Le succès du crime sur scène avec Robert Macaire : modernité théâtrale et protestation sociale au xixe siècle

This paper focuses on the literary and political strength of Robert Macaire, a criminal who first appeared on stage in 1823 when it was played by Frédérick Lemaître. Acting as Robert Macaire, Frédérick Lemaître was the first one to reverse the melodramatic order by shedding a positive light on the c...

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Main Author: Noémi Carrique
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Criminocorpus 2012-12-01
Series:Criminocorpus
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.openedition.org/criminocorpus/2218
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author Noémi Carrique
author_facet Noémi Carrique
author_sort Noémi Carrique
collection DOAJ
description This paper focuses on the literary and political strength of Robert Macaire, a criminal who first appeared on stage in 1823 when it was played by Frédérick Lemaître. Acting as Robert Macaire, Frédérick Lemaître was the first one to reverse the melodramatic order by shedding a positive light on the criminal. In the traditional  French melodrama, the traitor was always an unsympathetic character, which prepared the audience for a moralizing outcome of the play, with either remorse from or punishment of the "villain". Frédérick Lemaître undermined this tradition by turning the murderer into a hero. His farcical portrayal of the scoundrel reshaped the status of the character.The article develops four main ideas. First a study of the creation of Robert Macaire in the evolution of the melodrama, then an examination of the multifaceted personality of the character, followed by an analysis of its realistic aspect, and finally a look at the danger he embodied for the legal order of the monarchy during the 1820-1830 years.
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spelling doaj-art-e337a1d97f854c2bab0651218992c7a52025-01-06T09:15:50ZengCriminocorpusCriminocorpus2108-69072012-12-0110.4000/criminocorpus.2218Le succès du crime sur scène avec Robert Macaire : modernité théâtrale et protestation sociale au xixe siècleNoémi CarriqueThis paper focuses on the literary and political strength of Robert Macaire, a criminal who first appeared on stage in 1823 when it was played by Frédérick Lemaître. Acting as Robert Macaire, Frédérick Lemaître was the first one to reverse the melodramatic order by shedding a positive light on the criminal. In the traditional  French melodrama, the traitor was always an unsympathetic character, which prepared the audience for a moralizing outcome of the play, with either remorse from or punishment of the "villain". Frédérick Lemaître undermined this tradition by turning the murderer into a hero. His farcical portrayal of the scoundrel reshaped the status of the character.The article develops four main ideas. First a study of the creation of Robert Macaire in the evolution of the melodrama, then an examination of the multifaceted personality of the character, followed by an analysis of its realistic aspect, and finally a look at the danger he embodied for the legal order of the monarchy during the 1820-1830 years.https://journals.openedition.org/criminocorpus/2218criminelsmélodramesMacaire (Robert)
spellingShingle Noémi Carrique
Le succès du crime sur scène avec Robert Macaire : modernité théâtrale et protestation sociale au xixe siècle
Criminocorpus
criminels
mélodrames
Macaire (Robert)
title Le succès du crime sur scène avec Robert Macaire : modernité théâtrale et protestation sociale au xixe siècle
title_full Le succès du crime sur scène avec Robert Macaire : modernité théâtrale et protestation sociale au xixe siècle
title_fullStr Le succès du crime sur scène avec Robert Macaire : modernité théâtrale et protestation sociale au xixe siècle
title_full_unstemmed Le succès du crime sur scène avec Robert Macaire : modernité théâtrale et protestation sociale au xixe siècle
title_short Le succès du crime sur scène avec Robert Macaire : modernité théâtrale et protestation sociale au xixe siècle
title_sort le succes du crime sur scene avec robert macaire modernite theatrale et protestation sociale au xixe siecle
topic criminels
mélodrames
Macaire (Robert)
url https://journals.openedition.org/criminocorpus/2218
work_keys_str_mv AT noemicarrique lesuccesducrimesursceneavecrobertmacairemodernitetheatraleetprotestationsocialeauxixesiecle