amyl nitrite, drug once commonly used in the treatment of angina pectoris, a condition characterized by chest pain precipitated by oxygen deficiency in the heart muscle. Amyl nitrite is one of the oldest vasodilators (i.e., agents that expand blood vessels). The drug is useful in treating cyanide

Karl Popper was an Austrian-born British philosopher of natural and social science who subscribed to anti-determinist metaphysics, believing that knowledge evolves from experience of the mind. Although his first book, Logik der Forschung (1934; The Logic of Scientific Discovery), was published by

Karl Popper was an Austrian-born British philosopher of natural and social science who subscribed to anti-determinist metaphysics, believing that knowledge evolves from experience of the mind. Although his first book, Logik der Forschung (1934; The Logic of Scientific Discovery), was published by

valve: On gasoline engines, poppet valves are used to control the admission and rejection of the intake and exhaust gases to the cylinders. In the Figure (right centre), the valve, which consists of a disk with a tapered edge attached to a shank, is held against the tapered seat…

cricket: Field of play, equipment, and dress: …behind the wicket; and the popping crease is a line parallel with the bowling crease and 4 feet in front of it. The bowling and return creases mark the area within which the bowler’s rear foot must be grounded in delivering the ball; the popping crease, which is 62 feet…

Mary Poppins, fictional character, the heroine of several children’s books by P.L. Travers. Poppins is an efficient, sensible English nanny with magical powers. With humour and good-hearted firmness, she instills in her young charges a sense of wonder, as well as a respect for limits. Her magical

Damasus II was the pope from July 17 to Aug. 9, 1048. His brief reign, delayed by a rival claimant to the papal throne, occurred during a period when the German emperors and factions of the Roman nobility vied for control of the papacy. He was bishop of Brixen when nominated (December 1047) by the

poppy, any of several flowering plants of the poppy family (Papaveraceae), especially species of the genus Papaver. Most poppies are found in the Northern Hemisphere, and several species of poppies are cultivated as garden ornamentals. Poppies have lobed or dissected leaves and milky sap. The buds

Papaveraceae, the poppy family of flowering plants (order Ranunculales), with 44 genera and 825 species. Most of these are herbaceous plants, but the family also includes some woody shrubs and a genus of small tropical trees. The family is outstanding for its many garden ornamentals and

mallow: …ornamental shrub from South America; poppy mallow (Callirhoe involucrata), a hairy perennial, low-growing, with poppy-like reddish flowers; and Indian mallow, also called velvetleaf (Abutilon theophrasti), a weedy plant. Chaparral mallows (Malacothamnus species), a group of shrubs and small trees, are native to California and Baja California. The Carolina mallow (Modiola…

poppy seed, tiny dried seed of the opium poppy, used as food, food flavouring, and the source of poppy-seed oil. Poppy seeds have no narcotic properties, because the fluid contained in the bud that becomes opium is present only before the seeds are fully formed. The plant, Papaver somniferum, is an

Poprad, city, eastern Slovakia. Located in the Poprad River valley between the Vysoké Tatra Mountains, the Nizké Tatry Mountains, and the Levočské Mountains, it is a centre for the valley’s agricultural area, where potatoes, barley, oats, and flax are grown and sheep are reared. Lumbering is an

Popular Party, Spanish conservative political party. The Popular Party (PP) traces its origins to the Popular Alliance, a union of seven conservative political parties formed in the 1970s by Manuel Fraga Iribarne, a prominent cabinet member under Spain’s longtime dictator Francisco Franco. In March

popular art, any dance, literature, music, theatre, or other art form intended to be received and appreciated by ordinary people in a literate, technologically advanced society dominated by urban culture. Popular art in the 20th century is usually dependent on such technologies of reproduction or

Djibouti: Political process: …a single-party system, with the Popular Assembly for Progress (Rassemblement Populaire pour le Progrès; RPP) being the sole legal party. During this time deputies to the National Assembly could be elected only from a list supplied by the RPP; abstention from voting was the only legal form of opposition.

Bulgaria: Attempts to stabilize government: …a reconstituted opposition called the Popular Bloc, a coalition that included the moderate wing of the Agrarian Union, defeated the Democratic Alliance.

Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), one of several organizations associated with the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO); it engaged in acts of terrorism in the 1970s and ’80s and originally maintained a Marxist-Leninist orientation, believing the peasants and the working

José Manuel Barroso: Barroso joined Portugal’s centre-right Social Democratic Party (Partido Social Democrata; PSD) in 1980. When the party’s Aníbal Cavaco Silva was elected prime minister in 1985, he appointed Barroso undersecretary of state for the home affairs ministry. Two years later Barroso moved to secretary of state for the ministry of…

Puerto Rico: Government: …two leading parties are the Popular Democratic Party, which supports the continuation of commonwealth status, and the New Progressive Party, which favours U.S. statehood. Together these two parties have commanded virtually all the vote in elections since the late 20th century. The Puerto Rican Independence Party, which won one-fifth of…

Peru: The short presidencies of Martín Vizcarra (2018–20), Manuel Merino (2020), and Francisco Sagasti (2020–21) and the COVID-19 pandemic: …the blocking actions of the Popular Force party, still led by Keiko Fujimori. Significantly, about one-half of Congress was under investigation for corruption, including Fujimori, who began serving a “preventive” pretrial 18-month term in prison for corruption and money laundering related to the Petrobras scandal. The investigation of that scandal…

popular front, any coalition of working-class and middle-class parties united for the defense of democratic forms against a presumed Fascist assault. In the mid-1930s European Communist concern over the gains of Fascism, combined with a Soviet policy shift, led Communist parties to join with

Latvia: Independence restored: An opposition Latvian Popular Front emerged in 1988 and won the 1990 elections. On May 4 the legislature passed a declaration to renew independence after a transition period. Soviet efforts to restore the earlier situation culminated in violent incidents in Riga in January 1991. After a failed coup…

Oman: Periodic civil unrest: …Arab Gulf (later called the Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman; PFLO) gained control of the growing rebellion by the late 1960s with the aid of the People’s Republic of China, the Soviet Union, Marxist South Yemen (which had achieved independence from the British in late 1967), and Iraq.

Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), organization providing an institutional framework for militant organizations associated with the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), notable for its Marxist-Leninist ideology and its hijacking of a number of aircraft between 1968 and 1974.

Palestine: Fatah and other guerrilla organizations: …Liberation of Palestine (DFLP), the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine–General Command (PFLP–GC, a splinter group from the PFLP), and al-Ṣāʿiqah (backed by Syria). These groups joined forces inside the PLO despite their differences in ideology and tactics (some were dedicated to openly terrorist tactics). In 1969 Yasser Arafat,…

Polisario Front, politico-military organization striving to end Moroccan control of the former Spanish territory of Western Sahara, in northwestern Africa, and win independence for that region. The Polisario Front is composed largely of the indigenous nomadic inhabitants of the Western Sahara

Oman: Periodic civil unrest: …Arab Gulf (later called the Popular Front for the Liberation of Oman; PFLO) gained control of the growing rebellion by the late 1960s with the aid of the People’s Republic of China, the Soviet Union, Marxist South Yemen (which had achieved independence from the British in late 1967), and Iraq.

Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola, Angolan political party. The MPLA, founded in 1956, merged two nationalist organizations and was centred in the country’s capital city of Luanda. From 1962 it was led by Agostinho Neto, who eventually became Angola’s first president. It fought the

Popular Mechanics, American print and online magazine that publishes articles on home improvement, automobile maintenance, and new advancements in technology and science. Founded in 1902 by Henry H. Windsor, Popular Mechanics is one of the oldest magazines in the United States. It has been

Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola, Angolan political party. The MPLA, founded in 1956, merged two nationalist organizations and was centred in the country’s capital city of Luanda. From 1962 it was led by Agostinho Neto, who eventually became Angola’s first president. It fought the

Democratic Republic of the Congo: Political process: The Popular Movement of the Revolution (Mouvement Populaire de la Révolution; MPR) was the sole legal political party from 1970 until 1990. It was presided over by then president Mobutu and had branches at every administrative level throughout the country. The MPR splintered into factions after…

Ukraine: Political process: The centre-right, nationalistic Popular Movement of Ukraine, or Rukh, founded in 1989, was instrumental in the campaign for Ukrainian independence but afterward lost strength. The CPU—re-formed in 1993 after a 1991 ban on the Soviet-era CPU was lifted—retains support, mainly in the industrialized and Russophone reaches of eastern…

popular music, any commercially oriented music principally intended to be received and appreciated by a wide audience, generally in literate, technologically advanced societies dominated by urban culture. Unlike traditional folk music, popular music is written by known individuals, usually

