Category: Tartuffe

Tartuffe and The Misanthrope are two comic plays with different themes but closely related structures. The authors of the two plays chose to present comedy indirectly through their way of tackling core vices in society. Comedy in the two plays is presented through different ways of character development through different plots and main themes in the plays.

The plays take different social settings hence their characters are developed to bring out comedy depending on the setting. One thing that stands about the comedy in these plays is that they are not intended to invoke laughter alone. The writers have developed their plot in such a way that they either ridicule certain vices in society or advocate for certain attributes. Thus, they both carry a moral lesson to be passed over to the society.

The social settings of the two plays are different from one another. Tartuffe revolves around a family structural setting which is centered on Orgon and his actions has the head of the family. He is presented as a dupe who is easily manipulated to trust Tartuffe beyond any doubt although other members of his family apart from his mother are aware of Tartuffes witty and cunning character.

He wholly trusts Tartuffe and follows whatever he says. More so, he even embarks on forcefully making other family members to follow suit failure to which he threatens to break his daughters engagement and force her to marry Tartuffe, a man who is secretly making advances toward his wife.

On the other hand, The Misanthrope revolves around a love conflict in which several suitors are up to win Celimene, a certain beautiful lady. Although some scenes take place outside Celimenes house, most of the play touches on her efforts to choose a husband amongst the many suitors.

Alcaste manages to beat them all and win the ladys hand in marriage but renounces his love for the same lady in order to keep his integrity and serve as an example to others in the society.

The main characters in the two plays possess different traits. Tartuffe is a witty character and uses fraud to manipulate Orgon who falls prey to his wits while other members of Orgons family interpret this fraud. Orgon believes so much in him that he cannot doubt any of his actions.

This is much pronounced when Tartuffe seduces Elmire, Orgons wife, but still Orgon cannot accept that it happened. The climax of the manipulation is when Orgon almost loses all of his possessions to the witty Tartuffe who manages to obtain fake papers that need Orgon to flee the country leaving all his possessions to him.

On the other hand, Alceste, the major character in The Misanthrope stands for honesty and integrity in society and refuses to compromise his beliefs at whatever cost. In the beginning of the play he openly complains to his friend Philinte about the level of corruption in the French society.

He is among the suitors expecting to win Cemenes hand in marriage, but he can only do so without compromising his character. Thus, he refuses to appeal the courts verdict on the lawsuit against him by Oronto in order to serve as an example to the society.

Comedy in the two plays is brought out differently. In Tartuffe, the comical climax is when Orgon is adamant to accept the fact that Tartuffe made advances on his wife Elmire who then sets up a trap for Tartuffe and Orgon hides below the table.

He enters while Orgon is in his hideout and he confirms by himself that indeed Tartuffe is not the person he has always held in high regard. He witnesses Tartuffe seduce Elmire in his own house! Hence, comedy in this play is brought out when the characters are surprised of each other. Tartuffe does not expect Orgon under the table neither does Orgon expect him to seduce Elmire.

The Misanthrope presents comedy in a different way through many suitors expressing their affection and desire to court Celimene, and although Arsinoe and Alcaste accuse the young lady of flitting she does not pick any of the suitors. Thus, when time comes she finally agrees to marry Alcaste but not to stay with him.

Quite comical! Furthermore, Alcaste, who has all along tried to win the lady does not celebrate this but rather renounces his love for Celimene. In this case, comedy is achieved when the characters are furious towards each other.

Comedy in the two plays is not only meant for laughter but also to condemn certain vices in society. The play writer in Tartuffe targets to ridicule manipulation in society since the play is meant to warn the general public of witty characters who may pose in different personalities in order to exploit others.

At the end of the play, Orgon feels ashamed that he could not detect the mischievous and witty character of Tartuffe all along. In fact, he is embarrassed of falling prey to Tartuffes wits and manipulation.

The play writer of The Misanthrope aims to advocate for honesty and integrity in society. The main character Alcaste is presented has one with an unwavering believe in honesty and integrity. He is even willing to lose the fight of his life and live all alone in solitude so as to serve as an example to the society.

He openly criticizes Orontess poetry and does not appeal the verdict against him even though he had a chance to do so. It is clear that Oronte filed a lawsuit against him when he openly asked for his comment on the sonnet he had written. Thus, the play-writer intends to encourage people to emulate Alcaste hoping perhaps this would be only way to help reduce the levels of poverty in France.

The two plays above qualify to be called satirical. They are intentionally written to ridicule certain behavior in society. In fact, the satiric approach has been largely employed to develop the themes in the two plays.

It is believed that The Misanthrope was written at a time when corruption and other social injustices were looming in the French society and most of these incidences of corruption were reported in the judicial system.

Therefore, art was used as a tool to reinstate integrity and social order. Nevertheless, even though they are both comical, the writers have employed different aspects and styles to bring out the comedy.

The social settings of the two plays play a major role in the development of satire since each is characterized by a certain number of misdeeds in the society which they condemn.

Plays staging

Even though Molieres Tartuffe was written in 17^th century, the themes and motifs contained in this play even today remain absolutely legitimate, in discursive sense of this word.

That is, just as it used to be the case three hundreds of years ago, there are still many good-natured but strongly religious and not overly bright people, who are being taken advantage of by a number of con-artists, which usually come along as deeply religious/moral individuals, whose only goal in life is making this world a better place to live.

