Tartuffe

            
             Tarfuffe written by Jean-Baptise Moliére is an example of a neo-classical drama. Moliére use of staging techniques, characterization, and form are extremely good. He actually did such a good job that it was originally banned by the church. This comedy incorporated almost every aspect of life in the 1600's. .
             The staging techniques used by Moliére, play a major part in the dramatic effect of the story. The two major methods used are, waiting to introduce the main character until the later in the story and minimizing character backgrounds. By not introducing Tartuffe until the third act we are kept in suspense, while using our imagination to draw his character. I feel that Moliére does this to show how people of his society, as well as our on, were making assumptions of each other. The limited character background given also serves as a source of trepidation. Unlike other stories, were the author immediately tells the characters roll in the story, Moliére forces us to wait to find out their true nature.
             The characterization that Moliére uses was fairly minimal. He never goes into lengthy descriptions of the characters; instead we are given simple hints thought out the story. The only details we receive are given to us by the other characters in their dialogue. This forces us to mold the character in our minds, while making the story different for every reader.
             The major theme of Tartuffe is manipulation. Throughout the story the main character is deceitfully manipulating his host. Tartuffe pretends to be purely devoted to god, with this act he is able to conquer Orgon and turn him on this on family. For me the underlying theme is simply that people are not always what they seem, and we should be careful in judging others.
             Moliére form for writing this poem is mainly straight forward. We are introduced to the events as the characters are.