#general Dumas

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Hey, Citizens! The next review subject will be this book!

Yes, I keep looking for a good story featuring a POC protagonist, because these people absolutely deserve the spotlight. Let’s hope this book will not disappoint and that the two prominent black men of Frev mentioned in the synopsis will get a much needed good story told about them!

This review will be dedicated to @lanterne , @revolutionarywig , @saint-jussy , @michel-feuilly and @theorahsart .

[sexyman-de-lempire-tournament]

[historicalstories]

man, we haven’t drawn this iconic general for ages (and we forgot his beard & moustaches)

[labrador44]

Alexandre and his dog (reupload)

[villafinale]

Thomas Alexandre Dumas: The First Black French General - by Doug Daye

Did you know that the famous books, The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers were based on a Black man? Writer Alexandre Dumas’ novels were inspired by the life of his father Thomas-Alexandre Dumas who was the highest-ranking Black leader in the French military and served under Napoleon Bonaparte. Villa Finale’s copy of The Count of Monte Cristo in the museum’s library. Dumas was born…

[fledermavs]

if someone had told me thomas-alexandre dumas was in AC unity I would've bought it like 6 years ago

[susansontag]

you’d have to be so silly to think dumas wasn’t trying to imply eugenie is a lesbian in the count of monte cristo lol. she’s only just properly been introduced where I’m at and she’s basically described in accordance with invert theory. this is how people understood these ‘tendencies’ I’m p sure his audience would have known exactly what he was implying

[microcosme11]

"I think I am superior to him"

General Mathieu Dumas' visit to General Moreau

Memoirs Of His Own Time By Mathieu Dumas V2: Including The Revolution, The Empire, And The Restoration, 1839

archive.org

[sleepynegress]

Can you explain more what you mean about Ridley Scott having old man gaze? I'm really curious lol

Back in the day... Ridley's day too, -Most mainstream big movies had that dynamic. Some leading white guy who was older than his love interest. This was that white male director's gaze. So it was standard. We didn't see it as fanfiction back then... But once it clicks into place.... The guy was a good 10 - 20 years older than his female love interest. Ridley Scott is 86 years old. 86. He is still directing the same kinds of movies with the same gaze as he did in the 80's. It's not about historical accuracy. It's about defending that gaze and that "tradition".

It's in the same realm of debate as "when will real cinema come back", a subject that is always brought up by or centered around old white male auteurs.

They act like it's about being tired of one subject dominating genre (IP and especially comic book films) but really, it's more about the increased inclusion, in both the players and the gaze steering the proceedings and audiences enjoying it. So, when Ridley is cussing about his disregard of accuracy, he's really being defensive of his gaze being so much less taken at face value, without basic interrogatives about it, these days. He's an old man yelling at a cloud. And having what used to be baseline normalcy in American film; instead inspiring knowing chuckles and eye-rolls, because of course, you cast the boring old standard of a too-old J. Phoenix and too-young V. Kirby, even when the reality (Jo was actually six years older than Napoleon) would have made that dynamic in your movie much more interesting... But upholding old cliches as "real cinema' regardless of the actual quality/watchability of the film matters more to him.

[usergreenpixel]

JACOBIN FICTION CONVENTION MEETING 39: ONE FOR ALL (2007)

1. The Introduction

Hello, Citizens! I’m back at it again, reviewing Frev media! Hope you’re happy to see me again in action!

Anyway, today we have an obscure book. A book I found by accident while looking for any media featuring people of color during Frev — which is an overlooked angle in my opinion.

I found this book on Goodreads and, unfortunately, it can only be purchased through Amazon so far… so I had to make an order and wait for the shipping to arrive. Let’s see if the money and the waiting were worth it though!

This review is dedicated to @saint-jussy , @revolutionarywig , @michel-feuilly , @theorahsart and @lanterne .

2. The Summary

I had to “borrow” the summary from the Amazon page, because it includes some… INTERESTING details:

"In the bloody chaos of the French Revolution an exceptional man comes of age: Alexandre -romantic, intelligent, immensely strong, son of a slave-owning Count and his Haitian first wife.

He accidentally discovers the guilty secret of his new stepmother and her vicious brother. They conspire to destroy him. Cast out by his father, Alexandre is befriended by Chevalier de Saint-George - France's greatest swordsman, Marie-Antoinette’s lover - and falls in love with hot-tempered Marie Labouret.

When Saint-George is wounded helping the Royal Family escape, Alexandre leads the Free American Legion - 1,000 Black lancers - in a brave defence of the Republic against the invading Royalist armies. In ONE FOR ALL the most extraordinary people and amazing events are actual historical fact. Alexandre's son, world-renowned author Alexandre Dumas, found inspiration in the adventures of his father and his father's friend - the Black originals of the much loved characters Porthos and D'Artagnan in THE THREE MUSKETEERS."

