Moliere

The major characters in Moliere's The Imaginary Invalid and Tartuffe suffer from delusions and associated symptoms that determine their frantic behavior, exaggerated misconceptions, and distorted perspectives. Their delusions subordinate intelligence, rationality, and will power and turn them into social stereotypes that satirize in comedy the excesses and compulsions of French society. Readers should discriminate, as Arthur Reber cautions, illusions, delusions, and hallucinations. Misperceptions may be merely mistakes; hallucinations are often a symptom of schizophrenia, organic lesions, or chemical distortion. Delusions, on the other hand, may be both irrational but in some ways self-serving. Thus, a person or a whole family may stand deluded against self-evident truth because they do not want to have their opinions and egos mussed up.

Moliere's "The Imaginary Invalid" is a hypochondriac so obsessed with his real and delusory health and money difficulties that

Related Essays

Moliere Renowned to the Parisian theatergoers and the members of Louis XIV's court for his farces and comedies, as a writer, director and actor, Moliere surpassed all .... (2082 8 )

Moliere Misanthrope There are many conflicting tensions within Moliere's social satire, The Misanthrope. .... Why, the thing is frightful" (Moliere 35). .... (971 4 )

English Adaptations of Plays by Moliere The purpose of this research is to examine English adaptations of selected plays by Moliere, with a view toward showing diffferences in social context and .... (9292 37 )

Moliere and Fitzgerald Though separated by centuries and dramatically different cultures, MoliFre's comic play Tartuffe and Fitzgerald's short story "Winter Dreams" share a narrative .... (1465 6 )

Moliere's Tartuffe In Acts I and II of "Tartuffe," MoliFre seems to critique the characters on both sides of religious hypocrisy those like Tartuffe who perpetrate it, and those .... (614 2 )

Category: Literature - M