Satire In Jean-Baptiste Molière's Play Tartuffe

Established within Act Three are Tartuffe’s true motives, which reveals his disgraceful nature and his desires of lust towards Elmire.(Wilbur) Such as, Tartuffe states during scene three, “I thereupon surrendered to your beauty...Love without scandal and, pleasure without fear.”(Wilbur) This scene holds a significant impact in the play, by confirming that the family’s complaints against Tartuffe have been justified and that Orgon is certainly being manipulated. As well as, this recognition of Tartuffe's false nature reveals the severity of Orgon’s arrogance. Moliere highlights within the second half of the play, the extremes of pride and how mankind struggles to face it.

The Enlightenment period was a very unique time period, and the play “Tartuffe was also very unique. Enlightenment thinkers were encouraged to think for themselves, and to solve their own problems. Enlightenment thinkers did not believe in looking to someone like a “leader” to help them solve problems. The play “Tartuffe” by Moliere is a satire about religious authorities,written in 1664, that fits into the Enlightenment Era very nicely. According to Merriam Webster a Tartuffe is “ a religious hypocrite and protagonist in Molière's play Tartuffe”( Merriamwebster.com).

This comedy is not what I would consider anti-religious, but I do believe it does attack corruption in religion. There will always be member of any religious group who are phony like Tartuffe. They pretend to be an outstanding member of society while in public, but someone completely different behind closed doors. Tartuffe shows this is the type person he truly is, during his conversation with Elmire. Tartuffe says: “To sin in private is not a sin at all.” p. 186. Also, Orgon proclaims to be a very religious individual. However, his character is questioned after he goes back on his word after promising his daughter’s hand in marriage to Valere. Even though his daughter is in love with Valere, he is demanding she marry Tartuffe for his own personal gain. There have been many types of entertainment that has been deemed as being anti-religious and even banned. In some cultures, even the Bible is considered forbidden.

Molière was born in Paris, France, in 1622, is one of the utmost comic masterminds the world has seen during his time. Molière growing up fell in love with the theater and was to dedicate his entire life to the theatrical profession. Molière usually wrote from the faction in civilization which he mocked. What is Enlightenment? Immanuel Kant states “Enlightenment is man's emergence from his self-imposed nonage. Nonage is the inability to use one's own understanding without another's guidance”. During this time women have been the most discriminated -against group of people for most of humanity. They have been mistreated, held back in civilization, and limited to being only a house wife; while men make certain

The role that King Louis XIV plays in Tartuffe, although not a character himself, affects the whole outcome of the play. King Louis XIV was an absolute monarch and was responsible for restoring order in society. The age of reason, 1660-1805, was a time to restore order while finding humor in those who stray away from order. King Louis was responsible for ensuring the safety and order of the country, and we come to learn that his power spreads much further than suspected. By divine right and being an offstage presence, King Louis XIV has the ability to control and assist everyone, whether it is warranted or not. Moliere was specific in mentioning King Louis’ power over the country to foreshadow his role in Tartuffe. Instead of appealing to the King to save the day in a believable fashion, Moliere creates a comical play to allow the audience to come to the realization themselves.

In Twelfth Night dramatic irony was used as comic relief and to help the audience understand how the love triangle worked. When Viola professed her love for Orsino the audience realized she was describing him while he was clueless. Viola professes her love when she says “Say that some lady, perhaps there is, /Hath for your love as great a pang of heart /As you have for Olivia: you cannot love her; /You tell her so; must she not then be answer’d? (II, iv, 96-99).” Also earlier when Orsino asks her who she loves she describes them as “of your complexion (II, iv,

In William Shakespeare's play The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, the use of multiple literary devices makes the play interesting. Dramatic irony, which is when the audience knows more than the characters, occurs numerous times throughout the play and grabs the attention of the audience. Soliloquies, which are lengthy speeches by a character to project their thoughts and emotions to the audience, this allows the audience to be more attentive. Allusions are references by characters to well-known places, events from myths or other literature that cause the audience to be absorbed into the play. After reading this marvelous play, it is obvious that Shakespeare uses dramatic irony, allusions, and soliloquies all written in blank verse to grasp the undivided attention of the audience.

