s before his own birth was justly punished in his own
temporary eclipse by the almost worthless Pradon. He withdrew disgusted
from the stage in 1677. About the same time he married, was made
historiographer to the king, and became more or less fervently devout.
Years afterwards, at the request of Madame de Maintenon, he wrote for
her school-girls at St. Cyr the dramatic sketch of _Esther_, and soon
afterwards the complete tragedy of _Athalie_, the greatest of his works.
Then he relapsed into silence as far as dramatic utterance was
concerned. He died in 1699. Thus he presented the singular spectacle,
only paralleled by our own Congreve, and that not exactly, of a short
period of consummate activity followed by almost complete inaction. That
this inaction was not due to exhaustion of genius was abundantly shown
by _Esther_ and _Athalie_. But Racine was of a peculiar and in many ways
an unamiable temper. He was very jealous of his reputation, acutely
sensitive to criticism, and envious to the last degree of any public
approbation bestowed on others. Having made his fame, he seems to have
preferred, in the language of the French gaming table, _faire
Charlemagne_, and to run no further risks. He had, however, worse
failings than any yet mentioned. Moliere gave him valuable assistance,
and he repaid it with ingratitude. With hardly a shadow of provocation
he attacked in a tone of the utmost acrimony the Port Royal fathers, to
whom he was under deep obligations. The charge of hypocrisy in religious
matters which has been brought against him is probably gratuitous, and,
in any case, does not concern us here. But his character in his literary
relations is far from being a pleasant one.

The following is a list of Racine's theatrical pieces. _La Thebaide_,
1664, indicates with sufficient clearness the lines upon which all
Racine's plays, save the two last, were to be constructed--a minute
adherence to the rules, very careful versification and subordination of
almost all other interests to stately gallantry--but it is altogether
inferior to its successors. In _Alexandre le Grand_, 1665, the
characteristics are accentuated, and what Corneille disdainfully
called--

Le commerce rampant de soupirs et de flammes

is more than ever prominent. In _Andromaque_, 1667, an immense advance
is perceptible. The characters become personally interesting (Hermione
is perhaps more attractive than any of Corneille's women), and a power
of p