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Antonette Boynes
HON ENG 226: Survey of World Literature II
Dr. Hobbs
1-16-2010
Tartuffe and Other Plays: Entry Ticket Discussion Questions

Q1) In Moliere’s Tartuffe and Other Plays, how many different literary conflicts are there? Give an example of each describing why it is a conflict in the play.

A2) In Moliere’s Tartuffe and Other Plays, there are three different conflicts presented throughout the play, the first conflict being man versus man. This type of conflict is exhibited entirely in the play when for example Madame Pernelle argues with Dorine and the other members of the house about the character of Tartuffe, but the biggest is perhaps everyone’s contempt towards Tartuffe that makes his encounters with everyone a factor in man versus man being a conflict of the play, which brings me to my second conflict presented in the play, man versus society. This conflict is not directly offered to the reader, but taking details of the reading into consideration, it seemed as though the whole town/country disliked Tartuffe (except for Madame Pernelle and her son, Orgon). Therefore, if taken into insight it could be well implied that Tartuffe was involved in a man versus society conflict in the country where he resided. The final and last conflict existing in the play, and probably the most important, is man versus self. This conflict has also been occurring in the entirety of the play where Madame Pernelle and Orgon failed to believe any of the dreadful truths that were told to them about Tartuffe. Again, this is not a conflict that is directly presented but one that I gathered from my deeper insight into the play and the definition of the conflict. Orgon displayed this man versus self conflict when his son told him the truths of Tartuffe and Tartuffe also admitted to the acts, but Orgon was so deep in his own beliefs that even though he had seen and heard, he did not want to believe, which in the end had to change.

Q2) Madame Pernelle and her son Orgon throughout the play seemed quite imprudent to the true character of Tartuffe despite the fact that they are being informed by everyone else. From the beginning of the play up until the scene where Damis is thrown out by his father for attempting to reveal Tartuffe’s hypocrisy, the author suggests to the reader that Tartuffe’s evilness will never be fathomed by Madame Pernelle and Orgon, where in the end, the opposite occurs. What term is used to describe this literary element and what other two types of this element occurred in the play. Give examples.

A2) The literary element used to describe the technique that the author used to the readers is an irony, more specific, irony of situation, where the opposite of what is expected occurs. The other two types of this element that occurs in the play are verbal irony and dramatic irony. Verbal irony occurs in the play when Damis endeavors to expose Tartuffe to his father after overhearing his sexual advances to Elmire. When this comes out, Tartuffe admits to every word of what Damis has told his father, but he does not mean it directly. His purpose for directly admitting was a slight version of sarcasm suggesting that he was very humble and would never do such a thing, so what he said, was not what he meant. The other type of irony is dramatic irony, where the audience knows more than the characters. There are two instances in the play where dramatic irony took place right after the other. The first, where Damis was hidden in the closet and Tartuffe and Elmire did not know that he was overhearing them. The second, when Orgon hid underneath the table while Elmire attempted to pursue Tartuffe so that Orgon could witness his true character. In both cases, the audience was more knowledgeable than the characters involved therefore making it a dramatic irony.

Entry Ticket #1

Q: In Moliere’s Tartuffe, who do you feel is the most ‘reasonable’ character? In what ways does he/she exemplify the newfound ideas of logic and reason of the Enlightenment period?

Answer: I believe that Cleante, brother-in-law of Orgon, is the most reasonable of characters in this play. On page 262, lines 353-354 Cleante states, “My only knowledge and my only art Is this: to tell the truth and false apart.” This is exactly what he does consistently throughout the play. He attempts to guide Orgon in the direction of truth and persuade him into making the right decisions, in regards to Mariane and Valere, and Tartuffe. He does not try to manipulate anyone with elaborate, eloquent speeches or a false sense of pious zeal, but states facts and presents his arguments with nothing but truth. During the Enlightenment, ‘reason’ was the idea that everything had a logical explanation and did not have to be based solely on faith. On page 261, lines 339-340, Cleante says to Orgon, “Most men are strangely made; they always stray out of the proper and natural way.” Cleante makes reference to the fact that many men of this time period did stray away from the limitations of pre-Enlightenment ideologies and beliefs, and tries to tell Orgon that the times have changed, as well as the people. The reasoning Cleante using in his arguments and advice to Orgon in the play exemplify the new ideas of logic and reasoning of the Enlightenment.

Q: In line 966 of Moliere’s Tartuffe, Tartuffe says, “I may be pious, but I am still a man” (p 290). Do you feel that in Tartuffe’s speech, Moliere is continuing his theme of hypocrisy or making a genuine argument for the nature of man?