I already see a few questionable choices done by the author, but let’s not judge the book too harshly just yet and proceed with the review! I do, personally, love a good swashbuckling story, so it might be a good piece of fiction despite the inaccuracies.

Just put a pin on the “inspired by true events” tidbit included on the cover. You’re going to need to remember this.

3. The Story

I do think that the book has a good prologue, showing Alexandre’s carefree childhood with his parents, where he is a typical child who pulls pranks and doesn’t want to adhere to rules yet. It does a good job of setting up the backstory of the character.

The story proper, I feel, is also doing a good job introducing the characters, especially the stepmother and the step uncle (more on them later). The pacing is also quite good, for the most part, although I really wasn’t that able to turn off my brain and ignore the numerous historical liberties taken by the authors.

Perhaps it would have been better to just make a book about fictional characters instead of the historical ones, but hey. We have what we have.

Also, I didn’t like the fact that the main two villains of the story sometimes lack motivation to do all the shit they pull in the book. As if they are Disney villains whose only trait is “evil”.

For example, the stepmother wants Alexandre cast out so his father doesn’t have him as heir. Pretty standard plotting for an “evil stepmother” type of character, but I occasionally got the feeling that she was only doing it for the evils, even when Alexandre’s father dies and she still attempts to murder her stepson, even though now she has the inheritance she wanted and technically doesn’t need to bother herself with Alexandre’s existence anymore.

But I guess villains just can’t chill out, can they?

Mostly, however, the adventures were quite interesting to follow and I did finish the book in one sitting.

4. The Characters

I do like Alexandre, although at times he seems a bit too idealized in the book. He is kind, brave and chivalrous, just trying to achieve justice and take back the inheritance that is rightfully his.

His stepmother, referred to as “the Countess” in the book, is a standard issue evil stepmother, similar to Madame de Villefort from “The Count of Monte Cristo”. Honestly, the authors do a pretty good job of portraying a vile aristo snake that you just want to see destroyed.

Her brother, de Malpas, is just as evil, and is even incestuous with his sister. As if those two weren’t gross enough. He also murders people left and right for fun, so there’s that.

Chevalier de Saint-George is a character I also liked. He is kind of like a mentor and a brother to Alexandre, and they have a sweet friendship going on!

Marie Labouret is an independent and fierce young woman, but she didn’t seem too modern for the most part.

I couldn’t care less for Alexandre’s father, though. Or rather sperm donor. When the Countess accused her stepson of unspeakable things, this ass immediately through Alexandre out and didn’t even bother to investigate the issue even AFTER the fact. Father of the Year, everybody!!!

5. The Setting

As I mentioned, there are inaccuracies and creative liberties. MANY OF THOSE. That being said, I was pleasantly surprised that the setting wasn’t too bad when it comes to portraying Frev.

There are mentions of mobs killing nobles, as usual, but it’s only mentioned by one character and so we don’t know if it’s true or not.

Also, both Alexandre and Saint-George are still republicans, despite the latter having romantic feelings for the Queen. So the authors at the very least are SOMEWHAT familiar with nuance.

6. The Writing

Sometimes the descriptions are lacking and sometimes the linguistic choices felt a bit too modern to me, but otherwise the writing was quite fine.

7. The Conclusion

All in all, this book is a hit in some ways and a miss in others. I don’t know why the authors twisted history so much when they could have made up their own characters, but the book was still a pretty enjoyable adventure and an interesting experiment.

Read at your own discretion, if you want, but I wouldn’t say I highly recommend it to everyone.

On this note, I declare the Jacobin Fiction Convention closed for now. Stay tuned for future updates!

Love,

Citizen Green Pixel

[glasscandywitch]

gankutsuou + incest as the meaning of the gothic novel - ruth perry

[melit0n]

I got really lucky at a charity shop today and I wanted to show!! I got a first edition French copy of La Dame Aux Perles by Alexandre Dumas (same guy who wrote the OG The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo!) and an 1951 copy of Jane Austen's Emma!

I love Alexandre Dumas' works to death, especially The Count of Monte Cristo and La Dame Aux Camelias, so I was really surprised to find such an old edition, let alone in French, for only five quid. Let alone the old copy of Emma.

Are they musty? Yes. Is the cover coming off the spine? Yes. But is it cool to think I'm holding a book that has passed by hundreds of hands, sat on hundreds of bookshelves, and has survived two world wars?? Big yes!!

[jawbonejoe]

Just finished Tom Reiss’s The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo

Good book, well written and highly well researched biography of a fascinating figure from French Revolutionary history. General Alex Dumas, the half Haitian father of novelist Alexandre Dumas, was quite possibly one of the greatest military leaders France has ever produced. His heroism and devotion to the cause of liberty in an age of such turmoil in France makes for a wonderful read.

