Although in this particular scene Célimène and Arsinoé are not particularly admirable characters, Molière has them mouth certain general truths about each other's character. Neither of them, however, recognizes such as meaningful because of the purpose for which it is being told. For example, there are many stock phrases stated by each character: that we should judge ourselves before we judge others, that a woman becomes a prude only when she is too old to attract men, that we should clean our own backyard before we criticize our neighbors, etc. But the characters mouth these statements only as social formulas and are totally unaware of the truth behind the statements.
We have so far in the play seen Célimène functioning as a superb example of the society in which she lives. Now in this scene with Arsinoé, we see her feeling the pinch of criticism of the malicious side of society which she herself has helped support. By the end of the play, she will be trapped by the society which she represents; we get an intimation of that in this early scene.
The basic antagonism between Célimène and Arsinoé is the result of several factors. First, Arsinoé is jealous of the younger beauty. Célimène has taken away several of Arsinoé's admirers, and out of bitterness, Arsinoé has been telling people of her own virtue and suggesting that Célimène attracts suitors by being a loose woman. Célimène resents the slander and therefore accuses Arsinoé of starting the slander because she is too old to attract men herself.
