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by Jean Baptiste Molière English verse by Timothy Mooney Comedy: Full Length 5 Acts; Estimated Running Time 90 minutes (without intermission). Cast: 8 Male, 5 Female, 13 Total. Setting: Single Interior Setting.
Congratulations to Pomperaug High School on their three Halo awards (Best Play/Best Original Artwork - Program/Best Costume Design) for their production of "The Learned Ladies" |
CAST:
8 Male, 5 Female, 13 Total.
DRAMATIS PERSONAE:
CHRYSALE, a bourgeois man in good standing
PHILAMINTE, Chrysale’s wife
ARMANDE, elder daughter of Chrysale and Philaminte
HENRIETTE, younger daughter of Chrysale and Philaminte
ARISTE, brother of Chrysale
BELISE, sister of Chrysale
CLITANDRE, in love with Henriette
TRISSOTIN, a wit
VADIUS, a learned man
MARTINE, a kitchen servant
L’EPINE, a lackey
JULIEN, Vadius’ valet
THE NOTARY
SCENE:
Single Interior: Paris, in the home of Chrysale.
Moliere did not hesitate to indulge his humor wherever he found it. And while his The School for Wives might have pointed the way towards the woman's movement, his The Learned Ladies (also known as The Learned Ladies) would argue the opposite side. Here we find Philaminte and her female confidantes clearly overreaching the limits of their wit and expecting the world to cater to the whim of their wisdom. In the course of doing such, she endangers the future of her daughter, Henriette, by attempting to marry her off to a flattering, dull pedant whom she imagines to be a philosopher, leaving Henriette's true love, Clitandre, out in the cold. In the course of doing so, she usurps the then-customary right of the husband to determine the daughter's spouse, and it is clear that, on this occasion at least, Moliere has sided with the patriarchy.
I chose to translate the title in a manner that is actually closer to Moliere's orignial, La Femme Savants, as the sarcasm Moliere clearly suggests in the title picks up some less-flattering echoes of another much-used phrase.
In this scene, Belise, one of the feminine savants and Henriette's aunt, is approached by Clitandre, who wants to enlist her support in his petition for Henriette's hand. In it, Moliere explores one of his favorite themes: the power of ignorance when the ignorant is determined to remain in such a state.
The Learned Ladies
Act One, Scene Four
CLITANDRE, BELISE
CLITANDRE
Madame, allow a lover,
if you would
To take this chance to
try to win some good,
For I must tell you of
my love, and how –
BELISE
Oh, sir! You
mustn’t tell me all this now!
If you have joined the
ranks of all my swain,
Just tell me with your
eyes, but don’t explain!
Your eyes alone must be
heart’s emissary,
And coarse displays are
hardly necessary,
Yes, love me, pine and
burn; that is expected,
But don’t allow
me know how you’re affected.
As long as you keep how
you feel inside
Then I don’t need
to censor you or chide,
But if you speak of
love, so free and wild,
Then from my sight
you’ll need to be exiled!
CLITANDRE
My passions, Ma’am,
are naught to worry of
It’s
Henriette’s the object of my love,
And I am asking, here,
for your support,
In winning her as I
should pay my court.
BELISE
Oh, that’s a
tricky dodge, and very witty!
I don’t believe
I’ve heard a turn so pretty!
He spoke a different
name, while she well knew it, see;
That strikes me as the
height of ingenuity!
CLITANDRE
Madame, I did not mean
to speak with wit,
But rather, tell you
true my sense of it,
By all the grace a man
might hope to get,
I am in love and loved by
Henriette.
It’s Henriette
that I do so desire,
And marriage with her
to which I aspire,
And in establishment of
this connection,
I only ask you favor my
affection.
BELISE
I spy the art behind
your elocution
And see your clever
trick of substitution,
I’ll speak with
you, here, in this selfsame code,
And answer you within
your witty mode,
Your
“Henriette” does not desire a mate,
And those who sue for
her are doomed to wait.
CLITANDRE
Enough, Madame! It
seems you’re fully bound
To turn each thing I
say here upside-down!
BELISE
Oh, Sir! Have you not
had enough of games?
You think your eyes can
hide your heart’s fond flames?
Suffice that I’m
content, here, with the art
Which manages to shroud
devoted heart.
If you are humble in
this, and not proud,
Your kind of worship
may well be allowed.
As long as you are pure
in your petition,
You may approach my
shrine with my permission.
CLITANDRE
But –
BELISE
No.
I really ought to go. Yes. Good.
I’ve spoken more,
here, really, than I should.
CLITANDRE
You’re wrong
–
BELISE
Don’t talk like I’m a goddess, see,
When you go on, it
hurts my modesty.
CLITANDRE
I’m damned if it
is you that I adore!
BELISE
No, silent, please. I
can’t hear any more. (SHE exits.)
CLITANDRE
The devil take her
fantasies and visions!
Has any truth received
more stark revisions?
I didn’t think
such foolishness existed!
I’ll seek support
from someone not so twisted.