moliere

1696 Words4 Pages

The 17th century of France is considered as the age of reason. This is the period of enlightenment and also the time when people become rational than traditional. During this period, the transition from Renaissance to Classicism happened. This was also the period of the Golden Age of French Literature mainly because literature and arts was given priority by the ruling king. The movie Moliere depicted the culture of France during the 17th century. But, I would like to focus this discussion on the comparison and contrast of the 17th century trend and the film Moliere. The 17th century trend rejects enthusiasm, individualism, skepticism and emotionalism. At the same time, it is leaning towards orthodoxy, rationalism, conformity, order, refinement and etiquette. The said characteristics and behavior are the main issues that will be tackled in this discussion. The 17th century French rejects enthusiasm or too much enthusiasm. According to the oxford dictionary, enthusiasm is the intense and eager enjoyment, interest and approval. In the film Moliere, several characters had portrayed or shown great enthusiasm, often leading to a misfortune event. But, some characters had rejected the feeling and became rational with their decisions. Monsieur Jourdain helps Moliere get out of the prison. He is the best example of a person showing great enthusiasm that lead to misfortune events. Although married, Monsieur Jourdain wanted to get the attention of the widower Celimene. By this great affection, Jourdain becomes irrational and started believing his friend, Dorante, helping him to win Celimene’s affection. Monsieur Jourdain often lend Dorante plentiful of money. He even let Dorante deliver expensive gifts to Celimene, which she received not k... ... middle of paper ... ... matters. He has private tutor for dancing and painting. He has a dancing tutor because he wanted to appear striking in social balls. He also has a painting tutor because this is classified as a high-end art before and until now. And since he longs to acquire the attention of Celimene, he hired Moliere to teach him the proper ways of acting. One cannot simply condemn a man who wanted perfection in life. To have a social life is so important during that time. It is not a simple social convention where one replies in another’s statement or question. It is a way for a person to gain enough connections to be able to survive. Etiquette is rules governing the socially accepted behaviors. This are what the society expects a person to do and behave. This is similar to social norms. Depending on the social status, the society expects different etiquette from individuals.

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