false 29837 19 0 Le Misanthrope, (The Misanthrope), L'Ecole des femmes (The School for Wives), Tartuffe ou l'Imposteur, (Tartuffe or the Hypocrite), L'Avare ou l'École du mensonge (The Miser), Le Malade imaginaire (The Imaginary Invalid), and Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme (The Bourgeois Gentleman).

From a prosperous family and having studied at the Jesuit Clermont College (now Lycée Louis-le-Grand), Molière was well suited to begin a life in the theatre. Thirteen years as an itinerant actor helped to polish his comic abilities while he also began writing, combining Commedia dell'Arte elements with the more refined French comedy.

Through the patronage of a few aristocrats including the brother of Louis XIV, Molière procured a command performance before the King at the Louvre. Performing a classic play by Pierre Corneille and a farce of his own, Le Docteur amoureux (The Doctor in Love), Molière was granted the use of Salle du Petit-Bourbon at the Louvre, a spacious room appointed for theatrical performances. Later, Molière was granted the use of the Palais-Royal. In both locations he found success among the Parisians with plays such as Les Précieuses ridicules (The Affected Ladies), L'École des maris (The School for Husbands) and L'École des femmes (The School for Wives). This royal favour brought a royal pension to his troupe and the title "Troupe du Roi" (The King's Troupe). Molière continued as the official author of court entertainments.

Though he received the adulation of the court and Parisians, Molière's satires attracted criticisms from moralists and the Church. Tartuffe ou l'Imposteur (Tartuffe or the Hypocrite) and its attack on religious hypocrisy roundly received condemnations from the Church while Don Juan was banned from performance. Molière's hard work in so many theatrical capacities began to take its toll on his health and, by 1667, he was forced to take a break from the stage. In 1673, during a production of his final play, Le Malade imaginaire (The Imaginary Invalid), Molière, who suffered from pulmonary tuberculosis, was seized by a coughing fit and a haemorrhage while playing the hypochondriac Argan. He finished the performance but collapsed again and died a few hours later. In his time in Paris, Molière had completely reformed French comedy.
]]> male Paris 1622/01/15 1673/02/17 52823 1854596373 9781854596376 54 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170392702m/52823.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170392702s/52823.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52823.Tartuffe 3.69 1202 Condemned and banned for five years in Molière's day, Tartuffe is a satire on religious hypocrisy. Tartuffe worms his way into Orgon's household, blinding the master of the house with his religious "devotion," and almost succeeds in his attempts to seduce his wife and disinherit his children before the final unmasking.

]]> 29837 3.72 4946 239 1664 752994 0486270653 9780486270654 27 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178047021m/752994.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178047021s/752994.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/752994.The_Misanthrope 3.73 622 </div>]]> 29837 3.72 4946 239 1666 52828 015601310X 9780156013109 9 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170392703m/52828.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170392703s/52828.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52828.Don_Juan 3.59 232 </div>]]> 29837 3.72 4946 239 1965 52822 0192833413 9780192833419 11 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170392701m/52822.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170392701s/52822.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52822.The_Misanthrope_Tartuffe_and_Other_Plays 3.79 219 29837 3.72 4946 239 1959 257213 2038716617 9782038716610 5 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173206702m/257213.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173206702s/257213.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/257213.Le_Bourgeois_Gentilhomme 3.75 203 29837 3.72 4946 239 1670 428077 2091878235 9782091878232 2 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174668666m/428077.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1174668666s/428077.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/428077.L_Avare 3.72 184 --Claire Mazurel]]> 29837 3.72 4946 239 1668 857213 2038716668 9782038716665 3 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178937647m/857213.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178937647s/857213.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/857213.Le_Malade_Imaginaire 3.81 151 29837 3.72 4946 239 1673 389189 0785931317 9780785931317 5 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/389189.L_Ecole_des_Femmes 3.74 140 29837 3.72 4946 239 1662 99469 0156795027 9780156795029 6 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1171438331m/99469.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1171438331s/99469.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/99469.The_School_for_Wives_and_The_Learned_Ladies_by_Moliere 4.07 90 The School for Wives concerns an insecure man who contrives to show the world how to rig an infallible alliance by marrying the perfect bride; The Learned Ladies centers on the domestic calamities wrought by a domineering woman upon her husband, children, and household. Wilbur makes Molière into as great an English verse playwright as he was a French one. Introductions by Richard Wilbur.]]> 29837 3.72 4946 239 29836 3.93 684 69 1991 910821 2038716692 9782038716696 0 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1179381602m/910821.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1179381602s/910821.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/910821.Les_Precieuses_Ridicules 3.70 57 29837 3.72 4946 239 1659