In the beginning of the play Tartuffe is a completely different person from what we find out about him in the end. At first he pretends to be a very religious man who is very grateful to Orgon. He acts as though he will do anything Orgon asks of him and will care for his family as if they were his own. Even though the entire family can see right through him he manages to fool Orgon to the point where Orgon goes back on his word to valare and in turn promises his daughter to Tartuffe. Orgon even throws his son out of the house when he tries to tell Orgon about Tartuffe’s attempts to seduce his wife.
Orgon wont hear any of it and tells Damis to leave. Orgon is completely infatuated with Tartuffe and treats him better than his son and even his own wife. When Orgon returned from his trip he was more worried about Tartuffe than his ill wife. Then we begin to realize that Tartuffe’s attitude is just a mask. In reality Tartuffe is trying to seduce Orgon’s wife and wants to take over the household. He pretended to be a very religious man who is only trying to serve god but he ends up betraying Orgon by going to the king and telling him lies in an attempt to destroy Orgon so he can take over the house.
We also find out that Tartuffe has been a criminal for a long time and the king was aware of this. In the end Tartuffe is the one who is taken away and good prevails over evil but you can see how Tartuffe’s personality was covered with a mask. Tartuffe is nothing but a con artist and his whole attitude was just an act. He was hungry for power and would do anything to obtain it even if he had innocent people thrown in jail or killed. But this play also shows us that in the end the truth always comes out and people who wears masks eventually reveal their true identity.