Answer: In this scene Tartuffe confesses his infatuation with Elmire, while he is alone with her. Although Tartuffe dramatically makes known his pious lifestyle, he defies all the values he has [falsely] assemble in his speech to Elmire. I think that Moliere was presenting a theme of the nature of man and his passion for the opposite sex, and the vulnerability he subjects himself to because of it. But, along with this idea, he continues the underlined theme of hypocrisy some people of the Enlightenment acquired. In his confession, Tartuffe pokes fun at silly men that make faithless declarations and triumph in them, which is exactly what he does consistently throughout the play. He defines himself as a man with great zeal towards living a life most genuine and true, yet he betrays his best friend and tempts a married woman, all these things are prime examples of the hypocritical fool Moliere wants presented in his play.

1.) Q: On page 274, Dorine has a change of attitude and seemingly begins to encourage Mariane to become Madame Tartuffe. Why is this?

A: It has been established that Dorine is a sassy maid. Her beginning to “encourage” Mariane to marry Tartuffe is just a ploy, a sort of reverse psychology trick. Mariane is afraid of defying her father’s will despite her love for Valere. Dorine speaks of Tartuffe in a way makes it seem like she is praising his short comings but in the end it is just her being sarcastic. At the bottom of page 275, Mariane finally breaks down and asks for Dorines help to stop wedding bells from ringing in the future.




2.) Q: In Act III, scene 3 Tartuffe’s true nature begins to come to light. While speaking to Elmire he says, “The secrecy we offer is entire:/ The care we take to keep out own good name/ Guarantees our beloved against shame;/ Accept our hearts, and you will find, my dear,/ Love without scandal, pleasure without fear.” What is he trying to say to her?

A: Tartuffe is blatantly asking Elmire to have an affair with him. He insists that it would be kept a secret so that neither of them will experience shame. (Him losing the image as a “pious man” and her becoming a whore seeing as how she is married to Orgon.)

Erin Van Eepoel
Dr. Hobbs
Eng Honors.
01/24/10

Q: 1) In the play Tartuffe, only two main characters fell for Tartuffe’s act, Orgon and his Mother. Why do you believe they were so easily tricked?

A: Orgon and his mother both seemed to want to believe that someone could be all good. Madame Pernelle was very anxious to point out any flaws in her family members but refused to even consider that Tartuffe had any. Orgon believed Tartuffe over his entire family and even went so far as to banish his own son out of the house just for accusing Tartuffe of doing wrong. They both became so focused on Tartuffe’s perfection that they ignored all logic and advice.

2) Q: Dorine was used during the play to signify the sassy maid stock character. Many plays during this time used a lower class character as the voice of reason. Why do you think Moliere used this character?

A: During the time period of Moliere the middle and lower classes weren’t often represented as an intelligent main character. In Tartuffe Dorine represents a smart working class woman who seems to be the voice of reason throughout the entire play. Dorine’s sassy nature and the way she could command the situation was humorous and empowering to the lower class who could relate to her character.

Dawn Serzanin
Dr. Hobbs
ENG 226H
26 January 2010

1. Q: It is said that blood is thicker than water, in Moliere’s Tartuffe is this statement shown to be true? How and why?

A: In Moliere’s Tartuffe the statement “blood is thicker than water” seems to be anything but true. Orgon is completely thrown off by Tartuffe his good friend who lives with his family. Tartuffe has Orgon and his mother eating out of the palm of his hand because of his devotion to religion and faith. The rest of the house repeatedly tries to warn them of his deceiving ways but all the warnings go unheard. Damis, Orgon’s son, is even thrown out when he tries to tell his father that Tartuffe is trying to have an affair with his mother. Fortunately for Orgon’s family he is convinced when he is forced into hearing Tartuffe trying to court his wife Elmire. Orgon himself has a tough time trying to convince his own mother, Madame Pernelle, that Tartuffe is a fake and deceitful man. Finally at the end of the play Damis shows that although he was kicked out his family is where his loyalty lies. The non believers apologize for not trusting their family’s warnings and the saying “blood is thicker than water” holds true to this play.

2. Q: Marriage is an ongoing discussion in Moliere’s Tartuffe, what connection can be made between the theme of imposters and the ideals of marriage?

A: I think that marriage was brought into this play to show how you must be true to yourself and your ideals always. A marriage would not work if you are not true with the other person involved. When you act as someone else nothing can work out simply. Orgon and Elmire have difficulty with their marriage because he believed others over his wife, one person who would never try to hurt him. Young Mariane shows how strong her belief is with this when she refuses to marry Tartuffe and claims she will join a convent even when her wish is to be with Valere. Marriage was a good symbol in this play because it is supposed to symbolize trust and faith in someone. This symbolism is paralleled well with the faith and trust some characters put into the fraudulent Tartuffe.

Katherine Ganning
Dr. B. Lee Hobbs
ENG 226 CAH1: Survery of World Literature II
26 January 2010
Moliere’s Tartuffe Discussion Questions

1. Q: During the time of the 17th century, servants were not known to be involved in the lives of the higher class unless for working reasons. In Tartuffe, the servant to Mariane, Dorine, plays an important role in showing the emotions of the characters. Explain how she connects the audience to the other actors.

