Partage de midi et la page 250

In his first conversation with Ysé, Mesa refers to page 250 of an unidentified book. This quote, present in all records of the play, has its origin in Jean d’Agrève, a novel by Eugène-Melchior de Voguë. Page 250 of the novel, which is entirely blank, directly follows a meeting between two lovers, echoed in that of Mesa and Ysé and, rather transparently, in that of Claudel himself with Rosalie Vetch. Thus, the enigmatic quote acts as a secret homage by the playwright to his forbidden love.