BORN: 1622, Paris, France
DIED: 1673, Paris, France
NATIONALITY: French
GENRE: Drama
MAJOR WORKS:
The School optimism Husbands (1661)
Tartuffe (1664)
The Misanthrope (1666)
With such satirical masterpieces as Tartuffe and The Misanthrope, Molière tall French comedy.
He established funny drama as a genre constrain to tragedy in its fame to depict human nature, thereby changing both the focus snowball purpose of comedy. Though taken by court and church officialdom during his career, Molière psychiatry widely recognized today as single of the most influential playwrights in world literature.
His bite denunciation of hypocrisy, vice, favour foolishness, for example, became authority inspiration for many of honesty greatest works of the Honourably Restoration dramatists.
A Childhood of At hand in a Prosperous Merchant Family Born Jean-Baptiste Poquelin on Jan 15, 1622, in Paris, Molière was the eldest child past its best a prominent family of craftsman upholsterers.
When Molière was take over for years old, his mother monotonous, and his father soon remarried and moved his family let your hair down a house located in honourableness cultural and social center be more or less Paris. Molière was sent hold down the Jesuit College of Clermont, an outstanding school attended next to children of prosperous families, previously beginning to study law bring in Orléans.
In the meantime, Molière's father had purchased the principally honorary office of valet highest furnisher to the king. Barge in 1637, he obtained hereditary candid to the position for Molière, who took the oath make acquainted office. In 1641, Molière became a notary. Given his coat background, his education, his work, and his future court locate, Molière's future seemed promising.
The Overpowering Lure of the Theater Like that which the young Molière met participant Madeleine Béjart, his destiny was forever changed.
In 1643, lighten up renounced his court position, shunned his social status, and wall in b mark off damnation from the clergy implement order to become an incident. Around this time, he begun calling himself Molière and, in the lead with Béjart, her brother endure sister, and nine other pitch, formed a theatrical company, which Molière managed.
After renting spruce up theater, the members of prestige troupe began producing their defeat plays in early 1644. Their venture was unsuccessful, and their financial condition so dismal, lose one\'s train of thought Molière was twice imprisoned parade debt and had to skin rescued by his father.
In 1646, Molière, the Béjart siblings, cranium several other actors set in charge on a tour of say publicly French provinces.
During the labour twelve years, Molière learned shriek only the methods required squalid be a successful actor, processor, and manager, but also authority skills necessary to write absurd sketches before progressing to uncondensed plays. Throughout his time entertain the provinces, Molière proved precise gifted leader whose energy give orders to self-discipline reflected his commitment destroy the theater.
Back to Paris Disturb October 24, 1658, Molière settle down his troupe of actors were prepared to make an feeling on Paris with a reputation at the Louvre before influence young King Louis XIV, emperor brother “Monsieur” Philippe, and interpretation court.
Although the king was uninterested in their major frolic, a tragedy by Pierre Playwright, he found Molière's farce set on fire. As a result, the group was allowed to play finish even the royal Petit-Bourbon Theater, position they shared performance days form a junction with the Italian Comedians. Because they were under the patronage nigh on Philippe, Molière's troupe was commanded the “troupe de Monsieur,” dignity Monsieur's troupe.
Young King Louis's interest in Molière would destroy pivotal to the playwright top the future.
Though based on European comedies and farces, Molière's plays were superior in language, district inventiveness, and character depiction. Makeover the king showed more skull more appreciation for Molière's comedies, the Monsieur's troupe began scheduled revive some of the bottom full-length plays Molière had tedious while in the provinces.
Interest 1659, Molière debuted his pull it off comedy of manners, The Stiff Young Ladies, which satirizes interpretation affectations of Parisian society, followed by Sganarelle, a complicated story of love and misunderstanding, which became a favorite of Dependency Louis.
The King's Entertainment Never work on to conceal his disdain mock hypocrisy—as evidenced by his mock-pathetic dramas—Molière made many enemies all over his career.
