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Act One

Summary: Scene I

Madame Pernelle, Orgon’s mother, makes a prolonged exit after an unsatisfactory visit to Orgon’s house. Escorting Madame Pernelle and her maid Flipote to the door are Elmire, Orgon’s wife; Cléante, Elmire’s brother; Damis and Mariane, Orgon’s children from his first marriage; and Dorine, Mariane’s maid. Talking almost nonstop, Madame Pernelle criticizes everyone present without allowing them time to form responses. She calls her grandson, Damis, a foolish dunce. She hints that Mariane, her granddaughter, only pretends to be innocent and demure. She accuses Elmire of spending too much money and Cléante of being too worldly. Madame Pernelle also staunchly defends Tartuffe, the pious imposter who has moved in on the family. Madame Pernelle insists that Tartuffe is a holy man who will save their souls. The others disagree. Damis calls Tartuffe a carping hypocrite, and Dorine calls him a fraud. Madame Pernelle then transfers her self-righteous venom to society as a whole. Dorine responds with caustic comments about Madame Pernelle’s social circle. Finally, just as she departs, Madame Pernelle slaps Flipote, her maid, and calls her “a slut.”

Summary: Scene II

Cléante and Dorine have a brief encounter. Dorine describes Tartuffe’s “infatuating spell” over Orgon. Orgon now cares more for Tartuffe than for his own family and allows Tartuffe to milk Orgon’s money and establish “a sort of Inquisition” in the household. Dorine describes how Tartuffe lays down moral rules for the family, while his servant Laurent presumes to dictate and police the behavior of the servants.

Summary: Scene III

Elmire, Mariane, Damis, Cléante, and Dorine have a conversation. Elmire sees Orgon coming and goes upstairs to rest. Cléante says he will stay to greet Orgon. Damis then asks Cléante to sound out Orgon about the promised wedding of Mariane to Valère, which Damis hopes will lead to his own marriage to Valère’s sister.

Summary: Scene IV

Orgon makes his first onstage appearance when he returns from the country. Cléante welcomes him back, but Orgon interrupts him to ask Dorine for the household news. Dorine reports that Elmire has been ill, but Orgon cares only about Tartuffe. Dorine sarcastically reassures Orgon that during Elmire’s illness Tartuffe has been eating and drinking in large quantities and sleeping comfortably in a warm bed. Orgon ignores his wife’s plight and expresses sympathy for Tartuffe by repeating the phrase “Poor fellow!”

Summary: Scene V

Cléante attempts to caution Orgon about Tartuffe. Orgon refuses to acknowledge Cléante’s concerns. He tells Cléante the touching story of how Tartuffe introduced himself at church, praying with fervor and sprinkling Orgon with holy water. Laurent, Tartuffe’s servant, then shared the secret of Tartuffe’s poverty, to which Orgon responded with generous donations, half of which Tartuffe then donated to the poor. Orgon claims that “Heaven prompted me to take him in.” Trying to make Orgon see reason, Cléante makes two long speeches about the difference between false and true piety, the need for moderation in all things, and the dangers of excessive zeal, all to no avail. Cléante is also unsuccessful in presenting Mariane’s case to marry Valère. Although Mariane’s engagement to Valère is official, Orgon now shows signs of wanting to back out of the agreement. Cléante resolves to warn Valère of trouble ahead.

Analysis: Act One

Act One introduces the play’s characters and their relationships to each other, establishes the central conflict, and sets the tone of the dialogue. The central conflict of Tartuffe is whether the family will be able to free Orgon from the manipulations of the plays titular character. The pro-Tartuffe faction in the conflict includes Orgon; his mother, Madame Pernelle; and Laurent, Tartuffe’s servant, an offstage character. All other characters are anti-Tartuffe. Act One also introduces two subplots: whether Mariane will be able to marry Valère and whether Elmire and Orgon can save their marriage. Although Tartuffe does not appear in person in this act, most of the action and dialogue centers on him and his undue influence over Orgon.

The dialogue in Act One sets the comic tone for the play. The people display the manners and characteristics of classic stock characters, exaggerated for satiric effect. Madame Pernelle, the aging shrew and nasty mother-in-law, spouts a ridiculously long stream of criticism that reveals how poisonous she really is, a harsh judgment reinforced by her treatment of Flipote. Dorine, the smart-mouthed maid, is the opposite of servile. She mocks her social superiors and sneers at their pretensions. Cléante, the prosaic, pompous moralist, states the serious themes of the play in long speeches packed with platitudes. Orgon, the aging, greedy merchant, is utterly convinced of the soundness of his own judgment, in spite of abundant evidence to the contrary.

Some of the funniest sections of dialogue are those in which pairs of characters talk across each other. In Scene I, Dorine counters Madame Pernelle’s criticisms of society by naming and describing Madame Pernelle’s friends. In Scene IV, Orgon feels so concerned for Tartuffe that he doesn’t even listen to Dorine, let alone realize that she is mocking him. In Scene V, Orgon’s excessive emotions and willingness to believe anything he’s told convince Cléante of his own duty to deliver advice. Cléante’s sermonizing triggers sarcastic responses from Orgon that display Orgon’s sense of self-importance. The two-person scenes in Act One also serve to supply plot details that predate the action in the play. Dorine’s speech to Cléante in Scene II mentions Orgon’s previous service to the King, a hint of a subplot that will appear later in the play. Orgon’s account in Scene V informs the audience that Tartuffe preyed upon Orgon for some time before actually moving into Orgon’s home.

The rising action of the play begins in Scene III, when Orgon, the main character, arrives back home after a trip to the country. The short scene also introduces the potential marriage of Mariane and Valère. Orgon’s first onstage appearance takes place in Scene IV. Dorine’s mocking comments in that scene signal the start of her campaign to unmask Tartuffe. Cléante’s campaign to change Orgon’s behavior through appeals to reason, moderation, morality, and Christian teaching starts in Scene V.

Scene V also adds to the rising action of the subplot, when Orgon refuses to give Cléante a direct answer about whether Mariane and Valère will be allowed to marry. Scene by scene, Act One reveals how completely Tartuffe has taken over Orgon’s life and divided Orgon’s family. The first act also establishes Orgon as the major obstacle to the positive resolution of both the conflict over Tartuffe and the conflict over Mariane’s marriage.

Next section Act Two

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