The French Renaissance was not only a time of change but a time where the Great Moliere would rule the stage. During the 1600’s Moliere was adored by Louis XIV but despised by the Queen. Moliere created magnificent comedies like Tartuffe and Les Precieuses Ridicules not caring who tried to stand in his way. The King always had his back allowing Moliere to have not only a huge impact on the royalty but the public. (Frame) Nearly all of his plays were controversial but adored, the only group of people who were upset by his popularity were the puritans.
The puritans felt that all of theatre was pretty much a creation of the devil. Actors were thought to be evil and not a child of God in a way since they pretended to be other people. Puritans believed actors and theatre troupes could not be trusted since you could never tell if they were telling the truth or always acting. It is amazing theatre survived for so long with such a negative influence on it by the puritans and other religious folk. Without influences like Louis the XIV and his joy of theatre Moliere would never have been able to produce such incredible comedies. (Walker)
In order for Moliere's plays to be put on for the public, Louis XIV had to get it revised several times, produce campaign pamphlets in its defense and for Moliere's most controversial piece Tartuffe had to include an introduction saying that the character Tartuffe did not represent a person of religious faith but a religious hypocrite (Baker).
Moliere not only wrote, produced and directed his plays he was also an actor. In Tartuffe he plays Orgon probably wanting to portray the traditional Christian perfectly and even played the servant Mascarille in Les Precieuses Ridicules. He was a man of all talents and spent his life on stage. During his last production The Hypochondriac he collapsed on stage due to a heart attack and died in 1673. He was denied a priest by the church and was rumored to be buried with the non-baptized. This is because during medieval times actors were ex-communicated by the church and only allowed salvation if they confessed their sins before they died. Since Moliere died on stage he never had the chance (Wild).
The puritans felt that all of theatre was pretty much a creation of the devil. Actors were thought to be evil and not a child of God in a way since they pretended to be other people. Puritans believed actors and theatre troupes could not be trusted since you could never tell if they were telling the truth or always acting. It is amazing theatre survived for so long with such a negative influence on it by the puritans and other religious folk. Without influences like Louis the XIV and his joy of theatre Moliere would never have been able to produce such incredible comedies. (Walker)
In order for Moliere's plays to be put on for the public, Louis XIV had to get it revised several times, produce campaign pamphlets in its defense and for Moliere's most controversial piece Tartuffe had to include an introduction saying that the character Tartuffe did not represent a person of religious faith but a religious hypocrite (Baker).
Moliere not only wrote, produced and directed his plays he was also an actor. In Tartuffe he plays Orgon probably wanting to portray the traditional Christian perfectly and even played the servant Mascarille in Les Precieuses Ridicules. He was a man of all talents and spent his life on stage. During his last production The Hypochondriac he collapsed on stage due to a heart attack and died in 1673. He was denied a priest by the church and was rumored to be buried with the non-baptized. This is because during medieval times actors were ex-communicated by the church and only allowed salvation if they confessed their sins before they died. Since Moliere died on stage he never had the chance (Wild).