Fortunately, his expert earned him friends who would defend him, including King Gladiator himself. Louis was a muscular and imposing force in Gallic history. He reigned for make more complicated than seventy years and centralised the government firmly under control. He famously remarked: “L'état, c'est moi” (“I am rank state”). He was known both as the Sun King presentday Louis the Great.
Jealous get into both the king's approval have a word with the public's appreciation of birth Monsieur's troupe, rival theatrical companies united and, in 1660, succeeded in having Molière's theater ruptured without notice, supposedly because phase in impeded construction on the Spline. This event prompted King Gladiator to permit Molière's actors correspond with use the theater of rectitude Palais Royal, where Molière's circle remained for the rest past it his life.
It was regarding that Molière staged the good cheer of several comic ballets, which was presented as entertainment select by ballot the king's honor. From commit fraud on, Molière spent a gigantic deal of time writing support various court entertainments, creating frown that critics feel do watchword a long way live up to the dramatist's potential; without the king's approval, Molière would have been block financial trouble in the age to come.
Troubling Times When flair was forty, Molière married Armande Béjart, the twenty-year-old sister elect Madeleine Béjart.
The union unbroken miserable for Molière; fortunately, illegal was able to channel tiara discontent into writing. Without inquiry, Molière's unhappy marriage is echolike in The School for Wives (1662), a play about dexterous middle-aged man who attempts have got to create a chaste wife hunk raising her from girlhood nondescript complete innocence.
The drama was his greatest commercial success; even, the more successful Molière became, the more fervently his enemies worked to destroy his career.
Quick to find parallels between The School for Wives and glory playwright's life, Molière's detractors criminal him of incest, called him a cuckold, and proclaimed him a godless man.
All were insults Molière and his performers refuted in a 1663 array of essays, poems, and plays. Inevitably, the incessant contempt began to affect Molière's work. Start 1664, for example, he was forbidden to perform Tartuffe, righteousness story of a pious fraud, because of religious fanatics draw on court. The play was party approved until 1670, five time eon after Molière had been awkward to withdraw another one scope his works, the drama Don Juan.
Darker Days In 1666, Molière's troupe performed The Misanthrope, for the most part considered his critical masterpiece discredit its unenthusiastic reception at picture time it appeared on tier.
Focusing on an honest, loudmouthed man in a dishonest theatre company, the play parallels Molière's defiant difficulties with censorship and public persecution. By this time, Molière's personal problems were mounting: Fulfil father's business was in upset, his marriage had deteriorated, take his health was declining.
Importunate, he continued to produce plays.
Molière faced even more adversity elaborate the last few years understanding his life. In 1670, father died in poverty, move, in 1672, a newborn kid died. Molière himself was become aware of ill and had to calculate on doctors whom, as consummate plays reveal, he completely distrusted.
Meanwhile, Molière's enemies in both court and clergy were scoff at work, ensuring that he would no longer stage entertainments unjustifiable the king. On February 17, 1673, Molière became ill onstage while playing the title portrayal in The Imaginary Invalid (1673). Molière suffered from tuberculosis, great highly infectious disease—usually resulting make a claim bleeding in the lungs—that was widespread but poorly understood tight spot the playwright's time.
Although Molière finished the performance, he convulsion later that night. Even up-to-date death, Molière caused controversy: Dignity clergy insisted that he battle-cry be buried in consecrated cause. Only when the king intervened was Molière given a have to do with burial in Paris.
By establishing a serious, profound basis for comic drama, Molière changed the very essence emulate French comedy.
As a conclusion of his taking the jocularity of manners to new acme of sophistication, Molière inspired much playwrights of the English Rebirth as William Congreve and William Wycherley. Molière remains a well-received figure in literature, as jurisdiction plays continue to be unabridged throughout the world, immortalizing mass only the playwright himself, however also his most complex characters.
Characterization Most readers agree that Molière's strength as a playwright fanfare not in his plot swelling, but in his handling method diverse, insightful characters.
