#thomas alexandre dumas

[9thermidorian]

My skill to draw digitally with fingers have faded away so take this

[apinchofm]

Bayek from Assassin's Creed plays Thomas Alexandre Dumas in Napoleon and my worlds collide (games and classical black figures)

[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

[kemetic-dreams]

Thomas-Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie known as Thomas-Alexandre Dumas; 25 March 1762 – 26 February 1806) was a French general, from the French colony of Saint-Domingue, in Revolutionary France.

Along with his French contemporary Joseph Serrant and other notable brothers in arms in the French Army Toussaint Louverture from Saint-Domingue, Abram Petrovich Gannibal from Imperial Russia and Władysław Franciszek Jabłonowski from Poland, Thomas-Alexandre Dumas is notable as a man of African descent (in Dumas's case, through his mother) leading European troops as a general officer. All four commanded as officers in the French Army and apart from Gannibal, who was only captain and engineer-sapper in the Army of Louis XV during his formative years, they all gained their general ranks in the French Army, about four decades after Gannibal had done the same in Russia. Yet Dumas was the first person of color in the French military to become brigadier general, divisional general, and general-in-chief of a French army.

Born in Saint-Domingue, Thomas-Alexandre was the son of Marquis Alexandre Antoine Davy de la Pailleterie, a French nobleman, and of Marie-Cessette Dumas, an enslaved woman of African descent. He was born into slavery because of his mother's status, but his father took him to France in 1776 and had him educated. Slavery had been illegal in metropolitan France since 1315 and thus any slave would be freed de facto by being in France.  His father helped him enter the French military.

Dumas played a large role in the French Revolutionary Wars. Having entered the military in 1786 at age 24 as a private, by age 31 he commanded 53,000 troops as the General-in-Chief of the French Army of the Alps. Dumas's victory in opening the high Alpine passes in 1794 enabled the French to initiate their Second Italian Campaign against the Austrian Empire. During the battles in Italy, Austrian troops nicknamed Dumas the Schwarzer Teufel ("African Devil", Diable Noir in French) in 1797. The French—notably Napoleon—nicknamed him "the Horatius Cocles of the Tyrol" (after a hero who had saved ancient Rome) for defeating a squadron of enemy troops at a bridge over the Eisack River in Clausen (today Klausen, or Chiusa, Italy) in March 1797.

Dumas participated in the French attempt to conquer Egypt and the Levant during the Expédition d’Égypte of 1798-1801 when he was a commander of the French cavalry forces. On the march from Alexandria to Cairo, he clashed verbally with the Expedition's supreme commander Napoleon Bonaparte, under whom he had served in the Italian campaigns. In March 1799, Dumas left Egypt on an unsound vessel, which was forced to run aground in the southern Italian Kingdom of Naples, where he was taken prisoner and thrown into a dungeon. He languished there until the spring of 1801.

Returning to France after his release, he and his wife had a son, Alexandre Dumas (1802-1870), who would become one of France's most widely-read authors. The son's most famous literary characters were inspired by his father

[historicalstories]

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

[labrador44]

Alexandre and his dog (reupload)

[thebusylilbee]

if the black count become miniseries about life of thomas alexndre dumas

I think you didn't finish your ask anon ? but damn I didn't know about this book I'm adding it to my reading list. it would be extremely cool if it became a (well made) miniseries yeah !

[fledermavs]

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

[enigma-the-mysterious]

Love love love these!

random BBC Musketeers things that I think about a lot:

the Three Inseparables know Constance before they know d'Artagnan. She and Athos know each other as of 1x01 (and by extension, it's more likely than not she knows the other two), she knows where to find them, they know where she lives, she cares about Athos enough to risk her life to save him. She's never just a girlfriend of one of them, she's their friend, has been their friend before she and d'Artagnan got together, before he even came to Paris

Porthos being clearly inspired by Thomas-Alexandre Dumas, from his parents being an enslaved Black woman called Marie-Cessette and a white nobleman to eventually becoming general of the French army

Aramis being raised in a brothel immediately explains a lot about him, from using sex as means to an end - seducing Marguerite to stay close to his son, finding a patroness for money (which Porthos also does, encouraged by Aramis, but ends up actually falling in love with Alice), because, despite being the "romantic hero type", he wasn't raised with the idea that sex has to happen only for love or attraction, he always saw it as something that could be means of survival, to being always gallant and courteous with women because he grew up among - was raised by! - the women who were looked down upon by the society and clearly had seen them mistreated by many men, and wouldn't want to be like those men

Aramis seems like the show's stand-in for Buckingham until he becomes the stand-in for Mazarin

between the Duchesse de Chevreuse and Sylvie Bodaire, it seems like Athos is bound to get together with a political activist who has had some sort of fling with Aramis. I imagine the child Sylvie's pregnant with by the end of s3 is a boy and they name him Raoul. (And because this is a happier universe, this Raoul doesn't get himself killed on purpose)

[ub-sessed]

I went to see an opera version of Hamlet tonight and Hamlet fucking LIVES. WHAT THE FUCK?? HE GETS CROWNED and then the curtain falls. WHAT THE FUCK?

Triumphant music was playing and the 2500 people in the audience were clapping and my daughter and I were just clutching each other and asking "What the fuck just happened? What the fuck just happened? What the FUCK just happened?"

I am never going to get over this.

[blahahala]

A letter to Napoleon from General Alex Dumas

(from The Black Count by Tom Reiss)

[roehenstart]

Painting of general-in-chief Thomas-Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie (1762-1806). By Olivier Pichat.

Alexandre was a French general known as "The Black Devil". He was the father of Alexandre Dumas - who was inspired by the character of the Count of Monte Cristo - and grandfather of Alexandre Dumas (son).

[enigma-the-mysterious]

Actually if Grimaud exists he should team up with Milady and stab Athos.

Oh honey, just wait till season 3

Thoughts on episode 3 s1:

Another great episode !! Thoughts below:

Alexandre Dumas's dad had a TERRIBLE life and was born into slavery since his mother was a slave and his asshole of a sperm donor was her esclavagist. It's a nice attention to detail to see that Porthos' story mirrors that, since he was inspired by the dad.

The gang helps kill an esclavagist!!! Go gang 🔪

I don't know what's going on with Athos' little brother but it's proof book!Athos is so downright evil that we must make excuses for the modern Athos.

While i'm waiting to learn about the whole story, i'm still rooting for Milady. Stab him girl 🔪

D'ARTAGNAN STILL LACKS A MUSTACHE

I still need the lackeys. I love em and Athos saying he hates having servants (in French at least) would clash nicely with the fact that in the book he forbids his poor lackey Grimaud to even speak.

Actually if Grimaud exists he should team up with Milady and stab Athos.

I don't know how it's said in English but in French Porthos says that Aramis has "des doigts de fée" (the fingers of a fairy ----> very delicate and nimble fingers). Gay much ?????

Fellas, is it gay to rescue your brother in arm from his ex that's trying to burn him alive ?

[9thermidorian]

No drawings today so take this

[jackgoodfellow]

[avicebro]

some animal crossing servant requests from twitter!