The Marriage of Figaro (Historical Context)

Historical Context

France on the Brink of Revolution

Throughout the 1700s, France was the largest and most powerful nation in Europe. French society was divided into three estates. The First Estate consisted of the clergy of the Roman Catholic Church and made up less than one percent of the population. The Second Estate, the nobility, made up less than two percent of the population. People were born into the Second Estate, but they could also purchase titles. Neither the First nor the Second Estate paid any significant taxes. The Third Estate consisted of everyone else in France, from the peasants to the bourgeoisie, and constituted about ninety-seven percent of the French population.

Around the mid-1700s, discontent in France began to grow among the members of the Third Estate. Peasants were charged higher rents, and laborers’ wages did not match the rising cost of food. The bourgeoisie, the urban middle class, wanted political power equal to their economic strength, less governmental interference in business dealings, and their sons to have important positions in the church, government, and army. The Third Estate also resented being the only group to pay taxes.

France was also undergoing a serious financial crisis. Left with huge debts after fighting the Seven Years’ War, Louis XV, who ruled France from 1715 to 1774, raised taxes, borrowed more money from bankers, and refused to economize. His successor, Louis XVI, saw France’s debts rise as the country aided the colonists in the American Revolution. Louis’s financial advisers advocated taxing the First and Second Estates. When such taxes were proposed, the nobles protested and refused to cooperate; some even took part in riots. By 1787, the country stood on the brink of financial ruin.

Having little choice, Louis called representatives of all three estates to the Estates General at the Palace of Versailles in May 1780. He hoped that the group would approve his new plan of imposing taxes upon the wealthy. However, the Third Estate refused to follow the old custom that called for each of the three representative bodies to cast one vote. When the king did not take action, the Third Estate, on July 17, 1789, declared itself the National Assembly. This action began the French Revolution, which brought an end to the French monarchy.

The American Revolution

The American Revolution started in 1776 with the American Declaration of Independence. For several years, colonists were angry over the fact that they were forced to pay increasingly higher taxes without having representation in the British Parliament. France, Britain’s longtime enemy, was pleased to see the Revolution start. France formed an alliance with the patriots, signing a treaty in 1778, and French emissaries such as Beaumarchais supplied the American forces with weapons. Individual French citizens also contributed to the patriot cause. The Marquis de Lafayette arrived in America in 1777 to fight alongside the patriots. He also gave large sums of money to aid the American forces. The fighting lasted until 1781, when the British surrendered. A new democracy was born. The success of the American Revolution was an inspiration for the leaders of the French Revolution.

The French Theatre

French drama developed greatly in the 1600s and 1700s. The seventeenth century was France’s neoclassical period. Pierre Corneille wrote more than thirty plays, most of which followed Aristotle’s precept of unity of time, place, and action. Jean Racine introduced a simpler style and more realistic characters and plot structures. The comic genius of Moliere explored social, psychological, and metaphysical questions. The works of these playwrights remain mainstays of the French theatre. Other playwrights who contributed to the development of French drama during his period include Scarron, whose comedies were based on absurdity, and Marivaux, who focused on love instead of social realism. The 1700s witnessed fewer landmark developments in the theatre. Although French comedy reached its height in Moliere’s day, Beaumarchais offered many bold and exciting changes for the stage. He introduced social discourse into French comedy, along with rapid action, lively dialogue, and complex plots. His plays used comedy to highlight social abuses and subtly protest them.