Tartuffe & Midsummer: Patriarchal Plans Threaten Women - Essay Sample

Introduction

The two plays "Tartuffe" by Moliere and "A Midsummer Night's Dream" by Shakespeare bring forth a fundamental issue about the place of women in society. In both plays, the community and the families of Egeus and Orgon represent the world at the time. The patriarchs in the families are using their daughters as baits to push for their plan. The plans are against the girls' wishes. It is a plan that progresses across the comedy somewhat relentlessly. Hermie, Egeus' daughter, is threatened with the law and execution is she does not follow her father's desires and marry the man of her choice (Shakespeare 1.1.67-80). On the other hand, Orgon offers his daughter, Mariane– who had an engagement already to another man, to Tartuffe advancing the chauvinistic agenda (Molière 2.1.16).

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In the play "Tartuffe," the society does not entirely change, but the people with an evil plan get punished. Tartuffe goes to prison, and Orgon does not advance his agenda of marrying off Mariane against her wishes (Molière 5.7.78). It also happens at the end of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" that Hermia is allowed to marry the man of her choice, after her father's decision declared love for another woman, Helena (Shakespeare 5.1.120-133). In both plays, the fate of women is taken away from the hands of chauvinistic men by circumstance. It is not the men's intrinsic motivation to change. If it was not for Tartuffe's mischievous ways of being busted, he might have had his idea with Orgon. On the other hand, if it was not for Demetrius' declaration of love for Helena, Hermia's father could probably have had his way.

Both comedies are structured so that the women get what they want as a matter of fate. As much as they fight for what they believe is rightfully theirs, their only hope is in connection to their fate. Tartuffe is a case in point as someone who subjects the women in the play to endless troubles. First is his non-existent love for Mariane, whom she is offered for marriage by Orgon, all in the desires of Orgon, his master, to impress him (Molière 5.7.78). Next, he is interested in Elmire, Orgon's wife, and seduces her (Moliere 3.3.43-45). This is not true because he loved her, but because it would ease his intentions of outsmarting Orgon in his own house. The situation and the plans of Tartuffe only get more explicit as the play progresses. All this while, he is subjecting women as baits, and not treating them with the dignity that they deserve. Interestingly, it would take the ideas of another woman, Dorine, to expose Tartuffe's evil.

In "A Midsummer Night's Dream," women do not also get the respect they deserve. Across the play, they are undermined by a society that is born and bred in chauvinism. The Athenian society in the play had a law that could force women to get married to the men chosen by their fathers, and doing contrary to that was punishable. Inscribing such disrespect in the law is total disregard for women's desires and feelings. Egeus takes advantage of this law and reports his daughter because she wanted to marry another man against his choice. The duke of the land supported the father, against the girl's desires and wishes, because that is the law. When the duke reversed his decision after Demetrius declared love for another woman, the law was never changed. It means that the duke's decision was just a matter of circumstance and not a change for the good of the societal problem. The doctrines that guided the Athenian society at that time remained rooted in the law, which would keep punishing women for their choices.

In the two plays, women get manipulated by men. Tartuffe takes on Elmire and openly declares his love for him. He sounds all poetic and romantic. He calls it human weakness and asks Elmire to forgive him and not tell her husband (Moliere 3.3.43-45). However, he doesn't rule out the fact that he wants to be Elmire's love so much. In her compassion, Elmire promises not to say a thing to her husband in exchange for the condition that Tartuffe would reject the proposal to have Mariane's hand in marriage. After the entire debacle, no apology is rendered to Mariane by either her father or Tartuffe. It would have been necessitated for a daring move to try and marry her against her wishes. It means the perceived change is just momentary, and they do not care about the pain inflicted in the past. Therefore, it is not something they may carry into the future; someone may be forced into marriage against their wish.

There is one that stands out in both plays, as women get deceived, their desire to fight for their love is unmatched. They go a long way to ensure that true love wins and stands out amidst all the challenges. Hermia ends up with Lysander, the man of her dreams and the love of her life. On the other hand, Mariane ends in Valere's hands, from whom her father wanted to separate her and offer her to Tartuffe. As much as the system is oppressing women, nature finds its way of exacting vengeance for them. Without a positive input from the protagonists, true love is victorious. It leaves a lot to be desired in terms of change. Under different circumstances where love shall not manage to carve out its path, women's oppressors shall have a field day. They shall win against the women, unlike in these plays where Elmire, Mariane, and Hermia become victorious.

Women get subjected to second-class citizenship, and that only changes momentary when circumstances cannot allow the men's plan to continue. The details of the change and how it occurs undermines the comedy since the protagonists never really get better. Under the proper conditions of comedy, they could have changed for the better by the end, but it doesn't appear like the actual situation with Egeus, Orgon, and Tartuffe. Tartuffe ends in jail without accomplishing his mission; Egeus lives not to see his daughter marry Demetrius, and Orgon's decision to offer Mariane to Tartuffe never materialized. All these events could indicate that protagonists changed, but they never did. It is the events and circumstances surrounding their lives that changed the course of destiny.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the spirit of comedy has been undermined in the two plays. Had it ended in a natural cause of happiness with the promise of better days in the future, one would have duly concluded that the comedy was not undermined. However, it is not the case because society has not changed in the end. In any case, it has remained the same or worsened towards the end. Tartuffe had to go to jail for others to find happiness, and the duke had to rule and grant happiness to young people. It only means that the society is still entrapped in the events and evils of the past, and there is no specific change that occurs voluntarily in the plays. The events can replay at a different time because it is the gold standard set in society.

Works Cited

Moliere. Tartuffe. 1664.

Shakespeare, William. A Midsummer Night's Dream. Duke Classics, 1605.