Élise

Character Analysis

The Juliet

Like Cléante, the first thing we learn about Élise is that she's in love. She's in love with one of her father's servants, a dude named Valère. Another thing we learn about Élise early on is that she is skeptical of the sweet nothings men say to women. Valère pledges his undying love to her, but she simply answers, "Ah! Valère, you all talk like that. Men are all the same in what they say. It is only in what they do that they are different" (1.1.6). In other words, she's telling Valère to put up or shut up. It's not good enough to say he loves her; he needs to show it.

On top of those things, we learn that Élise owes her life to Valère, who once saved her from drowning: "For I keep remembering that moment of terrible danger when we first set eyes on each other, your amazing courage in risking your life to drag me from the fury of the waves" (1.1.9). Okay, so that's a decent enough basis for the two of them to be in love. Élise feels like she owes Valère her life. But in addition, she seems to love the guy for his personality too, so she's not his lady-love just out of a sense of owing him something.

Élise is also willing to be very stubborn and dramatic when it comes to defending her love for Valère. When her father insists that she marry an older man named Anselme her answer is, "I'll kill myself rather than marry a man like that!" (1.4.95). Harpagon, for his part, thinks this is an empty threat. To be fair, it probably is. But Élise is still brave for saying it, especially when you consider how hard she tries to be…

A Proper Daughter 

For all her disobedience toward her dad, Élise is pretty concerned with acting appropriately. She's much more worried about being proper than her brother Cléante is. When Valère asks her why she won't marry him, she answers that there are several reasons, which include: "My father's anger, the reproaches of my family, what people will say" (1.1.4).

And when Harpagon first tells her about her arranged marriage to Anselme, Élise responds, "If you please father, I have no inclination to be married" (1.4.79). This is about as polite as you can get when it comes to turning down a marriage of convenience. It's only when her father insists on the marriage to Anselme that Élise starts raising her voice and becoming rebellious.

But she didn't try to be bratty about it; Harpagon forced her hand. Like Cléante, Élise ultimately decides that love trumps family duty, and she's the better for it.