The Importance Of Trust In Shakespeare's Tartuffe

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Trust is important in every relationship. In Tartuffe, Orgon has an insurmountable amount of trust for Tartuffe. Regardless of the accusation made against Tartuffe, Orgon continues to trust him wholeheartedly. Orgon makes it clear that he trusts Tartuffe more than he trusts his own family. This type of household dynamic is very interesting, and can be amounted to two things. Orgon loves and trusts Tartuffe more than his own family because he humbled himself before Orgon, and because Orgon respects his spiritual knowledge. Being respected is a very important thing for men of power. Tartuffe practically bows down at the feet of Orgon, which causes Orgon to trust him. When Orgon is speaking to Cleante, he says, “there I learned about his poverty …show more content…

Here, Orgon brags on the modesty of Tartuffe. He saw Tartuffe in church, and was amazed at how humbled he was. In addition to humbling himself spiritually, Tartuffe respects Orgon so much that he watches over his wife, Elmire. Orgon states that Tartuffe “tells me whom she sees and what she does. He’s more jealous than I ever was. It’s for my honor that he’s so concerned” (Moliere 153). Thinking deeper into what Orgon is saying here, one can question why he would want another man paying so much attention to his wife. Remember, when Orgon returned home he was questioning Dorine about Tartuffe’s well-being, Dorine was trying to converse with him about how Elmire had been sick. Orgon completely ignores the news of Elmire’s sickness, and is relentless about how Tartuffe is feeling. Maybe Orgon is happy that he has someone else to care for his wife, so he does not have to. It does not seem like Orgon loves his wife very much, so passing on the responsibility of watching over her would be a plausible reason for his approval towards Tartuffe and Elmire. We can see that …show more content…

Orgon accuses Cleante of being spiritually inadequate. Orgon says, “I smell an atheist! It’s that freethinking...tentimes over, I’ve tried to save your soul from your corrupted mind” (Moliere 153). Cleante states that he is used to this kind of talk from Orgon. He also takes this opportunity to tell Orgon that Tartuffe is not as spiritually sound as he seems. During this scene Orgon strongly defends Tartuffe’s honor. It is easy to ask yourself why Orgon, who seems to be spiritually strong, cannot see through Tartuffe’s façade. Closer analysis tells us that Orgon sees what he wants to see. He may feel that he is intellectually and spiritually above everyone in his household, and constantly looks for someone who is on the same level as him. When he encounters Tartuffe’s feigned religiosity, he is enamored. Because of Orgon’s high platform in society, Tartuffe may believe that if he continues to trick Orgon he will be able to gain a high societal platform as well. Orgon believes this feigned religiosity, and allows Tartuffe to become someone special in his household. All the while, Orgon believes that the people in his family are the ones who are feigning religious aptitude. With a facetious attitude, Orgon tells Cleante that he is most knowledgeable in the world: “Oh, you are the wises man alive, so you know everything there is to know” (Moliere

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