The Miser

The Miser, by Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (better known by his stage name, Molière) was written in 1668 and was first performed at the theatre of the Palais-Royal in Paris on September 9th, 1668. The five-act play, which takes much of its inspiration from Plautus’ Latin comedy Aulularia (or The Pot of Gold), is a comedy centered on a penny-pinching old miser, Harpagon, who schemes to make more money by arranging marriages for himself and his two grown children, Elise and Cleante. The characters deal with intergenerational conflict, love, misunderstandings, and flattery gone wrong as each of them works to end up with the lover they have chosen for themselves.

The play, often deemed one of the greatest comedies of all time, is notable not only for its classic money versus love conflict, but also for its unapologetic mockery of the traditional asides in drama, which in Elizabethan times were a popular method of breaking the “fourth wall” and addressing the audience. Typically, asides are made without the other characters taking notice. However, that is not the case in The Miser, and whenever an aside is made, the other characters demand to know who that person is addressing. The play quickly became a classic and continues to be frequently performed and adapted all over the world.

This guide uses the Dramatists Play Services 1993 version, adapted into English by David Chambers.

Content Warning: One character mimics the action of hanging themselves.

Plot Summary

The Miser takes place in Paris, in Harpagon’s house. There are two pairs of lovers in the play. The first is Elise, Harpagon’s daughter, and her lover, Valere, a poor young man who saved Elise from drowning in the current. Elise fears that her father will disapprove of their love, but Valere assures her that he has discovered a way to win over Harpagon: flattery. To gain Harpagon’s affections, Valere will agree to everything Harpagon says, showering him in praises. Elise’s brother, Cleante, is in love with a poor woman named Marianne and also fears that his money-obsessed father will refuse to approve the match.

Harpagon, “The Miser,” enters, raging against Cleante’s servant La Fleche, who he is  convinced has stolen from him. He also tells La Fleche to keep his secret about hidden money in the house. Harpagon grows frustrated at himself for spilling the secret, and at La Fleche for potentially stealing, and proceeds to order La Fleche to leave the premises. When he is alone, he rants about how he has to hide his newly acquired ten thousand crowns in a strongbox to protect it from banks, people like La Fleche, and anyone else who may want to steal it. He describes his elaborate safety measures, including chained Dobermans to protect the strongbox, which is buried in the garden.

Harpagon tells his adult children of his most recent scheme. Harpagon will marry Cleante’s beloved Marianne, who, even though she has no wealth, will prove to be a great wife for him. Elise will marry an older man very similar to himself, and Cleante will marry a widow. Both Elise’s and Cleante’s prospective potential partners are decidedly wealthy. Furthermore, Elise’s betrothed has agreed to marry her without a dowry if they wed by tonight, which is an offer Harpagon could simply not refuse. Elise and Cleante are both dumbfounded.

Elise refuses to marry the man her father has chosen for her. Harpagon says they will ask Valere, and whatever he says is the right decision will be final. Elise, confident that her lover will not side with her father, agrees to the terms. When Harpagon asks Valere who is right in an argument, himself or Elise, Valere immediately says that it must be Harpagon and starts to flatter the miser. Valere is oblivious to Elise’s hints until Harpagon tells him that the argument was over Elise’s future husband. Valere, stumped, tries to find a way to keep flattering Harpagon while also foiling his plans to have her married off that night. Valere is unsuccessful in changing Harpagon’s mind, but he does distract him long enough to leave the room with Elise under the guise of convincing her to obey her father.

Meanwhile, Cleante and La Fleche meet to discuss a loan Cleante intends to borrow from a mysterious client of their broker, Master Simon. Now that Harpagon intends to marry Marianne, the stakes of obtaining this loan are even higher. The client’s deal is outrageous and stingy: he demands 25% interest, and instead of offering everything in cash, he is offering his goods (old furniture that is not worth much). Cleante hears his father approaching with Master Simon. He and La Fleche leave the scene just as Harpagon and Master Simon enter.

Harpagon is, in fact, the secret client of Master Simon. Cleante re-enters and realizes this. He and his father are furious with each other. Their anger frightens Master Simon, who flees. Father and son both exit in a huff, leaving La Fleche on stage. Frosine, one of La Fleche’s friends, appears. She reveals that she is in on the scheme to get Marianne and Harpagon married, with the hopes of receiving a reward of sorts from Harpagon. La Fleche warns her not to get her hopes up, since Harpagon is such a miser. He leaves her alone, and she is soon joined by Harpagon himself. Frosine at first encourages Harpagon to make the match, but when she asks for financial help, he refuses. Frosine drops her flattering act the minute he walks off stage, vowing revenge.

Harpagon begins to plan an elaborate dinner for Marianne. However, he is determined to spend as little money as possible, which frustrates Master Jacques, Harpagon’s servant. Valere, determined to flatter Harpagon, insists that he will be able to pull off an extravagant, yet inexpensive, dinner himself. Master Jacques warns Harpagon that he might be flattering him to his face, but he, and all of Paris, makes fun of The Miser behind his back. The fight between the three of them escalates, until they all rush off stage chasing each other.

Marianne tells Frosine how she has fallen for Cleante. Frosine reminds her that if she marries Harpagon, he likely will not live long and will then leave all his riches to her. They are interrupted by Harpagon and Cleante. Harpagon, convinced he has won Marianne’s love, confidently flirts with her. Meanwhile, Marianne realizes that her mysterious lover, Cleante, is the son of the man she is now meant to marry. The lovers’ attempts to confess their feelings without getting caught lead to misunderstandings, double entendres, and physical humor.

Marianne confides in Elise about her situation. Her dying mother’s last wish is that Marianne marry an older, wealthy man, but she cannot deny her own feelings for Cleante. Cleante and Frosine join the conversation, and together they scheme to trick Harpagon out of the marriage.

Harpagon asks Cleante’s opinion of Marianne. Thinking that this is an opportunity to turn Harpagon away from Marianne, Cleante talks about her negative attributes that would make her a poor wife. Harpagon tells him it is a shame, since he thought perhaps Cleante should wed Marianne instead of himself. Cleante tries to take it back, but Harpagon refuses. Their fight escalates, forcing Master Jacques to mediate. The chase is interrupted by a sudden flash of lighting and sound of thunder. A suit of armor walks in, carrying the strong box. It is La Fleche in disguise. He hands Cleante the strong box and they leave Harpagon alone onstage, where he performs a lengthy monologue cursing the thieves.

The chief of police arrives to investigate the scene and Harpagon tries to get his strongbox back. Anselme, the wealthy Neapolitan who is supposed to marry Elise, is also there. Valere is honest at last with Harpagon and admits his love for Elise. He tells his tragic backstory: He was raised by a captain who rescued him from a storm 16 years ago, during which he was separated from his family. He holds up a bracelet given to him as a child. Marianne is stunned, for she has an identical bracelet. She and her mother were also caught in a storm with their family sixteen years ago. Most surprising of all, Anselme holds up his own wrist and shows he has a bracelet as well—he is Valere and Marianne’s long-lost father.

The family is happy to be reunited, and Anselme has enough wealth that each of the couples can marry their intended. Anselme announces he will pay for both weddings between Valere and Elise, and between Cleante and Marianne, and the room erupts in celebration. Only Harpagon, still consumed with his money, is left clutching his returned strongbox while the songs and dances surround him.