The French playwright Pierre August Caron de Beaumarchais (1732-1799) was an outstanding dramatist of his day. His plays wittily satirized the privileged classes, the professions, and the court. Beaumarchais was born Pierre August Caron in Paris on Jan....

Hillary Rodham Clinton, the pinata of Tuesday's Democratic debate, is turning the tables on her rivals accusing them of ganging up against her.In a cleverly edited debate video and in a campaign statement, the Clinton camp is decrying the criticism leveled against her Tuesday night...

Sometimes even the most acid-tongued critics are left speechless.Paul Potts, 36, took to the stage of a British TV talent show as an unassuming mobile phone salesman from Wales, but after stunning judges with a virtuoso rendition of the aria "Nessun Dorma," he left it...

Today is Tuesday, May 1, the 121st day of 2007. There are 244 days left in the year.Today's Highlight in History:On May 1, 1898, Commodore George Dewey gave the command, "You may fire when you are ready, Gridley," as an American naval force destroyed a...

In terms of box office, the season has not been satisfying at the Metropolitan Opera. Sold-out new productions of The Magic Flute and Rodelinda notwithstanding, overall attendance still hasn't bounced back from 9/11, which made stay-at-homes of Met lovers in Japan, Europe and the rest...

In the following excerpt, Niklaus explains the structure of The Marriage of Figaro, commenting on past literary criticism and seeking to explain the unique importance of the play.

In the following essay, Pucci argues that Beaumarchais's use of changing values and the loss of aristocratic privilege in The Marriage of Figaro transforms the play from a mere light comedy.

In the excerpt below, Sungolowsky analyzes the plot, characters, and meaning of The Marriage of Figaro, arguing that the work is both complex and unified.