Tartuffe (Molliere) Essays - Tartuffe, Molire, Le Tartuffe

Tartuffe (Molliere) Essays - Tartuffe, Molire, Le Tartuffe Tartuffe (Molliere) Christian Castellanos HUM1020 MWF 10-10:50 Robin Repper Tartuffe is a classic story of deceit by one who is trusted and respected. Tartuffe, the deceitful holy man, is living in the house of Oregon. Oregon has opened his doors to Tartuffe, and he greatly respects him for being the good holy man he was thought to be. The rest of the family believe that Tartuffe is a fake and a con. Oregon and Madam Parcelle are the two which believe in his holy reputation. Tartuffe convinces Oregon that he is an incredible man of great holy stature, and Oregon proceeds to sign over to Tartuffe all his possessions. Outward Appearances can sometimes be deceiving. This is evident in the way Oregon looked at Tartuffe. Tartuffe was thought to be a man of great holy influence. Oregon thought Tartuffe was a high holy figure, who was admirable because of his devotion to God. Tartuffe is actually a two- faced con artist who has no interests but that of his own welfare. Oregon is blinded by these ideals. Tartuffe takes advantage of this blindness and attempts to seduce Oregons wife and con Oregon out of all his possessions. Another action by Tartuffe was the first steps of seducing Oregons wife. He uses his rosary to pull her in closer. In this episode, Tartuffe is using a symbol of purity and holiness as a tool of lust and sin. At some points, hed be eloquent and dignified, but at times he would be as if he was going after her. There is another aspect to the seduction by Tartuffe of Oregons wife. Molierre has Oregon hiding under a table when Tartuffe is trying to physically seduce his wife. Oregon had never believed his family that Tartuffe was two faced. Oregon, seeing with his own eyes what Tartuffe was doing, finally believes them. This shows that sometimes people dont believe something until they see it with their own eyes. Moilere succeeded in making Oregon and Madam Parcelle stubborn and unmoving. Oregon was stubborn when he did not believe his family over Tartuffe. It was a bold action the wife undertook to convince Oregon that Tartuffe was a fake. Only an action so bold would convince him. Oregon felt the affect of this stubbornness when he was trying to convince Parcelle of Tartuffes deceitfulness. He was outwardly frustrated at her remarks about him and Tartuffe. Again, she needed outward proof, and she received it when the eviction notice came as Oregon was trying to convince her. The voice of reason and control in this play comes from a character by the name of Cleante. This character counters Oregons stubbornness and irrationality by providing stability and control over the situation. Cleante is Oregons brother- in- law. When Cleante notices that Tartuffe has taken over the household, he organizes a meeting to come up with a solution or plan to the situation. The actor playing Tartuffe would frequently face the camera and make faces showing his deceitfulness toward the camera. This gives the audience and insight which is not seen by the rest of the characters in the play. These actions lead to dramatic irony which introduces new aspects to the play. Camera angles played an important and interesting role in this production of Tartuffe. During the scene of the attempted escape by Oregon, the camera angle was shot in the first person of Oregon. It showed Oregons point of view as he was exiting. This method was used a couple more times in the production. Also, camera angles were oddly placed at times. While the family was planning, the camera at one point was shooting between two chairs at the table, giving a different perspective of the planning period. Also, the Camera would sometimes be moved and hurried, giving a sense of confusion. Lighting played a small role in this production. The most prominent example of the use of variation of light was in the speech given by the guard towards the end of the production. A bright white light was cast from behind making what he had to say more catching and seemingly important. The light also gave him a look of being omnipotent at the time of his speech. Tartuffe is a play emphasizing deceit, reputations, integrity, stubbornness, and the ability to be blinded by something that we see as good, but really is harmful. Outward appearances are sometimes misinterpreted. This is what happened to Oregon and Tartuffe. This play contains many conditions