There are points where I would have liked to see more of the man. Reiss does an exemplary job of contextualizing Dumas’s story, and the intricacies of Revolutionary France and the beginning of the Napoleonic Age are engaging at every turn. But there is something missing of the portrait: anecdotes, descriptions, contemporary reports to show the general’s voice would not go unappreciated

Quite possibly I feel this way because this book stands next to Houdini!!! by Kenneth Silverman. The voice of a French general who died in the shadow of the Napoleonic empire and that of one of the most famous and loudmouthed performers of the 19th century would, indeed, be hard to equal from research and gumption alone.

I know much more about a fascinating man and period than I did before, and I can easily say that my opinion of the surrounding times is this: Napoleon’s a little fucking bitch and a tool

[littlefankingdom]

I was recovering from Paris under the occupation and back in 1792, when suddenly, Assassin's Creed Unity hits me with a new whiplash

[josefavomjaaga]

Mathieu Dumas gets scolded

@snowv88 wrote

I've never heard of that story with Berthier, Dumas and Eugene, would love to hear it 😆 

Well, it’s actually not much of a story but more of an image that seems to be taken right out of some slapstick comedy. Plus, I’m sure I had already translated this bit before but I seem unable to find it again. So here’s a fresh translation (thank you, Deepl!):

From the Souvenirs du lieutenant-général Mathieu Dumas, Tome 3:

For context: this takes place in 1809, after the battle of Wagram and the armistice of Znaim. Dumas is charged with monitoring the execution of the armistice with the Austrians.

[…] Despite the line of demarcation being very clearly drawn in the convention, I often had, in concert with my colleague the Austrian commissioner, to rectify some small infringements in the position of the outposts. The most remarkable was the one which Prince Joseph Poniatowsky allowed himself on the frontier of Gallicia: informed that an Austrian column of a few militia battalions, having with them four pieces of cannon, was withdrawing into Hungary, where the whole Austrian army had rallied, he crossed the line of demarcation with a strong detachment, cut off this column, took an advantageous position on Austrian territory, and pretended to keep it, as well as the prisoners and artillery he had captured. I submitted to the major general the very well-founded complaints of the Austrian commissioner, and asked him for his orders before writing to Prince Poniatowsky. The major general answered me that this affair did not concern him, and that the execution of the treaty of armistice was entrusted to me under my responsibility.

Berthier: Oh, no, no. Leave me out of this. You know perfectly well how this will turn out. Go get through this one yourself.

I did not hesitate to give Prince Poniatowsky the order to comply with the treaty, to return the prisoners and the artillery, and to bring his troops within the line of demarcation. The emperor, directly informed by the prince of his incursion and of the advantages which could result from it in the event of the resumption of hostilities, did not approve my decision. He sent for me to give him an account of it in the presence of the prince major general and the viceroy of Italy; he strongly reproached me, as well as the major general, for wanting to protect the interests of the enemy and for courting them at his expense.

"What do you think you are doing, gentlemen, deciding on your own authority on matters of such importance? It is you who command the army, and I am here il ré di cope? Let us see, General Dumas, your register of correspondence."

[The Italian expression is unknown to me.]

I handed it to him, pointing out my last letter to Prince Poniatowsky; he went through it, displayed great irritation, and threw the register on the floor. As I was answering the questions he addressed to me on various points in dispute relating to the execution of the armistice, and more particularly on the place of Zara, in Dalmatia, which he demanded to be handed over immediately, Prince Eugène, who was walking with him, turned around and gestured to me not to answer; but this was impossible. Berthier kept the most obstinate silence.

This is the scene I just love to imagine: Napoleon, giving his sermon while stomping through the room, Eugène always at his heels and signaling in exasperation behind Napoleon’s back to Dumas to shut the F up, man, while Berthier pointedly stares at a corner of the room, zoomed out.

"You believe yourselves to be very important men, messieurs chiefs of staff! I have made you into too great lords, and you caress those of the Austrian court. If an Austrian general officer had taken it upon himself to give such orders, he would have been sent to a fortress. The chiefs of staff must only be instruments; I have only to bring in young Marboeuf, an ordinance officer, who is there in the salon de service, and I will make him my major general."

Which, I guess, shows how much respect Napoleon had for Berthier and his co-workers. Not. He basically states that every dimwit could do Berthiers job. (We’ll see about that during the Hundred Days, Your Imperial Snobbiness...)

After having thus indulged us, he dismissed us, and there was no more talk of this affair. [...] Although I feared that I had displeased him by doing my duty, I was nonetheless very well treated: the emperor named me grand officer of the Legion of Honour, and granted me an endowment of thirteen thousand francs from the property of convents suppressed in the duchy of Parma [...].

But as is the case so often, Napoleon is all bark, no bite 😊.

[lemuseum]