Irène (Voltaire)
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| Title: | Irène |
| Genus: | tragedy |
| Original language: | French |
| Author: | Voltaire |
| Premiere: | March 16, 1778 |
| Place of premiere: | Paris |
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Irène is the penultimate tragedy in five acts by Voltaire . The play was written by the 84-year-old author in 1777 and premiered in Paris on March 16, 1778, in the presence of the author, with great sympathy from the actors and the public .
action
Irène, wife of the Emperor of Constantinople under pressure from her mother, loves the Prince of Greece Alexis. Having returned to Constantinople victoriously against the will of the emperor, Iréne wants to declare his love, but is ordered back by Nicéphore. At Alexis' refusal, the emperor orders his arrest and execution. Warned by his attaché Memnon, Alexis and his army take on the emperor. Defeated by Alexis, but spared Nicéphore is killed by the people. Alexis ascends the throne. Iréne is supposed to enter a monastery according to the will of the father Léonce. Irène renounces her love for Alexis under the influence of her father and the patriarch. Alexis puts the father in chains and turns against the despotism of the father and the priesthood. In desperation, Irène asks for the release of her father and kills herself because, in her opinion, her lover has violated the honor of her family.
Addition
Voltaire wrote a letter to the Académie française , which he prefixed to the tragedy. In this letter he emphasized the independence and importance of French poetry compared to the English tradition in the aftermath of Shakespeare and thus took a stand on a debate initiated by Louis-Sébastien Mercier and Michel-Jean Sedaine .
Contemporary reception
The performance of Irène was one of the motives for the aged Voltaire to return to Paris. Voltaire, accompanied by his ward, Madame Villette, was personally present at the first performance in the box of the first chamberlain. The performance became a tribute to his person and his life's work. The tragedy Irène saw only six other performances.
Performances
The piece became a spectacle when it premiered on March 16, 1778 in the Comédie-Française , in which a bust of Voltaire by Jean-Antoine Houdon on the stage was crowned with laurel wreaths after the performance.
Going to press
The print of Irène with the imprint Paris only appeared posthumously in Paris in 1779 and a counter-version in Lausanne.
First editions
- Irène , without printer, Paris, 62 pp.
- Irène , without printer, Paris (recte Lausanne), 62 pp.
literature
- Theodore Besterman: Der Triumph des Oedipe (1718), in: Voltaire, Winkler, Munich, 1971, p. 451ff.
- Valérie André: Irène, in: Dictionnaire Voltaire, Hachette Livre, 1994, p. 113f.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Valérie André: Irène, in: Dictionnaire Voltaire, Hachette Livre, 1994, p. 113f.
- ↑ Cf. Theodore Besterman: Der Triumph des Oedipe (1718), in: Voltaire, Winkler, Munich, 1971, pp. 451ff.
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