Rating: 
Summary: An enjoyable literature assignment
Review: Tartuffe was one of many plays assigned to me in a college literature class, but I found Tartuffe to be more enjoyable than others. The characters were well developed and the dialouge was somewhat comical. The play read fairly quickly but was not boring. I think this was a good literature assignment and I would recommend it as a great comic play.
Rating:
Summary: Incredibly well-written!
Review: The most amazing thing about this play is the skill of its author. The story is original and interesting. The actual writing is what captivated me. So witty is the dialogue, so humorous it is at times, that I laughed out loud. It is quite amazing that such ancient text sounds like something you would hear on a sitcom. This is not boring or confusing speech, like in Shakespeare; this is very down-to-earth. Aside from the alluring rhyme, Moliere has an incredible ability to take a page-long theme and express it perfectly and succinctly in one sentence, and with poignancy. If I were given the task of writing dialogue about the theme of hypocrisy, I would write page after page of ineffective, watered-down, wordy dialogue that repeatedly misses the mark of expressing the point well. Moliere's lines, however, are so well-crafted that the ideas are ingeniously short and accurate. He fits so many good points into one entertaining, rhythmic, memorable sentence. Tartuffe is my favorite play of all!
Rating: 
Summary: "0" Stars for the Translation
Review: This has always been a beautiful play, but the translation is quite poor. All 3 stars are for Moliere himself. Please read this play, but find another edition. It seems as though the translator has read one too many restoration plays, and has infused an inappropriately pants-droppingly wacky energy into what should be a subtle, if funny, drama.
Rating:
Summary: "0" Stars for the Translation
Review: This has always been a beautiful play, but the translation is quite poor. All 3 stars are for Moliere himself. Please read this play, but find another edition. It seems as though the translator has read one too many restoration plays, and has infused an inappropriately pants-droppingly wacky energy into what should be a subtle, if funny, drama.
Rating:
Summary: Veuillez me pardonner, Seigneur!
Review: This was one of the books I had to read for college back in the late 1980's. It had been just a few years after the PTL Scandals and Jimmy Swaggart's weepy confession (I'm sure many of you remember these incidents). My professor pointed out the simmilar attitudes between them and the character Tartuffe. Tartuffe, when you get to know him, is really a cheap bum using religion to get what he wants. It's not long before the family he's mooching off finds out what a snake he really is (and the results are hilarious)! Written back in the 19th century, it's amazing how simmilar events were back then compared to more recent history! The title you read translated in English is "Please forgive me, Lord!".
Rating:
Summary: Veuillez me pardonner, Seigneur!
Review: This was one of the books I had to read for college back in the late 1980's. It had been just a few years after the PTL Scandals and Jimmy Swaggart's weepy confession (I'm sure many of you remember these incidents). My professor pointed out the simmilar attitudes between them and the character Tartuffe. Tartuffe, when you get to know him, is really a cheap bum using religion to get what he wants. It's not long before the family he's mooching off finds out what a snake he really is (and the results are hilarious)! Written back in the 19th century, it's amazing how simmilar events were back then compared to more recent history! The title you read translated in English is "Please forgive me, Lord!".
Rating:
Summary: Tartuffe by Moliere -A Witty play made even better by Wilbur
Review: To whom it may concern;
My name is Shelby, and i am a colege student in IL. I have been doing Theatre all my life, and during my senior year of high school, i was lucky enough to land a role in Tartuffe, By Moliere (the Richard Wilbur translation). upon preparing for my audition for Tartuffe, i had the opportunity to read many other versions of the script. To all directors, teachers, or whom ever is looking for a good laugh, i would choose Tartuffe. This delicious play is perfect for high school students (it has the perfect ammount of Character, and is easy to memorize because of the rhyming couplets) or adult theatre productions. If you are just interested in reading Tartuffe, i would, of course, reccomend it, but i also feel that you will not get the full "feel" of the play because you cannot get the humor or irony of some of the jokes. Much luck to all!
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent translation
Review: Translators have the power to make or break our opinions of the original author. It really is an art to not only translate the original meaning of a piece, but also to convey the original literary merit and integrity. Richard Wilbur has done an extraordinary job of translating Tartuffe. The plot itself is not as impassioning as I thought it would be. It is, however, very entertaining, very funny, and a breeze to read through. It felt much lighter in spirit than The Misanthrope, and is probably a little more accessible to one who generally avoids classics of that era. I highly recommend it. It's the best book I've ever been able to read in less than 2 hours.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent translation
Review: Translators have the power to make or break our opinions of the original author. It really is an art to not only translate the original meaning of a piece, but also to convey the original literary merit and integrity. Richard Wilbur has done an extraordinary job of translating Tartuffe. The plot itself is not as impassioning as I thought it would be. It is, however, very entertaining, very funny, and a breeze to read through. It felt much lighter in spirit than The Misanthrope, and is probably a little more accessible to one who generally avoids classics of that era. I highly recommend it. It's the best book I've ever been able to read in less than 2 hours.
Rating:
Summary: Classy burlesque; this play will keep you up all night.
Review: WARNING! This cornucopia of lechery, blastphemy and hypocracy has been found to be an addiction for the adult mind! Before you know it, you will have a Moliere monkey on your back, begging you to obtain more of this spectacular playwright's work. The play is a sordid tale of a "religious man" who comes into a bourgeois household and wreaks absolute bedlam. Tartuffe is the name of this man of the cloth (though he would prefer to have no cloth on whatsoever) who sparks this hilarious story. However, don't let the idea of farcical pinchings and burlesque tendencies fool you, for underneath all of that is a shining and thought-provoking literary work that is still revered today. It was the first play to ask questions about the undertones of staunch religion. The principle of having a monk as a villian has not been so well told since Rasputin. To add to the delightfully sinister plot, the play is written in the elegant verse of Moliere. Do not be put-upon by rhyming couplets! In this translation, the words begin to roll off the tongue and the brain in an almost watercolor manner, painting imagery on the canvas of your mind in a soothing and relaxing manner. And as for actors, I could not imagine a play with more vivid characters and witty dialogue. It is not stale or dusty as so many translations are, but has kept the freshness and zing over the centuries. If you want to keep yourself awake at night, or want to send the dinner guests packing, whip out Tartuffe and watch the eyes bulge. And perhaps some tips can be taken from old Tartuffe, for Moliere reminds us all that the unattainable is often percieved as the most desirable. Oh, and don't leave it around the kids.
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