Sganarelle, Ou Le Cocu Imaginaire

Sganarelle, ou le Cocu imaginaire marks Molière's daring entrance into comic theater. Premiered in 1660, this one-act verse comedy introduces us to a husband so consumed by jealousy that he becomes absolutely certain of his wife's infidelity - except there is no affair. Not a single shred of evidence exists, yet Sganarelle manufactures elaborate scenarios, browbeats his servants, confronts the supposed lover, and works himself into a spectacular frenzy all based on pure paranoid fantasy. The farcical unraveling reveals the absurdity of masculine jealousy and the way men construct elaborate narratives of betrayal from their own insecurities. Molière transforms the traditional cuckold figure into comic gold, making his audience laugh at the very thing that could destroy a marriage. The play established the playwright's gift for exposing the gap between how men see themselves and how ridiculous their behavior actually appears to everyone else.