The theater was for Molière an inexhaustible field of observation of the human condition.
Sganarelle, Tartuffe, the Miser, the precious ridiculous… So many emblematic protagonists who make the playwright one of the main creators of the classic genre of French Comedy.
Take Sganarelle: he is the French descendant of the zanni Brighella of the
Commedia dell'Arte
. Acrobatic role, cunning and deceit are his main attributes. The character makes his first appearance in The
Flying Doctor
(1659), a prose comedy in which he splits into two characters – a doctor and his twin brother – by means of clever deceptions. Its goal? Favor the marriage of his master Valère with Lucile, promised to another by his father. A skilful satire of medicine…
But let's also think of the ridiculous Precious. Cathos and Magdelon are two anti-heroines eager for emancipation. In this play, the playwright offers a satirical vision of their emancipation. Blinded by their desires, the two precious ones let themselves be deceived in turn by the two suitors whom they had humiliated. And how can we forget these hypocrites whom Molière mocked with pleasure? It is to him that we owe the famous Tartuffe, an upstart hidden under the mask of devotion...
Molière's theater is a veritable breviary of life, where comedy and tragedy mingle with sagacity. On the occasion of the fourth centenary of the birth of the genius,
Le Figaro invites
you to test your knowledge of his works and subtle portraits.