Therefore, I think it would be quite appropriate to stage Tartuffe in the foreground of contemporary surroundings. For example, Orgons residence (which in the original place is being described as nothing short of a palace) can well serve an upper middle-class house in the secluded white suburbia.

After all, as practice shows, the majority of white suburbias residents (especially older ones) are indeed being endowed with a strong sense of religiosity, which explains why it is namely these people who are being commonly tricked into helping the hungry children of Somalia by Bible-thumping con-artists, representing countless hunger relief foundations.

This explains the particulars of how I envision what should account for the proper contemporary staging of Molieres masterpiece and for the specifics of actors role-playing. As I have already mentioned, Orgons residence can well serve an ordinary upper middle-class house in the safe part of just about any American town. As for specifics of representing plays major characters, I would like to propose the following:

Representing plays major characters

Tartuffe  middle-aged man of Caribbean descent with heavy Jamaican accent, who appears to be utterly attracted to golden jewelry. While in public, he never ceases talking about God and about how blessed he is from having accepted Jesus as his personal savior. Yet, the donations that the gullible Christians provide him with, in order to feed hungry children in da ole country he squanders at the nearest casino. He also is not a stranger to a variety of sexual perversions.

Orgon  the simple-minded head of an earlier mentioned household (Caucasian) in his fifties, who literally believes in the Biblical concept of lake of fire for sinners to be cast into, and who thinks that by donating money to the needy children from developing countries and by harboring Tartuffe as the man of strong Christian morals he would be able to win favor with God.

Elmire  Orgons twenty-five-years-old wife from Russia. She married Orgon so that she would be able to get a green card. She is very cynical in her attitudes towards Orgon, but even she gets sickened by Tartuffes tendency to slap her on the rear, when nobody is around, and by his sexually suggestive remarks, which he utters when one-on-one with her.

Dorine  Orgons housemaid from Philippines. Despite her heavy Pilipino accent, she is rather quick-minded. Dorine is being in cahoots with Elmire to expose Tartuffe to Orgon as to what he really is  a truly despicable individual, who turned milking gullible Christians for money into the permanent source of his income.

I believe that despite essentially modernist conceptualization of Molieres play, outlined earlier, it will still prove itself thematically and contextually adequate, when staged.

Moreover, I think that representing plays characters in such a manner that the audiences members would be able to relate to them, will only enhance the effectiveness of Molieres message (beware of wolves in sheeps skins) being delivered to the public.

References

Moliere Tartuffe. London: Mariner Books, 1968. Print.

Tartuffe by Moliere is, perhaps, one of the best-known books that describe the fault of hypocrisy. In the main character of the play – Tartuffe – the author embodied the basest traits of humanity concealed under the mask of a holy man. While some people may consider the play an attack on religion itself, in fact it is religious hypocrisy that Moliere vividly portrays. The play aims to reveal hypocritic features inherent in religion of those times and fight corruption and duplicity most pronounced in doctrinal societies of those times.

In Tartuffe, Moliere turned to the most common kind of hypocrisy at that time — religious — and wrote it based on his observations of the religious “Society of the Holy Gifts”, the activities of which were surrounded by great mystery. This prompted the plot of the play, while the character of Tartuffe was formed from typical features inherent in members of this organization. As part of the plausible movement of the comedy plot, Moliere gives two comedic hyperboles balancing each other — Orgone’s hyperbolic passion for Tartuffe and Tartuffe’s equally hyperbolic hypocrisy.

The image of Tartuffe is not the embodiment of hypocrisy as a universal vice, it is a socially generalized type. No wonder he is not alone in comedy: his servant Laurent, the bailiff, and the mother of Orgon are hypocritical as well. All of them cover their unsightly deeds with pious speeches and vigilantly monitor the behavior of others. The characteristic appearance of Tartuffe is created by his imaginary holiness and humility. Tartuffe is not devoid of external attractiveness, he has courteous, insinuating manners, behind which lies prudence, energy, an ambitious thirst for power, the ability to take revenge. He is well settled in Orgon’s house, where the owner not only satisfies his slightest whims, but is also ready to give him his daughter Marianne, a rich heiress, as a wife.

Tartuffe does not just thoughtlessly rush into the pool of sins, he has everything calculated: he knows when he can sin and when he needs to play to the public. He simultaneously stands before the readers as a saint and as an unscrupulous hypocrite. Such controversy serves to show that it is religious hypocrisy Moliere condemns, not religion itself. Thus, Tartuffe in the play utters a phrase that can become a kind of “justification” for many pseudo-religious people, “If you sin in silence, then it is not a sin” (The Misanthrope, Tartuffe, and Other Plays 68). While truly religious people abstain from committing sins in any form, this phrase shows that for Tartuffe sin is acceptable if no one knows about his committing it. Thus, the readers see a secret Jesuit, artfully infiltrating families, greedy for prey and having all the features of monastic selfishness – Tartouffe exercises all shades of pretense, whatever form it takes.

