Born Jean-Baptiste Poquelin in 1622, the French playwright Moli^D`ere became one of the most influential dramatists of the 17th century. His comedies shaped the development of theater in Europe, inspired his contemporaries in England, and left a lasting dramatic legacy after his death in 1673. Moli^D`re has also inspired a vast body of scholarship, and recent work has dispelled many of the myths surrounding his career. This reference provides English-speaking readers with a current and comprehensive guide to his life and works. Hundreds of A-Z entries cover topics related to his life, works, and theatrical career, including: Plays; Individual characters; Historical persons; Allusions; Influences; Cultural institutions; And much more. This scrupulously researched volume relies on verifiable facts, giving scant attention to the romantic fiction surrounding the playwright. Many of the entries list works for further reading. A chronology outlines the chief events of Moli^D`re's life and his contributions to the stage. The volume concludes with a bibliography.

'Molière on Stage' takes the reader onstage, backstage and into the audience of Molière's plays, analyzing the performance of his works in both his own time and in ours. Written by a professional stage director with over fifty years' experience directing and translating Molière, this text explores how the playwright strove to create a communal experience of shared laughter, and investigates four key topics relating to this achievement: Molière's early experiences that lead to his later theater experiences; his central great plays of love and lust; his comedic genius and his passion for the stage; and the final words and performances of his life.

France’s answer to Shakespeare, the seventeenth century playwright Molière wrote comedies, farces, tragicomedies, comédie-ballets and poetry. His plays have been translated into every major living language and are performed at the Comédie-Française more often than those of any other playwright today. He invented a new style that employed a double vision of normal and abnormal seen in relation to each other—the comedy of the true opposed to the specious, the intelligent set against the pedantic. Though the sacred and secular authorities often combined against him, Molière’s genius finally emerged to win him the status of a world author. For the first time in publishing history, this eBook presents Molière’s complete works, with numerous illustrations, rare plays and poetry, informative introductions and the usual Delphi bonus material. (Version 1) * Beautifully illustrated with images relating to Molière’s life and works * Concise introductions to the major works * All 33 dramatic works, with individual contents tables * Translations by Charles Heron Wall, Henri van Laun, Curtis Hidden Page and A. R. Waller * Features rare dramas appearing for the first time in digital publishing * Images of how the books were first published, giving your eReader a taste of the original texts * Excellent formatting of the texts * Rare poetry translations available in no other collection * Easily locate the poems or plays you want to read * Special criticism section, with four essays evaluating Molière’s contribution to literature, including Voltaire’s seminal work * Features two biographies — discover Molière’s literary life * Scholarly ordering of texts into chronological order and literary genres Please visit www.delphiclassics.com to browse through our range of exciting titles CONTENTS: The Dramatic Works The Flying Doctor The Jealousy of le Barbouillé The Blunderer; or, The Counterplots The Love-Tiff The Pretentious Young Ladies Sganarelle; or, The Imaginary Cuckold Don Garcia of Navarre or the Jealous Prince The School for Husbands The Mad; or, The Bores The School for Wives Critique of the School for Wives The Versailles Impromptu The Forced Marriage The Princess of Elid Tartuffe; or, The Impostor Don Juan; or, The Stone Banquet Love is the Best Doctor The Misanthrope; or, The Cantankerous Lover The Physician in Spite of Himself Mélicerte Comic Pastoral The Sicilian; or, Love the Painter Amphitryon George Dandin; or, The Abashed Husband The Miser; or, The School for Lies Monsieur de Pourceaugnac The Magnificent Lovers The Middle-Class Gentleman Psyche The Impostures of Scapin The Countess of Escarbagnas The Learned Ladies The Imaginary Invalid The Poetry The Poems of Molière The Criticism On Comedy by Voltaire On the English Comedy by Voltaire Molière by William Cleaver Wilkinson To Monsieur de Molière by Andrew Lang The Biographies Molière by Andrew Lang The Wife of Molière by H. Noel Williams Please visit www.delphiclassics.com to browse through our range of exciting titles or to purchase this eBook as a Parts Edition of individual eBooks