Molière
From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Molière (1622 - 1673) was a French actor, director and writer. He wrote some of the most important comedies in human history. He was born in Paris, his father owned a carpet shop. As a young person, Molière decided to live an artist's life. At the age of 21, he founded a theater company that soon went bankrupt. From 1645 - 1658, he toured the whole of France with some of his friends. Later, king Louis XIV made Molière responsible for the entertainment at the court of Versailles near Paris. Molière was happy to have the king among his friends, because he had many enemies, especially important people in the Roman Catholic church. Molière's comedies deal with human weaknesses: jealousy, meanness, hypocrisy, fear of death. By putting his characters in ridiculous situations, Molière wants to entertain and educate his audience. One of his most important plays is Tartuffe, showing a bigot man stealing his way into a rich family. Molière's last play is "Le Malade Imaginaire", called in English "The Hypochondriac" or "The Imaginary Invalid". As in many of his comedies, Molière played the main role. He died on stage during the fourth representation. Because of his problems with the church, he was not allowed to be buried officially.
