The Miser

“Words, Valere, just words. Promises are one thing, deeds another.”

Elise’s response to Valere’s flowery words foreshadows the problem Valere will run into when he tries to win over Harpagon with his flattery. This is one of the main themes of the play: The Consequences of Flattery without sincerity. Though Valere does love Elise, she warns him that he must be able to follow through on his words with his actions, instead of merely wooing her with them.

“And flattery wins every round, Elise, even with the most suspicious. Season a vicious insult with a pinch of praise and the game is won.”

Valere is one of many characters who tries to win over the miser with flattery. Part of the comedy throughout the play is characters doing their best to disguise their disdain for the miser with exaggerated compliments, all in hopes of getting their way with him. Their flattery, however, often simply creates more obstacles for them.

“Just what good will it do us, Elise, to inherit every sous he has hoarded […] when we are too old to frolic in the fields of youth?”

One of the main points of conflict in the play is the generational gap between Harpagon and his children. Harpagon hides away every cent and spends his life in fear, whereas his children recognize the beauty of living in the moment and favor love matches in the debate between True Love versus Transactional Relationships. Cleante gains agency when he realizes that he is depending on a fortune that will not come for many years, and that perhaps he should seek money for his marriage elsewhere.