Recollections of Cicognini's Gelosie fortunate in Le Misanthrope

One of Molière's early plays, Dom Garcie de Navarre ou le prince jaloux (staged in 1661), was an adaptation of a tragicomedy by Giacinto Andrea Cicognini, Le Gelosie fortunate del principe Rodrigo (1654). Although Molière's work failed, it contained characters, themes, and speeches he revived in his later comedies, especially in Le Misanthrope (1666), where the fourth act contained about ninety lines from two climactic scenes in Dom Garcie de Navarre, confrontations between the jealous hero and the innocent heroine. Molière profited, however, not only from the text of his own earlier play but also from memories of Le Gelosie fortunate, which presented a striking combination of violent emotional conflicts and frequent humorous interludes. It probably inspired some of the excesses of Alceste-his irrational suspicions and vehement language. The Italian source contributed also to the conception and configuration of characters around Alceste, particularly the affectionate and sensible relationship of Eliante and Philinte.