In this scene between Dorine and Mariane, we come to understand that Mariane is the pliable daughter who finds it impossible to defy her father. She does not have the basic common sense of Dorine so as to understand that her father has become an unreasonable tyrant and thus she views her predicament as hopeless.
When Mariane cannot bring herself to oppose her father, then Dorine begins to depict the horrors of being married to Tartuffe. By showing her the distasteful details of marriage to Tartuffe, Dorine is then able to get Mariane to become more firmly resolute in opposing Orgon.
The comedy of Scene 4 depends largely upon physical actions. Dorine retires to the back of the stage, and as we observe the childish arguments between Mariane and Valère, we are constantly aware that Dorine is viewing the entire scene with comic detachment. She is merely waiting to see how absurd the two lovers can become before she steps in to reconcile them. Consequently, the comedy is that of the crossed lovers at cross-purposes, and then the entire scene is lightened by the reconciliation.
To bring about the reconciliation, Dorine must be physically alert and the reader should imaginatively re-create the physical actions called for in this particular scene. For example, Valère is about to exit from one side of the stage when Dorine has to run over and tug him back and, just as she has accomplished this, Mariane is about to exit from the other side, forcing Dorine to rush over and bring her back.
In bringing the lovers together, Dorine is the practical person who tells them that they can argue later but for the present they have to conceive some plan to stop Orgon from carrying out his project. For the present, Dorine gives them sound advice: to pretend to go along with the wedding until they can think of some way of bringing Orgon to his senses.
