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Indiana University Studies 
this psychological evolution which takes place in Margarita 
and Diana. Both are brought around by a feigned disdain on 
the part of their lovers and because of jealousy aroused by 
feigned interest in other ladies. Diana’s defeat is a more dif- 
ficult undertaking, is a more complete victory for Carlos than 
Margarita’s defeat is for Alejandro. Diana’s reasons for her 
attitude toward men in general are more logical and better 
thought out than Margarita’s reason for scorning the love of 
Alejandro. It would seem impossible, after drawing such a 
character as Diana — who is, so to speak, the last word as a 
representative of the psychological workings of the feminine 
mind — to create a character in much the same circumstances 
as those in which she is and have that character so greatly in- 
ferior to her as Margarita is. On the other hand, Margarita 
as a preliminary working out of Diana is most conceivable. 
To Schaeffer, as quoted above, the similarity between these 
two plays of Moreto’s lies in the pretended indifference on the 
part of both Carlos and Alejandro toward Diana and Mar- 
garita, respectively. In El desden con el desden, Moreto makes 
this fact the stimulus which makes Diana swear to rendir 
Carlos at any cost, which, in turn, brings about her downfall 
in the end. In El poder de la amistad this indifference is sec- 
ondary to the more effective stimulus of jealousy which Mar- 
garita feels, early in the play, toward Matilde. Here, again, 
Alejandro, as a suggestion for the character of Carlos, who is 
made to play the part of a well-calculated, firm, and over- 
whelming indifference toward Diana, can easily be seen. He 
gets his cue from Alejandro and, without any aid except of 
Polilla — whereas Alejandro has both Luciano and Tebandro 
working for him — is made to stand out in relief along with 
Diana. 
Matilde and Cintia play practically the same part in the two 
plays. Tebandro and Luciano have no counterparts in El des- 
den con el desden , and Tebas and Atenas, altho rival suitors 
with Alejandro, do not have the same relation of good feeling 
and lack of malice toward him as do Bearne and Fox toward 
Carlos. Moclin is inferior to Polilla in the same proportion 
as Margarita to Diana, and Alejandro to Carlos. He takes 
up the office of boticario rather late in the play, when, after 
giving his ideas on the subject of how to treat scornful women, 
as follows : 
