Abstract: Molière's L'Avare is a comedy in abyme, in which the characters fool each other in the interest of their passions; this "imposture" is made necessary by the tyranny of the money-obsessed "hero". Argan's obsession can be compared with the marottes of other Moliéresque heroes, including religious devotion: they all express existential anguish. The implications of this observation are explored in the light of Guy Patin's judgment of Molière.