A: During the five acts of Tartuffe, Dorine is constantly coming and going in the scenes. While Dorine scurries around the house trying to keep everyone emotions down, they are constantly rising. When reading the play, you don’t notice Dorine as one of the main insights into the lives of the main characters because of her small role portrayed, however as the climax progresses so does her connection.
Her role as the servant is rather a comical job. Due to her constant running to keep the saneness of the home intact, one forgets her actual role as a servant. The person of the house to which she caters to is Mariane. Mariane is in love with Valere who has recently heard of her arranged marriage. As the two lovers continue to argue over how to handle this, Dorine returns their hearts to one another and continues with the other members of the house, as well as Tartuffe.
Eventually, as the family tries to learn of the man called Tartuffe, Orgon, the father, realizes all of the advice and lecture he has been given by the people around him. In Act III scene VI, the father rambles off to his son about everyone lying to him about his friend Tartfuffe, “[…] You all hate him. Why, just today I’ve seen My wife, children, and servants vent their spleen […] (296)”.
If one relates the psychological madness behind the families’ thoughts, one would be confused and possibly could have related this to more of a love story, however through the comic relief of the characters, and personally through Dorine, one can follow her character and see the humor in the families’ problems.

2. Q: Compare and Contrast the symbol of love used in Moliere’s Tartfuffe between Valere and Mariane and Shakespeare’s Romeo And Juliet.

{Note from Dr. Hobbs: Katie, where is your answer to this question?}

Patricia Pothier
Eng 226 Survey of World Literature
Dr. Hobbs
1/22/2010

1. Q: In Moliere’s Tartuffe, the book touches on the subject of religious hypocrisy versus real Christian faith. Please discuss this theme as it is presented in the book.

A: The most prominent example of this theme can be found in a character analysis of Tartuffe and Cleante. Tartuffe is exposed as a hypocrite in the first scene of the first act of the play. The reader comes to understand that the majority of the other characters dislike him and are suspicious of his character. Tartuffe claims to be a devout believer in the Lord as well as a very pious man. His devotion to God is severely lacking as he is exposed as a hypocrite who is no better than a common criminal partaking in immoral activities. He is deceiving the master of the house, Orgon, while lusting after the lady of the house Elmire. He pretends to be honorable as he instructs the others as to how they should behave.
A proper example of true Christian devotion would be Cleante. Moliere created his character to show the distinction between piety and hypocrisy. Cleante is aware of Tartuffe’s real character but he is a reasonable man who does not lose his temper unlike the others. Cleante stresses the fact that those who are truly devout need not express it to everyone else. Since heaven can see the truth of his heart he does not feel the need to be showy about his faith. He also downplays the compliments he receives from Orgon in terms of being very knowledgeable and an academic scholar.

2. Q: The name Orgon has been tied to the word orgeuil which when translated into French means pride, as a noun. Explain how this translation relates to Orgon’s character.

A: Orgon’s character is rather complex. It is obvious that he is duped by Tartuffe but it is not easily understood why his character attaches himself to Tartuffe. It is entirely possible that Orgon has reached point in his life where he desires to be more pious in his actions. He is aging which could also be behind the attachment. In this bourgeois society many households allowed religious clergymen to enter their homes and give advice as it was a sign of wealth. This is an example of how Orgon is prideful. He makes several claims that it was very nice of him to allow Tartuffe into his home. He praises himself for giving Tartuffe money and helping him. Orgon believes that Tartuffe is someone to be admired and revered. He is far too prideful to admit that he could be wrong in his assumptions about the hypocrite.

Entry Ticket 1: Moliere

1. How does King Louis XIV’s patronage affect Moliere’s writing?

2. How do the nicknames of the character Tartuffe (the imposter and the hypocrite) change the theme and reaction of the play?

{Note from Dr. Hobbs: Dana, please post your "answers" to these questions too--see the examples above yours}

Hey, Dr. Hobbs!

I'm just testing out the method for students who need to post to your blog. I thought that they might need to subscribe first. We shall see.

Please feel free to delete this post but if you wouldn't mind emailing me back to tell me how exactly students are supposed to do this assignment, I would appreciate it. That way, the next time another student asks, I will have a better answer to give.

Blue skies,
Sandy Hawes
Digital Resources Librarian
Associate Professor
Saint Leo University
sandra.hawes@saintleo.edu
1.352.588.8262

D. Parizon
Dr. Lee Hobbs
ENG 226 (H)
27 Jan. 2010

Q.: In Moliere’s Tartuffe, the word “zealotry” is often mentioned. Considering, that it is one of the themes, what is so significant about it and who represents “zealotry”?
A.: Moliere satirizes preoccupation with unusually piety and morality of all the clergy of the church. Orgon (the protagonist) is representing “zealotry”; he is too obsessed with Tartuffe, who pretends to be a religious perfectionist, but in reality he is a hypocrite. Orgon’s neurotic fascination with Tartuffe deceitful preachments on religion and holiness is so powerful that he announces Tartuffe as his next heir. Orgon’s behavior towards his own family shows how dangerous zealotry really can be.

