ALEXANDRE DUMAS
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ALEXANDRE DUMAS
“Life is a storm, my young friend. You will bask in the sunlight one moment, be shattered on the rocks the next. What makes you a man is what you do when that storm comes.” from
The Count of Monte Cristo
A L E XA N D R E D U M A S WA S B O R N I N 1 8 0 2 I N T H E V I L L A G E O F V I L L E R S - C O T T E R Ê T S,
F I F T Y M I L E S N O RT H E A S T O F PA R I S.
DUMAS’ BIRTHPLACE, THEN & NOW
PHOTOS OF OF VILLERS -COTTERÊTS
PARENTS OF ALEXANDRE DUMAS
Thomas-Alexandre Dumas Marie-Louise Élisabeth Labouret
THOMAS-ALEXANDRE DUMAS
• father of Alexandre Dumas
• born in Saint-Domingue (which is now Haiti)
• son of a French nobleman and a mixed-race slave.
TIES TO NAPOLEON
Thomas-Alexandre had been a
general under Napoleon, though in 1799 the two
men had a falling out and never reconciled.
DUMAS LEGENDS
Thomas-Alexandre Dumas’ courage and strength became legendary and by 1793 he was a general at 31. Following a successful campaign with Napoleon in Egypt, Dumas
seemed set for a brilliant future, but because of his involvement in a republican plot, he was sent to France, captured during the journey and imprisoned. Freed after 20 months, he was lame, deaf in one ear,
partly paralyzed and penniless.
Freed after 20 months, he was lame, deaf in one ear, partly paralyzed and penniless. At
the age of 35 he retired to Villers-Cotterêts, a quiet village near Paris where he had
married Marie-Louise Elizabeth Labouret in 1792. Alexandre was born on 24 July 1802.
Marie-Louise’s husband died of stomach cancer in 1806, when Alexandre was only 4, leaving her to raise him by
herself. The family was poor and she was unable to provide
her son with a good education, but she told him
many stories about his father's brave exploits during the war. He would eventually use these as the basis for the
adventures in his novel
"The Three Musketeers."
Madame Dumas now lived with her parents in their hôtel, and the young Dumas spent his time wandering out of doors in the woods, catching birds, hunting, and exploring the neighborhood.
“NEVER FEAR QUARRELS, BUT SEEK HAZARDOUS ADVENTURES.” f rom The Three Muske teers
He learned fencing from the local fencing-master, and at
10 years old harangued adults with complete
assurance. Around this time his mother decided to send him to the local seminary to train for the priesthood, but Dumas ran away and lived in the woods until his mother
gave up the idea.
At the age of 15 Dumas’ only useful skill was his beautiful handwriting, which allowed him to enter the office of the local notary as his third clerk.
“ I h a v e a l w a y s h a d m o r e d r e a d o f a p e n , a b o t t l e o f i n k ,
a n d a s h e e t o f p a p e r t h a n o f a s w o r d o r p i s t o l . ” f r o m T h e C o u n t o f M o n t e C r i s t o
“ I t i s r a r e t h a t o n e c a n s e e i n a l i t t l e b o y t h e p r o m i s e o f a m a n , b u t o n e c a n a l m o s t a l w a y s s e e i n a l i t t l e g i r l t h e t h r e a t o f a
w o m a n . ”
Dumas continued to prefer the outdoor life, but the notary was a liberal in his politics, and Dumas
had the opportunity to begin reading liberal and revolutionary literature. His good looks fostered
his vanity. He seduced a young woman in the town, and he was
promoted to second clerk.
He was establishing himself well, but temptation suddenly appeared in the form of young nobleman, Adolphe de Leuven, who visited
“ I c a m e t o Pa r i s w i t h f o u r é c u s i n m y p o c k e t , a n d I ’ d h a v e f o u g h t w i t h a n y b o d y w h o t o l d
m e I w a s i n n o c o n d i t i o n t o b u y t h e L o u v r e . ” f r o m T h e T h r e e M u s k e t e e r s
Villers-Cotterêts, befriended Dumas, and took him on his first trip to the Paris theatre in November 1822.
DETERMINED TO SUCCEED
Returning home, Dumas began searching novels for suitable subjects to turn into plays, and plotted his escape from his stable, banal existence. This turned out to be simple…
…a small fortune, enough for a coach to Paris and to keep him there while he found
his feet. Almost without delay, Dumas said goodbye to his
childhood and set out to conquer Paris.
One of h is ta lents was at bi l l iards, and one evening he
won 90 francs…
In May 1923 Dumas had in h i s pocket severa l l e t te r s o f
in t roduc t ion to o ld f r i ends o f h i s f a ther, wr i t ten by h i s mother. I t had
been a l l she cou ld g i ve h im.
