The Play Tartuffe Is Molieres Way of Exposing Hypocrisy, Religion, Foolishness, Deceit, and Sin - Essay Example

World Literature 25 September The play Tartuffe is Moliere’s way of exposing hypocrisy, religion, foolishness, deceit and sin. The play Tartuffe by Moliere is very comical in many respects. It does not condemn religion, but rather attempts to expose those who present themselves as religious and righteous individuals such as Tartuffe. Crawford states that “Critics insisted that the play was an attack upon religion, but Moliere quite rightly maintained that he was attacking hypocrisy, not religion.” (Bard.org). The play also aims at warning people to watch out for such characters since they come with hidden agendas which are mainly focused towards their own gain. Through the play, Moliere exposes hypocrisy, religion, foolishness, deceit and sin as seen from the characters. When Orgon meets Tartuffe, he is impressed by his holiness and therefore he decides to house him. However, not everyone in his household believes that Tartuffe is as holy as he presents himself to be. In fact, they think that he is hypocritical and regard him as a hypocrite from the very beginning. Damis does not agree that they should change their lives because Tartuffe says so. He says “Good God! Do you expect me to submit to the tyranny of that carping hypocrite? Must we forgo all joys and satisfactions because that bigot censures all our actions?” (Moliere, Tartuffe 10). Madame Pernelle believes that Tartuffe is heaven sent, and therefore he should be listened to and respected. So when Damis comments that Tartuffe is full of holy speeches, Madame Pernelle tells him that she will not allow them to mock him. She adds that he practices what he preaches and is a fine man worth listening to (Moliere, Tartuffe 10). Another instance is when Dorine says that it is a shame to see how Tarfutte has taken the place of the master in the household. She regards him as a beggar who has taken over everything, despite having nothing when he came. “So far forget himself as he behaves, as if the house were his and we his slaves” (Moliere, Tartuffe 11). Madame Pernelle regards this as nonsense; she adds that the reason why they condemn Tartuffe is because he tells the truth. He tells them what they should hear, condemning their sins and pointing out their moral wrongdoings. As time goes by, Tartuffe gains the full confidence of Orgon and his mother Madame Pernelle. However, he is a woof dressed in sheep’s clothing. This is clearly revealed when he attempts to seduce Elmire, the wife of the master. He tells her that “to hear a voice that one adores gently entreat: my heart runs over at your honeyed eloquence.”(Moliere, The Misanthrope 1440). Tartuffe’s hypocrisy causes a sour ending for him as he gets arrested at a time when he thinks he has won. Madame Pernelle is also a hypocrite. She uses Tarfutte and religion to bully all other members of Orgon’s household except Orgon, who is her son. This seems quite selfish and unfair, since at no instance in the play do we find her bullying or speaking ill of Orgon. She seems to have a lot of dislike towards Elmire who is her daughter in law. She constantly attacks them with spiteful words and goes ahead to leave the household claiming that she can’t stand their manners. She claims that her son’s household is like a madhouse where no one listens to advice. She openly attacks Elmire telling her that “your behavior is extremely bad, and a poor example for these children, too. Their dear, dead mother did far better than you.” (Moliere, Tartuffe 9). Moliere, in his play Tartuffe aims at exposing those who joke about with religion. The consequences of this are clearly shown at the end of the play. Despite the fact that religion was a very serious issue during the times when the play was written, Tartuffe does not seem to mind this. Ranum states that “Tartuffe is a false devout who epitomizes the moral and social proclivities of most devotes.” (325).In the play it is clear who understands religion and who doesn’t. Tartuffe for example, hides behind the veil of religion in order to gain materially. Orgon does not seem to understand what religion is all about making him fall victim of Tartuffe’s tricks. He says of Tartuffe that “he used to come into our church each day and humbly kneel nearby, and start to pray….He’d sign and weep , and sometimes with a sound of rapture he would bend and kiss the ground” (Moliere, Tartuffe 25). Cleante, on the other hand understands religion, he knows that it is not about displays of holiness but rather full practice of God’s instructions and doing what is right and just. Orgon is the biggest fool in the play. In fact, his foolishness almost costs him all his material possessions as well as his wife and daughter. When he returns from the country, he is informed that his wife Elmire was unwell during his absence. Instead of checking on his wife, he is not concerned, rather, he insists on knowing how Tartuffe his guest has been. He is obsessed with Tartuffe and regards him as a poor fellow. He anxiously asks Dorine about Tartuffe who tells him that “he bore it very well. To keep his cheerfulness at any cost, and make up for the blood Madame had lost, he drank, at lunch, four beakers full of port.”