Q.:How does Tartuffe finally get exposed as a hypocrite and why did Orgon take so long to understand Tartuffe’s real character?
A.: The exposure of Tartuffe happens in Act IV, Scene 5-7, while Orgon is hiding under the table. Orgon’s wife, Elmire, finally wants to prove Tartuffe’s hypocracy. She warns Orgon not to be surprised by her strange behavior and he asks him to stop the whole masquerade whenever he is convinced that Tartuffe is actually a hypocrite. She also reminds her husband to spare her and not to expose her more than he needs to disillusion himself. When Tartuffe finally arrives, Elmire asks him to close the door and admits she is glad to see him. Tartuffe is confused by her change of behavior, but she gives the excuse that she is jealous about the prospects him marrying her daughter. However, Tartuffe is still not convinced of Elmire’s devotion and seeks proof by stepping closer to Elmire, who, on the other hand, steps back (and coughs toward the table). She asks the important question, which finally proves Tartuffe as a hypocrite in the view of Elmire: “But thus I would offend…that heaven that you love to talk about.” (Moliere 308). Tartuffe answers to this question that his purity of intent will be acceptable in Heaven and when a sin is committed in secret it is not called sin. Only the scandal of having the sin known can make the act a sin. Even with Tartuffe’s responds, Orgon still tries to deny the truth and does not stop the scenery but waits for more. This worries Elmire, who continues coughing towards her husband to stop this entire masquerade. Just after Tartuffe tells that Orgon “is a man to lead round by the nose…;” he comes out of his hiding place and stops everything (Moliere 310). Orgon allows his wife to be in an unpleasant position, but when he is the subject of a personal affront, he denounces Tartuffe as a scoundrel.

Muriel Clemens
Dr. Hobbs
ENG 226
Jan 21, 2010

Entry Ticket 1

Question One
The theme of the play Tartuffe is religious hypocrisy. Who is Tartuffe’s counter part and how is he different?

Answer
Cléante.
Cléante is Tartuffe’s opposite. He is the virtuous Christian in the play. Cléante is not only an honorable Christian but he is also the voice of reason.

Question Two
While reading Tartuffe it soon becomes clear that hypocrisy and deception are major themes of this play. With this in mind, what do you think the strongbox symbolizes?

Answer
It is a symbol of all the deception and secrets that are hidden from those all around us. The things that we wish no one to know about ourselves. Tartuffe gains custody of this strongbox and uses it to wield power over Orgon.

Mary Strand
Dr. Hobbs
ENG 226
January 26, 2010
Family Discord/Dysfunctionality in Moliere’s Tartuffe
The dysfunctionality of Ogron’s family, throughout the play, is quite comical and not too far-fetched from that of a ‘normal’ family today. The family issues floating around are dramatized and played out in a humorous way, with the major source of chaos for Orgon’s family, coming from his own ignorance and stubbornness.
As Orgon is continually deceived and manipulated by Tartuffe, he creates an elaborate web of discord amongst the members of his family. In my opinion, the most extreme of these cases is the discrepancy that occurs between Orgon and his son Damis. Because of Tartuffe’s ability to sway Orgon in any way he desires, Orgon falls under his spell and becomes convinced that his own son Damis is defacing and betraying his best friend (Tartuffe). Orgon eventually throws his son out of the house and turns over his inheritance to Tartuffe. Orgon’s impaired judgment and inability to see into the conniving ways of Tartuffe, ruins all lines of trust between himself and his son. Damis is right to confront his father about the deceitful actions of Tartuffe, but because of his father’s feelings for Tartuffe, he probably should have gone about confronting him in a more discrete and factual way, in order to reason with his father and avoid future conflicts.
Mariane and Valere have what seems to be, an already melodramatic relationship without the drama that Tartuffe and his scandals bring to the family table. Orgon’s decision to marry his daughter to Tartuffe leads to an unnecessary argument between Mariane and Valere. The two love-struck teenagers engage in silly banter back and forth, accusing the other of false love. With some reasonable advice from Dorine the two realize that they are acting in the most ridiculous of manners, and the ignorant actions of Orgon should not tear them apart.
All through the duration of Tartuffe’s stay with Orgon’s family, the discord among the family continuously creates unnecessary arguments and rivalries. Without Orgon’s infatuation with Tartuffe and the trouble that they both cause, the family would function a lot better as a whole, but the play would not be as funny and ironic.