The play provides a classic exposure of one of the main strongholds of the absolutist state — the first estate of France — the clerics. However, the image of Tartuffe has an immeasurably greater capacity. On the surface of it, Tartuffe is a rigorist, rejecting everything sensual and material without any condescension. But he himself indulges into sensual pleasures, which he has to hide from prying eyes. Thus, he says: “To love eternal beauties far above is not to be immune to other love” (The Misanthrope, Tartuffe, and Other Plays 65). Thus, as a hypocrite, he enjoys what truly religious people abstain from, which, once again shows that it is religious hypocrisy Moliere condemns, not religion itself.

The comedy Tartuffe had a great social significance. In it, Moliere the most harmful public vice — hypocrisy. As Moliere asserted, hypocrisy was the main vice of France of his time that is why it became the object of his satire. In a comedy that provokes laughter and fear, Moliere portrayed what was happening in France. Hypocrites like Tartuffe, despots, informers and avengers, ruled the country with impunity, and lawlessness and violence were the results of their activities. Although the king acts fairly at the end of the play, the social situation outlined by Moliere seems threatening.

Work Cited

The Misanthrope, Tartuffe, and Other Plays. Translated by Maya Slater. Oxford University Press, 2008.

The exploitation of religion and piety to fulfill one’s needs is a controversial topic that may be hard to use in a comedic setting without raising backlash. In 1664, a French playwright Molière, created Tartuffe, one of the classic comedies of all times and a poignant satire of religious gullibility. As the play with such controversial themes was written in a contemporary setting and described the events happening in France in the 1660s, the Church was able to exercise its influence and ban the play from being performed. However, the ways in which the French playwright presents the themes of hypocrisy and credulousness through its main characters – Tartuffe and Orgon – leave little room for doubt that Molière’s original intent is far from trying to offend the church. The cunning behavior of Tartuffe, the credulous nature of Orgon, and the rational perspective of Cléante represent different sides of the author’s argument against hypocrisy and blind trust.

Tartuffe, the central character, also called the impostor in other versions of the novel, is a religious hypocrite who uses the piety of others to achieve his goals. His antagonistic nature is not hidden from the audience from the very beginning, as the author describes him as a “bogus holy man” in the list of dramatis personae (Molière 7). Here, readers are presented with the first description of this man. Then, Tartuffe’s personality is described to the audience by other characters to set the opposition between the family’s opinions. To some of them, he is a humble and pious man, a “blessed soul” and a man who “should be listened to” (Molière 9). To others, he is a pretender, whose words do not have any truth or credibility behind them. Throughout the play, this opposition creates the central conflict and becomes the primary source of satire. The actions of Tartuffe that are visible to the audience escape the sight of characters who believe him, as Tartuffe continues to use his two-sided nature.

The pivotal scene in which Tartuffe’s hypocrisy is unmasked is also a moment where the playwright reveals the man’s flawed human nature. Tartuffe’s almost ethereal personality, disconnected from the desires and pleasures of life, that he shows to Orgon and Madame Pernelle shatters when Tartuffe’s lust for Elmire, Orgon’s wife, makes him contradict himself and his created guise. Elmire notices Tartuffe’s advances and questions his earlier statements by saying “you love no earthly things” which makes Tartuffe abandon his appearance to appeal to her (Molière 29). Later, when Tartuffe says “the scandal of the world is what makes the offence, and sinning in private is no sinning at all,” even Orgon, who is so fascinated with every word of the hypocrite, realizes his dual nature (Molière 40). Here, the playwright uses a contrast between the disdain that Catholic Church often expresses towards carnal desires and Tartuffe’s readiness to seduce a married woman while posing it as sinless behavior and using religion as the primary excuse.

The level to which religion can be used as an argument in making decisions and choosing the authoritative figure is the main weakness of Orgon, another central character of the play. Here, Orgon’s flaws lie in his inability to see through Tartuffe’s mask and his fear of doubting a religious figure. It is clear that his relationship with religion is based on blind trust which often transfers from the faith itself onto every object and character connected to it. He is enchanted by Tartuffe’s supposed humbleness and his persistent attempts to be pious. Orgon considers Tartuffe’s actions as genuinely religious, although to others they may seem superfluous and even bizarre. Orgon’s enthusiastic descriptions of Tartuffe’s exaggerated piety such as: “he’s scandalised at the smallest thing imaginable” and “he acquaints me who ogles her, and is six times more jealous of her than I am” show that he cannot separate real faith from the exploitation of religion (Molière 13). His misunderstanding of what is good and bad strengthens the conflict of the play.

Orgon’s description of Tartuffe is one of the scenes that could have been seen not as satire but as a mockery of Catholic religion by the Church. After Molière presented his play to the audience, it was banned under the influence of the Catholic Church due to it supposedly critiquing the Church and religion as a whole. However, this scene is a perfect example that disproves this idea, because Tartuffe’s actions are obviously disconnected from any religious context. On the contrary, through Orgon’s words, Molière comments on one’s lack of awareness and ability to critically appraise information due to it being connected to respected ideas and sacred beliefs. When Orgon says that Tartuffe is “very good” and that Cléante can “draw down some heavy judgment on … [his] head one day or other,” he reveals his fear to be deemed unfaithful (Molière 13). Orgon’s dialogue with Cléante shows the difference between critical thinking and blind following. Molière could have used other settings to present the same contrast. However, people’s vehement denial to question anything connected to religion may show this opposition most vividly.