(Moliere, Tartuffe 23). Cleante attempts to make him understand what Dorine meant with her words and warn him about his guest, but Orgon refuses to listen. He tells Cleante “Brother, stop right there. You do not know the man of whom you speak.” (Moliere, Tartuffe 24). Orgon is stupid enough to force his daughter Mariane into marrying Tartuffe, a complete stranger, despite being engaged to Valere who is the man she loves. He does this without caring about how his daughter feels and does not make an effort to make her happy. He even breaks his daughter’s engagement to Valere and tells Cleante that he plans to be guided by Heavens will (Moliere, Tartuffe 32). When Damis catches Tartuffe trying to seduce Elmire and accuses him, Orgon takes a defensive move defending a stranger. He tells his son that those accusations are false and when Damis insists on proving to him that he is telling the truth, the argument results to Damis disinheritance. To make matters worse, Orgon makes Tartuffe his heir. The hypocrisy of Tartuffe can also be seen here. This is because, being just a guest, he has no right of accepting and supporting Damis’s disinheritance for his own gain especially coming from his own father. Orgon finally realizes how stupid he has been when Elmire hides Tartuffe and he witnesses his attempt to seduce his wife. Tartuffe is a fool to think that he could manage to take over the household, Orgon’s wife and his daughter. He tends to think that no one realizes his schemes making him even more stupid. He fails to realize that, although Orgon has fallen for his tricks, the other members of his household could be more intelligent. In fact, his tricks are realized in the very beginning. Tartuffe’s foolishness in attempting to take the masters wife lands him in trouble. This is because although, the master does not take note of his son’s accusations, Elmire plans to prove these accusations to her gullible husband. Had Tartuffe been wise, he would have stopped this with the first accusation. When he accepts to become heir to Orgon, he fails to consider that those who have been viewing him as an opportunist but have no proof could finally prove this. Tartuffe’s foolishness however comes with a benefit. Lloyd states that a religious hypocrite is often successful because he wears sacred symbols which blind reason (6). All the while he enjoys a lot of previledges, eating, drinking and enjoying the comfort provided to him in Orgon’s home. Madame Pernelle is also foolish. Just like her son she puts the words of a complete stranger above that of her family. When everyone else seems to be against Tartuffe, Madame Pernelle condemns them. She believes that they should all follow Tartuffe’s words and change their ways. She goes as far as condemning Elmire, who is also the owner of the household. She tells her that “you are much too free with money, and I’m distressed to see you so elaborately dressed. When it’s ones husband that one aims to please, one has no need of costly fripperies.” (Moliere, Tartuffe 9). This shows how stupid Madame Pernelle is because she believes that righteous people live and dress cheaply. She even seems to wonder why Elmire dresses elegantly viewing it as a bad image to their holy guest. From this it is clear that Madame Pernelle can’t see changes in Tartuffe who takes full advantage of his opportunity as a guest to eat, dress and live with new standards. If he is as righteous as he pretends to be, he would live his life like he is used to. Throughout the play, Tartuffe despite being a religious man tells the most lies. His biggest lie is the lie of pretence towards his friend Orgon and his household. Tartuffe’s lies earn him a place in a wealthy family but in the end he pays for his deeds. Orgon seems straight forward and does not lie at all. This however lands him in trouble since he is the person that gets deceived the most. Elmire and Dorine also lie on several occasions. In order to manipulate and expose Tartuffe, they both hide the truth. Damis on the other hand is more like his father, he does not lie. But despite this, telling what he believes is the truth causes his disinheritance, this is because he seems to have no proof of his accusations towards Tartuffe. Tartuffe is the most sinful person in the play. However, Madame Pernelle and Orgon think otherwise, they regard him as very righteous and as far as wrongs and rights are concerned, they view him as the person in power. In fact, Madame Pernelle tells the rest that “your souls would fare far better if you followed his precepts to the letter.”(Moliere, Tartuffe 11). Tartuffe does not follow most rules of Christianity and if they were keen enough to observe him they would notice this. Hypocrisy is Tartuffe’s greatest sin, one that he doesn’t seem to mind. He is also unfair to his friend and host, despite how much Orgon has done for him. He is jealous of what Orgon has; this is revealed later in the play when the true character of Tartuffe is revealed. He is a man who is after material gain and would go to any lengths to achieve this. Barranger states that “The comic writer’s vision attributes human error to folly, not to ill will or irremediable corruption, and celebrates human endurance and survival in unions and reunions.” (108). It is clear from this play that people are not always what they pretend or seem to be. There are definitely pretenders in this world, some of whom go to the extent of using religion as a mask. It is advisable to not always judge the book by its cover and people by their looks or first impressions. Another lesson from this play is that where there is smoke there is fire. Had Orgon and Madame Pernelle listened, or rather investigated Tarfutte from the accusations made against him, they would not have fallen victims of his tricks. Listening even to what one might regard as folly can sometimes save one from the worst. Finally, people like Tartuffe always ultimately get the punishment they deserve and this is clearly shown in the play. Works Cited Barranger, Milly. Theatre: A Way of Seeing. California: Thomson Wadsworth, 2006. Print. Crawford, Jerry. “Tartuffe: Attacking Hypocrisy, Not Religion”. Bard.org, 2012. Web. 26 September 2012. Lloyd, Harold. Molieres Tartuffe. Washington: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2010. Print. Moliere. Tartuffe. Florida: Harcourt Brace & Company, 1963. Print. Molière. The Misanthrope, Tartuffe, and Other Plays. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001. Print. Ranum, Orest. Paris in the Age of Absolutism: An Essay. Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State University, 2002. Print.   Read More