Jean Racine
Jean Baptiste Racine was a renowned 17th-century French playwright, considered one of the "big three" alongside Molière and Pierre Corneille.
Orphaned by age four, he was raised by his grandmother at the convent of Port-Royal, where he received a classical education deeply influenced by Jansenism.
This background shaped his tragédies, including Britannicus (1669) and Phèdre (1677), which drew on Greek and Roman themes.
His dramaturgy is distinguished by psychological insight, passionate characters, and stripped-down plots.
Though primarily a tragedian, he wrote one comedy.
He died of liver cancer and was buried at Saint-Étienne-du-Mont in Paris.
