We begin again within the Garden of the home of the virtuous Pantalone. The most distinguished feature in this garden is a statue of the goddess Venus, none other than our own dear La Ballerina who stands on a pedestal in the center of the garden and holds a comb and mirror. The image of Venus has been caught in the act of arranging her hair, and she stands frozen in this pose except when she gestures, shrugs or frowns at the speech of Pantalone.
The second noticeable feature of this garden is it's wall, outside of which is Arliquin who alternately passes in frustration along it, futilely leaps or otherwise attempts to breach it, or sits forlornly against it.
Within the wall Pantalone and Isabella speak and Pantalone says thus.
"A Garden wall....Have you ever noted that a man may possess great herds of cattle; sheep, steer, cow, goat, and these though they were the background of his wealth roam free guarded only by a boy or an old man, as likely to be lame as to be honest?? Perhaps he keeps his wealth behind hedges just high enough to keep them in, though not so high as to keep an active rogue out.
Great olive trees whose fruit is a delight and whose oil laid the foundations of civilized trade; vineyards whose wine was the life blood that flowed thru the veins of the trade routes; apple orchards, chestnut groves that rival even the staff of life; and yes, even the fields of grain themselves: a man may be wealthy in all these things; cannot be wealthy without them and yet be free to neglect thier defense. But let this same man own a garden and that garden will have a wall.
Why? Is it that beauty is more jealously possessed and more grudgingly shared? Is it that envy of such possesssions inspires more passionate assaults on such treasures? Some may say yea and others, nay.
Nay, it is for privacy, reflection,and in keeping safe the place of his solitude; the violation of which is indeed to violate himself.
Yea, one jealously guards beauty. For what is a greater claim to a man's greatness than to possess a piece of paradise?
Nay, nay. You see yourself, this very garden in which we stand is graced by that most beloved and praised goddess, Venus. A garden is like a temple to honour beauty and life, and so, is shielded as a temple is meant to be.
Ah, but see more clearly friend, such worship is a masque. But the owning of beauty; that is more jealously guarded. For what in his heart does a man know he more wrongfully monopolises than beauty? And knowing this, he is more fearful in guarding; while apology repents in this play of worship.
The arguement goes on but none there are who would strike down the wall. They agree in that, for all are just a part of the same wall. Each arguement is like a great block of that wall that adds to its strength. Do they not fit together?
Is paradise not the place where Adam has his own Eve? Is Paradise not something that they both lost; and so is to be guarded? Is Eve, as the mother of mankind, not at least the equal of Venus? And is not a man's paradise his own Eve; who the law does say is cleaved to be a part of him; so that her violation is his violation?
This is the point. I have a friend without a Venus or an Eve in his garden. And I have a daughter meant to fill that place. Your place, my daughter, is in that garden to stand proudly like a Venus; to flower like an Eve. Follow Eve in her fine example and not her disobedience. Cleave both to your father's wishes and to your husband's side."
At last Venus has had enough and demands to know if this rhetoric has deluded Isabella. Venus is heard by Isabella but not by Pantalone. You can imagine how taken aback Isabella is, first by Pantalone's words and then by these from the statue. Her confused replies are taken by both Pantalone and Venus to be to thier questions and a brief pandemonium ensues. But Venus, arguing for Love and from a pedestal, has the higher ground and directs Isabella at last in her answer to Pantalone. Instructed by Venus, Isabella tells Pantalone she will accept any suitor that maintains his loyal ardor for her through the week. At the end of the week she will accept Pantalone's choice, unless his candidate fails first to meet this test; in which case he must accept her candidate as his son-in-law.
Pantalone is hesitant and would protest, but how? Could he insist she should marry his choice if that friend could not stay consistant for even a week? At last Pantalone submits to exchange his pledge with his ward, and asks who her candidate would be. The answer, Arliquin, is of course not a very pleasant prospect for him, and Pantalone is not without wiles of his own. He has as yet named no choice himself and now declares for both Il Dottore and Il Capitano, both of whom he now leaves to notify of these conditions. His strategem is like that of a man who fires two pistols at his target, knowing only one is likely to misfire.
Venus is unconcerned with this. Let the old man enter two horses in the race and so much the better. But now they must find Arliquin and notify him of the situation. Venus produces a rope and resourcefully forms a lasso. With much energy and show (and you haven't seen energy or show until you've seen Venus twirl a lasso) she whirls the lasso about her head and over the wall. It catches in no other place than about Arliquin's neck.
Unaware of the nature of her catch, the goddess quickly tightens the noose about poor Arliquin and has Isabella join her in heaving at the line. You see, once they know it will resist thier combined efforts they can be assured it will support Isabella up and over the wall. They begin unknowingly hauling Arliquin up his impromptu gallows when Trivelino comes to Arliquin's assistance. When Trivelino adds his weight to the rope, Venus and Isabella believe the rope to have caught fast and let go. Our rogues thus spill to the ground off balance.
Venus catches the line before it can be lost. Could they have snagged a sapling? No matter, they'll haul thier way to Isabella's freedom yet. So begins a desperate tug of war, highlighted by the chatter of Trivelino about the gallows and Venus about teamwork and triumph. Soon Columbine comes forth as reenforcement and the ladies seem about to carry away the day when Venus instructs them to hold fast while she scouts about. A quick peek outside the wall shows the goddess everything and in the nick of time she sets everything aright.
Leaving off the scene, Venus tells Columbine to visit her illusionist uncle tommorrow to seek his aid.Scene iii the Balcony