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Tartuffe: A New Verse Translation

A Norton Critical Edition
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Tartuffe, Molière's most controversial and oft-performed play, is a biting satire that unravels the hypocrisy of religious pretenders. Through witty dialogue and irreverent staging, the drama exposes the manipulations of the deceitful Tartuffe, whose false piety ensnares an unsuspecting family, provoking scandal and conflict in seventeenth-century France.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This edition is ideal for students, scholars, and theatre enthusiasts interested in classical French drama, satire, and the historical context of Molière's work, especially those keen to explore the controversies around religion and censorship in early modern Europe.

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Widely hailed as the founder of the modern French comedy, and known to be a gifted actor, playwright, and patron of fellow actors, Molière was a towering presence in seventeenth-century France—and the scourge of its political and religious Establishment.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

His biting satire, witty dialogue, and irreverent staging have made him a favourite with theatre-goers for four centuries. This Norton Critical Edition of Molière's most controversial and most often-performed play is based on Constance Congdon's acclaimed new verse translation. It is accompanied by explanatory annotations and nine illustrations of the seventeenth-century farce.

Backgrounds and Sources draws readers' attention to the real-life controversy Molière faced following the opening of Tartuffe, which was immediately banned by the Church. Both sides of the argument surrounding Tartuffe are presented in contemporary documents translated and annotated by Virginia Scott, among them Molière's three petitions to King Louis XIV, Pierre Roullé on the monarchy, letters by Boileau and Charles Robinet, and Hardouin de Péréfixe on the law.

Assessments of Tartuffe as a production are given in seminal reviews by Harold Clurman and John Peter. Constantin Stanislavsky and Louis Jovet discuss the challenges they faced in preparing for modern productions of Tartuffe.

From the wealth of critical commentary on Tartuffe both in the United States and in France, the editors have chosen nine interpretations focusing on the central issues of translation, religion, social history, staging, and international adaptation. Contributors include Nancy Senior, Emanuel S. Chill, Roger W. Herzel, P. Munoz Simonds, Pamela Saur, William J. Beck, Mechele Leon, Wilma Newberry, and Cheryl Kennedy McFarren.

A chronology of Molière's life and work and a chronology are included.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780393931396

Publisher: WW Norton & Co

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 21 October 2008

Country: United States

Imprint: WW Norton & Co

Edition: Critical edition

Illustration: 9 illustrations

Contributors:

  • Edited by Constance Congdon
  • Translated by Constance Congdon
  • Edited by Virginia Scott

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 15.0mm

Width: 132.0mm

Height: 213.0mm

Weight: 239g

Pages: 240

About the Author

Constance Congdon taught playwriting at the Yale School of Drama, but is based at Amherst College, where she has been Playwright-in-Residence since 1995. She has also adapted Molière’s The Miser and created a new verse version of The Misanthrope, the latter commissioned by the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco. Her original work has been produced all over the world, particularly Tales of the Lost Formicans, most recently translated into Finnish. Constance Congdon taught playwriting at the Yale School of Drama, but is based at Amherst College, where she has been Playwright-in-Residence since 1995. She has also adapted Molière’s The Miser and created a new verse version of The Misanthrope, the latter commissioned by the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco. Her original work has been produced all over the world, particularly Tales of the Lost Formicans, most recently translated into Finnish. Virginia Scott is Professor Emeritus of Theater at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. She is the author of Molière: A Theatrical Life and The Commedia Dell’Art in Paris, 1644–1697.

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