Call, Michael. “Alceste at the print shop: publication and authorship in Moliere’s Le Misanthrope.” The Romanic Review, vol.
104, no. 1-2, 2013, p. 65+. Literary Sources, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A364197030/GLS?u=j057909008&sid=GLS&xid=1613dea0. Accessed 7 Dec. 2017.
Call’s essay explores three aspect of The Misanthrope: the satirical attack on the socio-economic interactions among the French people, Moliere’s self-representation in his play and the grandiose, yet ambivalent gestures Alceste used to express his dislike for humankind. Call acknowledges that The Misanthrope was partially autobiographical, as Moliere was likely involved in a lawsuit at certain parts of the play. Call suggests that Moliere used Alceste’s critique of Oronte’s poem to express his own feelings during his dispute with his publishers. In addition, Oronte’s vexation at Alceste’s critique was used to mock the shallowness of intellectuals during this time period as Oronte only cared about gaining appreciation for his poem. Call then emphasizes Alceste’s impractical criticism of the false manners of the society, while he himself was pursuing Celimene, one of the most underhanded people in the play. Call concludes that the concept of reputation and authenticity were issues that Moliere himself faced, rather than simple concepts that Moliere’s characters experienced.
Kellerman, Carol. “Moliere. The misanthrope.” Kliatt, May 2008, p.
48. Literature Resource Center, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A179159934/GLS?u=j057909008&sid=GLS&xid=73411ec9. Accessed 10 Dec. 2017. Kellerman recognizes Moliere’s satirical attack on the hypocrisy of the seventeenth century. Her analysis reveals the play’s emphasis on the importance of telling the truth versus telling a little white lie.
She praises the actors display of manners and dialogue, but argues that their attack on Celimene may have been a little too brutal. She concludes that the humor and Moliere’s description of society’s hypocrisies remain applicable today. Finally, she notes that the audience was satisfied as the sound of applause and laughter could be heard.
Moliere. “The Misanthrope.” Translated by Curtis Hidden Page.
Poetic Drama: An Anthology of Plays in Verse from the Ancient Greek to the Modern American, edited by Alfred Kreymborg, Modern Age Books, 1941, p. 499. LitFinder, http://link.galegroup.
com/apps/doc/LTF0000473058WK/GLS?u=j057909008&sid=GLS&xid=72fb49a2. Accessed 11 Dec. 2017. Alceste, a misanthrope, complains to Philinte that he hates humankind as they are full of false flattery, deceit, and hypocrisies, while he himself is a man that values honesty and bluntness. As Alceste attempts to change Celimene’s deceitful behavior and scandalous talks, he is faced with a lawsuit for his blunt, degrading critique of Oronte’s poem. Alceste is finally purged of his love for Celimene as her letters shaming all of her suitors are revealed.
Alceste finally surrenders to the injustices of society as he not only lost Celimene, but also his lawsuit despite his just opinion. As a result, Alceste promises to isolate himself from mankind and live alone as he ponders the deceitfulness of society.Theobald, Catherine J.
Lewis. “Formes breves as linguistic and social meditations in Le Misanthrope.” French Forum, vol.
31, no. 2, 2006, p. 15+. Literary Sources, http://link.
galegroup.com/apps/doc/A177281832/GLS?u=j057909008&sid=GLS&xid=2f0c050a. Accessed 11 Dec. 2017. Theobald’s essay acknowledges the importance of the characters’ moral descriptions, but argues that the play has many underlying aphorisms that are left unrecognized.
Theobald specifically targets the language Moliere expressed through Alceste, revealing a principle truth hidden within the walls of Celimene’s salon. With Celimene’s salon as a replica of the French society, Theobald concludes that Alceste’s inability to leave the deceptive conversations taking place in the salon was Moliere’s way of questioning society’s values on truthfulness versus the conventionality of language. Alceste’s humiliation and failure at the end of the play compared to the other characters’ success reveals Moliere’s interpretation of a society filled with lies in which a truthful person cannot survive. Theobald ultimately concludes that The Misanthrope was Moliere’s attempt to attack the claims and values of the social system in which he lives in.
Zanger, Abby E. “Moliere.” Seventeenth-Century French Writers, edited by Francoise Jaouen, Gale, 2003. Dictionary of Literary Biography Vol. 268. Literary Sources, http://link.
galegroup.com/apps/doc/H1200011031/GLS?u=j057909008&sid=GLS&xid=23126e99. Accessed 9 Dec. 2017.
This biography examines Moliere’s early life, career, failures, and his personal life. It focuses on the idea that Moliere abandoned a secure economic future away from his well-off bourgeois family in order to pursue his passion for theater. The biography then spends a considerable amount of time on Moliere’s initial failure as his troupe fell into debt and Moliere himself was placed in jail for these unpaid debts. After his release, the troupe was forced to travel the provinces which scholars often referred to as a period of exile. However, this time marked the beginning of Moliere’s creativity as he began writing plays for his troupe, catching the attention of the King. It then goes on to categorize his plays and the legal hardships Moliere faced as the rights of authors were not quite recognized. Moliere’s death finally revealed his success as both a writer and actor who was often confused with the characters in his play.
Ultimately, it explores Moliere’s travels, hardships and the cultural impact Moliere had as he battled prejudices to raise a lowly genre to a more serious level.
