The Dramaturgical Specificity of “Esther” and “Athalie” by Jean Racine - Biblical Tragedies

Abstract

The article presents the peculiarities characteristic of the dramaturgical specificity of Jean Racine's dramas "Esther" and
"Athalie", based on biblical motifs. The main literary sources for Jean Racine's "Esther" and "Athalie" are based on biblical
stories. These tragedies reveal the author's innovative style. The article analyzes the poetics of Racine's dramas reinterpreted
on biblical stories - "Esther" and "Athalie", the study of biblical symbolism, semantic analysis of historical names, paraphrasing,
understanding examples of trope thinking, etc. The synthesis of elements of antiquity and biblical motifs in the plays is also
discussed. Against the backdrop of 17th-century absolutism, the dramas Esther and Athalie represent the culmination of
Racine's career, his masterpieces, his own testament and epitaph.