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{\Large\bf Tartuffe as a Trickster}

{\bf\large Marc Horowitz \\
Comedy --- 21.021 \\
April 13, 1992}

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The traditional view of the trickster figure views him as an
individual who has great power, but who does not always use his powers
well, and is not always able to use this power to his own advantage.
In one situation, the trickster may help the good, and destroy the
bad, but in another he may do the opposite. In one situation, the
trickster may fool everyone, but in another, he may bring about his
downfall.  Moli\`ere's Tartuffe is the perfect trickster in this
sense.  Tartuffe symbolizes Moli\`ere's view of the Church and the
Government: both are fickle, and as easily as they can give, they can
take away.  Some will be blind to it; others will see it clearly.

As the play begins, we see the effect Tartuffe has had on the family.
He has manages to cause disagreements between grandmother and
grandson, between young lovers, and even between husband and wife.

\begin{ch}{Madame Pernelle}
And practises precisely what he preaches. \\
He's a fine man, and should be listened to. \\
I will not hear him mocked by fools like you
\end{ch}

\begin{ch}{Damis}
Good God! Do you expect me to submit \\
To the tyranny of that carping hypocrite? \\
Must we forgo all joys and satisfactions \\
Because that bigot censures all our actions? \\
(p.~172)
\end{ch}

\noindent Tartuffe has clearly had a significant effect on the
relationship between these people.  Normally, there is respect and
love between grandson and grandmother.  But here, we see Madame
Pernelle calling Damis a fool, and he talking back to her, even
swearing.

After Orgon informs Mariane that he will be marrying her to Tartuffe
against her will, Mariane and her fianc\'e, Val\`ere, have an
argument.  Val\`ere asks what she plans on doing about her father's
plans.  She is undecided.  He takes this as indifference, rather than
confusion, and quickly becomes stubborn and unyielding.  She is no
better, and soon, they are ready to break off their engagement.
Dorine manages to get the two of them talking again.  Val\`ere
complains, ``Didn't you see how badly I was treated?''  Mariane
retorts, ``Didn't you hear the hateful things he said?''  (p.~233)
Fortunately, the trickster is foiled by Dorine, who manages to
convince the lovers that they do, indeed, love each other.
Thankfully, the trickster is not all-powerful.

Tartuffe has a negative effect on the relationship between Orgon and
Elmire as well.  When she complains of Tartuffe's trying to seduce
her, Orgon refuses to believe her.  He is insistent that he is
correct.  ``I know the facts, and I shall not be shaken.'' (p.~279)
His response to Elmire's promise to demonstrate Tartuffe's unloyalty
is simply to tell her to ``Rot.''  This is a husband and wife!  Yet
each is unwilling to yield the other.  This is not a normal state of
marital affairs; something is clearly wrong.  Yet Orgon cannot see
that it is Tartuffe who is the cause of all the trouble.

Tartuffe also manages to get several family members to fall firmly
under his control.  In act one, scene four, we see a man who has
clearly been deceived, and doesn't even realize it.  Orgon has just
returned from the country.  When he his told of his wife's illnesses,
he neglects her and responds ``Ah.  And Tartuffe?''  When Tartuffe's
excellent fortune is described, he responds in sorrow, ``Poor
Fellow!'' (p.~183) As Dorine puts it,

\begin{ch}{Dorine}
But he's quite lost his senses since he fell \\
Beneath Tartuffe's infatuating spell. \\
(p.~180)
\end{ch}

\noindent Moli\`ere's description of Tartuffe's effect as a spell
supports the view of him as a trickster, one whose effect cannot be
adequately explained by worldly reasoning.

In act five, scene three, after Orgon watches Tartuffe attempt to
seduce his wife and insult him, Madame Pernelle still thinks that
Tartuffe is ``a man of such surpassing piety.'' (p.~307) In the face
of unambiguous evidence to the contrary, Madame Pernelle supports
Tartuffe, again accusing her family of impropriety.

\begin{ch}{Orgon}
Was I to see his pawing at Elmire \\
As an act of charity?
\end{ch}

\begin{ch}{Madame Pernelle}
Till his guilt is clear, \\
A man deserves the benefit of the doubt. \\
You should have waited, to see how things turned out. \\
(p.~306)
\end{ch}

\noindent Had he waited until the trickster had finished his work,
Orgon would have lost his wife, as well has his house and his
property.  Yet Madame Pernelle is still blind to all this.