Making the most of his connections…
Dumas approached General Foy, administrator of the Duc d’Orléans’ office and an old friend of his father’s. The
general exclaimed over his beautiful handwriting and got
him a post as a junior clerk with
the Duc d’Orléans.
…at his unfashionable clothes and mocked his kinky hair, which stood out all over his
head
like a mane.
HIS FELLOW CLERKS LAUGHED…
FIRST APARTMENTDumas struck up a friendship
with Catherine Lebay, who lived on the same landing. She was separated from her husband,
owned a linen shop, and had two rooms. Living together expanded their living space and now Dumas
had an apartment, his first in Paris.
HOW LITTLE HE KNEW.
Courageously, he began educating himself, reading at the office, and at home. He took lessons in physics, chemistry and biology at a nearby hospital.
W O R K I N G F O R T H E D U C D ’ O R L E A N S TA U G H T D U M A S O N E I M P O RTA N T
T H I N G :
DURING THIS TIME, ALEXANDRE JR. WAS BORN
to Catherine…
…& Dumas’ mother moved to be closer to her son.. Dumas rented her
apartment, but didn’t have enough money to support
two households. He decided to write his way
out of trouble.
…which was performed with mild success. At this point he discovered the history of an assassination involving Queen Christina of Sweden & decided that he would write the story as a melodrama, with terrible overpowering emotions and ignoring the rules of classic French drama.
HE WROTE A VAUDEVILLE SKETCH WITH TWO OTHERS…
IN TH IS WAY, H ARDLY KNOWING ANYTH ING AB O UT THE TRAD IT IO NS
HE WAS CO NF RO NT ING…
…Dumas found the formula for a new age of popular
French drama. His superiors pressured him to stay with classic literature, but Dumas declared firmly that he would write his way
or not at all.
…he then met most of the writers
and artists who would be his friends and
enemies for the rest of his life.
JUST AS DUMAS BEGAN TO DEFINE HIMSELF AS AN ARTIST…
DUMAS CONTINUED WRITING, & EVENTUALLY THE DUC
(HIS EMPLOYER) TOLD HIM…
…he would need to choose between his job & writing.
Dumas chose writing. Dumas took out loans to stage his productions, & The Duc
d’Orléans, soon to be King Louis-Philippe, was in the audience with his family,
honoring his former employee.
…but the young romantics hailed him as their leader, and in
the wake of his success, the Duc
employed him again, as librarian: a
sinecure with a larger salary.
CLASSICAL CRITICS DENOUNCED THE PLAY…
NOW DUMAS WAS EATING “WITH ALL THE TEETH OF
GLORY”…
He lived in a new house in the Square d'Orléans in the Rue
Saint-Lazaire. He wore flamboyant waistcoats,
green as the sea, purple cloaks, and
massive golden chains.
From his window in the Rue Saint-Lazaire,
Alexander saw a daily convoy of 50 or 60
ammunition wagons loaded with coffins going
towards Montmartre.
AT THE BEGINNING OF 1832, CHOLERA WAS RAGING IN
PARIS.
Dumas fell ill with the disease in April.
ON HIS RECOVERY, DUMAS FOUND PARIS AGITATED AND UNEASY.
The struggle of the republicans against Louis-Philippe continued and insurrection was imminent. Dumas joined the opposition, & a story appeared in the
newspaper that he’d been shot. Although he hadn’t, Dumas knew that he was marked by the police & decided to take the advice of his doctor & seek a change of scenery, so he headed to Switzerland.
IN THE RHONE VAL LE Y HE WE NT TR OUT-F ISHING ; HE ATE A BE AR WHICH HAD
KILL ED AND E ATEN A HU NTE R…
…He climbed the crags of Mont Blanc. He visited the famous
author and guru of Romanticism, Châteaubriand, and paid his respects to Queen Hortense.
Dumas was never bored. Then, when he began to note down his impressions in his scrapbook, he
began to discover “a natural liveliness in narration”.
CHÂTEAUBRIAND
…the celebrities of journalism, literature and dandyism met, drunk with
lyric poetry and art. Dumas was in the center of the fashionable crowd,
and his costume ball made the carnival of 1833 in
Paris a great event.
DUMAS RETURNED TO PARIS…AT THE CAFÉ DE PARIS, ON THE
BOULEVARD…
DUMAS SET OUT ON A NEW ROUND OF TRAVELS TO THE
SOUTH.
He discovered the wine of Saint-Péray; slept at Avignon; and made a
bargain with the municipality of Cavaillon to supply him with melons in exchange for his works. Next came Marseilles,
Toulon and Genoa, where he was asked to leave.
…featuring a trained horse which he hoped would be a star, but the play failed and the horse was hissed. On the boulevards it became the fashion to say “you caligulate me” instead of “you make me tired”.
BACK IN PARIS HE PUT ON A NEW DRAMA, CALIGULA…
ROMANTICISM WAS FALLING INTO A DECLINE, AND DUMAS WAS ACQUIRING NEW ENEMIES.
