She takes her revenge by revealing Helene's secret; he tells Helene that
he knows it; and she, putting two and two together, divines how it has
come to his knowledge. This long scene of mutual reproach and remorseful
misery is, in reality, the whole drama, and might have been cited in
Chapter XIV as a fine example of a peripety. Helene enters Philippe's
studio happy and serene, she leaves it broken-hearted; but the effect of
the scene is not a whit greater because, in the two previous acts, we
have been studiously deprived of the information that would have led us
vaguely to anticipate it.
To sum up this question of secrecy: the current maxim, "Never keep a
secret from your audience," would appear to be an over-simplification of
a somewhat difficult question of craftsmanship. We may agree that it is
often dangerous and sometimes manifestly foolish to keep a secret; but,
on the other hand, there is certainly no reason why the playwright
should blurt out all his secrets at the first possible opportunity.
Pages:
406
407
408
409
410
411
412
413
414
415
416
417
418
419
420
421
422
423
424
425
426
427
428
429
430