Athalie

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Athalie
Fotoreproductie schilderij Rachel in de rol van Athalie in Athalie, acte II, scene VII, RP-F-F25550-H.jpg
Actress playing the role of Athalie, 1850s.
Written by Jean Racine
ChorusDaughters of the tribe of Levi
Characters Athalie
Joad
Josabet
Salomith
Abner
Azartah, Ishmael, priests and Levites
Mathan
Nabal
Agar
Nurse of Joad
Date premiered1691
Original languageFrench
Genre tragedy
Setting Jerusalem Temple, a vestibule of the High Priest's apartment, c. 835 BC

Athalie ( [a.ta.li] , sometimes translated Athalia) is a 1691 play, the final tragedy of Jean Racine, and has been described as the masterpiece [1] [2] of "one of the greatest literary artists known" [3] and the "ripest work" of Racine's genius. [4] Charles Augustin Sainte-Beuve deemed it comparable to Oedipus Rex in beauty, with "the true God added." [5] August Wilhelm Schlegel thought Athalie to be "animated by divine breath"; [4] other critics have regarded the poetics of drama in the play to be superior to those of Aristotle. [5]

Contents

History

After the success of Esther , Racine published Athalie in 1691, another play drawn from the Bible, which he expected would have the same success.

Plot

Athalie, widow of the king of Judah, rules the country and believes she has eliminated all the rest of the royal family. She has abandoned the Jewish religion for the worship of Baal. However, the late king's grandson Joash was rescued by the wife of the high priest.

Reception

"Racine Reading Athalie Before Louis XIV and Madame de Maintenon", painting by Julie Philipault. Julie Philipault - Racine Reading Athalie Before Louis XIV and Madame de Maintenon m503604 96de5598 p.jpg
"Racine Reading Athalie Before Louis XIV and Madame de Maintenon", painting by Julie Philipault.

Athalie was the victim of opposition from moralists at its creation.[ citation needed ] Represented on the public scene after the death of Madame de Maintenon, it was never part of the most popular plays of Racine, though Voltaire saw it as "perhaps the masterpiece of mankind" and Flaubert's character Monsieur Homais, the pharmacist, in Madame Bovary calls it the most "immortal masterpiece of the French stage," and names one of his daughters Athalie. However Homais is a boor and ignoramus so it is not clear what Flaubert's own judgement of the play was. [5]

Adaptation

The oratorio Athalia by George Frideric Handel, with libretto by Samuel Humphreys, was based on Athalie.

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References

  1. ""ATHALIE" PLAYED AT HARVARD; Racine's Masterpiece Produced Before a Brilliant Audience in Sander's Theatre -- Gov. Wolcott Present". The New York Times. 7 December 1897.
  2. Mann, Albert (1929). "Racine's Biblical Masterpieces, Esther and Athalie by Jean Racine; James Bruner". The French Review. 3 (1): 55–57. JSTOR   379685.
  3. Racine, J.; Eggert, C.A. (1909). Athalie. Heath. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  4. 1 2 Racine, J. (1911). Athalie. D.C. Heath & Company. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 Zeek, C. Franklyn (1942). "Is French Literature Passee?". Peabody Journal of Education. 19 (4): 209–215. doi:10.1080/01619564209535705. JSTOR   1489410.