Justus, Lydia Mrs. Justus English 5/23/24 “Beware, so long as you live, of judging men by their outward appearance.” -Jean de La Fontaine Edmond Eugène Alexis Rostand was a French poet who lived in the late 1800s. Rostand was born in Marseille, France into somewhat of a prosperous (qa) family. Eventually, Rostand attended university at Collège Stanislas in Paris, France, where he studied the arts including literature, philosophy, and history. When (#5) Rostand turned twenty, he published his first comedy play which was titled Le Gant Rouge. Unfortunately, his first works were unsuccessful and somewhat unnoticed. by the public eye for quite some time. Because of a close friend of his fiance’s, he was able to set a few of his written works to…show more content… This ended up being an incredibly successful and beneficial part of his blossoming career. Rostand’s most famous work was an 1897 play, Cyrano de Bergerac. This play was a romantic tragedy that follows the detailed life of a man named Cyrano De Bergerac who possesses (sv) a comically large nose, which prevents Cyrano from pursuing the one thing he desires most in life. One of the main themes in Cyrano de Bergerac is appearance versus reality, exemplified in multiple ways throughout the play. Cyrano de Bergerac is a five-act romantic tragedy set in France in the mid-1600s. The main protagonist of this play is a poet and adept (qa) swordsman by the name of Cyrano De Bergerac, who we later learn is madly infatuated (sv) with his cousin, Roxanne. Nonetheless, Cyrano never admits his love for Roxane because he is severely insecure about his ridiculously oversized nose. Additionally, Roxanne confesses that she is madly in love with one of Cyrano’s comrades,…show more content… Eventually, Christian is killed in battle, which sends Roxanne into such deep heartbreak that she joins a convent, where she is visited frequently by Cyrano. Fifteen years later, Cyrano continues to write, and after some time, his works cause political leaders to be angry with him. Those men are so angry with his writing that they attempt to murder Cyrano. After being bludgeoned in the head, Cyrano bleeds out while telling Roxanne the truth about his love for her. Cyrano de Bergerac is a romantic tragedy that could’ve ended differently if Cyrano had just confessed his adoration for Roxanne earlier on in the play. One of the main themes in Cyrano de Bergerac is appearance versus reality, which is shown in several various ways throughout the play. The first example of this common theme is shown when Christian, although incredibly (ly) handsome, is ill-equipped to romance Roxanne with his wit and words. Roxanne passionately believes he is the perfect fit as a lover, however, Christian is stuck on merely the physical part of love and not the emotional side as Roxanne
