Act 2 and Act 3

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Act 2

As Act 2 opens, Amphitryon and Sosia are heading home. Amphitryon roundly abuses Sosia, calling him a “confounded rascal” for telling an outlandish story about meeting another Sosia. The slave, however, sticks to his story, firmly maintaining that he is neither drunk nor crazy. Amphitryon becomes more and more furious, thinking that Sosia is trying to make a joke of him. Sosia repeats his tale, saying that the other Sosia must somehow be himself. He cannot explain it; he just knows what has happened.

Alcmena stands in the doorway, lamenting that her husband must leave her so soon. At least, though, he is a courageous man, and she is pleased with “the reward of hearing my husband hailed conqueror.” When she sees Amphitryon and Sosia coming, Alcmena is surprised but happy. Amphitryon anticipates an enthusiastic reunion but is disappointed, as his wife merely wonders why he has returned so soon.

Amphitryon is completely bewildered. At first, he thinks Alcmena is teasing him, but then he wonders if she is just crazy. Despite his questioning, she continues to maintain that he just left her not long ago. Sosia advises Amphitryon to humor her, but the latter begins to get angry as Alcmena rather patiently explains how she had greeted him the day before.

The confused Amphitryon says that he was on his ship all night, to which Alcmena exclaims, “The idea! You had dinner with me and went to bed with me.” Sosia says she must be dreaming, but Alcmena tells her husband how he won the battle and killed King Pterelas—details she could not have known.

Amphitryon argues that he is coming home for the first time just now, but Alcmena “reminds” him of the golden bowl he gifted her. He insists she bring it to him, and when he unfastens the chest, he realizes the bowl is indeed gone from it. He tries to blame Sosia for stealing it, but when that does not work, he makes Alcmena tell the whole story.

His wife gives the details about her night, and Amphitryon jumps to the conclusion that another man has seduced her. He accuses her of adultery, but she firmly asserts her innocence. She was, after all, with her husband. Amphitryon goes to get their relative Naucrates to mediate while Alcmena is left marveling that her husband “could think fit to accuse me of such atrocious conduct without the slightest cause.”

Act 3

Jupiter opens the third act with a monologue. He feels satisfied with the trick he played on the couple, but he is determined to help Alcmena—the “poor innocent”—albeit only after he has played with her husband for a while. Alcmena emerges from the house, even more furious at her husband’s “awful, unjustified accusation.” She means to make him sorry; she will leave him.

Jupiter, in Amphitryon’s form, approaches Alcmena and says he was only teasing her before, merely “testing your feelings to see what you’d do and how you’d take it.” The whole thing is just a joke, he says, then asks for her forgiveness. Alcmena is still furious and refuses, at least at first, but then she mellows. Jupiter sends Sosia to invite Blepharo, the ship’s pilot, to lunch. Jupiter chuckles about how he is fooling everybody and then tells Mercury to distract Sosia and Amphitryon while he proceeds to “divert myself with my wife on loan.”

Still disguised as Sosia, Mercury decides he will pretend to be drunk, get up on the roof, and “repel our returning hero from up there.” “I’ll see that he’s both soaked and sober,” Mercury declares.

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Prologue and Act 1

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Act 4 and 5