Our featured author this month is the great French comic playwright Molière (1622-1673), the stage name of Jean-Baptiste Poquelin. On June 22nd we meet to discuss his Misanthrope.
Molière rose to fame under the patronage of Louis XIV. One often hears him spoken of in conjunction with the other two towering figures of the French stage of the era, Racine and Corneille. Of the three, however, Molière is the only one renowned for comedies.
Many of Molière's theatrical works, including The Misanthrope, are considered "comedies of manners" and set in Parisian salons. The Misanthrope follows Alceste as he tries to achieve the seemingly impossible task of both shunning all social pretense and winning the heart of Célimène.
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