The School for Wives
by Molière · L'École des femmes
Assigned by 2 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- 1662
- Form
- Comedy
- Language
- French
- Length
- Short · 100 ppunder 120 pages
- Difficulty
- Approachable1 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendThe School for Wives and The Learned Ladies, translated by Richard WilburHarcourt, 1991Wilbur's verse translation, paired with a later comedy on the same theme.
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Arnolphe, a man in his forties terrified of being cuckolded, has raised the orphan Agnès from childhood in complete ignorance so that she will make an obedient wife. Days before the wedding a young man, Horace, meets Agnès by chance and falls in love, and, not knowing who Arnolphe is, confides every step of the courtship to him. Agnès learns more from a few days of love than from years of confinement, and Arnolphe's scheme collapses. The play's success provoked a public quarrel that Molière answered on stage in The Critique of the School for Wives.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns The School for Wives are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.