Jean Baptiste Racine

Racine, Jean Baptiste (1639-1699). The renowned French poet and academic, alongside Molière and Corneille, forms the famous triumvirate of 17th-century French drama. He studied law and philosophy but did not pursue these fields, as his inclination towards poetry, particularly tragedy and drama, manifested early on. He was friends with Boileau, Molière, and La Fontaine, whose works had a significant influence on his spirit and creations. His first ode, titled "The Nymph of the Seine," published at the young age of 20 on the occasion of the Sun King Louis XIV's wedding, was a success. Subsequently, he wrote several unsuccessful tragedies before resuming his successes in 1764 with the works: "The Thebaid," "Alexander," and "Andromache" (all three tragedies). He then wrote the clever comedy "The Litigants," which clearly imitates Aristophanes' comedy "The Wasps." He continued with several other distinguished tragedies, including: "Berenice," "Mithridates," "Britannicus," "Bajazet," "Iphigenia," and "Phaedra" (the last two in imitation of the eponymous tragedies by Euripides). However, Racine's fame from these distinguished works provoked envy and critical attacks from some of his contemporaries, even former friends. As a result, the poet was so distressed that at the age of 38, he withdrew from the intellectual scene and secluded himself in a Jansenist monastery (Port-Royal). From then on, and for 22 years until his death, he wrote only two tragedies with religious content, drawn from the Bible: "Esther" and "Athalie."