Panama: Transitions to democracy and sovereignty: …of the largest party, the Christian Democrats (Partido Demócrata Cristiano; PDC), led by Vice President Ricardo Arias Calderón. This left the administration without a legislative majority and allowed the remnants of Noriega’s Democratic Revolutionary Party (Partido Revolucionario Democrático; PRD) to regain some political power. As a result, accomplishments were meagre…

Italian Popular Party, former centrist Italian political party whose several factions were united by their Roman Catholicism and anticommunism. They advocated programs ranging from social reform to the defense of free enterprise. The DC usually dominated Italian politics from World War II until the

Popular Party, Spanish conservative political party. The Popular Party (PP) traces its origins to the Popular Alliance, a union of seven conservative political parties formed in the 1970s by Manuel Fraga Iribarne, a prominent cabinet member under Spain’s longtime dictator Francisco Franco. In March

Ivan Evstatiev Geshov: …became the leader of the Popular Party (1901) and in 1911–13 presided over a coalition government that promoted the policy of the Balkan Alliance and waged the war with the Turks in 1912. In 1923 he joined the “Democratic Entente” after the fall of Aleksandŭr Stamboliyski.

Buddhism: New Year’s and harvest festivals: …same interplay between Buddhism and folk tradition is observable elsewhere. At harvest time in Sri Lanka, for example, there is a “first fruits” ceremony that entails offering the Buddha a large bowl of milk and rice. Moreover, an integral part of the harvest celebrations in many Buddhist countries is the…

Popular Republican Movement, former French social reform party whose policies corresponded largely to the European Christian Democratic tradition. Founded on Nov. 26, 1944, shortly after the end of the German occupation of France during World War II, the MRP consistently won some 25 percent of the

APRA, political party founded by Víctor Raúl Haya de la Torre (1924), which dominated Peruvian politics for decades. Largely synonymous with the so-called Aprista movement, it was dedicated to Latin American unity, the nationalization of foreign-owned enterprises, and an end to the exploitation of

history of publishing: Literary and scientific magazines: …whose magazine encouraged other inventors; Popular Science Monthly, which was founded in 1872, to spread scientific knowledge and which had the philosophers William James and John Dewey among its contributors; and the ever-popular National Geographic Magazine, founded in 1888 and published ever since by the National Geographic Society, which used…

Yo La Tengo: Subsequent albums, such as Popular Songs (2009) and Fade (2013), further showcased the band’s stylistic fluency as its members grew into middle age. Schramm briefly returned to the band for the covers collection Stuff Like That There (2015). The contemplative There’s a Riot Going On (2018) was the band’s…

popular sovereignty, in U.S. history, a controversial political doctrine according to which the people of federal territories should decide for themselves whether their territories would enter the Union as free or slave states. Its enemies, especially in New England, called it “squatter

Salvador Allende: …ran as the candidate of Popular Unity, a bloc of Socialists, Communists, Radicals, and some dissident Christian Democrats, leading in a three-sided race with 36.3 percent of the vote. Because he lacked a popular majority, however, his election had to be confirmed by Congress, in which there was strong opposition…

Catalonia: The Catalonian independence movement in the 21st century: The antiausterity Popular Unity Candidacy, which won 10 seats, entered into a coalition with Junts pel Sí to give pro-independence parties a narrow parliamentary majority. Those who favoured independence interpreted the result as a victory, while those who opposed it emphasized the fact that pro-independence parties received…

Juan Guaidó: Opposition to Chávez and Maduro: …2009 he helped establish the Popular Will (Voluntad Popular) party, which pledged to “build a more secure, united and prosperous country where everyone will be entitled to all rights.” In the process, he grew close to the charismatic Leopoldo López, who would become one of the most prominent leaders of…

