Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1922-04-01
MOLIERE, COMEDIAN

Little Jean-Baptiste Pocquelin might
have followed his father in the respected
profession of valet de chambre and up
hoIsterer to the king.
Instead he succumbed to the desire OF his
heart and became Moliere, the chief actor
of group of strolling players.
This is the tercentenary Of Moliere's birth,
and the 249th anniversary Of his death.
Within the short span Of his life-a life OF
great successes and great failures, of domes-
tic unhappiness and diseaseAhe wrote those
plays which are ever young and still to be
enjoyed
Tartuffe remains the hypocrite of the
ages. The pious mouthings Of the old rep
rebate, his servility and his greed have their
counterparts everywhere. Orgon is yet the
dupe, the quiet middle-aged man who falls
under magnetic spell-be it that Of re-
ligious mountebank, blue sky salesman or
a vampire. And there will never be dearth
of Alcestes, those gloomy, misanthrop1c
young men who SO. expertly curse their fates
and damn their eyes over nothing at all.
AS for that thoroughly delightful piece,
''Les Precieuses Ridicules," it set all Paris
laughing at itself and/it is to be seriously
doubted whether, even in this lllegedly
frank and honest age. it would not stir lat
ent humor ducts in some of our most "un.
affected poseurs. The adventures Of Mag
delon and Cathos with the quack noblemen,
Mascarille and Jodelet, constitutes one or
the most delicate and amusing ,satires on af-
fectation in language, thought and dress
ever written. II
1t would be a profitable undertaking for
those who know Moliere to refurnish their
minds with his works; those who have never
encountered him have the delightful pros
pect of making a robust and charming &C.
quaintance.
Moliere was practical man Of the theater
and although his playwrightsma nship is
noted for its serious flaws, he had the SUI
preme gift Of making people laugh long and
heartily at their own foibles and weak
nesses.
fined or too rarefed. Like all great artists
he had the common touch, the universal
touch. He knew the value of the slap-stick
and the rough-and-tumble. His pen was
rich in witty and side-splitting dialogues.
Performing much before captious and criti-
cal royalty, his appeal was equally potent
in the pit and in the boxes
Moliere is habtually classified with
Corneille and Racine as Frances great
trinity Of dramatists. But Molere's genius
was more human and more simple than
theirs. ''The genius of a Shakespeare"
says Gendarme de Bevotte ''astounds, even
overpowers, because one feels overwhelmed,
dominated by him. Reading Moliere is like
meeting an equal. He has an air about him
of being on your, own level"
Corneille is heroic, majestic Grecan.
Racine is aristocratic, polite. master OF
the finer shades and sensibilities.
Moliere is man of earth, a playfellow
sometimes dangerous one if your feelings
are sensitive), an archcomedian and an en-
envy of cant in, any form.
1t was in 1873, during a performance Of
his own play, lie Malade Imaginaire,'' his
mouth full of his own comic speeches, his
ears receiving the applause of an audience,
that Moliere was stricken with a mortal ILL
ness and carried off tie stage to his home.
where he died within few hours What
an ending for old ladies to nod over and for
moralists to ponder! A comedian skipping
through his part for his fellow mems amuse-
ments, while the wings of the Angel of Death
were whirrng in the wings. And the play
was, let it be repeated 1.-THE Imaginary Ill
ness satire on medic.1 Quackery! - The
Louisville Courier Journal.