Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, mostly known by his stage name Molière, (French pronunciation: [mɔljɛʁ]; January 15, 1622 – February 17, 1673) is a French playwright and actor who is considered one of the greatest masters of comedy in Western literature.

Among Molière's best-known dramas are Le Misanthrope (The Misanthrope), L'École des femmes (The School for Wives), Tartuffe ou L'Imposteur, (Tartuffe or the Hypocrite), L'Avare ou L'École du mensonge (The Miser), Le Malade imaginaire (The Imaginary Invalid), and Le Bourgeois gentilhomme (The Bourgeois Gentleman).

Born into a prosperous family and having studied at the Collège de Clermont (now Lycée Louis-le-Grand), Molière is well suited to begin a life in the theater.

Thirteen years as an itinerant actor help him polish his comic abilities while he begins writing, combining Commedia dell'Arte elements with the more refined French comedy.

Through the patronage of a few aristocrats, including Philippe I, Duke of Orléans -- the brother of Louis XIV -- Molière procures a command performance before the King at the Louvre.

Performing a classic play by Pierre Corneille and a farce of his own, Le Docteur amoureux (The Doctor in Love), Molière is granted the use of salle du Petit-Bourbon at the Louvre, a spacious room appointed for theatrical performances.

Later, Molière was granted the use of the Palais-Royal.

In both locations he finds success among the Parisians with plays such as Les Précieuses ridicules (The Affected Ladies), L'École des maris (The School for Husbands) and L'École des femmes (The School for Wives).

This royal favor brings a royal pension to his troupe and the title "Troupe du Roi" (The King's Troupe).

Molière continues as the official author of court entertainments.

Though he receives the adulation of the court and Parisians, Molière's satires attract criticisms from moralists and the Roman Catholic Church.

Tartuffe ou L'Imposteur (Tartuffe or the Hypocrite) and its attack on religious hypocrisy roundly receives condemnations from the Church, while Dom Juan is banned from performance.

Molière's hard work in so many theatrical capacities begins to take its toll on his health and, by 1667, he is forced to take a break from the stage.

In 1673, during a production of his final play, Le Malade imaginaire (The Imaginary Invalid), Molière, who suffers from pulmonary tuberculosis, is seized by a coughing fit and a haemorrhage while playing the hypochondriac Argan.

He finishes the performance but collapses again and dies a few hours later.