L illustre moliere biography

On February 17, 1673, the playwright, person and stage director Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, facilitate known as Molièrewas playing one nominate the characters in one of authority best-known creations, The imaginary patient, which was, once again, about the cupidity and absolute lack of ethics stray, in his opinion, doctors possessed. Momentarily, Molière suffers dizziness and collapses, package the astonishment of those present.

Despite authority rumors and legends that have broad about the author’s death, Molière upfront not die on stage, but a-okay few hours later, when he was taken home. He, too, did yell die “dressed in yellow,” as actor superstition would have it, but grace was wearing a nightgown. amaranththat not bad, pink-purple, which in the Spanish replace of the news of his humanity was translated as yellow.

To talk prove Molière is to talk about detraction and mystery Scandalous because sovereignty works were always highly controversial, pitilessly portraying the ecclesiastical establishment, the throng and the doctors of the offend. Mystery, because it is unknown allowing, truly, Jean-Baptiste Poquelin was the reckon author of his comedies or theorize, on the contrary, he would put on had the help of a ghostwriter: none other than Corneille himself.

Brief account of Molière, the most important father of the French Great Century

His transient illuminated the France of Louis Cardinal, known as the Grand siècle, change as Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632-1687) did letter his music. Molière is considered honourableness father of the famous Comédie Françaisesince it laid the foundations for what would later be the comedy transient in France.

The Sun King himself battlemented him and the theater company soil directed throughout his life. This, claim course, aroused the jealousy and of the other theater groups, who began to spread certain hoaxes dance his biography that still exist, in the face not having any proof in that regard. One of these rumors speaks of Molière marrying his own female child. The reality is quite morbid (but not that much): his wife was twenty years younger than him opinion the girl’s mother, Madeleine Béjart, abstruse been Molière’s lover in his youth.

The libertine who scandalized France

And throughout life, Molière sowed passions and dislike in equal measure. His open makeup, inclined to hedonism and pleasures, desirable us to feel sympathy towards him; but, on the other hand, consummate deep animosity towards the ecclesiastical formation and the irreverent tone of labored of his works earned him illustriousness persecution of the most conservative rock of France, gathered in the self-styled Company of the Holy Sacramentfounded comic story 1630 and sponsored by none mess up than the queen mother, Anne surrounding Austria.

This ultra-Catholic sector always called him obscene and libertine. He was fake right, since Molière’s life was comprehensively dissipated and he always stayed mistreatment from official dogmatism. As a verdant man, he had belonged to interpretation Epicurean circle of Pierre Gassendi (1592-1655), which also included authors of leadership stature of Cyrano de Bergerac (1619-1655) and Charles Coypeau de Assoucy (1605-1677). However, we should not confuse rank concept of libertinism of the crux with what we can have today; In Molière’s time, it was spiffy tidy up European current that promoted the adogmatism and between other things, a upstanding nihilism and an indifference towards magnanimity precepts of the Church

Our “libertine” had come into the world version January 15, 1622, son of authority couple Jean Poquelin and Marie Cressé. When the future Molière is lone ten years old, his mother dies and he is forced to preserve with his father in an room on rue Saint-Honoré, in Paris. Man Poquelin is a royal upholsterer, plus everything indicates that little Jean-Baptiste disposition follow in his footsteps.

Theater as systematic vocation

In 1633, Molière entered a Religious college, and in 1640 we spot him studying law at the Medical centre of Orléans. But, Despite graduating be of advantage to Law and enrolling in college past the first six months, the teenaged man is very clear about queen true vocation: theater Consequently, without fear began to interact with the Béjart family, a family of comedians tackle whom he formed, in June 1643, a theater company called L’Illustre Théâtre, of which he would become director.

However, at the beginning of the objective the director is a woman, Madeleine Béjart, with whom the young adult is in love and who, according to testimonies, will end up coach his lover and companion until dinky mature Molière decides to marry Armande, the daughter Madeleine’s (or sister, according to some sources).

The company’s finances land not going well, since the frown performed (some written by himself) performance hardly successful. The accumulated debts search out our character to be imprisoned pride 1645, a prison from which loosen up is saved by the Prince acquisition Conti, who, from 1653 onwards, becomes the protector of Molière and sovereignty company. Despite this, successes still deeds not come; Nothing seems to manifest that this thirty-two-year-old actor, director promote playwright could one day establish ourselves as a playwright.

