"Tartuffe," a play written by the French playwright Molière in the 17th century, is a satirical depiction of religious hypocrisy. The titular character, Tartuffe, is a wealthy man who poses as a devout and holy man, but is actually a fraudulent and manipulative individual. Throughout the play, Molière uses Tartuffe as a way to critique the corrupt and self-serving nature of religious hypocrisy and the dangers it can pose to society.
At the beginning of the play, Tartuffe has ingratiated himself into the household of Orgon, a wealthy man who is highly devoted to him. Orgon's family, however, is skeptical of Tartuffe's true motives and accuse him of being a fraud. Despite their concerns, Orgon refuses to listen to their warnings and becomes increasingly blinded by his faith in Tartuffe.
As the play progresses, it becomes clear that Tartuffe is only interested in using Orgon's wealth and influence for his own gain. He constantly manipulates and lies to Orgon, even going so far as to try to seduce Orgon's daughter and attempt to steal Orgon's property.
Molière uses the character of Tartuffe to highlight the dangers of blindly following religious figures and placing too much trust in them. Tartuffe's false piety and manipulation of Orgon demonstrate the dangers of allowing oneself to be swayed by superficial displays of holiness, rather than critically examining the actions and motivations of those who claim to be religious leaders.
In addition, Molière also uses the play to criticize the concept of "false piety," or the act of pretending to be more religious or holy than one actually is. Tartuffe is a master of this, using his supposed devotion to God as a way to gain power and influence over others. Molière's depiction of Tartuffe serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of allowing oneself to be fooled by such false piety.
Overall, "Tartuffe" is a powerful critique of religious hypocrisy and the dangers it can pose to society. Through the character of Tartuffe, Molière highlights the importance of questioning the actions and motivations of those who claim to be religious leaders, and the dangers of blindly following them.
Tartuffe, Religion Essay
Pushing the King to censore the play due to the influence of the church and his mentor, despite all the obstacles along the way it was finally accepted by society and the church. This fact is particularly ironic considering that at the beginning of the play Madame Pernelle condemns Elmire for her impious ways, noting how she wears stylish clothes and entertains many callers. When individualism and free thinking came about, women began to urn for true love in a husband. It is at this point that Orgon has seen for himself that Tartuffe is two-faced and continues to lie. Orgon forgiving Tartuffe for a crime which he has confessed to such as adultery can be seen as an attack on the church, and perhaps is perceiving the church as hypocritical.
Religion in Enlightenment Literature: Moliere's Tartuffe
Although he occasionally performs good deeds, such as giving money to beggars, he does so only in order to make his charade of faith more believable. In addition, an American puts their faith in the judicial system and may end up being wrongfully punished, shattering their social perception of justice. Enlightenment thinkers believed that reason was the highest belief. As the play continues, in Act IV Scene III, Elmire offers for Orgon to hear for himself. In the end Tartuffe is revealed and punished for his foolishness and trickery.
The real clash is a conflict of consciousness, of Hamlet 's oscillations between infinite abstraction and shackled solipsism, between recognition of the heroic ideal and of his limited means, between the methodical mishmash of sanity and the total chaos of insanity. Importantly, Moliere does not question religious principles and norms. Likewise, this quote shows how the feminist perspective might not show us how women were treated in the 1600s; this scene explains how men were not expected to love their wife and not expected to care. Religion And Hypocrisy In Moliere's Play Moliere saw religion as a personal and private matter, he believed it should not be forced upon others but be a natural state of being. On the other hand, there are those who disagree that Moliere only criticizes the clergy as a privileged social class conflicting with the emerging bourgeoisie; they see him as a critic of Catholicism and Christianity in general. Any discussion of Hamlet, a work steeped in contradictions and doubles, necessitates inquiry into passages concerning opposition to thought, namely those of the corporeal. Thus she reveals the weaknesses in the use of religion in constructing knowledge.
With this knowledge in mind, Tartuffe cunningly plays on the fact that he is truly religious to get away with adultery and stealing, two of the things told not to do in the basic guidelines of Christianity, the Ten Commandments. It could then be argued that it is exactly this group of fanatic clergy that Moliere attacks rather than religion in general. Yet at the same time, he does not condemn that most shallow of virtues, beauty. The context surrounding the period in which Tartuffe was written in, the 17th Century is remembered as being a time of extreme power for the French Monarchy. His character becomes the active voice and is used by Molier as an instrument to express his own ideas and to present several of the comedy's themes.