One can assume that Cléante is a character through whom Molière attempts to explain his attitude towards the two problems of the religion’s exploitation. His ability to challenge notions that seem unapproachable to Orgon paints him as an intelligent and logical character. Therefore, his conflict with Orgon can be perceived as a debate between rationality and clouded thinking. Cléante’s solutions to the problems of the play lie in thoughtful consideration of every step and reasonable approach to all situations because “to be clear-sighted is libertinism” (Molière 13). For instance, his discussions with Orgon are not based on him presenting his opinion as the only reasonable one. On the contrary, Cléante attempts to teach his brother-in-law to think for himself. In fact, Cléante is a character who summarizes the main idea of the play in one question by asking Orgon if he would “make no distinction between hypocrisy and true devotion” (Molière 13). In this moment, Cléante separates himself from the two sides of the conflict showing that one can detect hypocrisy by educating oneself.

Supporting the idea that the playwright does not want to criticize the Church, Cléante does not undermine Orgon’s faith. Moreover, he does not believe that Orgon should “renounce all pious folks” after his brother-in-law learns about Tartuffe’s guise (Molière 43). Cléante remains logical, stating that there is no need to throw oneself “out of one extreme into another” (Molière 43). This scene shows that the author’s intent is not to denounce the Church or portray religious people as illogical and oblivious to hypocrisy but to critique those people who do not attempt to “distinguish between virtue and the appearance of it” (Molière 43). In this moment, his speech can be seen as the author’s attempt to display a religious person who can make that distinction and remain faithful. Throughout the play, Molière often shows that Cléante is a religious man just like his brother-in-law. Here, Cléante gives his advice to the main characters and the audience as well – to be mindful of impostors but not to “injure true zeal” of honest people (Molière 44). This is a clear message of the playwright to religious critics who, similarly to Orgon, may fall into extremes while defending their faith.

Molière’s comedy, Tartuffe, offers a sharp-witted satire of those who are hypocritical and those who fall victim to the hypocrites’ charm. Its use of religious themes creates controversy as some misinterpret the author’s message and think that he is undermining their beliefs. However, the interactions between Tartuffe, Orgon, and Cléante show that Molière focuses more on people’s unwillingness to rationalize and keep their mind clear from unnecessary extremes. The religious theme could have been omitted by the author. However, its sacred nature and the passion of its followers make the play even more impactful. Molière uses exaggeration and humor to show the hypocrisy of Tartuffe and the gullibility of Orgon, portraying Cléante as a person who can adhere to his religious beliefs while staying true to himself. The author’s message to readers expressed in Cléante’s words remains applicable to this day because it encourages one to think and remember to stay grounded instead of choosing between the conflicting sides. The rationality of this advice can be employed in many situations of the modern world, as people are now surrounded by uncorroborated information and controversial issues.

Work Cited

Molière. Tartuffe. Dover Publications, 2000.

Satire is the main stylistic device used by Moliere and Swift to unveil social problems and political troubles that affected their societies. In their works, Tartuffe and Gulliver’s Travel, Moliere and Swift depict social and political situations and ridicules the governmental system and false values existing in the society. Both works, Tartuffe and Gulliver’s Travel are unique because the author depicts events, experience, time, memories through different frames which are connected with each other.

Moliere and Swift attack social institutions and false traditions and values followed by society. In Gulliver’s Travels Swift criticizes the government of England unveiling corruption of administration and incompetence of George I. Swift took an active part in political life and was involved with the Tory government, but in a time, the Whigs returned to power and brought the full force of government against Swift.

Taking into account these facts, it is possible to say that the novel “Gulliver’s Travels” is a commentary on those political and historical events. In parts one and two the little and big people, versions of two opposite English classes, show readers the relativity of Swift’s standards. Gulliver, a version of society, shows the essence of human motives. In Lilliput, while effortlessly admired and respected, he casually performs heroic exploits and insists on preserving a conquered people’s liberty (Williams 65).

In Tartuffe, Moliere pays special attention to the role of religion and church in the lives of people and its influence on the government. During his time, political and social life was influenced by church and religion, and Moliere demonstrates that there was a separation of culture, “high” culture of a social and intellectual elite and “low” culture of peasant, small and big people. At the end o the play, the officer explains:

“Thus he rewards your recent zeal, displayed
In helping to maintain his rights and shows
How well his heart, when it is least expected,
Knows how to recompense a noble deed” (Moliere 1998).

Similar to Moliere, Swift includes a conflict between Protestant and Catholic Christians through the Little Indians and the Big Indians. Describing the land of Brobdingnag, Swift portrays that Brobdingnagian King knows little about the art of ruling and political science, but this incompetence does not lead the country to a crisis. Brobdingnag is a prosperous and well-governed country in spite of the fact that the King does little to support the economic and social development of his land. Swift ridicules that the government of England was elected in the same foolish manner “whoever jumps the highest, without falling, succeeds in the office” (Swift, 1998).

Characterizing his period, Swift and Moliere satirize the government and the society using acute irony and sarcasm. In Gulliver’s Travels, an extensive part of the governmental actions returned to the identification between the political and religious worlds, with the belief that only political power can support the monarchy. It is possible to say that Moliere satirizes the government and the church using specific things and actions of characters.