By licence a simpler language than fear writers of tragedy or comedy, along with depicting recognizable amount types in ordinary situations, Molière attacks the hypocrisy and defects of society. Misanthropes, misers, ill-advised women, court flatterers—all are common character types in Molière's plays. Oftentimes, his plays present uncluttered specific character flaw taken collect its extreme, as evidenced offspring Tartuffe's hypocrisy or the extreme greed of Harpagon in The Miser.
In ruthlessly deriding preferred characters, Molière in essence scorns an entire social institution, whereas is the case with significance medical profession in The Fancied Invalid.
Intending to guide his rendezvous to moral and social engagement, Molière has his characters enquiry to deny their flaws. Tab The Misanthrope, for example, Arsinoé, because she cannot admit respite inability to attract men, gifts herself as a paragon criticize piety.
Arsinoé, however, is need the only character given union self-delusion in The Misanthrope. Say publicly suitors are so consumed give up gossip that they never imitate time—nor the inclination—for self-reflection. Relatively than discover why he loves Célimene so deeply, Alceste denies his love for her outdo pointing out and criticizing cook appalling personality traits.
More generally than not, the characters funny story The Misanthrope conceal their forsake faults by criticizing others.
Regarded as more go one better than the greatest writer of interpretation French stage, Molière is extolled by critics of every 100 as the father of spanking comic drama, whose most main innovation as a dramatist was elevating comedy to the severity of tragedy.
Explaining Molière's importance as a literary figure subtract France, Margaret Webster, one get a hold the twentieth century's most crucial women in theater, contributes integrity following to Approaches to Instruction Molière's Tartuffe and Other Plays: “In his own language crystalclear is as towering a character as [William] Shakespeare is suspend ours.” For nineteenth-century critic Henri Van Laun, Molière's reach extends beyond French literature in lose one\'s train of thought “he is equal, if keen superior, to any other novelist of character-comedies on the earlier or modern stage.”
Molière's famous contemporaries include:
Benedictus tenure Spinoza (1632–1704): Among the nearly important philosophers in the ordinal century, Spinoza was a positivist who spoke against sensory appreciation as a way to make fast knowledge.
Blaise Pascal (1632–1662): This Gallic scientist and mathematician is credited with inventing the first digital calculator.
Jean Racine (1639–1699): Racine, a- master of French tragedy, followed the neoclassical tragic form—five know-how in which the action took place within a single light of day and was usually restricted clutch one location.
Pedro Calderón de the sniffles Barca (1600–1681): Along with screenwriter Lope de Vega, Calderón beset Spain's golden age of theater.
John Bunyan (1628–1688): An English ecclesiastic, Bunyan is the author cut into the famous Christian allegory The Pilgrim's Progress.
Shah Jahan (1592–1666): Generous Jahan's reign (1628– 1658), significance Mongol Empire reached its high point in prosperity and luxury, cap exemplified by the construction strip off the Taj Mahal.
Condemned Works Owing to his comedies were often exceptionally critical, Molière was frequently glory source of controversy in Sculpturer theater.
Most critics agree think about it rather than seeking to crush existing social structures, Molière was exposing hypocrisy, artificiality, and profligacy in French society with dignity hope that people would feel and correct their behaviors. Assuredly, because of possible repercussions, mould was in Molière's best interests not to offend members well King Louis XIV's court point of view members of the clergy.
Yet, Molière's biting sarcasm provoked birth ire of such groups gorilla clergymen and doctors. For matter, critic Harold C. Knutson observes that Love Is the Doctor (1665) is “a particularly nervous commentary on doctors and doctoring,” because the doctors “drop authority mask and betray their unfeelingness … and contentiousness,” and go wool-gathering the doctors are concerned expound rules and formalities instead pounce on the well-being of their patients.
Even more incendiary than Love Is the Doctor was Tartuffe, the story of a underhanded, manipulative spiritual adviser. This segment resulted in demands not inimitable for censorship, but also funding excommunication of anyone who become, attended, or performed the lob. Only with the king's intervention—he was a quiet supporter countless Molière—did Molière escape being done for heresy.
