Cinna (Corneille)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Title page of the 1643 edition

Cinna , original title: French Cinna ou la Clémence d'Auguste ("Cinna or the goodness of Augustus"), is a tragedy in five acts by the French poet Pierre Corneille . It premiered in 1641 at the Théâtre du Marais in Paris and was first published in 1643.

people

  • Augustus , Roman Emperor
  • Livia , empress
  • Cinna , son of a daughter of Pompey , leader of the conspiracy against Augustus
  • Maximus, another leader of the conspiracy
  • Emilia, daughter of C. Toranius, who was executed by Augustus
  • Fulvius, confidante of Emilia
  • Polyklet, Augustus' freedman
  • Evander, Cinna's freedman
  • Euphorbus, freedman of Maximus

action

The play takes place towards the end of the Roman Civil Wars , when Emperor Augustus achieved a sweeping victory against all his enemies. However, some courtiers instigate a conspiracy against their imperial patron: Emilia wants to avenge her father, who was executed by Augustus, in this way. She is supported in this plot by her lover Cinna . Maximus, another conspirator, also in love with Emilia, goes mad with jealousy. His confidante Euphorbus reports the details of the conspiracy to Augustus. Empress Livia tries to change the mind of the emperor to gentleness so that he can show his greatness in this way. The emperor turns a deaf ear and calls Cinna over. After realizing the extent of the conspiracy and realizing that all those whom he showed love and esteem followed him with deadly hatred, he was shaken. In the great final scene, however, he decides to let mercy go ahead and wants to forget everything.

Impact history

Corneille wrote to Cinna at a time of political uncertainty, towards the end of the reign of Louis XIII. In the war against Spain , the French king had to pay for his triumph over his enemies, the Habsburg emperor and the Spanish king, with grave remorse. The gagging of the rebellious nobility was bought with the blood of his relatives, his authority with the execution of a favorite who had begun a conspiracy against Cardinal Richelieu .

Essential for Corneille is the depiction of the generosity ( générosité ) of the Emperor Augustus, which is evident in his mildness towards Cinna, as the poet explains in the dedication to Monsieur de Montory. In order to underpin this, he adds the Latin text by the philosopher Seneca De clementia ("On Mildness") immediately after the dedication . The contemporary intrigues of high-ranking aristocrats are clearly reflected in this work, especially the emerging Cabale des Importants against Richelieu and his policy of centralistic absolutism .

Like Horace , Cinna was received very successfully. The young Molière included the play in his repertoire and after a performance in 1659 he added the short comedy The Ridiculous Preziöse , with which his writing career began.

Web links

Wikisource: Cinna  - sources and full texts (French)

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Last verse: Qu'Auguste a tout appris, et veut tout oublier.