Grisélidis

Evening time in the forest The shepherd Alain sings of his love for Grisélidis. The Marquis, out hunting, sees her, is overwhelmed and proposes marriage, which she accepts, to the despair of Alain. Four years later Grisélidis has a son and, as the Marquis departs on a Crusade, his servants promise to confine his wife, which he rejects, having complete trust in her. The devil overhears all this and, as he is unhappily married, explains that he and his wife get pleasure from deceiving husbands. The Marquis accepts the challenge and gives the Devil his ring as a pledge, then taking leave of his wife and son. Bertrade tries to distract Grisélidis by telling her the story of the return of Ulysses. On a castle terrace six months later, in autumn Grisélidis dreams sadly of her absent husband, while the church bells toll. The Devil and his wife approach Grisélidis disguised as a slave-trader and a Persian houri, showing her the ring to prove that the Marquis has rejected Grisélidis. To tempt Grisélidis, the Devil conjures a magic garden and lures Alain there. The appearance of Loÿs determines Grisélidis not to return to Alain, but his disappearance distracts her, and the Devil takes the child away. While the castle servants search for Loÿs, the Devil, now disguised as an obsequious old man, tells Grisélidis that a pirate is holding Loÿs, and will only release the child in exchange for a kiss from the Marquise. The Marquis, on returning, meets the old man, who points out Grisélidis ru…

Estratto dalla sezione Synopsis dell’articolo Wikipedia — testo rilasciato con licenza CC BY-SA 4.0. Leggi la trama completa →