Moliere (1622-73) combined all the traditional elements of comedy

wit, slapstick, spectacle and satire

with a deep understanding of character to create richly sophisticated dramas. Most are built around dangerously deluded heroes such as The Miser who threaten to blight the lives of those around them. In his first great triumph, The School for Wives (newly translated for this edition), an ageing domestic tyrant is foiled in his plans to wed his young ward. Although it was criticised for mocking the ‘sacred’ institution of marriage

to which Moliere hit back with a play of defence, The School for Wives Criticized

it was the alleged atheism of his dark, subversive version of Don Juan which struck the blackest note. Finally, in The Hypochondriac, the terminally ill author produced a hilarious expose of the ways doctors use medical mumbo-jumbo to fleece their patients. All of Moliere’s greatest achievements are included here and in the accompanying Penguin Classics volume, The Misanthrope and Other Plays.