Triumph of the love

the Triumph of the love is a Comédie into three acts and Prose of Marivaux, represented for the first time by the Italian Comédiens the March 12th 1732 with the theater of the Hôtel of Burgundy.

This founded part, like many others of Marivaux, on the transvestite and the seduction, did not have success at the time of its initial representation. One was shocked to see a princess of Sparte disguising itself to put themselves in the search of an young man of which it cannot be liked, and to mislead a philosopher by a cheating worthy of Scapin. For the public of the time, the historical improbability turned mainly around the fact that a princess of this importance, that it compared with the girl of a king of France, runs the adventures in this way. Badly received the first day, once the public accustomed to the historical improbability, its comedy was however applauded the following days, but without enthusiasm.

Characters

Léonide , princess of Sparte, under the name of Phocion.
Corine , following of Léonide, under the name of Hermidas.
Hermocrate , philosopher.
Léontine , sister of Hermocrate.
Acted , wire of Cléomène.
Dimas , gardener of Hermocrate.
Harlequin , servant of Hermocrate.

History

An young girl, Léonide, imagine to be introduced, under a male dress and the name of Phocion, in the residence where the old Hermocrate philosopher lives with his sister and the young kid of a usurped throne, and to be made love at the same time like man, by Léontine, the sister of the philosopher, wise and discrete single person long long and resigned to its fate; and like woman, by the old philosopher himself, like the young person Acted. Phocion called to Léontine that it was so much charmed of her of seeing it walking in wood, that it made its portrait. When it shows him this portrait, she does not believe anything of it initially. Then it is astonished, flattered, then finally charmed at the point to lose the reason of it. The conquest of the brother is more difficult: the princess entrusts to him that she disguised herself as a man to approach him, because he would not have received it under the clothes of his sex, that she liked it on her reputation initially, and then on his sight. To the moment when it is disturbed, Arlequin brings, like part of conviction against the intruder, whom it does not love, a portrait of the philosopher, that it discovered at Phocion. The philosopher does not hold to with it any more and agree to pose for some final improvements to make. triumph over the love reside in the complete success of the plans of Léonide: Léontine and Agis resist in vain with heroism until the end, both end little by little up being let invade by the love. Léontine will agree to be let remove to marry at the close city while Agis will agree, for the same reason, to leave its hermitage. Decided, each one on their side, to marry clandestinely, the brother and the sister, meet to take leave one of the other. This scene of the good-byes, which is also that of the consents, is more amusing comedy, and graduated with a marvellous naturalness and art.

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