Essay | Grand Gestures in "Cyrano de Bergerac"

In Edmond Rostand's Cyrano De Bergerac, grand gestures are a way of life for the main character, whose name is shared with the title of the play. Cyrano's grand gestures are almost always connected to his love interest and cousin, Roxane. Cyrano fears that both his outer and inner beauty are not enough to please Roxane, so he gallantly lets his feelings take a back seat and plays match maker between Christian, a Gascon soldier, and Roxane. One of his first grand gestures in his match making is the night that Cyrano hides himself from view, and woos Roxane on her balcony as if he were Christian; following that night, Cyrano risks his life by riding through enemy lines to send letters that Christian has signed, but that he has written to Roxane; one of his final grand gestures happens moments before his death: he lets the...
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