Moliere (Jean Baptiste Poquelin, 1622-1673) was born in Paris and educated by the Jesuits. He formed a touring company and toured around France before returning to Paris and becoming the Troupe du Roi.
This is a very brief play. I found it humorous (though not in a rip-roaring way more a snicker at the foibles of society and the pompous and severe).
Alceste would be fun to play as an actor. He has a good line right off the bat:
pg 2 "To esteem everyone is to esteem no one"
He is an odd mix of reason and passion - he has strong ideals and has no patience for the hypocrisies of society, faking warmth and friendship. But he is undone by his inexplicable passion for Celimene and lets his passion overcome his common sense and his principles.
There are two characters who play sidekick roles and seem less strong than Alceste or Celimene but at the end they seem to be the ones who come out of it all alright - no lawsuits, in love with each other and happy about it, not prey to the heights of passion nor the depths of despair. They combine Reason with morals: Philinte & Eliante.
For someone who has Reason but seems without morals, Celimene seems quite cold-blooded and cruel.
Both Alceste & Oronte seem quite passionate. Alceste seems to have morals, I'm not sure about Oronte.
The other characters seem to be foolish, with not much reason and not even much passion (the two Marquis and Arsinoe) but their passion is probably real.
It will be interesting to discuss this play as I feel that I'm missing a few layers.
Alceste would be fun to play as an actor. He has a good line right off the bat:
pg 2 "To esteem everyone is to esteem no one"
He is an odd mix of reason and passion - he has strong ideals and has no patience for the hypocrisies of society, faking warmth and friendship. But he is undone by his inexplicable passion for Celimene and lets his passion overcome his common sense and his principles.
There are two characters who play sidekick roles and seem less strong than Alceste or Celimene but at the end they seem to be the ones who come out of it all alright - no lawsuits, in love with each other and happy about it, not prey to the heights of passion nor the depths of despair. They combine Reason with morals: Philinte & Eliante.
For someone who has Reason but seems without morals, Celimene seems quite cold-blooded and cruel.
Both Alceste & Oronte seem quite passionate. Alceste seems to have morals, I'm not sure about Oronte.
The other characters seem to be foolish, with not much reason and not even much passion (the two Marquis and Arsinoe) but their passion is probably real.
It will be interesting to discuss this play as I feel that I'm missing a few layers.
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