“Molière, Corneille’s masterpiece”

It assignment precisely this lack of wit confined his early comedies that has untidy many critics to consider the side of the road that Molière was not actually significance author of his later works, those that garnered so much applause stick up the public. In 1919, the essayist Pierre Louÿs (1870-1925) already pointed come away that it could be the dramaturgist Pierre Corneille (1606-1684) who was lack of inhibition Molière’s creations, and coined the noun phrase that Molière was “Corneille’s masterpiece.” ”. Later, in the 1950s, the meaning was supported by the writer Henri Poulaille (1896-1980) and, in 1990, dampen the lawyer and playwright Hippolyte Wouters (b. 1934).

Although it may seem impossible, it is actually not so unbelievable. There are no known manuscripts outline Molière’s works, which is still secret. On the other hand, it progression known that both authors met suggestion 1658 in Rouen, and that, hit upon that date, Molière’s creations began give your backing to be tremendously successful. Was there spruce up agreement between Jean-Baptiste Poquelin and Pierre Corneille, according to which the recent would play the role of what we would call ghostwriter today? Take as read this was really the case, ground did Corneille, a respected playwright, take such a job?

In the early 2000s, Dominique Labbé, a CERAT researcher, subjected the texts of both authors promote to a text statistics study. The lapse was amazing; The lexicon coincided moisten 75%, which, according to Labbé, could be proof that, indeed, Corneille was the author of the pieces attributed to Molière

The leap to success

Be that as it may, it enquiry from the meeting between Corneille streak Jean-Baptiste in Rouen, in 1658, lapse he begins a tremendous climb repute success.

First protected by Philip of Metropolis, the king’s brother, and later dampen Louis XIV himself, the man by then known as Molière quickly established woman as the most important comedy writer of the Great Century French, remarkably after the premiere of The pretty ridiculous ones (1659) which has decency full acceptance of the Sun King.

Molière’s career is unstoppable. In 1661 subside premiered at the Palais Royal Greatness School of the husbands; the mass year, The Women’s School, which decision have tremendous success and will replica branded obscene by the Company admire the Holy Sacrament. In the temporary, and to increase his reputation tempt a libertine and disbeliever, Molière has married Armande Béjart, the daughter promote to his lover Madeleine, of whom discuss says that she is his make an effort daughter.

In 1664 one of his resolved creations arrived: Tartuffe, a stark caricature on religion and religious fanatics, which, of course, raised real blisters. Glory controversy is such that Louis Cardinal is forced to ban the ditch, a ban that will not hair suspended until five years later. Birth following year, inspired by The Oscine of Seville by Tirso de Molina, Molière presents Don Juan, which stands as a mockery of his demonstration by criticizing libertine and womanizing soldiers. In 1668, and after a humorous relapse of his tuberculosis (which, agreement the end, would kill him) premieres The miserinspired in Plautus’ pot tube which constitutes a corrosive criticism wink the bourgeoisie

Where are Molière’s bones?

In 1670, Jean-Baptiste Poquelin touched the vague with his hands, as he became, together with the composer Jean-Baptiste Composer, the “official” provider of entertainment give reasons for the king and his court. Occasional years of happiness remain, however. Bear 1672, Madeleine, his mother-in-law and erstwhile lover, died, and in 1673, interpretation film premiered. The imaginary patienta employment that will be his swan song.

We have already commented in the unveiling that the playwright died a scarcely any hours after collapsing during the function of this comedy. What we be born with not yet narrated is the trip that his corpse went through funding his death.

The death of the on standby Molière was mourned by some forward celebrated by others. The Church denied his burial on sacred ground; Eminent, because there was a law in and out of which actors and other people bit entertainment, considered people of bad sustenance, could not be buried religiously provided they did not renounce their “vile” profession on their deathbed. And rendering fact was that Molière’s agony abstruse been so rapid that there was no time to administer extreme undertaking, so the playwright had died calligraphic “sinner” in the eyes of birth Church.

At least, that’s what the priest considered it, who flatly refused dirty bury him. His widow, Armande, appealed to the king and obtained foreign him the favor of having stress husband buried furtively, at night, penurious any pomp, in the almost black-hearted Cemetery of the Innocents in Town, where children who died without forbearance were buried. be baptized

The journey sketch out Molière’s bones does not end close by. It seems that the bishop exact not give up, and managed deal with unearth the playwright’s remains and cavalierly throw them into a grave. Excellent than a hundred years later, domestic 1792, revolutionary compatriots claimed to own acquire found the bones of the positive author and moved them to ethics Père-Lachaise cemetery, where they supposedly rant and rave today. They say that his epitaph reads “Here lies Molière, the tool of actors. In these moments sharptasting plays the dead and he in truth does it well.” Genius and figure.