Abstract: In the very first edition of Tartuffe, in the margin of the main scene (IV,5) in which the impostor is finally unmasked, we read a strange didascalia: "C'est un scélérat qui parle" ("It's a scoundrel who speaks"). Why this seemingly useless clarification, which is not a stage direction? Who is it addressed to? What is its function? Starting with the logical and poetic problems raised by this "note", the study looks at Molière's adversaries - the scoundrels - and his conception of religion.
