Polyeucte: Analysis of Setting
"Polyeucte: Analysis of Setting" examines the contrasting environments within the setting of Pierre Corneille's tragedy "Polyeucte." The play is set in a fictional Armenia, portrayed as a Roman colony where individual rights are often disregarded. The primary location is the governor's palace, which symbolizes the duality of power and suffering; the elegant upper rooms contrast starkly with the brutal conditions of the cellar, where torture and executions take place. The character of Pauline, the governor's daughter and Polyeucte's wife, serves as a bridge between these two worlds, initially unaware of her father's harshness and the implications of her husband's newfound Christianity. The narrative unfolds as Polyeucte, inspired by the martyrdom of his friend Néarque, becomes deeply committed to his faith, leading to moral dilemmas and personal sacrifices. The climax occurs in Polyeucte's cell, where he urges Pauline to embrace Christianity, illustrating the profound impact of faith on personal identity and familial relationships. Ultimately, the play grapples with themes of individual rights, faith, and the consequences of political power, prompting transformations in the characters' beliefs and actions.
Polyeucte: Analysis of Setting
First published: 1643 (English translation, 1655)
First produced: 1642
Type of work: Drama
Type of plot: Tragedy
Time of work: 250 c.e.
Places Discussed
Governor’s palace
Governor’s palace. The fictional Armenia in this play is indistinguishable from any other Roman colony in which individual rights are ignored. This entire tragedy takes place in the palace of Félix, a Roman senator who has recently been appointed governor of Armenia. His residence seems to be comfortable, but its cellar houses a prison in which people are tortured and executed. From the very beginning of this play, Corneille effectively contrasts the elegant upstairs rooms of the rulers with the horrible downstairs prisons in which opponents of Roman rule suffer. Those who submit to Roman rule are welcome in the elegant rooms on the palace’s main floor, but below the surface there is much unnecessary suffering.
Governor Félix’s daughter Pauline, who is Polyeucte’s wife, moves between the upper and lower floors of the palace freely. She loves both her father and her husband, who has recently converted to Christianity, a religion that she does not yet understand. She believes that it should be possible for Rome to tolerate this new religion, but she soon recognizes her father’s brutality.
In an offstage scene, Félix makes his son-in-law watch in the palace’s basement the martyrdom of Néarque, who converted Polyeucte to Christianity. Far from persuading Polyeucte to abandon his new faith, it inspires in him a greater commitment to Christianity, so Polyeucte chooses to remain downstairs. The most powerful scene in this tragedy takes place in Polyeucte’s cell, when his wife implores him to save his life, but he persuades her to embrace Christianity to save her own soul. In act 5, Polyeucte’s martyrdom is announced onstage on the upper floor. His courage in accepting death provokes the conversions of both his wife and father-in-law, who come to realize that they can no longer justify brutal violations of individual rights.
Bibliography
Abraham, Claude. Pierre Corneille. New York: Twayne, 1972. Contains an excellent introduction to Corneille’s plays and includes an annotated bibliography of important critical studies. Discusses the meaning of divine grace and the extraordinary evolution of Pauline.
Harwood-Gordon, Sharon. The Poetic Style of Corneille’s Tragedies: An Aesthetic Interpretation. Lewiston, N.Y.: Edwin Mellen Press, 1989. Examines the rhetorical brilliance of key speeches in Polyeucte and other tragedies by Corneille. Explores the emotional and religious arguments that should cause audience members not to question the sincerity of Pauline’s conversion to Christianity.
Muratore, Mary Jo. The Evolution of the Cornelian Heroine. Potomac, Md.: Studia Humanitatis, 1982. Examines the differences between idealistic heroines such as Pauline and unsympathetic female characters, including Cleopatra and Medea. Questions the sincerity of Pauline’s religious conversion after her husband’s martyrdom.
Nelson, Robert J. Corneille: His Heroes and Their Worlds. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1963. Explores the evolving nature of heroism for Corneille’s male characters. Discusses the political and psychological opposition between Polyeucte and Sévère.
Pocock, Gordon. Corneille and Racine: Problems of Tragic Form. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1973. Analyzes the formal structure of Polyeucte and explores the problematic nature of the conversion of Pauline and Félix after Polyeucte’s execution. Examines the rhetorical effectiveness of key speeches in the tragedy.