Rue des Syriens by Raphaël Confiant

Abstract

Conesa, Gabriel. Le pauvre homme! Molière et l’affaire du Tartuffe. Paris: L’Harmattan, 2012. ISBN 978-2-296-96279-8. Pp. 270. 29 a. Conesa’s novel about Molière’s efforts to bring Tartuffe to the stage gives the reader an insightful view of the playwright and the intricacies of seventeenth-century French court, Church, and society. The 36 chapters follow the chronological order of events from 1664, when Tartuffe was banned, to the reversal of this restriction in 1669. Conesa brings the details of the time to life in a witty and humorous way, presenting a vivid account of the reactions of well-known historical figures, notably the famous Italian comedian Scaramouche, Louis XIV, Colbert, Madame de Rambouillet, Henriette of England, Lully, le Grand Condé, Racine, and Corneille. Political events and issues of church and state are portrayed accurately amid the controversies that surrounded the staging of Tartuffe, which of course reflect the sociopolitical conflicts of the time. In Molière’s five-year struggle to have his play reinstated, one is reminded of the opposition between the strict moral code of the old guard and the looser, more hedonistic values of the young group of the court. One can also discern the aspirations of the Church for more influence in politics as well as the role of the Jansenists of Port-Royal in opposing the play. Conesa conveys Molière’s strategic calculations to keep the discussion and thus interest about his play alive and to overcome the reactionary forces of his era. In reading the travail of Molière to achieve his objective, one cannot but be impressed by his resourcefulness and persistence as well as his refusal to surrender to the pressures of the court. During his five-year campaign to bring his play to the stage, Molière wrote and staged Dom Juan and Le misanthrope, both of which offer a scathing portrait of the hypocrisies of aristocratic society. To these plays were added L’école des femmes and La critique de l’école des femmes,both focusing on the hypocrisy of the Church and, by extension, of patriarchal tyranny. Molière’s tenacity and ability to criticize the church and the court for their hypocrisy are skillfully presented. Even more important is his ability to use comedy to entice his contemporaries to reflect on their society and its flaws. The novel ends with Tartuffe finally being brought to the public. Conesa implicitly conveys that Tartuffe was not just a comedy but a play that marks a transition in the values of the time, signifying that God is no longer the center of human preoccupation and that the human race is seeking a new path to find happiness. St. John’s University (NY) Zoe Petropoulou Confiant, Raphaël. Rue des Syriens. Paris: Mercure de France, 2012. ISBN 978-27152 -3254-9. Pp. 372. 22,20 a. Après La panse du Chacal (2004) et Case à Chine (2007), Confiant se penche sur une plus récente immigration en Martinique, celle des Levantins de Syrie ou du Liban au début du vingtième siècle. L’auteur reconstruit l’extrême complexité du melting-pot 266 FRENCH REVIEW 87.2 Reviews 267 caribéen et nous fait parcourir le temps et l’espace jusqu’à la rue François-Arago, la Rue des Syriens. Dans ce texte polyphonique, Confiant donne la voix principale à Wadi, Syrien exilé après la faillite de son père en terre levantine et musulmane, qui, tel Candide, a bien du mal à trouver son chemin. Pour les uns, il est un“faux-blanc”(122). Fanotte, sa concubine, l’appelle “mon nègre” (135), comme de coutume en créole; pour les autres il est‘sirien’ou encore‘la Syrie’. Il doit apprendre le créole et le français, délaisser son écriture, qui n’est qu’un“gribouillis”(123), négocier son entrée entre les mailles de la société. Et puis il y a les Indiens“plus bas que terre”, les Chinois qu’on“ne sait pas très bien où [...] placer” (118). Chacun a son histoire, sa religion, sa langue et même son banc sur...