Erin Van Eepoel
Dr. Hobbs
Eng Honors
01-26-10
In the play Tartuffe, the anamorate or young lovers were embodied in Marianne and Valere. During the play the main conflict between Marianne and Valere was that they wanted to be married but Marianne’s father steps in the way for her to marry another man. This is the classical conflict between thwarted lovers, both people are deeply in love but one major problem keeps them from being together. The young lovers are used as a stock character in many popular plays such as Romeo and Juliette, but Moliere took a slightly different angle at the old characters. In Moliere’s version the characters did not take a head on approach to expressing their love, instead they danced around the point with sarcasm.
Marianne and Valere are not the classical deep in love thwarted couple. Neither one wants to openly admit their love for the other, both would rather join in sarcastic exchange about Marianne’s upcoming nuptial with Tartuffe. The two lovers had a caddy quarrel, going back and forth trying to get a reaction. They were deeply in love but both wanted the other to admit love first. Eventually the sassy maid broke up their argument by making both of admit they loved each other and wanted to get married during Tartuffe and many other plays the young lovers always end up having a large issue to overcome but through it all they stay strong. In the case of Marianne and Valere their love eventually conquers the classical ideals of their time. Both lovers go against Marianne’s father’s wishes and choose to fight to be together.
In many plays the thwarted lovers have a painful and dramatic ending but Moliere had different ideas. At the end of the play Marianne and Valere had their relationship approved by her father and they finally had the permission they needed to be together.

Branka Trivanovic
ENG 226 [HONORS]
Due 01/28/2010
Reading Response Prompt for Tartuffe




A reoccurring theme in Moliere’s Tartuffe is undoubtedly that of appearance versus reality. From Act I, Tartuffe is described as a pious man whose “sole concern” is that of Heaven, but the only people convinced of his piety are Madame Pernelle and her son, Orgon. Everyone else, from his wife, to his son, to his brother-in-law see something else in Tartuffe. Through the first two Acts all the audience has to go on is “he said, she said” until finally in Act III, Tartuffe himself makes appears on stage and proves what was suspected all along: he is not as virtuous as he seems. In scene 3, Tartuffe asks Elmire to have an affair with him. He promises to keep it a secret and that neither of them will experience “shame”. When Damis confronts his father about Tartuffe’s advance on his wife, Orgon refuses to believe him. Tartuffe himself admits that he did it but Orgon takes it as him being polite and forces Damis out of the household while allowing the scumbag Tartuffe to stay. It is only in Act IV that Orgon realizes what has been going on under his nose the whole time. Tartuffe’s appearance as a devoted and pious man is crushed by the reality that he is a sleazy, lying backstabber.


Another example of appearance being overtaken by reality is that of Dorine. In that time period she should have been nothing more than a housemaid that is uneducated and keeps to herself and her duties. She breaks the mold of what a typical maid “should” be and becomes the voice of reason in the otherwise chaotic household.

Katherine Ganning
Dr. B. Lee Hobbs
ENG 226 CAH 17: World Literature II
28 January 2010
Tartuffe, Moliere and The Nature of Friendship.
By nature, humans use forms of communication in different ways. Between gestures and actions, we are able to express feelings to one another and eventually form levels such as love, companionship and friendship. Friendship is what keeps our communities in order and gives ourselves the ability to grow as individuals. In Moliere’s Tartuffe, he shows the power of friendship through many characters and how the sub-conscious mind wants and need the nature of friendship to gives us our nurture.
Moliere shows the good and the bad of friendships. With Dorine, she was only meant as a human of that time to not be important and to only answer when spoken of employee manners. However she is still human and with her knowledge of Orgon’s family, she is able to help the main characters, such as Valere and Mariane. Eventually in the end, one realizes her friendship with each family member because of her love, care and trust she gave to them. Of course, the audience knows she would maybe not be considered an outspoken friendship, but with our knowledge of the nature behind friendship, she really was a friend.
Contrast to Dorine’s expression of friendship, Tartuffe used his nature of friendship and used it to take advantage of Orgon’s Family. He was able to know well enough that as long as he kept his lies a secret and his friendship highly expressed he would be able to benefit from this family.
Although, throughout the play, Tartuffe realizes after he is caught with what he has been doing to the family, “[…] and for the sake of Heaven I’ll suffer all.” (Moliere 325). Due to the nurture surrounding him, Tartuffe was able to see the true reason behind friendship and wants to fix what was wrong and correct his natural personality.
Through interaction, we are able to see the positive and negative in people. In Tartuffe, Moliere shows us that friendship can go either direction, and although we might go down a wrong path, through the nature of friendship, one can find positive people which can help bring themselves back into line.
 
Works Cited.
Moliere, Tartuffe and Other PLays. New York, New York: Signet Classics, January 2007.

PART II of Discussion I. Sorry for the confusion!

