The spirit of the Enlightenment is embodied in our texts with examples of reason, equality for all and rationality. Moliere's Truffle and Chikamatsu Mon' Zaemon's Suicidal Love in Amijima both display these characteristics through the characters and plot of each story. Turning away from the ideals and irrational thoughts that come from focusing solely on an organized and constructed order is shown in a negative light through the texts we read. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayIn the play Tartuffe, equality is shown despite social class. Previous ideologies were not as open to fairness and equal rights, yet we see that the Age of Enlightenment touches the value of every individual. An example of this is shown through the character of Dorine. Dorine is working class and clearly displays the values ​​associated with the Enlightenment. She is Mariane's maid within the show and is quite low in the rankings. Although Dorine is not as high in class as other individuals, she is rational-minded and extremely knowledgeable. In fact, Dorine was one of the very first people to see through Tartuffe and his false persona. While talking to Madame Pernelle, she expresses her opinion of him by saying, “You see him as a saint. I'm much less intimidated; In fact, I see right through him. He's an impostor." Although Orgon personally didn't believe her at first, we know it wasn't due to her social position but her unnecessary ideals. We can all appreciate the equal rights Dorine has within the show. Dorine is a character treated equally within the family, as if she were part of it. Touching rationality a little more, Orgon seems to be the least rational and the one who takes advantage of the most. As the Age of Enlightenment demonstrated, rational thinking was the key to moving forward and progressing. There were no longer to be spiritual mentalities and thoughts without logic. If Orgon had only listened to the rational characters within the play, this whole complicated situation would not have happened. With logic, reasoning, and rationalization, humans can ensure that what they believe is true. I believe Moliere wrote Tartuffe so that we could see what happens when reasoning is not applied and its disadvantages. The Love Suicides is a tragic love story that also shows the pitfalls that come from irrational thinking. Jihei, falls victim to falling in love with a prostitute and thus finds himself in a tangled web. Jihei is not someone who reflects on his actions, just like Orgon in Tartuffe. Both Jihei and her lover, Koharu, decide that the only way to be together is through a lover's suicide. Their irrational philosophy is something the Enlightenment wanted to move away from. Just like in Tartuffe, if Jihei had listened to the rational thoughts of his family and others within the story, the disastrous events may not have happened. As mentioned, equality was a main point in the Age of Enlightenment. This is shown in The Love Suicides through the roles of the characters. Jihei is a paper merchant while Koharu is a prostitute. In the story we see that their love is not as forbidden as we might think. During that era, equality is shown among people. It was not unacceptable for the two different classes to have a relationship. The only downside to the relationship was that it interfered with the family Jihei currently had. If Jihei had been single, the fact that Koharu was a prostitute in their..