The trickster is deceiving, but is also subtle and complex.  For all
the bad Tartuffe causes, he also performs some laudable actions.  He
attends church, visits the poor and the sick, and donates money to the
Church.

\begin{ch}{Tartuffe}
I'm going to the prison now, to share \\
My last few coins with the poor wretches there. \\
(p.~244)
\end{ch}

\noindent I think that here, Moli\`ere is drawing an allusion
to society.  Just because someone is outwardly pious, generous, and
upstanding does not mean that they are honest inside.

So far, I have only looked at the effects of Tartuffe's meddling in
the the life of Orgon and his family.  Tartuffe himself is a talented
orator.  He is clever enough to make normally reasonable people such
as Orgon and Madame Pernelle believe his every word.

Act three, scene six, is a scene which I, the first time I read it,
found incredible.  Tartuffe leads Orgon ``by the nose'' (p.~290) ,
making him believe whatever Tartuffe wants.  When Damis accuses
Tartuffe, he admits to everything he is accused of doing.  Orgon,
amazingly, interprets this a sign of Tartuffe's purity, not a
confession of wrongdoing.  He questions the propriety of Damis, rather
than Tartuffe!

\begin{ch}{Orgon}
Can it be true, this dreadful thing I hear?
\end{ch}

\begin{ch}{Tartuffe}
Yes, Brother, I'm a wicked man, I fear: \\
A wretched sinner, all depraved and twisted. \\
The greatest villain that has ever existed. \\
...
\end{ch}

\begin{ch}{Orgon {\em (To Damis:)}}
Ah, you deceitful boy, how dare you try \\
To stain his purity with so foul a lie? \\
(p.~259)
\end{ch}

\noindent Orgon challengs Tartuffe to refute Damis.  He responds
with a full confession, and by what seems to me to be nothing less
than a magical spell, Orgon manages to blame this on Damis.  Tartuffe
continues to confess, and this does nothing more than pit Orgon even
more against his son.  The scene ends with Orgon promising to marry
Mariane to Tartuffe that night, and throwing Damis out of the house.

The trickster has used his powers to further evil, and to further
good.  However, he cannot keep this up forever.  Throughout, there are
people who can see through his deception and his lies.

All of the children realize Tartuffe's true nature.  It is they who
are receiving the bad side of the deal.  Before, we can assume that
Orgon was a good father.  Now, he is giving all of his money and
control to Tartuffe.  This can only have a negative effect on the
children.

\begin{ch}{Dorine}
Surely it is a shame and a disgrace \\
To see this man usurp the master's place--- \\
(p.~173)
\end{ch}

Slowly, even the people Tartuffe has been deceiving realize what he
is.  Unfortunately, it seems to be too late.  Orgon does not realize
it until he witnesses firsthand Tartuffe trying to tempt his wife.

\begin{ch}{Tartuffe}
Madam, no happiness is so complete \\
As when, from lips we love, come words so sweet; \\
Their nectar floods my every sense, and drains \\
In honeyed rivulets through all my veins. \\
To please you is my joy, my only goal; \\
Your love is the restorer of my soul; \\
(p.~286)
\end{ch}

\noindent It's quite hard for Orgon to misinterpret that like he has
been misinterpreting everything else, and he does not.  Finally, Orgon
realizes he is being deceived.  However, he is in an unfortunate
position.  The trickster has already convinced him to sign over all
his money and property.  It is only through a form of ``divine
intervention'' that Orgon is able to be saved.

Madame Pernelle is the last person to realize Tartuffe's treachery.
It is not until the eviction warning that she doubts Tartuffe's good
nature.

In the final scene, Tartuffe has brought an Officer of the King to the
house to arrest Orgon, and evict the rest of the family.  However,
there is one last trick in store for the trickster.

\begin{ch}{Officer {\em (To Orgon:)}}
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. \\
(p.~323)
\end{ch}

In the end, Fate turns against the deceiving trickster.  In a classic
comic ending, all conflicts are resolved: the villain goes off to
prison, Orgon gets to keep his home, and Val\`ere and Mariane are to
be married.

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