For instance, the tide character deliberately abuses his rhetorical and theatrical skills in order to deceive those around him by a false display of religious behavior, which is what made the play so controversial in the 1660s. By way of defense, Molière suggests that he wrote the play in such a way as to prevent any confusion in the spectators’ minds: it would be clear to them all along that Tartuffe was a hypocrite, even if some of the characters in the play believed him to be sincere. In contort, Swift uses absurdity to unveil false values and traditions of the society (Williams 69).

For instance, Swift criticizes the immoral life of this new literary world, foreseeing the death of civilized values. His works vividly reflect his epoch portraying ineffective functions of the government and foolish decisions. Using satire and sarcasm, Swift shows the human necessity for survival and the lengths to which a person will go to save his life. Swift depicts real government life through the character of the King of Laputa. According to British law, the King could not leave the land without Parliament’s consent.

The King of Laputa was also subdued to this rule seeing as an “important person” who felt a lack of personal freedom and rights. Swift ridicules that common citizens of Laputa were free from social constraints in contrast to the King limited by his own power. Part three hits out in several directions: at colonial power, pedantry, and abstract learning.

Gulliver reaches an impasse when he meets the Struldbruggs, people exempt from natural death. In the novel, the King of Lilliput, a prototype of George I who favored the Whigs, wears the Low-Heals. Swift describes: “We apprehend his imperial highness, the heir to the crown, to have some tendency towards the high heels; at least we can plainly discover that one of his heels is higher than the other, which gives him a hobble in his gait” (Swift, 1998).

Similar to Moliere and Swift, modern writers use satire as the main stylistic device to unveil social problems and issues. For instance, the Simpsons and Saturday night Live satirize social relations and class differences, unveil false morals of high classes and economic instability. In contrast to Moliere and Swift, they lack fire, animus, defined objective. The satiric tone and technique, in other words, have not reappeared. They restrict their material to a narrow range of society and events.

Moliere and Swift treat their material with such subtlety of observation and depth of penetration that they are ranked among the best of satirical writers. Modern writers use a simple argumentative method. They open with elaborate rhetoric, draw their principles from a social authority, then embellish arguments sardonically. Wealth is permissible only if its excess is distributed to the poor.

Works Cited

Swift, J. Gulliver’s Travels. 1998. Web.

Moliere, Tartuffe. 1998. Web.

Williams, K. Jonathan Swift and the Age of Compromise. University Press of Kansas, 1968.

Moliere’s Tartuffe is set in medieval France, in Paris, in the home of a middle-class citizen, Orgon. The timing of the events is the year 1660, with France ruled by King Louis the XIV. Altogether, the social and situational environment of the work envelopes Paris as a quintessence of power and culture, following the philosophical developments of the Enlightenment and addressing the society’s attitudes of that time.

The events of Tartuffe transpire over the course of one day, originating in the early morning and concluding in the late evening, with most of the situations happening at the house of the protagonist. The play’s plot is constructed primarily around the characters of Orgon, Tartuffe, and other household members. Orgon is an aged citizen, mostly surrounded by the younger generation, his wife Elmire, her brother, Cleante, and the older man’s two children: Damis and Mariane (Moliere, 1992). At the beginning of the events, both Orgon and his mother, Madame Pernelle, are enchanted by the house guest, Tartuffe, whom they believe to be exceptionally religious and humble. However, the rest of the household perceives the criminal clearly, as they understand Tartuffe to be a deceiver and a bigot who is only interested in Orgon’s monetary possessions. Thus, this comedy begins directly in the middle of the events, stating an existing confrontation between some of the family members and Tartuffe.

The inciting moment of the play occurs when Orgon decides that Mariane, his daughter, is to marry Tartuffe instead of her beloved fiance, Valere. Despite the numerous claims made against the young man by the majority of the household, Orgon insists that Mariane must wed Tartuffe on the same evening. Having realized the old man’s decision, the other family members engage in a conflict with the deceiver.

After Orgon’s announcement, the household is estranged from Tartuffe, searching for opportunities to reveal his hypocrisy to the old man. Elmire, Orgon’s wife, whom Tartuffe attempted to seduce, initiates an interaction between her and the young man, where the antagonist passionately declares his love for the woman (Moliere, 1992). Having observed the situation, Damis delivers this information to Orgon, who does not believe his son’s accusations and instead disinherits him, choosing Tartuffe as a new heir. In a final attempt to convince the house owner of the criminal’s hypocrisy, Elmire has another conversation with the antagonist, this time Orgon himself being the witness. Finally, Orgon confronts the young man, but it is too late: Tartuffe has already claimed the family’s house and manages to frame the old man for his crimes.

The climax of the play transpires in Act five, as Tartuffe himself appears to arrest Orgon. Even though the situation seems hopeless, it instantly changes in the household’s favor as the police officer detains the criminal instead of the old man. The audience is informed that when Tartuffe attempted to frame Orgon by showing evidence of his own crimes to the King, the latter managed to recognize the hypocrite as a wanted offender. Orgon is pardoned, with his property ownership transferred back to him. Thus, the conflict achieves its resolution, Orgon’s estate is saved directly by the King’s intervention, and a wedding is to be held between Valere and Mariane.