Optimates and Populares, (Latin: respectively, “Best Ones,” or “Aristocrats”, and “Demagogues,” or “Populists”), two principal patrician political groups during the later Roman Republic from about 133 to 27 bc. The members of both groups belonged to the wealthier classes. The Optimates were the

statistics: Estimation: …a particular study form the population. Because of time, cost, and other considerations, data often cannot be collected from every element of the population. In such cases, a subset of the population, called a sample, is used to provide the data. Data from the sample are then used to develop…

population, in human biology, the whole number of inhabitants occupying an area (such as a country or the world) and continually being modified by increases (births and immigrations) and losses (deaths and emigrations). As with any biological population, the size of a human population is limited by

environmental science: Ehrlich’s The Population Bomb (1968), together with nuclear proliferation and growing concerns over the anthropogenic release of toxins and chemicals, raised awareness about the need to study the effects of human actions on the environment. The burgeoning field of environmental science took on the task of…

evolution: Genetic drift: Such occasional reductions are called population bottlenecks. The populations may later recover their typical size, but the allelic frequencies may have been considerably altered and thereby affect the future evolution of the species. Bottlenecks are more likely in relatively large animals and plants than in smaller ones, because populations of…

census, an enumeration of people, houses, firms, or other important items in a country or region at a particular time. Used alone, the term usually refers to a population census—the type to be described in this article. However, many countries take censuses of housing, manufacturing, and

Population Council, international nonprofit nongovernmental organization (NGO) founded in 1952 to contribute to an equitable and sustainable balance between the needs of the world’s population and available resources. The Population Council is especially active in three areas: HIV/AIDS;

population ecology: Population density and growth: An organism’s life history is the sequence of events related to survival and reproduction that occur from birth through death. Populations from different parts of the geographic range that a species inhabits may exhibit…

angiosperm: Distribution and abundance: …and their almost complete worldwide distribution. The only area without angiosperms is the southern region of the Antarctic continent, although two angiosperm groups are found in the islands off that continent. Angiosperms dominate terrestrial vegetation, particularly in the tropics, although submerged and floating aquatic angiosperms do exist throughout the world.…

population ecology, study of the processes that affect the distribution and abundance of animal and plant populations. A population is a subset of individuals of one species that occupies a particular geographic area and, in sexually reproducing species, interbreeds. The geographic boundaries of a

history of technology: Population explosion: …come to grips with the population problem in the next few decades if life is to be tolerable on planet Earth in the 21st century. The problem can be tackled in two ways, both drawing on the resources of modern technology.

population ecology: Population fluctuation: As stated above, populations rarely grow smoothly up to the carrying capacity and then remain there. Instead, fluctuations in population numbers, abundance, or density from one time step to the next are the norm. Population cycles make up a special type of population…

heredity: Population genetics: Because the processes of variation and selection take place at the population level, the basic theory of the genetics of evolutionary change is contained in the general area known as population genetics.

demography, statistical study of human populations, especially with reference to size and density, distribution, and vital statistics (births, marriages, deaths, etc.). Contemporary demographic concerns include the “population explosion,” the interplay between population and economic development,

population growth, in population ecology, a change in the number of members of a certain plant or animal species in a particular location during a particular time period. Factors affecting population growth include fertility, mortality, and, in animals, migration—i.e., immigration to or emigration

Populations I and II: II, in astronomy, two broad classes of stars and stellar assemblages defined in the early 1950s by the German-born astronomer Walter Baade. The members of these stellar populations differ from each other in various ways, most notably in age, chemical composition, and location within galactic…

Populations I and II: …framework has been extended to Population III stars, hypothetical objects that would have been the very first stars to form in the universe out of the interstellar gas clouds that emerged shortly after the big bang, a state of extremely high temperature and density from which the universe is believed…

population inversion, in physics, the redistribution of atomic energy levels that takes place in a system so that laser or maser action can occur. Normally, a system of atoms is in temperature equilibrium and there are always more atoms in low energy states than in higher ones. Although absorption

statistics: Estimation of a population mean: The most fundamental point and interval estimation process involves the estimation of a population mean. Suppose it is of interest to estimate the population mean, μ, for a quantitative variable. Data collected from a simple random sample can be used…

population: Population momentum: An important and often misunderstood characteristic of human populations is the tendency of a highly fertile population that has been increasing rapidly in size to continue to do so for decades after the onset of even a substantial decline in fertility. This results…

