Don’t Insult Me with your Poetry!

I love the plays of Moliere and “The Misanthrope” might be his best. This insult is brought to us by Alceste, a hardened realist who insists on telling the truth. He tells a would-be poet what he thinks about his verse: “A gentleman should always be at pains to control that itch for scribbling to which we are so prone. One should keep a tight rein on any desire one may have to advertise such trivial diversions or to display one’s work one runs the risk of cutting a pretty poor sort of figure… Do you really need to write poetry and if so, why the deuce must you rush it into print? The only people who can be excused for letting a bad book loose on the world are the poor devils who have to write for a living! Take my word for it, resist the temptation, conceal what you do from the public, and don’t go and prejudice the honorable reputation you enjoy at the court.”