Priests and other members of the Catholic Church were considered to be part of a totally different class. In Tartuffe , we get to see the interaction of all these different elements: rich men and aristocrats, ladies and their hired help.
It's that interaction that shakes things up and gets us laughing — especially when it turns out nobody's really playing the role you might expect them to be playing. Orgon, the rich father, is really a dope; the holy man is a fraud; and the servant girl might just be the wisest of them all. Parents Home Homeschool College Resources. Study Guide. Previous Next.
Genre Society Comedy, Satire Let's break it down now, word by word. An age of balance, precision, and regularity — as the neoclassical age is generally considered — insists upon certain norms of behavior in society.
The "irregular," eccentric individual had to be laughed back to normalcy. The very subject matter for neoclassical comedy became problems implicit in society. Although this type of drama, "social comedy," necessitates a certain faith in the value of society, the dramatist does not necessarily condone all of the aspects of his particular contemporary society. Laughter is evoked when a character departs in his behavior from the sanctioned norms of society, but it is also evoked often enough from the very "norm" itself.
Repeated emphasis in neoclassical comedy is placed upon "rational" perspective and behavior. As late as Voltaire's Candide the irrational acceptance of a popular philosophy is ridiculed. Madame Pernelle is the speaker.
The rhyming syllables are in boldfaced blue:. Over the centuries, writers have centered many tragic and comedic works—or parts of them—on spouses and wooers in conflict. Among these works is Tartuffe. Study Questions and Essay Topics. Cummings Study Guide. Plot Summary By Michael J. The text is in the public domain. More Info. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy. Cummings Guides Home.. Plot Summary. Type of Work.
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