population ecology: Metapopulations: …dynamics and evolution of many populations are determined by both the population’s life history and the patterns of movement of individuals between populations. Regional groups of interconnected populations are called metapopulations. These metapopulations are, in turn, connected to one another over broader geographic ranges. The mapped distribution of the perennial…

statistics: Estimation of other parameters: For qualitative variables, the population proportion is a parameter of interest. A point estimate of the population proportion is given by the sample proportion. With knowledge of the sampling distribution of the sample proportion, an interval estimate of a population proportion is obtained in much the same fashion as…

population pyramid, graphical representation of the age and sex composition of a specific population. The age and sex structure of the population determines the ultimate shape of a population pyramid, such that the representation may take the form of a pyramid, have a columnar shape (with vertical

apartheid: Apartheid legislation: …was made possible through the Population Registration Act of 1950, which classified all South Africans as either Bantu (all Black Africans), Coloured (those of mixed race), or white. A fourth category—Asian (Indian and Pakistani)—was later added. One of the other most significant acts in terms of forming the basis of…

Homo sapiens: Bodily structure: Out of Africa 2 (also called the population replacement hypothesis) picks up where Out of Africa 1 leaves off. It posits that H. sapiens also evolved in Africa, but some members of the species exited the continent, spreading to new lands while also replacing the…

minimum viable population: Estimating MVP: …computer simulation model known as population viability analysis (PVA) was developed to estimate the MVP of a species. The method was later found to be useful for providing more-sophisticated estimates of extinction risk and long-term persistence. PVA can be customized by the researcher to incorporate various data related to a…

Milky Way Galaxy: Stars and stellar populations: The concept of different populations of stars has undergone considerable change over the last several decades. Before the 1940s, astronomers were aware of differences between stars and had largely accounted for most of them in terms of different masses, luminosities, and orbital characteristics…

population ecology: Life histories and the structure of populations: An organism’s life history is the sequence of events related to survival and reproduction that occur from birth through death. Populations from different parts of the geographic range that a species inhabits may exhibit marked variations in their life histories. The patterns…

Populations I and II, in astronomy, two broad classes of stars and stellar assemblages defined in the early 1950s by the German-born astronomer Walter Baade. The members of these stellar populations differ from each other in various ways, most notably in age, chemical composition, and location

Cameroon: Moving toward independence: …Union (Union des Populations Camerounaises; UPC), led by Felix-Roland Moumie and Reuben Um Nyobe, demanded a thorough break with France and the establishment of a socialist economy. French officials suppressed the UPC, leading to a bitter civil war, while encouraging alternative political leaders. On January 1, 1960, independence was granted.…

populism, political program or movement that champions, or claims to champion, the common person, usually by favourable contrast with a real or perceived elite or establishment. Populism usually combines elements of the left and the right, opposing large business and financial interests but also

Narodnik, member of a 19th-century socialist movement in Russia who believed that political propaganda among the peasantry would lead to the awakening of the masses and, through their influence, to the liberalization of the tsarist regime. Because Russia was a predominantly agricultural country,

Populist Movement, in U.S. history, politically oriented coalition of agrarian reformers in the Midwest and South that advocated a wide range of economic and political legislation in the late 19th century. Throughout the 1880s, local political action groups known as Farmers’ Alliances sprang up

George II: …in exile until the conservative Populist Party, with the support of the army, gained control of the Assembly and declared the restoration of the monarchy in October 1935; a plebiscite, which was most probably manipulated by the prime minister, General Geórgios Kondílis, was held in November in an effort to…

Populonia, ancient Roman city that had originally been Etruscan and named Pupluna or Fufluna after the Etruscan wine god, Fufluns. It was situated on the western coast of central Italy on the Monte Massoncello Peninsula—the only large Etruscan city directly on the sea. The reason for the city’s

St. Paul VI: Vatican II and Paul VI’s pontificate: …insistent theme of his celebrated Populorum progressio (“Progress of the Peoples”), March 26, 1967. This encyclical was such a pointed plea for social justice that in some conservative circles the pope was accused of Marxism.

