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Moliére
JEAN – BAPTISTE POQUELIN
MOLIERE
• A French dramatist,
and one of the
greatest of all writers
of comedies, his
universal comic types
still delight audiences;
his plays are often
produced and have
been much
translated.
ARMANDE BEJART
Molière was born in Paris on
January 15, 1622, the son of a
wealthy tapestry maker. From an
early age he was completely
devoted to the theater. In 1643
he joined a theatrical company
established by the Bèiarts, a
family of professional actor. He
married one of the members of
the family, Armande Bèjart, in
1662. The troupe, which Molière
named the “Illustre Theatre”,
played in Paris until 1645. The
theatre started with a deficit, and
Molière, who appears to have
been chosen president by his
associates, was arrested for
debt. He was imprisoned in the
chatelet, but released on his own
recognizance's.
In the course of the subsequent
wanderings through different parts
of France for 13 years Molière
composed some small comic
pieces of no importance. Before
long the “Illustre Theatre” regained
confidence to face the Parisian
Public. On their return Louis XIV
lent the troupe his support and
offered them occasional use of the
theatre du petit – Bourbon. Next
year the troupe, now authorized to
call itself “troupe de Monsieur, frere
du Roi”
The last twelve years of his
saw the production of his
most famous works. In 1662
he wrote “L’Ecole des
Femmes” which gives a
lesson to husbands – which
was very creditable to the
playwright, for he himself, at
the age of forty, had just
married a girl of twenty,
Madeleine Bejart’s sister, the
volatile Armande who was to
give him so much trouble.
Giovanni Battista Lulli, creator of the French
Opera was often in conflict with Molière. Lulli
was under the protection of the King and
was much liked by the public. In 1673, while
on scene he had a slight stroke but
managed to continue. One of the most
famous moments in Molière’s life is the last,
which became legend: he died on stage,
while performing “Le malade imaginaire”
strictly speaking, he collapsed on stage, and
died a few hours later at his house, without
sacraments because 2 priests refused to
visit him and third arrived too late. It is said
that he was wearing green, and because of
thet, brings bad luck to actors. As an actor,
he was not allowed by the laws at the time to
be buried in an ordinary cemetery in sacred
ground. It was his wife Armande who asked
the King Louise XIV to allow a “normal
funeral celebrated” at night. The King agreed
and was buried in the part of the cemetery
reserved for unbaptized babies.
JEAN BAPTISTE LULLI
Molière had a number of good friends
among the italians actors and one of
them was Tiberio Fiorilli known as
Scaramouche.
Molière’ Masterpieces are: “L’ecole
des femmes” (1662); “Le Tartuffe”;
“Don Juan” (1665); “Le Misanthrope”
(1666); “Le medicin Malgre Lui”
(1666).
Other works not so well known are
“Le mariage Forcè” (1664); “La
princesse d’Elide”; “L’amour medecin”
(1665) and “Le sicilien ou l’amour
peintre” (1667).
TIBERIO FIORILLI
“SCARAMOUCHE”
The “Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme”
(1670) was written to please Louis
XIV and his desire to make fun of
turkish Ambassadors.
“Le bourgeois Gentilhomme” written in 1670: Music
by Lulli
Monsieur Jourdain a man of recent breeding thinks,
like many of his kind, that superficial manners,
accomplishments, and speech were the marks of a
gentleman. Jourdain is obsessed with “quality” and
“respectability” but is a total fool, and his efforts at
bettering himself are met with derision. He makes a
fool of himself with his ludicrous attempts to be
important. Everyone around him including his wife,
his daughter, servants and noble hangers-on turn
Jourdan into an idiot with their ridicule and trickery.
Jourdan also must deal with his daughter Lucille.
This is the courtship between Cleonte to marry his
daughter because he comes from Jourdain’s old
background, he wants Lucille to marry a noble.
Cleonte takes advantage of Jourdain’s extreme
snobbishness by disguising himself as a turkinsh
prince who has heard of Lucille’s famous beauty.
In the “Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme” we can
recognize many elements that characterize our
own society today, such as voracious
consumerism and the potential and promise of
social mobility.
Monsieur Jourdain is convinced if he can acquire
all the things a man of good taste would have in
his possession, he’ll instantly obtain the status of
gentleman. While Jourdain is clearly the primary
target of laughter in this comedy no one is
spared. Ultimately, through his characters’
desires for social approbation, Molière pokes fun
at both the middle class who dream of social
ascendancy at all costs, and the impoverished
nobility, whose outward appearance of dignity
thinly conceals a core of dishonesty, desperation
and manipulation “c’est la vie”.