Examples Of Hypocrite In Tartuffe

In 1664, Jean Baptiste Moliere wrote the comedic play of Tartuffe. Moliere had a clear intention for the play, he was trying to demonstrate how a hypocrite in the church can affect the state when there is not a separation of church and state. A hypocrite is someone who claims to have certain moral beliefs, however, they do not conform to those beliefs. Having a hypocrite as a member of the powerful church can lead to many problems as Moliere demonstrated in Tartuffe. All of the characters in the play were able to recognize Tartuffe’s true identity, except for Orgon who was the one who invited Tartuffe to live with his family. There were many instances where characters attempted to warn Orgon, “Damis: Good God! Do you expect me to submit to

There were three instances in the play where it seemed as though the hypocrite was finally going to receive what he deserved, but Moliere then changed the sequence of events. The first case of reversal was when Damis informed Orgon about spying on Elmire and Tartuffe and what had occurred between the two, but rather than telling Tartuffe to leave his house, he tells his son to leave because he spied on his mother, “Orgon: You miscreant, can you dare, with such a falsehood, to try to stain the whiteness of his virtue? Damis:

. . Orgon: Silence, cursed plague!” (3. 6. 15). To follow this case of reversal, Moliere used reversal again when Orgon saw the fraud first hand, Tartuffe had been touching his wife, “Elmire: You've been too long deceived, and I'm quite tired of being disbelieved. Come now: let's put my statements to the test, and you shall see the truth made manifest" (4.3.22). But once Orgon told Tartuffe to leave, Tartuffe claimed it was his house. To end the play, Moliere once again used reversal, but also added in deus ex machina. Rather than Tartuffe sentencing Orgon to jail, Orgon was forgiven by the King of France and Tartuffe was sent to jail, “Officer: Sir, all is well; rest easy, and be grateful. We serve a Prince to whom all sham is hateful, a Prince who sees into our inmost hearts, and can't be fooled by any trickster's arts" (5.7.19). Not only was the play centered around the effects of a hypocrite as a member of the church, but also used reversal to make the simple plot into a more complex