Katherine Ganning
Dr. B. Lee Hobbs
ENG 226 CAH1: World Literature II
26 January 2010
Compare and Contrast the symbol of love used in Molière’s Tartuffe between Valère and Mariane and Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.
Between Molière’s love story between Valère and Mariane and Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, one can see relations of the era in which both plays were written. The love between two people is always something extremely special and in both plays, the audience is able to see the passion and, hopefully, know how that feeling is and why it is so important.
What is interesting about both plays is that Tartuffe is a comedic love whereas Romeo and Juliet is a tragic love. Both love affairs are related to Shakespeare’s term as “star-crossed lovers”, which lead to secrets meetings and secret passion due to the both father’s of the daughter’s reasons. For Mariane in Tartuffe, his father has already arranged a marriage to take place with Tartuffe and for Juliet, the Capulet’s and Montague’s are in between a family feud.
In contrast to each love affair, the themes of both plays lead them to go in different directions. Eventually Tartuffe and Mariane’s wedding is called off and she is reunited with Valère, whereas Romeo and Juliet end in two tragic deaths in hopes of finally being together.
Both play’s show the symbol of love and what it sometimes must take in order to keep that love strong and bold. Today, we see love expressed in, some might call provocative, many different ways, but for Molière and Shakespeare they are able to show us the history of love and how it got to the level which we are in, better known as the present.

Katherine Ganning
Dr. B. Lee Hobbs
ENG 226 CAH 17: World Literature II
28 January 2010
Tartuffe, Moliere and The Nature of Friendship.
By nature, humans use forms of communication in different ways. Between gestures and actions, we are able to express feelings to one another and eventually form levels such as love, companionship and friendship. Friendship is what keeps our communities in order and gives ourselves the ability to grow as individuals. In Moliere’s Tartuffe, he shows the power of friendship through many characters and how the sub-conscious mind wants and need the nature of friendship to gives us our nurture.
Moliere shows the good and the bad of friendships. With Dorine, she was only meant as a human of that time to not be important and to only answer when spoken of employee manners. However she is still human and with her knowledge of Orgon’s family, she is able to help the main characters, such as Valere and Mariane. Eventually in the end, one realizes her friendship with each family member because of her love, care and trust she gave to them. Of course, the audience knows she would maybe not be considered an outspoken friendship, but with our knowledge of the nature behind friendship, she really was a friend.
Contrast to Dorine’s expression of friendship, Tartuffe used his nature of friendship and used it to take advantage of Orgon’s Family. He was able to know well enough that as long as he kept his lies a secret and his friendship highly expressed he would be able to benefit from this family.
Although, throughout the play, Tartuffe realizes after he is caught with what he has been doing to the family, “[…] and for the sake of Heaven I’ll suffer all.” (Moliere 325). Due to the nurture surrounding him, Tartuffe was able to see the true reason behind friendship and wants to fix what was wrong and correct his natural personality.
Through interaction, we are able to see the positive and negative in people. In Tartuffe, Moliere shows us that friendship can go either direction, and although we might go down a wrong path, through the nature of friendship, one can find positive people which can help bring themselves back into line.
 
Works Cited.
Moliere, Tartuffe and Other PLays. New York, New York: Signet Classics, January 2007.

Dana Jennings
Dr. Hobbs
ENG-226
1-28-10
Reading Response 1
Reason vs. Emotion and Passion
Moliere’s Tartuffe is a play in which reason is a main theme and highly valued by the characters and is given precedent over emotion. I think that Moliere is in a state somewhere between the dispassionate Age of Reason and the Romantic era where emotions are more valued. On one hand the play shows how blind reason cannot save you from swindlers or conmen, but on the other hand letting emotions rule you gives you over to bad decisions and a loss of control.
I have long imagined that our country is built on reason and logic, but Moliere gives a new meaning to my definition of dispassionate. The characters let reason rule their minds, even to a fault. Orgon is nearly willing to let his family fall prey to Tartuffe because his reason based logic tells him he needs more proof than his entire family pleading with him and swearing the truth of their words. At varying times, every member of his household gives evidence of Tartuffe’s indiscretions, but Orgon stubbornly refuses to believe unless he sees it himself. He states, I would argue passionately, “I know what’s what, and I won’t be put off.” (304).
If passion is shown, it is displayed as silly and ineffective. This is exampled best when Mariane and Valere are arguing and attempting to get an emotional response from each other, Dorine gives this succinct description of the conversation, “Confound you two! Now stop this nonsense” (281). All of Moliere’s characters are struggling with their sense of reason being paramount and emotions being more truth to them than dispassionate logic.
While emotions are shown to be ineffectual, reason also has its time of inadequacy. Reason is seen to be the ruling logic, and they believe it is infallible. When confronted with his beloved wife’s claims, Orgon states, “I trust evidence more than anyone… You were too calm for me to be impressed; in fact, you didn’t seem the least distressed.” (303). I believe that logic fails Orgon and he latches onto their emotions as being a logical response to Tartuffe, if the claims were indeed true. I think this is Orgon grasping at straws to keep his reasoning sound, and indeed, it ultimately fails and he is forced to reevaluate his standing. I think this play shows how pure logic and reasoning cannot be paramount, because people bring in variables of emotion and motives unknown.

Works Cited
Moliere, Jean-Baptiste. Tartuffe and Other Plays. New York: Signet Classics, 2007. Print.