In Tartuffe, the playwright allows the viewer to discover the critical aspects of Tartuffe and Orgon’s personalities by utilizing various strategies. Firstly, Tartuffe is described as a young man who pretends to be highly impoverished but, at the same time, is characterized by Dorine as “stout, fat, fair, rosie-lipped” (Moliere, 1992, p. 39). This information suggests that the antagonist is not as humble as he proposes. Orgon is introduced as a middle-class citizen, old but wealthy and generous. Secondly, while Tartuffe is presented as a criminal, Orgon possesses an impressive background, having served in the recent civil war. The heroes’ histories directly affect their behavior, with the offender being solely focused on monetary success and the old man staying rigid and untrustful of his family’s claims.

The relationships between Tartuffe, Orgon, and other characters reveal significant information. The young man is clearly despised by most of the house residents, suggesting that he is not what he seems to be. Orgon, on the other hand, is viewed positively, excluding his remarkable interest in Tartuffe. Considering the character changes, there is little evidence suggesting that any of the heroes’ personalities were altered by the events. Even though Tartuffe receives his punishment, it is not evident how it affected him. The same is true for Orgon, as it is unclear if the old man will behave differently in a similar situation.

The work’s title directly suggests the topic of deceit, as the antagonist’s name is similar to the French word “to cheat.” The primary conflict of the play occurs between the criminal’s lies, the old man and his mother’s gullibility, and the household members. The comedy masterfully illustrates people’s personal faults, where individuals cannot perceive logical observations or follow advice due to their convictions, thus being deceived by hypocrites.

Tartuffe by Moliere is a perfect example of an original work that focuses on a popular theme of deception. Throughout the play, the author demonstrates the uniqueness of his view, attempting to impact the viewers and transfer the idea that hypocrisy and dishonesty are negative characteristics. The work’s arguments are explicit and understandable, making a drastic impact on the audience. Altogether, this play is an essential instance of dramatic literature, which proved its high value throughout the years.

In the literary assessment of the play discussed, the play and the playwright receive extensive praise. The author aims to ascertain the value of Orgon’s character as the central comedic axis, stating that the old man is driven by the desire to be recognized and receive respect from his family members (Gossman, 2019). In this critical work, Tartuffe is described as a Christ figure for Orgon, who attempts to secure the relationship between him and the young man through monetary possessions, hoping to establish a lasting bond.

References

Gossman, L. (2019). Men and masks: A study of Molière. John Hopkins University Press.

Moliere, J. B. P. (1992). Tartuffe, by Moliere (R. Wilbur, Trans.). Harvest Books.

Tartuffe by Marietta College Theatre Department

Tartuffe is one of the most famous plays by Moliere. Just like the rest of his plays, Tartuffe is very funny and, at the same time, didactic. I enjoyed reading it, and I was glad to see it live. The Marietta College Theatre Department produced the play and brought Moliere’s characters to our modernity. The overall impression of the play is very positive. However, I cannot say the company met my expectations to the fullest as to the way the play could be staged.

First, I would like to note that the cast managed to convey the message correctly. The main idea of the play is the importance of trust in the family and the value of critical thinking as well as common sense. Modern Orgon was very convincing. I loved him and his wife as they were just what I had imagined when reading the play. I must admit that I was quite surprised to see such a young Tartuffe as I thought this deceiver should be in his late thirties. I believed that Tartuffe had to look much younger than Oregon but not as young as his daughter. The performing actor seemed quite young to me at first. Nevertheless, soon I understood that age had little to do with people’s ability to deceive and be that hypocritical. At the end of the play, I loved the young Tartuffe as I called him.

I was also rather startled to see a girl in the girl of the officer. I expected to see a man wearing the police uniform. At that, I was prepared to accept this choice. Modern society is very different from people who lived in the 17^th century. At present, women occupy various roles and can be employed in the sphere of law enforcement. I loved the young actress as she was very natural and appealing.

It is possible to state that the play I saw deepened my understanding of the characters and the author’s message. I managed to notice different types of people who can still be found in society. There are still fanatics who try to seem better than they are. There are still credulous people who can be even ridiculous in their faith. Of course, there are many smart and brave people like Orgon’s family members. I think the cast added various dimensions to the characters. When reading a play, I still saw Oregon, his family, and Tartuffe as characters from the book. Now, I believe those are complex personalities who live and develop.

Another element of the production that made me a bit confused was the choice of costumes. The setting was perfect as I think the furniture conveyed the charm of the 17^th century, but the costumes were modern. When I was reading the book, I pictured all those huge wigs, fancy dresses, exquisite men’s clothes, beauty spots, heavy makeup, and odor. All those attributes contributed to the creation of the atmosphere of deceit and hypocrisy. However, the actors were wearing quite simple modern clothes, which made everything quite straightforward. Again, I had quite a specific first impression. I was rather dissatisfied, but I changed my mind a bit later.

I started thinking about the way the message was articulated. The play can be regarded as a warning to all people as the world is full of hypocrisy. The modern world is twice as dangerous as the society of the 17^th century. Hypocrisy was quite common, and people were accustomed to it. These days the vast majority of people seem so open and sincere. Nevertheless, the rate of hypocrites in society is the same or even larger. I believe that Tartuffes are among us.

Finally, I would also add that the setting was remarkable. As has been mentioned above, it could be regarded as an illustration of the 17^th-century style. The stage was quite small, which contributed to the specific atmosphere of the play. It was all about one family and its issues. The stage could be seen as a metaphor for the family circle described in the play. Viewers could also feel that they are family members who witness the crisis in Oregon’s family. This feeling is really valuable and creates a positive impression of the entire play.

