ipl-logo

Alexander Dumas Essay

350 Words2 Pages

Alexander Dumas’ 1844 adventure novel confronts themes of revolution in Bonapartist France- as the royalists emerge, so does a new wave of entangled youth, including Edmond Dantes, at only nineteen years of age, when he is imprisoned for treason. Dantes, at this exposition to the plot, is a hopeful ingénue, and, despite wrongful captivity, a resilient personage. As the book actualizes, Dantes is portrayed as a young man just beginning his life. As he himself says when attempting to prove his innocence to Monsieur Villefort, the chief Magistrate, “I’m only nineteen, as I’ve already told you, and I know very little,” (25). This plea shows not only his self-awareness, but also very much his naïveté. In conjunction, other characters acknowledge

Show More
Related

  • The Return Of Martin Guerre By Zemon Davis

    709 Words  | 3 Pages

    “The Return of Martin Guerre” is a reform of the renowned case of Martin Guerre’s journey back to Artigat, a small town located in Southern France, after his absence of approximately eight years. Though, the so-called “Martin” is really a fraud by the name of Arnaud du Tilh. His family, friends, and wife accept him for more than three years, and during that time his wife, Bertrande, becomes pregnant twice. However, after “Martin Guerre” has a quarrel over family finances and family land sales, his father in law and uncle accuse him of being an imposter. During one trial in the regional city of Rieux, Witnesses who attend are able to describe Arnaud de Tilh, including his own uncle.

    Read More

  • The Return Of Martin Guerre By Natalie Zemon Davis

    921 Words  | 4 Pages

    Finlay’s view is that the account of the story told by Davis is a fabrication and at odds with the firsthand accounts, primarily those of Jean de Coras. One of Finlay’s main criticisms is that Davis projects modern thinking on to peasants of 16th century France. For example, Bertrande is not simply a wife duped by an impostor, but instead, a conniving accomplice who desires a loving husband and personal autonomy. For Jean de Coras, Bertrande was depicted as a simple peasant wife, who was easily persuaded by her sisters to accept the imposter as her absent husband. Finlay states that this interpretation of the historical accounts, one that disregards motivations and character traits purported in the sources, is bad historical research and teeters more on the side of historical fiction than a work of history

    Read More

  • Dialectical Journal For The Catcher In The Rye

    147 Words  | 1 Pages

    He has a kind heart and good intentions, but he cannot convey his message properly. Speaks to me: I think the issue of not being able to express thoughts in a proper way is a problem much larger than presented in this book. Many people, including myself, feel a certain way about a subject or individual, but we cannot express how we feel in a manner that properly reflects our feelings. Specifically, many people

    Read More

  • Reign Of Terror Logos

    496 Words  | 2 Pages

    The reader is about to encounter life-saving and brave individuals during a shocking period of history. The structure of a 1907 novel that describes Englishmen rescuing members of the French aristocracy during the Reign of Terror after the French Revolution can be examined. For example, the author uses diction and a strong choice of words to appeal to the reader’s feelings and emotions. Moreover, the author also uses pathos, ethos, and logos and supporting quotes to enhance the story. The author’s diction and use of pathos, ethos, and logos help to form a theme that pertains to the bravery of the characters in the story.

    Read More

  • The F Word Firoozeh Dumas Analysis

    1362 Words  | 6 Pages

    The essay “The F Word” was written by Firoozeh Dumas who was a young Iranian girl when she and her family moved to America. She has written this essay due to justify the way American people see foreigners. She expresses in depth the troubles she went through when she was a child growing up with an Iranian name. She explains the thoughts that the other kids had and she gives examples of how these kids made fun of her other Iranian friends and siblings. Her reason for writing this essay was to bring attention to what growing up as foreigner with a different type of name is like in America.

    Read More

  • The Return Of Martin Guerre Summary

    425 Words  | 2 Pages

    In Natalie Z. Davis' reconstruction of the famous case of identity theft in sixteenth-century France, following the eight-year absence Martin Guerre, for three years, Arnaud is accepted by family and friends as the authentic Martin Guerre, that is, until his dispute with his uncle and father in law Pierre Guerre over the family inheritance, essentially questioning their Basque customs. Consequently, Pierre Guerre accuses Arnaud of being an impostor, ultimately leading to a second trial in which the court condemns Arnaud to death upon the arrival of the real Martin Guerre. Concluding the case, the court declared Bertrande (Martin’s wife) and the Guerre family victims in the trial. Yet, unlike the participants of the case, Davis does not conform to the idea of Bertrande as a mere victim in the case, but rather, an accomplice motivated by love, social standing, and religion. In framing her book on The Return of Martin Guerre, Davis not only provides a chronological account of events, but also a psychological analysis and interpretation of this isolated case as a representation of the lives of the French peasantry.

