Comedy "The tradesman in the nobility" - content, issues, images

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

France is the ancestor not only of Haute Couture, but also of many undertakings in the field of art. Back in the 17th century, the son of the court upholsterer Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, better known to the whole world under the name of Moliere, composed a witty, brilliant comedy, combining two such different genres as a dramatic theatrical performance and ballet into one. And now, for the fourth century, it has not left the stages of capital and provincial theaters, it has been studied in schools, and the heroes of the work have long since become household names.

Opening a genre

Of course, we are talking about Moliere's great comedy "The Tradesman in the Nobility". Everything was new in the work: both a pronounced mockery of the mores and habits of high society, and a realistic depiction of ignorant rudeness, ignorance, greed and stupidity of the bourgeoisie, stubbornly striving to share power and privileges in the country withthe impoverished nobility, and the author's obvious sympathy for the common man, the representative of the so-called third estate. This is about the issues and the author's position. And the staginess of the production, colorful costumes, musical numbers … Louis XIV, an ardent admirer of music, dance, especially ballet, loved a variety of enchanting performances. But before Molière, playwrights were not able to combine stage action, dance numbers and ballet so skillfully. In this regard, "The Philistine in the Nobility" may well be considered the forerunner of the modern musical. Comedy-ballet is a peculiar genre of the great Molière's work.

Comedy history

The event that brought comedy into the world is also not quite ordinary. When in 1669 the Sun King, as Louis was nicknamed for his passion for clothes, jewelry, external chic and brilliance, it became known that the Sultan of the Great Ottoman Empire (i.e. Turkey) was sending an embassy delegation to him, the ruler of France decided to surpass him in pieces of luxury. The sparkle of jewels, the abundance of gold and silver, expensive materials, luxury items should have overshadowed the eyes of ambassadors accustomed to such abundance in the East, and spread the glory of the we alth and grandeur of the French court and its ruler throughout the world. But the plan of the king failed: he became a victim of mystification and deceit. Enraged, Ludovic commissioned Molière to write a comedy that would make fun of the Turkish mentality along with their delegation. Thus was born "The Tradesman in the Nobility", the first performancewhich was given before the king and nobility in mid-October 1670, and the official one, for the Parisian public, in November 1670. From that very day (November 28) on the stage of the main theater of Paris - the Palais Royal - during the life of the author, the performance was staged more than 42 times, and this is not counting other productions in smaller theaters! And about a century later, the first professional translation of the comedy into Russian appeared. In Russia, "The Philistine in the Nobility" was accepted with a bang, and its victorious procession continues to this day.

Content and characters

The plot of the work is simple, the main intrigue of the comedy lies not in the conflict, but in the characters. Jourdain, a bourgeois of respectable age, very rich, but narrow-minded, rude, and sometimes frankly stupid, ignorant, wants with all his might to join the noble sophistication, grace, gallantry and outward brilliance. The ultimate goal of all his tricks is the Marquise Dorimena, a cutesy aristocrat, accustomed to judging people by the severity of their wallet and the loudness of the title. The ruined Count Dorant, a trickster and a deceiver, safely leads Jourdain by the nose, promising to help get closer to Dorimena and, in general, to introduce his “friend” into the high Parisian society. By nature, he is far from being a fool, Mr. Jourdain is blinded by the brilliance of the nobility and does not notice point-blank that he has long been a "cash cow" for such rogue aristocrats. He borrows huge sums of money from them without demanding a return. He hires a whole host of teachers, tailors, so that they educate and hew it a little. There is no sense in this, but gold coins are flowing away full-flowingriver. In fact, “The Philistine in the Nobility”, the summary of which is to ridicule and criticize the ruling class of the nobles and the bourgeoisie that comes to replace it, is a wonderful parody of the monarchical absolutist system that developed in France at the end of the 17th century. The comedy clearly emphasized that the future was not for jourdains and dorants, but for such honest, active, enterprising and viable types and characters, like Cleont, the groom of Jourdain's daughter, Covelier, his servant, and all those who are used to achieving everything in life thanks to his own mind and strength. In this regard, the book "The Philistine in the Nobility" could become a desktop book for the Russian nobility. However, the comedy of the remarkable Russian playwright Fonvizin "Undergrowth" turned out to be close to the point of view and the author's characteristics of Molière. Both of them are included in the golden fund of world literature.

Descriptive images

Needless to say, many comedy expressions have become aphorisms, and its main character symbolizes human rudeness and ignorance, lack of taste and sense of proportion! "Jourdain with papillots" - we are talking about this, and that says it all!