In conclusion, I would like to stress that the play produced by the Marietta College Theatre Department was marvelous. I was surprised at the choice of the cast first, but I understood the director’s ideas and messages. The cast managed to bring more life to the characters that had been created centuries ago. Classical characters became real people who could be found in contemporary society. The play I saw made me think about Moliere’s message in a bit different way. Hypocrisy became something real to me. I realized that everybody including me could become victims of Tartuffe or, even worse, everybody could become that kind of hypocrite. Therefore, I believe the play was very good as it achieved its primary goal and made me think, feel, and dream.

Tartuffe and The Misanthrope are two comic plays with different themes but closely related structures. The authors of the two plays chose to present comedy indirectly through their way of tackling core vices in society. Comedy in the two plays is presented through different ways of character development through different plots and main themes in the plays.

The plays take different social settings hence their characters are developed to bring out comedy depending on the setting. One thing that stands about the comedy in these plays is that they are not intended to invoke laughter alone. The writers have developed their plot in such a way that they either ridicule certain vices in society or advocate for certain attributes. Thus, they both carry a moral lesson to be passed over to the society.

The social settings of the two plays are different from one another. Tartuffe revolves around a family structural setting which is centered on Orgon and his actions has the head of the family. He is presented as a dupe who is easily manipulated to trust Tartuffe beyond any doubt although other members of his family apart from his mother are aware of Tartuffe’s witty and cunning character.

He wholly trusts Tartuffe and follows whatever he says. More so, he even embarks on forcefully making other family members to follow suit failure to which he threatens to break his daughter’s engagement and force her to marry Tartuffe, a man who is secretly making advances toward his wife.

On the other hand, The Misanthrope revolves around a love conflict in which several suitors are up to win Celimene, a certain beautiful lady. Although some scenes take place outside Celimene’s house, most of the play touches on her efforts to choose a husband amongst the many suitors.

Alcaste manages to beat them all and win the lady’s hand in marriage but renounces his love for the same lady in order to keep his integrity and serve as an example to others in the society.

The main characters in the two plays possess different traits. Tartuffe is a witty character and uses fraud to manipulate Orgon who falls prey to his wits while other members of Orgon’s family interpret this fraud. Orgon believes so much in him that he cannot doubt any of his actions.

This is much pronounced when Tartuffe seduces Elmire, Orgon’s wife, but still Orgon cannot accept that it happened. The climax of the manipulation is when Orgon almost loses all of his possessions to the witty Tartuffe who manages to obtain fake papers that need Orgon to flee the country leaving all his possessions to him.

On the other hand, Alceste, the major character in The Misanthrope stands for honesty and integrity in society and refuses to compromise his beliefs at whatever cost. In the beginning of the play he openly complains to his friend Philinte about the level of corruption in the French society.

He is among the suitors expecting to win Cemene’s hand in marriage, but he can only do so without compromising his character. Thus, he refuses to appeal the court’s verdict on the lawsuit against him by Oronto in order to serve as an example to the society.

Comedy in the two plays is brought out differently. In Tartuffe, the comical climax is when Orgon is adamant to accept the fact that Tartuffe made advances on his wife Elmire who then sets up a trap for Tartuffe and Orgon hides below the table.

He enters while Orgon is in his hideout and he confirms by himself that indeed Tartuffe is not the person he has always held in high regard. He witnesses Tartuffe seduce Elmire in his own house! Hence, comedy in this play is brought out when the characters are surprised of each other. Tartuffe does not expect Orgon under the table neither does Orgon expect him to seduce Elmire.

The Misanthrope presents comedy in a different way through many suitors expressing their affection and desire to court Celimene, and although Arsinoe and Alcaste accuse the young lady of flitting she does not pick any of the suitors. Thus, when time comes she finally agrees to marry Alcaste but not to stay with him.

Quite comical! Furthermore, Alcaste, who has all along tried to win the lady does not celebrate this but rather renounces his love for Celimene. In this case, comedy is achieved when the characters are furious towards each other.

Comedy in the two plays is not only meant for laughter but also to condemn certain vices in society. The play writer in Tartuffe targets to ridicule manipulation in society since the play is meant to warn the general public of witty characters who may pose in different personalities in order to exploit others.

At the end of the play, Orgon feels ashamed that he could not detect the mischievous and witty character of Tartuffe all along. In fact, he is embarrassed of falling prey to Tartuffe’s wits and manipulation.

The play writer of The Misanthrope aims to advocate for honesty and integrity in society. The main character Alcaste is presented has one with an unwavering believe in honesty and integrity. He is even willing to lose the fight of his life and live all alone in solitude so as to serve as an example to the society.

He openly criticizes Orontes’s poetry and does not appeal the verdict against him even though he had a chance to do so. It is clear that Oronte filed a lawsuit against him when he openly asked for his comment on the sonnet he had written. Thus, the play-writer intends to encourage people to emulate Alcaste hoping perhaps this would be only way to help reduce the levels of poverty in France.

The two plays above qualify to be called satirical. They are intentionally written to ridicule certain behavior in society. In fact, the satiric approach has been largely employed to develop the themes in the two plays.

It is believed that The Misanthrope was written at a time when corruption and other social injustices were looming in the French society and most of these incidences of corruption were reported in the judicial system.

