One badine not with the love

One badine not with the love is a Play of Alfred de Musset, published in 1834 in the Review of the Two Worlds and represented the November 18th 1861 with the Comédie-Française. It is about a romantic drama which mixes the comic one with the tragedy. As lets it suppose its title, this part in three acts belongs to the kind of the dramatic proverb, which holds its origin of the invaluable living rooms

History

The scene occurs in province, in a castle and has for principal characters, Camille, an young girl who leaves the convent, and her cousin Perdican, recently titular of a doctorate. The two children find themselves after ten years of separation in this castle, expensive in their hearts, where they grew together, played together, where they loved each other. The Baron, (the father of Perdican) decided to marry Camille and Perdican.

For Camille this marriage does not have anything a love match, and one cannot force the feelings. Perdican, likes to him Camille as at the first day and does not see any obstacle with this union.

By futility, Perdican allures Rosette, a young country-woman, foster sister of Camille.

The ten years of convent of Camille learned how to him not to rely on the love. In famous scene 5 of the Act Two, Camille announces its departure with Perdican. She wants to turn over to the convent and to dedicate her life with God. Perdican then makes a critic of religious education and nuns. And more, it makes a description of the relationship between men and women which (thanks to the lyricism of Musset) remains unequalled…

" Good-bye, Camille, turns over to your convent, and when one makes you these hideous accounts which poisoned you, answer what I will say to you: All the men are lying, inconstant, false, talkative, hypocritical, proud and loose, méprisables and sensual; all the women perfidious, cunning, conceited, curious and are dépravées; the world is only one sewer bottomless where the formless seals crawl and twist on mountains of mud; but it there has a holy thing and sublimates, it is the union of two of these beings, if imperfect and so dreadful. One is often misled in love, often wounded and often unhappy; but one likes, and when one is on the edge of his tomb, one is turned over to look at behind, and one says oneself: I often suffered, I was mistaken some times; but I liked. It is me which lived, and not a factitious being created by my pride and my ennui."

In spite of that Camille does not seem to test feelings for Perdican, or at least seems it to hide them.

It sends a letter to a sister of the convent saying that Perdican is desperate. But Perdican discovers this letter. On spite, this one decides to become engaged to Rosette to make Camille jealous.

At this point in time Camille calls Rosette and says to him to hide, while it invites Perdican which reveals its feelings to him, Rosette loses consciousness then. Camille and Perdican acknowledge finally their love and Rosette which observed them in hiding-place dies under the shock. Camille leaves Perdican then, breaking forever their love however reciprocal.

One should not omit to mention the supporting characters: ram Pluche, main Blazius tutor of Perdican, the baron, whose puerility and grotesque one emphasize all the tragedy of the situation of three children who play with their heart…

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