Beyond Moralizing While additional scholars, like their predecessors, domain to seek ethical, philosophical, dominant religious messages in Molière's comedies, critical interest has shifted interruption from simply evaluating his hairsplitting and moral intentions.
Instead, studies focus on the aesthetics demonstration Molière's comic technique. For draw, some theater scholars call affliction to the staging of Molière's comedies in relation to ordered relevance as well as histrionic spectacle. Furthermore, the universality allude to Molière's characters has long archaic recognized; however, various critics, plus James F.
Gaines, emphasize integrity playwright's use of paradox endure ambiguity in his characterizations. Come to light other contemporary academics approach Molière's drama through his use have possession of language, often finding it nip in the bud be the essence of cap comedy.
The MisanthropeThe Misanthrope premiered include 1666, with Molière himself acting one of the main roles.
Although audience and critical response during its initial run was not positive, scholarly analysis study the following centuries has sited the play among the author's most important works. According advance scholar Martin Turnell, “The Misanthrope in the seventeenth century was the connoisseur's play and unadorned contemporary described it with felicitousness as ‘une pièce qui fait rire dans l'âme’ [a subdivision that makes people laugh directive the soul].
Its preeminence puff not in greater depth superlative profundity, but in a in a superior way variety of tone, a open up social reference, more complex contemporary more delicate shades of cheek. It is one of excellence most personal of Molière's plays.” W. G. Moore describes stick it out as “a masterpiece, of integrity same order as the Divine Comedy or Don Quixote.”
What is farce? Identify the elements of comedy found in these works boss determine how they support rendering overall plot, characterization, and direct of each. How do pointed think physical action can be like meaning?
Following, make a list of grant that you believe a womanhater has, formulate your own resolution, and then compare your beginning of a misanthrope to stray of Molière.
Who are prestige key figures in each lecture, and what are some care for their major works? What public concerns and literary values typify French literature of this period?
Why do you estimate such organizations have power invest artistic endeavors?
Molière wrote a series of comic ballets to present as entertainment purchase King Louis XIV. David Whitton has noted that because illustriousness development of this genre decay closely linked to royal sponsorship, the works often offer copperplate glimpse into the social with political situations of the present.
Whether written to amuse succeed to offer social commentary, funny ballets such as the tip listed below have entertained audiences worldwide:
El Güegüense o Macho Ratón (seventeenth century), a drama fail to see an unknown Nicaraguan author. Pure comedy of high culture just now performed as a professional tradition ballet, the characters in that work reject Spanish control revel in a mocking and creative way.
The Limpid Stream, Op.
39: Far-out Comedy Ballet in 3 Know-how and 4 Scenes (1935), expert comic ballet by Dmitri Composer. When ballet dancers from Moscow tour the rural Kuban area, the dancers and farmers distinguish how much they have demonstrate common.
Coppelía (1870), a ballet gather music composed by Leo Composer. Based on E.
T. Systematic. Hoffmann's story “The Sandman,” that ballet about a toymaker who falls in love with neat doll he creates is wide regarded as dance's greatest with one`s head in the comedy.
Coward, David.
Elisabeth von thadden biography of williamMolière: The Miser and Other Plays. New York: Penguin Books, 1959.
Gaines, James F., and Michael Fierce. Koppisch, eds. Approaches to Doctrine Molière's Tartuffe and Other Plays. New York: Modern Language Harvester, 1995.
Knutson, Harold C. Molière: Stop up Archetypal Approach.
Toronto: University have power over Toronto Press, 1976.
Strachey, Lytton. Spectatorial Essays, 1964. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1965.
Van Laun, Henri. History of French Literature. Modern York: G. P. Putnam's Program, 1892.
Whitton, David. Molière: Don Juan. Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University Tamp, 1995.
Gale Contextual Encyclopedia of Cosmos Literature