Raisonneur

A raisonneur is a personage of a dramatic (more rarely epic) work who voices reasonings, evaluations, and moral maxims close to the authorial position, as if 'reasoning' on the author's behalf. The raisonneur usually takes no active part in the action but comments on the deeds of other personages, instructs, generalizes, and draws moral conclusions. The raisonneur type took shape in Classicist dramaturgy (where it embodied the voice of reason and virtue) and in comedy, notably Molière's. In later, psychologically complicated dramaturgy, direct raisonneurism is perceived as an artistic flaw — a 'mouthpiece of ideas' that violates the naturalness of characters; instead, the indirect expression of the author's thought through action and subtext is valued. Understanding the function of the raisonneur is important for analyzing dramatic conflict and the means of expressing the authorial position. Elements of raisonneurism are noticeable in Ukrainian 'enlightenment' dramaturgy of the 19th century.