The Life of M. de Moliere is a novel by Mikhail Bulgakov, which was published only after the death of the author. Critics (contemporaries of the writer) appreciated the talent of a genius, however, the historical information in the work, in their opinion, was covered from an outdated position. The life and love of Herr de Moliere, the great French comedian, turned out to be a topic irrelevant for Soviet society.
Roman Bulgakova was published in the sixties thanks to the assistance of the widow of the writer. It should be said that there are no allusions to the vices of Soviet society in this work. The novel was not published during the lifetime of Mikhail Afanasevich just because it lacked a Marxist position. What is the book “The Life of M. de Moliere” about? A summary of individual chapters of the work is presented in the article.
Birth
The life of Mr. de Moliere, Mikhail Bulgakov outlined from the day when the great comedian was born. The author discusses the birth of one of the geniuses who come into this world every few centuries.
Moliere's creations will be translated into all languages of the world. They will imitate him. Books will be written about him, and plays will be created. But for now, he is just an unremarkable baby, the son of a courtier. So talked about the birth of the founder of the comedy Russian writer.
Parent house
The father's name was Jean-Baptiste Poclean. He lived in a huge house, which was located in the very center of Paris, near the New Bridge. It was rumored that the upholsterer was extremely stingy and lend money at high interest rates. Whether it is true or not is not known for certain. But when his son became a famous theatrical figure, he staged a play about the miser Arpagon. There is an assumption that the prototype for this hero was none other than the father of a comedian.
Love of the theater
The life of Monsieur de Moliere was overshadowed by the first loss that occurred at a tender age. In the years when he was known among Parisians as Jean-Baptiste Poclean Jr., his mother unexpectedly died. Father did not grieve for long and soon married a second time.
The early period in the biography of Moliere is little noticeable. The future comedian graduated from a parish school course, where he studied the basics of arithmetic and Latin. Then he had to get acquainted with the case of his father, so that later he could pass it on to his son. But fate decreed otherwise.
Once in the house of Poklen a certain Kresse appeared. This respected husband had a new father-in-law at the courtier. Moliere himself is a like-minded person. The fact is that it was this man who infected the novice upholsterer with love for the theater. And whenever Kresse had a free evening, he took his young friend by the hand, and they headed towards the building, in which the actors put tragedies, comedies and even farce.
Respected profession
It is worth saying that actors are people who began to cause delight only in the last 100-200 years. In the old days there was no more asocial phenomenon in society than hypocrisy. Mikhail Bulgakov did not fail to recall this in his novel. “The Life of Monsieur de Moliere,” a summary of which is presented in this article, is a work devoted to a difficult fate. Jean-Baptiste Pocquelin went against his father's wishes. He abandoned the respected work of the upholsterer at the royal court and leaned on the stage. Needless to say, the father did not approve of the son’s wishes? But, alas, not everyone wants to be wallpaperists.
Lyceum
The future comedian spent several years at the Lyceum of Louis the Great. He flatly refused to work in the shop, and then his father sent him to study. For knowledge, Jean-Baptiste Poclean Jr. had an irresistible craving. And therefore, day and night, zealously memorized the texts of ancient Greek and Roman authors. From the walls of the lyceum, the son of the upholsterer came out as an extremely educated person. Could become a lawyer. However, the dream of a theater did not leave him.
Disgraced Comedyographer
“The Life of Monsieur de Moliere” is a historical work in which Mikhail Bulgakov set out a biography of the famous comedian with his inherent humor. Political or any other subtext, as already mentioned, is not in the novel. But along with irony, there is tragedy in it. The author of the plays that have been staged in theaters around the world for three hundred years was lonely during life and was not understood by anyone.
In Moliere’s life there were ups and downs. His works both exalted and forbidden. The author of immortal comedies spent several months in prison. Perhaps the topic Bulgakov devoted to the novel “The Life of Monsieur de Moliere” was extremely close to the author. After all, the Russian writer, like the French theater figure, was not recognized by his contemporaries.
Criticism
Everyone who is familiar with the work and biography of Mikhail Bulgakov knows what role prominent Moscow writers played in his life. In particular, critics, two of whom became the prototypes of Latunsky and Lavrovich from the immortal "Master ...". There is a chapter in the novel about Moliere, in which we are talking about a certain libel, entitled "Hypochondriac." The author dedicated this satirical work to the life of a French comedian. At the same time, he distorted information from the biography of Moliere, but most importantly, he criticized all his activities. The comedian did not answer his offender. But libel had a depressing effect on him. Oddly enough, in the novel that Bulgakov devoted to Moliere, there is something autobiographical.
Moliere was buried without honors. He was a hypocrite, which means that his place after death is behind the cemetery’s fence. They buried him at night. In a small funeral procession, however, one could see very famous people: Lafontaine, Boileau. And some woman, passing by, from idle curiosity asked: “Who is being buried?” Another answered: "Some Moliere ..."