Religion In Tartuffe

Tartuffe “the Hypocrite”, is one of the most popular comedic plays and was written by Moliere. Throughout the historic play, several different themes are depicted and interpreted through a variety of characters. One of these themes is foolishness. Foolishness is depicted mainly by the character Orgon by his ignorant and gullible characteristics. Another theme interpreted through the characters is religion. The theme of religion plays a crucial part in the play and is especially important in its relationship to the time period of the production of the play. Moliere’s interpretation of his use of religion in the play, by the public and the church was highly controversial, during a time in which, the church was highly corrupt and held significant power. A third theme used in the

In the beginning of the play, Orgon seems to be a sane man who is respected by his family and friends. As the play goes on, however, it becomes clearer how easily it is to deceive poor Orgon. Tartuffe particularly takes advantage of Orgon when he says, “Dear Son, do treat me as perfidious / Infamous, lost, a murderer, a thief, / Speak on, because my sins, beyond belief, / Can bring this shameful sinner to his knees, / In humble, paltry effort to appease.” In this quote, Tartuffe neither confirms nor denies that he attempted to seduce Orgon’s wife. By doing this, he sends Orgon’s focus on other matters and deceives him. Orgon’s foolishness is ultimately exposed in the play when Dorine says, “Her son is worse deceived; His folly must be seen to believe” (1.2.3-4), when talking about Orgon. Orgon’s characteristic of easily being fooled and taken advantage of, eventually led to Tartuffe’s progression towards gaining control of Orgon’s possessions because it allowed Tartuffe to manipulate Orgon’s mind and attention from the hypocrite attempting to steal from him, right before his