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Cyrano De Bergerac Social Estate

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Prior to the French Revolution, French society was divided into three distinct estates: the First Estate, the Second Estate, and the Third Estate. Each estate was represented by individuals of a certain repute who had different roles in 17th century French society. In his written play, Cyrano de Bergerac, Edmond Rostand portrays this class division through his many characters and their place in society. In the 17th century, Roman Catholicism was at its prime in French society. Anyone related to the church was seen as the highest form of society and was therefore put under the division of the First Estate. Rostand decided to represent the First Estate with Cardinal Richelieu. Cardinals are the oldest form of the clergy and are the most important …show more content…

There were two subdivisions to this estate: “nobles of the sword”, who were the nobility that were seen fighting in the war and may have even earned their status from that act, and “nobles of the robe”, who were born into nobility or earned it from their societal contributions (The Second Estate). Cyrano de Bergerac is a great example of a “noble of the sword”. He may have been born into the Second Estate, but he gained his true nobility from fighting in the wars. One might argue that Cyrano de Bergerac was a “noble of the robe” due to the fact that he went great lengths to deliver Christian’s letters and make sure Roxanne’s life was full of love. However, this was only known to few people so he is a “noble of the sword” in the public’s eyes. Roxanne fits more into the role of the “noble of the robe” because she was born into her high status and never makes any great contributions to society. Although their status was not as high as the church official’s of the First Estate, the nobility were still perceived as very important members of French society. They received admiration wherever they went, similar to the First Estate: “murmurs of admiration from the crowd: Roxanne had just appeared in her box” (Rostand 19). The crowds reaction to Roxanne’s entrance shows how highly perceived the Second Estate were in the 17th century. The Second Estate was a very diverse estate due to its subdivisions and each division was portrayed by Rostand with their class, actions, and effect on French

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