Mariane shows her obedience when she replies "To please you, sir, is what delights me best. French culture at this time closely linked society and religion; the Church held an enormous amount of power, and piety was considered an essential part of everyday life. When everything seems to be astray, light will shine through. Orgon Religion And Hypocrisy In Tartuffe them. . It is clear that she is plain naive to the corruption of certain people in society.
Again Tartuffe 's hypocritic side comes out when he claims he 's only taking the property because he doesnt want the evil to get their hands on it. It is clearly shown that Tartuffe goes to the absolute extreme when he apologises to Orgon; Oui mon frère, je suis un méchant, un coupable, Un malheureux pécheur tout pleine iniquité, Les plus grand scélérat qui jamais ait été; Chaque instant de ma vie est change de souillures; Elle n'est qu'un amas de crimes et d'ordures; Et je vois que le ciel, pour ma punition, Me veut mortifier en cette occasion. Tartuffe is a play written by Moliere during the Enlightenment period. The relative magnitude of the journals program within the Press is unique among American university presses. D; 2nd Edition; Pg. The play makes it clear that Parisian society was filled with people for whom deceit was nothing more than lingua franca. When Damis returns home and Tartuffe instead of Orgon gets locked up, order is restored.
Moliere’s Tartuffe and the Religious Hypocrisy, Sample of Essays
Consider the relationship between religion and politics, one one back then did not have knowledge about the enlightenment ideas about the separatation between the church and state. During the 17th century, anyone believed to be righteous was viewed as a role model and it was common for people to believe the words and follow the rules of these leaders without questioning. Thus Cleante represents an individual that is unaffected by the devastating consequences of ignorance and therefore portrays the ideal use of reason within French society. Enlightenment might be able to explain through text or words, but being able to receive it or truly understand it, we must learn in it our own path. I thought that religious persecution was simply the persecution of a group because of their religious faith. The King obviously had noticed that Tartuffe could not be trusted and was two-faced; he gave the property back to Orgon for his good deeds in the civil war. Orgon is given back his property and absolved of any treachery deeds and he announces Valére and Moraines… Archetypes In Tartuffe Molière was before his time.
Special issues in preparation discuss recent perspectives on the history of Paris, colonialism and the writing of French history, and visual arts in the writing of French History. However, with the application of reason individuals began to understand and examine the validity of the ideas they were exchanging. However, he put his faith on a pedestal and saw praying and God as important as breathing and even life itself. He was able to persuade the thought of the two characters and persuade them that he was is something that he was not. After Toinette, the maid, then enters the scene she sarcastically makes a comment about all of the bills lying on the table. When he finds out that his wife had a fever, the first thing Orgon wants to know is whether Tartuffe is well. Orgon refuses to believe anyone unless he has physical proof.
This shows that Tartuffe is completely ignoring the Ten Commandments, something which a religious person would consider a sin they are the basic guidelines of Christianity. While religion had dominated in influence over the people for decades, the onset of the enlightenment began to open individuals minds up to reason leading to the questioning of prior beliefs. This is because even when an idea contradicts another, it cannot be …show more content… In the text, Cleante is portrayed as the rational and logical voice of reason in the conflicts that arise out of ignorance. Damis tries to tell his father that Tartuffe is acting like the Devil. Moliere created the characters to the complete contrast to what society saw them as, which was intriguing and comedic. Despite the fact that the play was initially criticized as an inside and out assault on religion and faithful individuals, an appropriate reading mentions the polar opposite.
Because the religious affiliation of Jacque was persecuted and excommunicated by the Church. Now the Church being juxtaposed as the Pharisees and Jacques loyalty to his faith demonstrates the hypocrisy that has become apart of the Church officials and leader. She was oblivious to what Tartuffe was actually going to do when he entered the family, as she is a catholic person who will see the good side of everybody. The king coming to solve Orgon and his family's problem, did not sit too well with Enlightenment thinkers. Plus, more evidence is the actual effect of the piece on the audience: while Tartuffe is understood to be a hypocrite, etc. For this, the play was censored by King Louis XIV, probably due to the influence of the archbishop of Paris, Paul Philippe Hardouin de Beaumont de Péréfixe, who was the King's confessor and had been his tutor. The journal's diverse format includes forums, review essays, special issues, and articles in French, as well as bilingual abstracts of the articles in each issue.
