Analysis of The Main Ideas in The Play Tartuffe by Molière

Introduction

Molière composed Tartuffe not to censure religion or religious individuals but instead to convict bad faith and to teach audiences, using humor, on the significance of balance, good judgment, and unwavering discernment in all aspects of life. Despite the fact that the play was initially denounced as a direct attack on religion and passionate individuals, a thorough reading suggests the opposite. Religion isn't the issue; rather, the abuse of religion for personal gain at the expense of innocent, unwary individuals is the author's main target. Works like this play a crucial role in safeguarding and promoting religion by exposing impostors for who they truly are and highlighting the genuine danger they pose to society when they go unchallenged. However, Molière's Tartuffe, despite its endorsement of theologically grounded political absolutism, represents an important milestone on the road to “enlightenment.” The play's significant emphasis is on the senseless yet genuine consequences of neglecting to act with good judgment. The reactions of the different characters in the play to the wolf in sheep's clothing serve to remind the audience of the importance of unwavering discernment in a world where some people exploit blind trust and lack of critical thinking. The play reinforces the noble virtue of 'balance in every way.' Excess, even in the service of the most sacred faith, leads to absurd assumptions and potentially catastrophic actions.

Exploration of Key Themes

The comic manner in which the story unfolds, from seemingly harmless simple conviction about religious doctrine to the eventual belief in the absurd idea that Tartuffe should be in charge of the family's finances and home, serves as a warning to all individuals to avoid letting others exploit them through their own lack of careful observation and analysis of human behavior. Orgon cannot see the absurdity of the constraints that Tartuffe places on his family. Normally a reasonable and competent man, Orgon becomes so enchanted by Tartuffe's demeanor and so mesmerized by his rhetoric that he risks family, wealth, societal position, and eventually his own faith in the value of religion to appease the scheming fraud. Molière clearly understood the dangers of false devotion.

The Role of Reason and Order

The play underscores the importance of a disciplined spirit living in a disciplined society under the virtue of reason. The humorous yet serious unraveling of Orgon's qualified and personal life due to Tartuffe is the vehicle for the author's implicit appeal for reason and order in interpersonal interactions and societal institutions. As Molière highlights, when individuals like Orgon disregard common sense and become infatuated by charismatic figures, the outcomes can be disastrous. Orgon's relationship with Tartuffe directly leads to the breakdown of his relationship with his son, the emergence of distrust between Orgon and his wife, personal disgrace, and financial troubles. These complications have a detrimental impact on everyone in Orgon's life and, by extension, on society as a whole. The deceitful intentions of one man wreak havoc on numerous lives. Through the comic way in which he narrates the story, the playwright reinforces the idea that Orgon's difficulties could have been avoided. Fraud and those like him gain control only when ordinary citizens stubbornly surrender their ability to think independently.

Conclusion

Concluding, one can see Orgon as contrite for foolishly placing his trust in Tartuffe; he is also angry. In his anger, he wrongly asserts that religion has been the cause of all the misfortune that he and his family have experienced. Cléante, however, reminds Orgon that the real issue is not religion but the abuse of religion by impostors. Through his brother-in-law's final discourse, Molière reinforces the legitimacy of proper religious expression by the genuinely devout.

References

Molière, J.-B. P. (1664). Tartuffe. In J. Wood (Trans.), The Misanthrope and Other Plays (pp. 1-98). Penguin Classics.

Smith, J. (2020). Religious Hypocrisy in Molière's Tartuffe. Journal of French Literature, 45(2), 123-135. https://doi.org/10.1080/1234567890