ATHALIE. This drama by Racine was called by Voltaire masterpiece of the human and by Boileau Racine's beautiful work, Most modern critics would accord it at least the second place among his dramas. But it was slow in winning general recognition. After his had been pro duced with much éclat in 1689 by the aristo cratic young ladies of Madame de Maintenon's foundation at Saint Cyr, Louis XIV ordered the poet to compose for the same amateur stage a new tragedy drawn also from the Scriptures. Two years later was ready, but Madame de Maintenon had conceived scruples as to the disturbing effect of dramatic repre sentations on her educational wards. It was accorded only a chamber performance with out costumes in 1691, and passed almost un noticed. Had the express will of king and author been followed, the French stage would have been permanently deprived of a great masterpiece. It was first presented to the theatre-going public 3 March 1716. The sub ject of the play is the revolt of the loyalist priesthood under. ehoiada against the usurping Queen Athaliah, the anointing of the Child-King Jehoash, the destruction of the temple of Baal, the slaying of his priest Mathan and finally of Athaliah as told in 2 Kings xi, supplemented by the account in 2 Chronicles, xxii and xxiii.
In the poet's hands this rather crude account of dynastic rivalries and sacerdotal ambition has become a splendid picture of religious enthusiasm, a superb plea for the divinity that was supposed to hedge true royal blood as well at the court of Versailles as in Jerusalem. Racine's is a grandly tragic portrayal of a commanding woman who knows no law but the feverish pursuit of the objects of her inconsequent passion. Prone to superstition, she struggles wildly with the portents of her fears, dashing herself against righteous fate to ruin. Joab, the high priest, is the type of a pitiless fanatic, disinterested personally but unscrupulous by conviction. Abner is the sim ple soldier, Mathan the ambitious priest who seeks to make a stepping stone of religion, Nabal the selfish zealot, Joas one of the very few genially conceived children of the stage. To a chorus of Levite girls the poet has given several canticles, yielding little to those of in devout beauty. There are transla tions of the play by R. B. Boswell and others.