Molière: Greatness

“All the ills of mankind, all the tragic misfortunes that fill the history books, all the political blunders, all the failures of the great leaders have arisen merely from a lack of skill at dancing.”

Molière

Books , History , Failure , Dance

“There is nothing I detest so much as the contortions of these great time-and-lip servers, these affable dispensers of meaningless embraces, these obliging utterers of empty words, who view every one in civilities”

Molière The Misanthrope

Source: The Misanthrope

Time

“He's a wonderful talker, who has the art
Of telling you nothing in a great harangue.”

Molière The Misanthrope

C'est un parleur étrange, et qui trouve toujours
L'art de ne vous rien dire avec de grands discours.
Act II, sc. iv
Le Misanthrope (1666)

Art

“If the purpose of comedy be to chastise human weaknesses I see no reason why any class of people should be exempt. This particular failing is one of the most damaging of all in its public consequences and we have seen that the theatre is a great medium of correction. The finest passages of a serious moral treatise are all too often less effective than those of a satire and for the majority of people there is no better form of reproof than depicting their faults to them: the most effective way of attacking vice is to expose it to public ridicule. People can put up with rebukes but they cannot bear being laughed at: they are prepared to be wicked but they dislike appearing ridiculous.”

Molière book Tartuffe

Si l’emploi de la comédie est de corriger les vices des hommes, je ne vois pas par quelle raison il y en aura de privilégiés. Celui-ci est, dans l’État, d’une conséquence bien plus dangereuse que tous les autres ; et nous avons vu que le théâtre a une grande vertu pour la correction. Les plus beaux traits d’une sérieuse morale sont moins puissants, le plus souvent, que ceux de la satire ; et rien ne reprend mieux la plupart des hommes que la peinture de leurs défauts. C’est une grande atteinte aux vices que de les exposer à la risée de tout le monde. On souffre aisément des répréhensions ; mais on ne souffre point la raillerie. On veut bien être méchant, mais on ne veut point être ridicule.
Preface http://books.google.com/books?id=HH4fAAAAYAAJ&q=%22On+veut+bien+%C3%AAtre+m%C3%A9chant+mais+on+ne+veut+point+%C3%AAtre+ridicule%22&pg=PT87#v=onepage, as translated by John Wood in The Misanthrope and Other Plays (Penguin, 1959), p. 101
Variant translation http://books.google.com/books?id=vdFMAQAAIAAJ&q=%22People+do+not+mind+being+wicked+but+they+object+to+being+made+ridiculous%22&pg=PA127#v=onepage: People do not mind being wicked; but they object to being made ridiculous.
Tartuffe (1664)

People , Way , Appearance