What career did Stendhal hope to pursue when he first arrived in Paris?

When Stendhal (born Henri Beyle) first arrived in Paris in 1799, his secret ambition was to become a successful playwright.1

While he ostensibly traveled to the city to prepare for the entrance examination to the École Polytechnique, his true motivation was to escape his life in Grenoble and paternal rule. Later, during a return to Paris in 1802, he further pursued this literary interest by enrolling in drama classes and dreaming of becoming a modern Molière.1