Therefore, art was used as a tool to reinstate integrity and social order. Nevertheless, even though they are both comical, the writers have employed different aspects and styles to bring out the comedy.

The social settings of the two plays play a major role in the development of satire since each is characterized by a certain number of misdeeds in the society which they condemn.

Play’s staging

Even though Moliere’s ‘Tartuffe’ was written in 17^th century, the themes and motifs contained in this play even today remain absolutely legitimate, in discursive sense of this word.

That is, just as it used to be the case three hundreds of years ago, there are still many good-natured but strongly religious and not overly bright people, who are being taken advantage of by a number of con-artists, which usually come along as deeply religious/moral individuals, whose only goal in life is making this world a better place to live.

Therefore, I think it would be quite appropriate to stage ‘Tartuffe’ in the foreground of contemporary surroundings. For example, Orgon’s residence (which in the original place is being described as nothing short of a palace) can well serve an upper middle-class house in the secluded ‘white suburbia’.

After all, as practice shows, the majority of ‘white suburbia’s’ residents (especially older ones) are indeed being endowed with a strong sense of religiosity, which explains why it is namely these people who are being commonly tricked into ‘helping the hungry children of Somalia’ by Bible-thumping con-artists, representing countless ‘hunger relief foundations’.

This explains the particulars of how I envision what should account for the proper contemporary staging of Moliere’s masterpiece and for the specifics of actors’ role-playing. As I have already mentioned, Orgon’s residence can well serve an ordinary upper middle-class house in the ‘safe’ part of just about any American town. As for specifics of representing play’s major characters, I would like to propose the following:

Representing play’s major characters

Tartuffe – middle-aged man of Caribbean descent with heavy Jamaican accent, who appears to be utterly attracted to golden jewelry. While in public, he never ceases talking about God and about how blessed he is from having accepted Jesus as his ‘personal savior’. Yet, the donations that the gullible Christians provide him with, in order to ‘feed hungry children in da ole country’ he squanders at the nearest casino. He also is not a stranger to a variety of sexual perversions.

Orgon – the simple-minded head of an earlier mentioned household (Caucasian) in his fifties, who literally believes in the Biblical concept of ‘lake of fire for sinners to be cast into’, and who thinks that by donating money to the ‘needy children from ‘developing countries’’ and by harboring Tartuffe as the ‘man of strong Christian morals’ he would be able to win favor with God.

Elmire – Orgon’s twenty-five-years-old wife from Russia. She married Orgon so that she would be able to get a green card. She is very cynical in her attitudes towards Orgon, but even she gets sickened by Tartuffe’s tendency to slap her on the rear, when nobody is around, and by his sexually suggestive remarks, which he utters when one-on-one with her.

Dorine – Orgon’s housemaid from Philippines. Despite her heavy Pilipino accent, she is rather quick-minded. Dorine is being in cahoots with Elmire to expose Tartuffe to Orgon as to what he really is – a truly despicable individual, who turned milking gullible Christians for money into the permanent source of his income.

I believe that despite essentially modernist conceptualization of Moliere’s play, outlined earlier, it will still prove itself thematically and contextually adequate, when staged.

Moreover, I think that representing play’s characters in such a manner that the audience’s members would be able to relate to them, will only enhance the effectiveness of Moliere’s message (beware of wolves in sheep’s skins) being delivered to the public.

References

Moliere “Tartuffe”. London: Mariner Books, 1968. Print.

Upon looking back in 1600 and 1700, one notices some strict rules that guided playwriting. This period, the golden age, came after the renaissance, which was characteristic of expansiveness and exploration. A reaction to this was to have some order and restrictions. This reaction came from France. Therefore, most playwrights who adhered to the strict rules were French. This bore a neoclassic model of writing plays, which prescribed strict rules of verisimilitude: the unity of place, action and time, five-play act, and strict classification of the dramas in certain genres.

Moliere’s Tartuffe, a comedy modeled from Corneille, has cautiously designed characters (Moliere 395). Moliere, a talented author and an observer of daily life, easily adhered to the rules of neoclassical writing combining contemporary manners and characters. Three important characteristics make up neoclassicism making it distinct from the previous writings. It relied on three principles of generality, morality, and reality (Moliere 397). Moliere maintains the five-act structure addressing the realities of life, as Racine’s Phaedra and Molière Tartuffe portray men who put their own selfish desires first rather than providing for their families. Tartuffe has Oregon as a gullible and narrow-minded man of the house always sticking to his beliefs overriding family needs (Molière 398). He does not reason. Phaedra, on the other hand, portrays Theseus as blindly believing in other people. He blindly banished his son to death.

About the three unities of times place and action, Racine develops Phaedra in a straightforward style with the most realistic characters and simpler plot (Racine 15). The play is dominant with verisimilitude. The tight structure makes advantage of the themes of the struggle of will, unalterable fate faced with cruelty, and vicious passion. In Tartuffe, Molière uses unique language, the alexandrine, as well as heroic figures. He later develops simpler language and prose.

Works Cited

Molière, Jean. Tartuffe, in Henri Peyre and Joseph Seronde (Eds.), Nine Classic French Plays, Boston, D.C.: Heath, 1936. Print.

Racine, Jean. Phaedra. Kila, MT: Kissinger Publishing, 2004. Print.