Dana Jennings
Dr. Hobbs
ENG-226
1-26-10
Entry Ticket 1: Moliere
1. How does King Louis XIV’s patronage affect Moliere’s writing?
A. It can be argued that the King’s benevolence, on the one hand, allows Moliere to have an audience where he would otherwise have none, but on the other hand can be considered detrimental to his writing style. In Tartuffe, Moliere has an incredibly progressive intrigue throughout the play, and then in the last act the benevolent and omniscient King shows up (in the form of his armsman) and saves the day from out in left field.
2. How do the nicknames of the character Tartuffe (the imposter and the hypocrite) change the theme and reaction of the play?
A. Tartuffe has become synonymous with imposter, and all three words are used interchangeably when in reference to the antagonist. Readers can take refuge behind these words as pointing to the falsity of the piety of Tartuffe, therefore disconnecting themselves from him. Readers can look at him and laugh, comfortable in their innocence, while quietly seeking to change their own ways (not necessarily in reference to religion).

Muriel Clemens
Dr. B. Hobbs
ENG (Honors) Survey of World Literature II
January 21, 2010

Response For Molière’s Tartuffe

If Orgon were to be transported to the 21st century he would, with out a doubt, be diagnosed with an obsessive disorder. Dorine says it best:
During our civil wars he showed good sense,
And served with courage in his king’s defense;
But since he’s taken Tartuffe as hero,
His sanity has been reduced to zero. (181-184)
Tartuffe has become the object of Orgon’s obsession and the family is paying a high price for Orgon’s behavior.

Dorine’s statement about Orgon’s behavior during the civil wars is profound. It tells us that Orgon was a different man before he met Tartuffe. He was a good man. So what went wrong? Perhaps the wars left a hole in his soul and he believes Tartuffe represents the piety and the reverence towards God that would alleviate the guilt of the sins he committed during the civil wars. Whatever the reason, Orgon becomes obsessed - not with the man but with what he represents. He believes Tartuffe had a relationship with God that he himself was unworthy of.

Orgon’s obsession takes a toll on his relationship with his family. He wants to force his daughter to marry Tartuffe, he disinherits his son, and he practically forces his wife to have an affair with Tartuffe because he does not believe her when she tells him Tartuffe is a scoundrel and a deceiving hypocrite. Because of Orgon’s unwillingness to see the truth, he almost loses everything. But, not to worry, the king’s man swoops in to save the day.

Orgon is a man who, because of his obsession, can’t see the forest through the trees. If not for the persistence of his family, all would be lost. This is not a story about redemption, it is a story of the dangers of obsession, and how being blind and refusing to see the truth can lead to folly.

Works Cited
Moliere, Jean-Baptiste. Tartuffe and Other Plays. New York: Signet Classics, 2007. Print

Diana Parizon
English 226 – Honors
Dr. Hobbs
28. January 2010
The power of underdogs
For aristocrats and members of the clergy, in 1664, nothing was worse than an underdog, who excersised great acumen. This issue was represented in Moliere’s play Tartuffe. Moliere used stock characters for his commedia dell’arte – a fool, a beautiful girl, or a witty outspoken maid. The maid, Dorine, is only a low-class servant in the house of Orgon but still has the courage to stand up for her opinions without considering the consequences that might come from her actions. In the play Tartuffe, she is the “voice of reason” who sees through Tartuffe’s charlatan ways and is not afraid to speak her mind. Significant to her character is her courage to challenge her master’s idealism of Tartuffe as seen in Act II, Scene 2, when she, as always, interrupts the conversation between Orgon and his daughter, Mariane. Dorine points out all the reasons for Mariane not to be betrothed to Tartuffe; in addition, she gives an aptly modern view of marriage. According to Dorine, if Orgon forces his daughter to marry a man she cannot love, he would be responsible for the sin his daughter would surely commit – infidelity.
An interesting question to ask is how Dorine – who obviously is more than a maid but also a companion to Mariane – gets her sense of reason and intelligence. In the 17th century, maids were supposed to be quiet, play dumb, follow their duties, and be invisible for the household, but this is not Dorine. Moliere portraits her as the opposite of an ordinary maid, and created her as the voice of the audience. Everything Dorine expresses is mostly the exasperations of the audience. Her knowledge can be assumed because of her constant eavesdropping and interference in everybody’s conversation in the household, and she knows enough to speak intelligently to other characters. The power of the underdog may be great, but it is up to the others to acknowledge that power to be able to find the truth.

Katie Ganning
Dr. B. Lee Hobbs
ENG 226 CAH1: Survey of World Literature II
2 February 2010

My Feedback on Erin Van Eepoel’s Comments on the "Young Lovers" in Moliere’s _Tartuffe_

I am responding to Erin Van Eepoel’s reading response to Moliere’s Tartuffe. Erin’s focus was about the two lovers, Marianne and Valere. What was agreeable with the argument she established was the comparison of Shakespeare’s, Romeo and Juliet’s love story. In both stories, the lovers need to keep hiding from their parents in order to be together. What I noticed in the response was the explanation about Moliere not creating a typical classical love story and more of a sarcastic love story however, during the time of the 17th century arranged marriages were common. Instead of creating a typical love fantasy, he added a twist into the real world of the era.

