Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, better known by his pseudonym Moliere, was born on January 15, 1622 in Paris. The son of a wealthy tapestry-maker, he lost his mother at a very young age and entered the prestigious Jesuits' College de Clermont, where he seemed to have become acquainted with many Latin, Spanish, and Italian comedies. It is said that his father was very hard on him, or that in this college he met the prince of Conti, or that he was a pupil of the philosopher Gassendi, but these statements appear to be nothing more than unverified hypotheses.
"The life of Moliere is a story of struggle, hard work, domestic unhappiness, death and burial in obscurity and almost in shame,"" reads an article. Indeed, life was not always easy for Moliere. While it is true that he experienced wealth, acclaim, and fame; neither can it be dismissed that he went through poverty, censure, and disgrace. At the time he was about twenty-two, he ventured into acting and managing by joining a theatrical company and for a time he was totally unsuccessful. He later married a member of the family of actors who established the company. The troupe, which Moliere named Illustre Theatre, played in Paris until 1645. During the same year, he had to spend a few weeks in prison for failure to pay his debts. From 1645, he spent twelve years touring in the French provinces before returning to Paris.
His genius was not always recognized by critics during his lifetime. Of his displeasure of his critics' opinion on his masterpiece, Le Tartuffe, he once remarked "It is a mighty stroke at any vice to make it the laughing stock of everybody; for men will easily suffer reproof; but they can by no means endure mockery. They will consent to be wicked but not ridiculous."" For in the 17th century, powerful men attempted to censor every play that did not happen to suit their personal tastes and selfish interests, a curse that continues to plague great minds to this very day.