poplar, (genus Populus), genus of some 35 species of trees in the willow family (Salicaceae), native to the Northern Hemisphere. The poplar species native to North America are divided into three loose groups: the cottonwoods, the aspens, and the balsam poplars. The name Populus refers to the fact

poplar: Common species: The white poplar (P. alba)—also known as silver poplar for its leaves, which have white felted undersides, and as maple leaf poplar for the leaves’ lobed margins—is widely spreading or columnar in form, reaching 30 metres (100 feet) in height. The gray poplar (P. ×canescens), a…

balsam poplar, North American poplar (Populus balsamifera), native from Labrador to Alaska and across the extreme northern U.S. Often cultivated as a shade tree, it has buds thickly coated with an aromatic resin that is used to make cough syrups. It grows best in northwestern

poplar: Common species: The gray poplar (P. ×canescens), a close relative of the white poplar, has deltoid (roughly triangular) leaves with woolly grayish undersides. The black poplar, or black cottonwood (P. nigra), has oval fine-toothed leaves, is long-trunked, and grows to a height of 35 metres (115 feet). Columnar…

cottonwood: Eastern cottonwood (P. deltoides), nearly 30 metres (100 feet) tall, has thick glossy leaves. A hybrid between this and Eurasian black poplar (P. nigra) is P. canadensis. Alamo, or Fremont cottonwood (P. fremontii), tallest of the group, is found in southwestern North America. Great Plains…

poplar: Common species: …Fremont, or Alamo, cottonwood (P. fremontii) is the tallest of the cottonwoods and is found throughout southwestern North America.

aspen: The American big-tooth aspen (P. grandidentata), up to 18 metres (59 feet), has larger, somewhat rounded, coarse-toothed leaves. See also cottonwood.

poplar: Common species: The buds of the balm of Gilead poplar (P. ×jackii), which is similar, are used to make an ointment. The western balsam poplar, also called black cottonwood (P. trichocarpa), grows some 60 metres (195 feet) tall and is one of the largest deciduous trees of northwestern North America.

poplar: Common species: The black poplar, or black cottonwood (P. nigra), has oval fine-toothed leaves, is long-trunked, and grows to a height of 35 metres (115 feet). Columnar black poplars are widely used in ornamental landscape plantings, particularly among the villas of Italy and elsewhere in southern Europe. White…

Roman law: Corporations: The populus Romanus, or the “people of Rome,” collectively could acquire property, make contracts, and be appointed heir. Public property included the property of the treasury.

cottonwood: Great Plains cottonwood (P. sargentii), of North America, has thick coarse-toothed leaves. Many species and hybrids have wood with a variety of uses, including for matches and matchboxes. Lombardy poplar (P. nigra) is a columnar form that is much planted. See also aspen.

aspen: The common European aspen (P. tremula) and the American quaking, or trembling, aspen (P. tremuloides) are similar, reaching a height of 27 metres (90 feet). P. tremuloides is distinguished by its leaves, which have more pointed tips, and it grows by root suckers. Individual clones of the…

aspen: tremula) and the American quaking, or trembling, aspen (P. tremuloides) are similar, reaching a height of 27 metres (90 feet). P. tremuloides is distinguished by its leaves, which have more pointed tips, and it grows by root suckers. Individual clones of the plants persist for thousands of years even…

poplar: Common species: The western balsam poplar, also called black cottonwood (P. trichocarpa), grows some 60 metres (195 feet) tall and is one of the largest deciduous trees of northwestern North America.

fellow traveler, originally, a writer in the Soviet Union who was not against the Russian Revolution of 1917 but did not actively support it as a propagandist. The term was used in this sense by Leon Trotsky in Literature and the Revolution (1925) and was not meant to be pejorative. Implicit in the

Dmitri Mendeleev: Other scientific achievements of Dmitri Mendeleev: …khimicheskogo ponimania mirovogo efira (1902; An Attempt Towards a Chemical Conception of the Ether), he explained these phenomena as movements of ether around heavy atoms, and he tried to classify ether as a chemical element above the group of inert gases (or noble gases). This bold (and ultimately discredited) hypothesis…

poker: History of poker: …developed a similar game called poque, first played in French America in 1803, when the Louisiana Purchase made New Orleans and its environs territories of the United States. During the next 20 years, English-speaking settlers in the Louisiana Territory adopted the game, Anglicized its name to poker, and established the…

Molière was a French actor and playwright, the greatest of all writers of French comedy. Although the sacred and secular authorities of 17th-century France often combined against him, the genius of Molière finally emerged to win him acclaim. Comedy had a long history before Molière, who employed