Diana Parizon
English 226 - Honors
Dr. Hobbs
2 February 2010

My Response to Mrs. Clemens’ Ideas about "Orgon's Obsession" in _Tartuffe_

My response is on Mauriel Clemens’ original response to Moliere’s play Tartuffe where she mainly wrote about Orgon’s obsession with Tartuffe and the consequences of this. She analysis the beginning of Orgon’s obsession very nicely and explains what happened in the past as well an idea of how Orgon observed his past experience. Mauriel also included nice examples of the consequences of Orgon’s obsession which proves only her last paragraph which is about the danger of obsession. However, she includes in the first paragraph a stanza from the play without really going back to the quote to explain each line. The last two lines of the stanza is only Dorine’s opinion about Orgon, which she could have included in the other paragraphs with examples or explanations. My last suggestion would be, while Mauriel states that in the 21st century, Orgon’s behavior would be diagonosed as an obsessive disorder, she could have also include a small explaination of what exactly it means to have an obsessive disorder (even though everyone knows what it is, for the sake of the paper a small definition with an example).

Tommy T.
The "Response-Response"
02-03-2010

In my response to Mary's original response to Moliere's _Tarrtuffe_, her topic was based on family discord. I would have to agree with Marys points on family discord throughout her response. Marys main point was that Orgons family is similiar to families in current time. Families always will fight and sometimes go overboard with with their argument; just like Orgon did with his son by kicking him out of the house. However, she based this response on just one argument through the family. her other response was about Mariane and Valere, however they are not related or married. I think that Mary should have added more details on the family and how they are like families in todays society.

Mary Strand
Dr. Hobbs
February 2, 2010

Response Response

I am responding to Tommy Tagliavia’s original reading response to Moliere’s play, Tartuffe. In his response, the focus was the theme of “injustice” seen throughout the play. An interesting point you stressed in your paper was the fact that despite Tartuffe’s unjust trickery of the family, the members of this family spoke very ill of him without giving him an opportunity to defend himself. While reading Tartuffe, my focus was so much set on the hypocrisy and deceitfulness of Tartuffe that I did not take time to think of the faults among other members of the family. The one thing that I would have liked to see more of in your paper would be references to the text (page numbers, lines, etc.). You made the point of Tartuffe acting as a dictator and ruling those around him, which is a very good analogy, but you could have given more examples of this behavior and specify his unjust acts as the ‘dictator’. Good Job!

I am responding to Patricia Pothier's original response to Moliere's Tartuffe where she focuses on the theme of fanaticism. I found very interesting that Patricia used the era of the French society to explain why Moiliere decided to incorporate such a theme in his play. The background information helped me to understand and get a better insight of what Moilere was, or could have been going through and informative showing knowledge of the book and drawing scenes from the play as references. My only discomfort in reading this response was the repitition of the word fanaticism which wasn't a big problem, but could have been omitted at times.

Muriel Clemens
Dr. B. Lee Hobs
ENG 226 Survey of English Literature II (Honors)
3 February 2010

Response-Response to Molière’s Play Tartuffe
The Power of the Underdog

I am responding to Diana Parizon’s original response to Moliere’s play Tartuffe. The theme of her paper was the power of the underdog. Diana, your choice of Dorine, the sassy maid, surprised me. Because of the maid’s brazen disposition I did not see her as an underdog. Seeing her this way was a new perspective for me. Seeing Dorine through your eyes was a pleasure. Your paper was well thought out and easy to read. Your writing was insightful, well organized, and concise. The only thing I would have done differently would have been a third paragraph for the conclusion. Other than that, this was an excellent paper.

Jeremy Doty
HON ENG 226: Survey of World Literature II
Dr. Hobbs
2/4/10
Reading Response-Response
I am responding to Branka’s response to Tartuffe. She is talking about appearance verses reality. I think the examples she talked about were great, but I think some of the examples might be better described as misrepresentation. What was meant by “he said, she said” in the first two acts? What was the discussion about that Tartuffe was having?
I think that Branka brought out great points and showed what made Tartuffe’s true colors show. I’m not sure that I would have changed the subject to talk about the maid, I think I would have stayed with showing how sleazy Tartuffe was.

Dana Jennings
Dr. Hobbs
ENG-226
2-5-10

Response-Response of Love

I am responding to Katherine Gannings’ original response to Tartuffe where her focus was on the theme of love. One thing I thought she did well was to take the direction of her paper to contrasting it with Romeo and Juliet, as it seems it would be a fertile subject. I would like to see more in depth analysis on the points, with passages comparing each of those two plays. As in to answer, ‘how do Moliere and Shakespeare show that love between two people is always something extremely special?’

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