Corpsing Molière History as Fiasco mechele leon  When you realize that you are not getting something—a joke, a proverb, a ceremony—that is particularly meaningful to the natives, you can see where to grasp a foreign system of meaning in order to unravel it. —Robert Darnton, The Great Cat Massacre That corpsing might have something to do with the unwanted irruption of the real amid the unreality of the stage ‹ction is suggested here. But nobody is laughing. Something is going wrong and no is prepared to admit they ‹nd it funny. —Nicholas Ridout, Stage Fright, Animals, and Other Theatrical Problems There are minor but provocative discrepancies in historical accounts of Molière’s death. According to the entry in La Grange’s company register for February 17, 1673, Molière died in his home on the rue de Richelieu at ten o’clock in the evening after having performed the role of Argan in the comédie-ballet Le malade imaginaire. He was “greatly discomforted by a chest infection and a violent cough.” 1 A similar account is given by La Grange in the preface to the ‹rst edition of Molière’s complete works (1682). A few years after this, however, a pamphlet about the life of Molière’s wife, Armande Béjart, suggested that Molière never completed the performance. According to La fameuse comédienne, the actors had great trouble rousing Molière after the scene in which Argan fakes death as a ploy in order to test the sincerity of his spouse. 2 Although he managed to revive and play on, during the ‹nal intermède—the wildly burlesque med- ical initiation ceremony—as Molière spoke the words “rhubarb and senna,” blood suddenly poured from his mouth. This caused “extreme fright in both audience and fellow actors,” and Molière was rushed away. 3 177 Bial_Text.qxd 7/14/2010 5:55 PM Page 177