Les Trois Mousquetaires by Alexandre Dumas

Dumas adopts the contrary principle, namely, that the political is personal: a siege may be lifted, a war started, because an English Duke loves a French Queen. Sir Walter Scott showed us that the personal is political, that our most particular, most intimate decisions are governed by the political milieu in which we are raised and the allegiances that our background requires. It occupies a full sixty pages, 10% of the book, and, although it covers much ground-the introduction of our hero, the two principal villains, and all three Musketeers with their eccentricities and distinct characters, plus the fight with the Cardinal's Guards, the emergence of D'Artagnan as the 'fourth musketeer,' and an examination of the curious relationship between King and Cardinal-it is constructed with such seamless grace, accomplishes its purposes with such a light touch, and moves so swiftly that the result is astonishing. More notable than these, however, is the entire exposition, something many novelists have found to be a thankless chore, if not a stumbling block. Many of its sequences-the Diamond Studs, Milady's seduction of Felton, the attempt of D'Artagnan and The Three to rescue Constance-move with remarkable rapidity.

This is not the most profound of novels, but it may be the most compelling.

He became one of the leading authors of the French Romantic Movement, in Paris. At age 14 Thomas-Alexandre was taken by his father to France, where he was educated in a military academy and entered the military for what became an illustrious career.ĭumas's father's aristocratic rank helped young Alexandre Dumas acquire work with Louis-Philippe, Duke of Orléans, then as a writer, finding early success. His father, General Thomas-Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, was born in the French colony of Saint-Domingue (present-day Haiti) to Alexandre Antoine Davy de la Pailleterie, a French nobleman, and Marie-Cessette Dumas, a black slave. Dumas also wrote plays and magazine articles, and was a prolific correspondent.ĭumas was of Haitian descent and mixed-race. Many of his novels, including The Count of Monte Cristo, The Three Musketeers, The Man in the Iron Mask, and The Vicomte de Bragelonne were serialized. For the son, see Alexandre Dumas fils.Īlexandre Dumas, père (French for 'father', akin to Senior in English), born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, was a French writer, best known for his numerous historical novels of high adventure which have made him one of the most widely read French authors in the world.

This note regards Alexandre Dumas, père, the father of Alexandre Dumas, fils (son).

Les Trois Mousquetaires by Alexandre Dumas