The Importance of Reputation
Much of the Princess of Cleves' troubles relate to her need to preserve reputation. Although, from a twenty-first century perspective, this may seem a vain pursuit, for the princess it is an essential part of survival. As a member of the aristocracy and as a woman, her reputation is her value. The system may be twisted, but the princess belongs to it. Consequently she chooses to marry the Prince de Cleves because she needs the boost to her reputation and the security which a husband will offer, but her other suitors have long since left her. The Princess' reputation has cost her, yet continues to dictate her actions, even after her husband's death when she refuses to pursue her lover, the Duke of Nemours.
Jealousy vs. Cowardice
The love triangle presented in this story is complicated less by jealousy than by cowardice. The key players are each experiencing jealousy for their respective lovers, consumed by a need for validation. Unfortunately none of them are able to escape convention or self-imposed reservation long enough to realize their fears are unsubstantiated. For the princess, her fears that the duke has taken another lover could have been dispelled if she had asked him. She chooses, instead, to conceal her feelings and to trust secondhand information. Similarly the duke doesn't pause to verify if the princess wishes to pursue a relationship with him after her husband's death. So many feelings and intentions are left unstated out of fear, disguised as jealousy.
Insecurity as an Illness
THe Prince de Cleves is a prime example of how destructive insecurity can be in a person's life. Essentially he marries the princess because nobody else will and because he wants a wife. Rather than seeking the most eligible woman, he looks for the one nobody else will accept. While this may be noble if he loved her, but really he just wants her to need him. Wracked with insecurity, he eventually becomes ill. He levels all sorts of complaints at his wife, accusing her of not truly loving him (the reciprocation of which he is also guilty of). All of his worries and doubts eventually manifest in his physical body and make him so sick that he dies.
