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CYRANO DE BERGERAC

CYRANO DE BERGERAC. BY EDMOND ROSTAND. Why should we study this play?. It is a classic Why is it a classic? It has universality or a universal theme What is universal theme? An idea that transcends the barriers of time and place How does it transcend barriers of time & place?

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CYRANO DE BERGERAC

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  1. CYRANO DE BERGERAC BY EDMOND ROSTAND

  2. Why should we study this play? • It is a classic • Why is it a classic? • It has universality or a universal theme • What is universal theme? • An idea that transcends the barriers of time and place • How does it transcend barriers of time & place? • Written in France over 100 years ago yet still applies to people today

  3. What are some possible themes for the play? • Intelligence and inner worth are more valuable than physical beauty. • People tend to magnify their own faults or flaws, which can lead to low self-esteem. • Deception often causes unfavorable consequences for both the deceiver and the deceived. • Honor, virtue, and moral purity are heroic qualities that are often intertwined with suffering and self-sacrifice.

  4. What is the setting for the story? • France • Between the years 1640 and 1655

  5. What are some symbols in Cyrano? • Cyrano’s nose represents his best qualities: loyalty, virtue, bravery, and independence. • His nose also reveals his greatest weakness: his insecurities regarding love. • Cyrano’s tears and Christian’s blood on Roxanne’s last letter represent that two men created one romantic hero. • The white plume symbolizes honor, bravery, purity, and moral integrity.

  6. What allusions are in Cyrano? • A balcony scene that parodies the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet • Many allusions to Alexander Dumas’s The Three Musketeers • A reference to Samson in the Bible and his battle with the jawbone of a donkey

  7. Vocabulary Act I Scene I • Burghers – middle-class citizens • Falseto – high-pitched male voice • Foils – fencing swords • Lackeys – low-level servants • Marquises – noblemen who rank just below a duke • Pages – messenger servants • Proscenium – an area in a theater between the orchestra and the curtain • Troopers – soldiers on horseback

  8. Who are the main characters? • Protagonist – Cyrano de Bergerac, a man with a very large nose, a Gascon, soldier, and poet, loves Roxane • Antagonist – De Guiche, a friend of Valvert, loves Roxane, nephew of Richelieu • Roxane – loved by both Cyrano and Christian, Cyrano’s cousin, loves Christian • Christian – a cadet (soldier) who loves Roxane • Ragueneau – a baker, poet, and close friend of Cyrano • Le Bret – Cyrano’s best friend

  9. Carbon de Castel-Jaloux – captain of the cadet guards, leads the Gascons at Arras • Duenna – Roxane’s chaperon and companion • Lise – Ragueneau’s wife, scolds him for poetry • Montfleury – actor banned from the stage by Cyrano because he smiled at Roxane, ignored threat • Vicomte de Valvert – friend of de Guiche who is set up to marry Roxane, killed by Cyrano in duel • Ligniere – drunk poet who maligned de Guiche and was to be killed by 100 assassins

  10. Scenes in the 5 acts of Cyrano • Act I – the theater (1640) • Act II – Ragueneau’s pastry shop (1640) • Act III – in front of Roxanne’s house (1640) • Act IV – the siege at Arras (1640) • Act V – a convent (1655)

  11. Vocabulary Act I Scene II • Candelabra – a chandelier with candles • Coquettish – flirtatious • Duenna – a governess or chaperone • Ode – a type of lyric poem usually addressed to a particular idea or object • Triolet – a type of poem containing 8 lines in each stanza, with the first line repeated as the 4th and 7th lines and the 2nd line repeated as the 8th line

  12. Vocabulary Act I Scene III • Incredulously – skeptically, in disbelief • obsequious – submissive, fawning • Pastoral - pertaining to the pleasant country life • Persecute – to oppress or harass • Viscount – a nobleman whose rank is just below an earl

  13. Vocabulary Act I Scene IV • Affable – pleasant, friendly • Appendage – an attachment (usually refers to a part of the body) • Conch – a type of large shell • Envoi – a short passage at the end of a poem • Farce – a comedic play with much slapstick and a far-fetched plot • Parry – to deflect; to sidestep • Pedantic – excessively wordy in a teaching way • Scabbard – a case for a sword

  14. Vocabulary Act I Scene V • Protuberance – something that projects outward; a lump or a bulge • Sublime – inspiring of the highest moral worth • Nebulous – hazy, vague, unclear

  15. Vocabulary Act II Scene I • Andiron – a metal support used in a fireplace • Diminutive – small • Desecrated – defiled, violated • Couplet – two lines of poetry usually rhyming and having the same rhythm • Gallery – a narrow passageway • Lute – a small guitar-like musical instrument • Lyre – a stringed instrument belonging to the harp family • Scullions – kitchen workers

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