“Quid me expectatum non rere amicæ meæ venturum.”
It was certainly ingenious to make the adventures of the slave a parody on those of his master, and this new character produces an agreeable scene between her and Mercury, who is little pleased with the caresses of this antiquated charmer. On the other hand, the French dramatist has omitted the examination of the double Amphitryons, and nearly introduces them in the presence of two Thebans: Amphitryon brings his friends to avenge him, by assaulting Jupiter, when that god appears in the clouds and announces the future birth of Hercules. Through the whole comedy, Moliere has given a different colour to the behaviour of Jupiter, from that thrown over it by Plautus. In the Latin play he assumes quite the character of the husband; but with Moliere he is more of a lover and gallant, and pays Alcmena so many amorous compliments, that she exclaims,
“Amphitrion, en verité, Vous vous moquez de tenir ce langage!”
Moliere evidently felt that Alcmena and Amphitryon were placed in an awkward situation, in spite of the assurances of Jupiter—
“Alcmene est toute a toi, quelque soin qu’on employe; Et ce doit a tes feux etre un objet bien doux, De voir, que pour lui plaire, il n’est point d’autre voie, Que de paraitre son epoux. _Sosie_. Le seigneur Jupiter sait dorer sa pilule.”
In these, and several other lines, Moliere has availed himself of the old French play of Rotrou. The lively expression of Sosia,
“Le veritable Amphitryon est l’Amphitryon ou l’on dine,”
which has passed into a sort of proverb, has been suggested by a similar phrase of Rotrou’s Sosia—
“Point point d’Amphitryon ou l’on ne dine point;”
“J’etais venu, je vous jure, Avant que je fusse arrivé,”
and Sosia’s boast, in the older French play,
“Il m’est conforme en tout—il est grand, il est fort,”
has probably suggested to Moliere the lines,
“Des pieds, jusqu’ a la tete il est comme moi fait, Beau, l’air noble, bienpris, les manieres charmantes.”
The _Amphitrion_ of Moliere was published in 1668, so that Dryden, in his imitation of Plautus’s _Amphitryon_, which first appeared in 1690, had an opportunity of also availing himself of the French piece. But, even with this assistance, he has done Plautus less justice than his predecessor. He has sometimes borrowed the scenes and incidents of Moliere; but has too frequently given us ribaldry in the low characters, and bombast in the higher, instead of the admirable grace and liveliness of the French dramatist. His comedy commences earlier than either the French or Latin play. Phœbus makes his appearance at the opening of the piece. The first arrival of Jupiter in the shape of Amphitryon is then represented, apparently in order to introduce Phædra, the attendant of Alcmena, exacting a promise from her mistress, before she knew, who had arrived, that they should that night be bed-fellows as usual since Amphitryon’s absence. To this Phædra, Dryden has assigned an amour with Mercury, to the great jealousy of Sosia’s wife, Bromia; and has mixed up the whole play with pastoral dialogues and _rondeaus_, to which, as he informs us in his dedication, “the numerous choir of fair ladies gave so just an applause.” The scenes of a higher description are those which have been best managed. The latest editor, indeed, of the works of Dryden, thinks that in these parts he has surpassed both the French and Roman dramatist. “The sensation to be expressed,” he remarks, “is not that of sentimental affection, which the good father of Olympus was not capable of feeling; but love of that grosser and subordinate kind, which prompted Jupiter in his intrigues, has been expressed by none of the ancient poets in more beautiful verse, than that in which Dryden has clothed it, in the scenes between Jupiter and Alcmena.” Milbourne, who afterwards so violently attacked the English poet, highly compliments him on the success of this effort of his dramatic muse—