    Read More

  • Symbolism In Count Of Monte Cristo

    1303 Words  | 6 Pages

    •Edmond Dantès: Protagonist. Edmond’s unequivocal happiness is cut short when his enemies, who are blinded by their jealousy and self-bitterness, plot against him. Edmond’s gullibility and willingness to incoherently trust everyone around him precipitates his downfall. His destruction of character and desire for vengeance leads him to overstep moral boundaries. With the transformation of Edmond into the Count of Monte Cristo, he experiences a metaphorical death, the death of his virtuous self.

    Read More

  • The Return Of Martin Guerre By Natalie Zemon Davis

    1099 Words  | 5 Pages

    The Return of Martin Guerre by Natalie Zemon Davis is a sixteenth century novel soap opera about a popular trial of Martin Guerre’s reappearance to Artigat after abandoning his wife and family for eight or more years. But the Martin that appearance is a poser by the name of Arnaude du Tilh, who is looking to cash in on someone else’s wealth until the real Martin Guerre comes back to Artigat. In this critique of Natalie Zemon Davis’, The Return of Martin Guerre, I will analyze her reason for writing the novel, her use of data, and her diction. Natalie’s reason for writing this novel was to present the lives of peasants in France during the sixteenth century to the twentieth century, for she wanted to give the readers a visual of their glories

    Read More

  • Where Are You Going Where Have You Been Summary

    552 Words  | 3 Pages

    (9) Now, his intentions are abundantly apparent, and it is evident that he is not the slightly-older teenage boy that he claimed to have

    Read More

  • The Return Of Martin Guerre Analysis

    1849 Words  | 8 Pages

    The Return of Martin Guerre by Natalie Zemon Davis provides a unique look into the lives of commoners in sixteenth century France. The book follows the story of the disappearance, supposed reappearance and the court cases of Martin Guerre. Davis seeks to present why these events occurred by first placing them in historical context. Typically, peasants are depicted as not having much control over their lives, but Davis attempts to show that that is not necessarily true. Over the course of this book, she analyzes the role that emotions played in peasants’ decisions, and ultimately how those emotions shaped events.

    Read More

  • The Confessions Of Jean-Jacques Rousseau Analysis

    1355 Words  | 6 Pages

    The autobiography, The Confessions of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, provides a vivid insight into the complicated, yet exhilarating, life of Rousseau. The beginning of his life was filled with misfortunes, such as the death of his mother which was quickly followed by a distraught and self-sabotaging attitude which his father adopted. This led to his father’s involvement in illegal behaviors and the subsequent abandonment of Rousseau. His mother’s death was the catalyst for his journey to meet multiple women who would later affect his life greatly. The Influence of Miss Lamberciers, Madame Basile, Countess de Vercellis, and Madam de Warens on the impressionable adolescent mind of Rousseau led to the positive cultivation of self-discovery and the creation of new experiences, as well as the development of inappropriate sexual desires and attachments towards women.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Rousseau's Essay 'Confession'

    1365 Words  | 6 Pages

    [hook] During the eighteenth century, after the revolution, a famous author, Rousseau, wrote an essay “Confession”, where he explored himself, even the most embarrassing moments he experienced, by telling readers how he behaved and exposing how he felt in that way. As he said readers should not feel shame of or blame him of what he did. Even we should encourage and send applause to him because his confession is not only about how he acted in the society but also what it did to him. Instead of judging him, the more valuable thing is to understand what motivated his action. Here is an interesting story in his life that he stole the ribbon and framed Marion.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Diderot By Vivienne Mylne

    2790 Words  | 12 Pages

    It also requires the ability and willingness to collaborate with the storyteller and tolerated his capriciousness. Even I Diderot, as written by Robert Alter (1975, p. 82), does not publish a fatalist Jacques knowing that his work deserves an audience that will appreciate it more than it did his contemporaries and leaves it for

    Read More

  • The Diary Of A Madman Character Analysis

    861 Words  | 4 Pages

    It can be quite easy to make assumptions about one’s character upon first glance or first encounter, but often these first assumptions are not a direct representation of a person’s true disposition. In the short story, “The Diary of a Madman” by Guy de Maupassant, an esteemed magistrate is being remembered for the model citizen he was, having lived a life that no one could subject to criticism. However, a notary uncovered his diary in a drawer in his home, in which he entailed his tendencies and cravings for murder that no one had expected of him. Within this text, the author uses the character of the magistrate to convey the theme that one’s true character cannot be decided from external appearance or actions. From the beginning of the text, it is made evident that this man was revered as the most well-respected judge in all of France.

    Read More

  • Les Miserables Historical Analysis

    3327 Words  | 14 Pages

    This essay will examine the historical accuracy of the film Les Miserables in terms of the social, economic and political conditions in French society post French Revolution. The film Les Miserables depicts an extremely interesting time in French history (from about 1815-1832.) Even though the story line does not depict every detail and event that occurred during the time period as well as the fact that some aspects are dramatized for entertainment purposes, the film effectively spans thirty years of economic, political and social aspects of French Society. However it also manages to bring in references to the past, the French Revolution (1789-1799) and the impact it had on the society portrayed in the film.

    Read More

More about Alexander Dumas Essay

Open Document