Le Comte d’Essex de Claude Boyer : Élisabeth ou la confusion des rôles
In France, the story of the Earl of Essex inspired three tragedies. Two of them, written respectively by Thomas Corneille and Claude Boyer, were performed in 1678, in the course of only a few weeks. However, the way the topic was dealt with is different in the two plays. Even though Boyer’s play can...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Institut du Monde Anglophone
2009-10-01
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| Series: | Etudes Epistémè |
| Online Access: | http://journals.openedition.org/episteme/686 |
| Summary: | In France, the story of the Earl of Essex inspired three tragedies. Two of them, written respectively by Thomas Corneille and Claude Boyer, were performed in 1678, in the course of only a few weeks. However, the way the topic was dealt with is different in the two plays. Even though Boyer’s play can be considered a courtly work, he also attempted a reflection on the practice of political and judicial power through the complex character of Elisabeth : as a sovereign mistaking her two roles as a mistress and as a queen, she more or less consciously heads towards tyranny. |
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| ISSN: | 1634-0450 |