King Louis XIV In Moliere's Tartuffe

In Tartuffe, which is considered to be Molière's seventeenth century masterpiece, King Louis XIV may be viewed as the eventual source of order. Indeed, he plays a critical role and he is a key element in the conflict resolution within the play, although he never actually appears in it, he has no speaking role, and there is no allusion to his name, too. King Louis XVI, also known as the Sun King, is the Deus ex Machina who enters the scene to restore all to order. As a matter of fact, his intervention is necessary at the end of the play to unmask and punish Tartuffe’s hypocrisy. Indeed, the only reason why Tartuffe ends happily is because of King Loius XIV’s benevolence . Owing to him, everything is put in the right place.

He honors righteous men of every kind,
And yet his zeal for virtue is not blind,
Nor does his love of piety numb his wits
And make him tolerant of hypocrites. (Tartuffe 5.7. 52-59 )

In Tartuffe there is no allusion to Louis XIV’s name. However, the happy end of the play with the controversy solution is attributed to the benevolence and omnipotence of the king who eventually saves Orgon and his family. Even though the Sun King never shows up in the play, the King’s officer does not arrest Orgon for treason, as Tartuffe was expecting. On the contrary, he takes the responsibility to arrest Tartuffe by acting as Louis XIV’s mouthpiece,
Our monarch–to resolve you in a word
Detesting his ingratitude and baseness,
Added this horror to his other crimes,
And sent me hither under his direction
To see his insolence out—top itself,
And force him then to give you satisfaction. ( Tartuffe, 5.7. 68-73 ) Louis XIV comes out to be a key figure in Tartuffe because he sets things right, thus giving a happy note to the play. Indeed, The surprising conclusion of Tartuffe is solely due to the King’s intervention. Of course, Orgon feels extremely grateful to Louis XIV. Thus, he tells his family to go to the King and kneel before him in order to thank him while expressing their sincere

We’ll go, and at his feet kneel down,
With joy to thank him for his goodness shown;
And this first duty done, with honours due,
We’ll then attend upon another, too.
With wedded happiness reward Valere,
And crown a lover noble and sincere. ( Tartuffe, 5.7.97-102) King Louis XIV’s favor was strongly important to Molière when he wrote Tartuffe. Therefore, within the play he put his best efforts in showing his admiration towards him. Despite the King is not physically a character in the play, he counts for a lot. His final intervention, even

through his officer’s words and actions, is crucial to unmask Tartuffe and to give Orgon his dignity back, thus resolving the main conflict. Without having a part in Tartuffe, Louis XIV plays a central and significant role. Indeed, he is the real powerful figure in the play, and at the end of the play he intervenes with a silent but strong force to restore the order. The Sun King strongly shows his authority; as a matter of fact, he has the last say as well as the final and decisive power in Tartuffe. It is owing to him that Moliere’s play ends happily with the perfect conclusion where everything is right, and the good wins over the