168 - MARIVAUX. *La Meprise*.

MARIVAUX. *La Meprise*. Paris, Pierre Prault, 1739. In-12 (16.5 x 9 cm), red half-basane, spine decorated with small flowers. 65 pp. Slightly yellowed paper, a few small holes. First edition published five years after the play’s premiere. A one-act comedy in prose, first performed by the King’s Regular Italian Actors on August 16, 1734. The plot revolves around a case of mistaken identity involving twins: Ergaste mistakes one of the two sisters for the other, triggering a series of romantic misunderstandings. Here, Marivaux borrows the mechanism of the mix-up from the tradition of the commedia dell’arte—in which the character of Arlequin remains the central figure—to use it as a tool for exploring romantic love: “Marivaux’s style is reduced to its essence here, as the play’s brevity compels the author to concentrate his art.” The relatively short play was performed with a ballet between acts, in accordance with the custom of the Théâtre-Italien. A fine copy bound in the 19th century.