During the Querelle des Bouffons, which movement did Italian intermezzos and opera buffa embody?

• A. Enlightenment ideals challenging social hierarchies
• B. Political absolutism praising monarchs
• C. Baroque ornamentation
• D. Romantic nationalism

Answer: (A)

These forms embody Enlightenment ideals by presenting humor and everyday figures in ways that question rigid social ranks and celebrate reason, wit, and natural emotion. In the Querelle des Bouffons, supporters of Italian intermezzos and opera buffa argued that comic, relatable scenes—peasant and servant characters, ordinary situations, straightforward language, and musical clarity—offered a more “natural” and rational alternative to the elaborate, aristocratic French opera that affirmed hierarchy. By demystifying courtly affectations and showing merit, cleverness, and virtue in common people, opera buffa promoted a critique of inherited privilege and conventional social order, aligning with Enlightenment values of equality and reason. The other options point to movements or ideas that don’t fit this context: absolutism centers on monarchic power, Baroque ornamentation emphasizes decoration, and Romantic nationalism arises later with a focus on emotion and national identity.