Irony is a very important piece used in literature all over the world. Many of the world greatest writers used Irony in their writing pieces. Irony is sometimes confused with a coincident, actually there’s a huge difference between the two. Irony can be divided into three categories such as verbal, situational, and dramatic irony. Irony is one of the many techniques that authors use to grasp their readers attention. The rhetorical device of irony is usually deeper than what the author is implying. In the play Romeo & Juliet Irony helps make the play what the play has become today.

Tragedy has been a part of drama since the time of the ancient greeks, an example of such a tragedy is Oedipus Rex by Sophocles. Since then tragedy has been adapted to adhere to different societal views and conventions, such that of the american theatre. Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, is an example of that. Both plays fall into the category of tragedy, but exemplify it through different aspects in their respective heroes. The roles of Oedipus and Willy Loman as tragic heroes convey the meanings of the works as wholes through the use of the literary devices dramatic irony and imagery.

French classicism was the age in which Tartuffe by Moliere was written in. Technically, Tartuffe, a satire, was created during French Neoclassicism; However, for this research, I will be focusing on French Classicism. Moliere (a.k.a Jean- Baptiste Poquelin) is known for his comedies that follow the style of Commedia Dell'arte. Moliere also became a friend to King Louis XIV, who

Religion–it is something that has been in existence since the beginning of time. It brings meaning to life and death. It creates a sense of belonging in the world. On the other hand, religion, or lack thereof, has also been, in many instances, the cause of oppression, warfare, and even terrorism. Sometimes religion is used to the advantage of one’s self. This can lead to extremism, which some might label as false piety or religious fanaticism. Looking at how these ideas might come into play can help us to better understand where Tartuffe and Orgon stood throughout the story, and to decipher what Molière was truly trying to project in this story of hypocrisy.

The role and function of the family in society is fundamental. Indeed, family is the basic and natural unit of society. Being the building block of society, family represents the most important social group that can influence individuals' development. The lack or the instability of a traditional family structure can have deep impacts on individuals' growth and well being. The importance of the role of the family is emphasized in three of the works that we have studied this semester, namely Things Fall Apart, Tartuffe and The Narrative of The Life of Frederic Douglass.

Tartuffe was written during the enlightenment era, which was around the 17th century by Jean-Baptiste Molière. The Enlightenment era was considered the age of reason. Political and social issues were being questioned. People started to move away from religious views. The enlightenment thinkers believed that each person should think for themselves and not believe everything based on religious beliefs. The citizens started to bring into the light the abuse of the clergy. This is evident in Tartuffe. The power of deception is seen throughout the play. Deception is not always bad. Some characters used the theme of deception and reason to uncover Tartuffe’s mask. The characters Dorine, Elmire, Damis,

While unique characters are very valuable in various forms of literature, authors can successfully utilize stereotyped characters to achieve author’s purpose. The character of Mariane in Tartuffe by Molière is a stereotypical “damsel in distress”, as the other characters must help her while they combat the hypocrisy of Tartuffe. When Orgon, blinded by his reverence for Tartuffe, announces that Mariane is to marry Tartuffe, it causes conflict between characters. Mariane has to express her opinion and defy her father, so that she will not marry a hypocrite and liar, despite being a generally submissive person. In Molière’s Tartuffe, the author successfully employs a conventional character through Mariane, to demonstrate the strife that fanaticism and

Comedy plays an important role in the majority of Molière’s writing. It sets the tone for the play, entertains the audience and most importantly helps the playwright to achieve their theatrical objectives. In Le Tartuffe the nature of the comedy used is satirical. This essay will examine why Molière was inclined to use this style of comedy and how the comedic techniques accentuate the main theme of the play.