirti constretti tali incanti,
né con osservazion di stelle fanno;
ma con simulazion, menzogne e frodi
legano i cor d’indissolubil nodi.
Oh how many charmers, women and men,
are among us and we don’t even realize?
Men and women, lovers of themselves,
Changing their appearances with their arts.
They don’t capture with spells,
or by observing the stars;
but by means of pretending, lies, and fraud
they tie up hearts with permanent bonds.
The previous canto discussed how one of the Paladins, Ruggiero, was enchanted and believed himself in love with the most beautiful woman. But through time, he was becoming more and more soft, and reluctant to fulfill the glories he was called to. He was rescued when he was given a ring that allowed him to see past the deception woven by the magic spell, and with the ring, could see that he was actually held by an ancient and ugly prostitute.
This story has a deeper meaning, as do most of the older literature that has managed to survive through time and retain its place: it uses these stories- in this instance a story with literal witches casting spells to hold men captive- to warn us about the ways in which we can allow ourselves to be deceived, and through time find ourselves irrevocably bound and separated from things we had been called to.
Ariosto tells us here that there are charmers among us, men and women, who will enchant us, not with spells, but through deceit, that nevertheless bind us up. They, in a sense, change their appearance to us, convincing us that they mean us well, when in reality, they love themselves, and have their own interests in mind, not ours. We are deceived as well. But how are we deceived? They often play to our desires! And we, rather than do what is best, choose the easiest course and allow ourselves to be sidetracked.
That’s a bit difficult to swallow, but we allow ourselves to be enchanted. Ruggiero was offered an easy path with a beautiful woman doting on him. It wasn’t like he was opposed to the idea, but it wasn’t what he was called to. Ultimately it was his own desires that allowed him to deviate from his calling.