One day the novelist Balzac, in Dumas’ hearing, said, “When
I'm used up, I shall write plays”. “Better begin at once,
then”, retorted Alexandre. Such gibes fed his insecurity, though, and he started to be obsessed
with official recognition.
…Ida Ferrier. Ida’s guardian had bought up 200,000 francs worth of Dumas’ debts for 40,000 francs and, accompanied by the sheriff’s officers,
ordered the great man to marry or go to debtors’
prison.
AFTER HIS NEXT TRIP ABROAD, TO GERMANY, HE THOUGHT AB OUT
SET TLING DOWN AND MARRYING HIS CURRENT MISTRESS…
“ I k n o w t h a t t h e w o r l d i s a d r a w i n g - r o o m f r o m w h i c h o n e m u s t r e t i r e p o l i t e l y a n d
h o n o r a b l y, t h a t i s t o s a y, w i t h a b o w, a f t e r p a y i n g o n e ’ s g a m i n g d e b t s . ”
f r o m T h e C o u n t o f M o n t e C r i s t o
Dumas was plagued by debt, because he spent his money as fast as he could earn it, and he
repeatedly paid out six or seven times the amount
that owed.
…He brought Dumas one of them with an interesting plot and a dull
narrative. Alexandre took the manuscript, sped it up and made
it lighter, and the tale appeared in the journal Le Siècle. Maquet's name did not appear, but he got 1200 francs as his share. THIS
WAS THE START OF SOMETHING BIG.
D U M A S O N E D AY WA S V I S I T E D B Y A U G U S T E M A Q U E T, A TA L L , W E L L - C O M P O S E D M A N. H E H A D B E E N A P R O F E S S O R , A N D N O W W R O T E
H I S T O R I C A L R O M A N C E S …
MAQUET KNEW HISTORY AND HAD IDEAS, BUT HE WASN’T A WRITER
IN DUMAS’ CLASS
A collaboration seemed inevitable and its first product was The Three Musketeers. Many of D’Artagnan’s exploits
were based on his father’s experiences.
D’Artagnan of The Three Musketeers
…a few years before. It was called Monte Cristo. The two collaborators set
to work again, and in 1843 The Count of Monte Cristo started to be serialised in Le Journal des Débats.
AFTER THE SUCCESS OF THE THREE MUSKETEERS DUMAS RECALLED AN ISLAND HE HAD GLIMPSED IN THE
MEDITERRANEAN
DUMAS WAS NOW NO LONGER RE -INVENTING HISTORY, HE WAS CREATING IT. DUMAS’ ACTIVITY WAS INDUSTRIAL .
He described himself as a blacksmith “who threw
himself into literature as his father had thrown
himself upon the enemy”, who did not always test
the metal which he used, but let the feeble warm themselves at his fire.
you will find the savage. He lunches on potatoes taken burning hot from the ashes of the hearth and devours them without removing the skins - a Negro! He runs after honors - a marquis!”
AT THE MOMENT OF HIS TRIUMPH THE ISSUE OF HIS ORIGINS RETURNED
WITH A VENGEANCE.
A journalist named Jacquot had written to Dumas and failed to get a reply. The result was a bitter attack on the “fiction factory”. The diatribe were frankly racist – “Scratch M. Dumas’ hide and
“ S I N C E H E N E E D S 2 0 0 , 0 0 0 F R A N C S A Y E A R … H E H I R E S I N T E L L E C T UA L
D E S E RT E R S A N D T R A N S L AT O R S AT WA G E S T H AT D E G R A D E T H E M …
Subsequently Jacqout was sentenced to six months in prison for
libel.
…TO THE CONDITION OF NEGROES WORKING UNDER THE LASH OF A MULATTO! NONE OF HIS DRAMAS OR HIS
ROMANCES IS REALLY HIS OWN.”
…"My father was a mulatto, my grandfather was a Negro, and his father was a monkey”, he replied, “My ancestry begins where yours ends”.
IN THE BOULEVARD SOMEONE HISSED AT HIM “MULATTO”…
HE SHOWED NO ANGER - HE STILL TOOK HIS WALK ON THE BOULEVARD,
TEASED HIS ENEMIES…
…and then would depart, saying: “Good! Have I amused you with wit of good quality? Tomorrow they'll be saying that I had collaborators!”
But the Chamber of Deputies was upset by the expense of the junket and an indignant debate took place. Everyone
was talking about Dumas, and to support his new eminence
he built an extravagant chateau near Saint-Germain which the locals immediately
dubbed “Monte Cristo”.
IN 1846 DUMAS TRAVELLED TO NORTH AFRICA AS A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE
FRENCH GOVERNMENT.
In the same year Dumas was granted a license to build a new theatre and in the following year the Théâtre Historique opened to great acclaim.
A F T E R T H E R E V O LU T I O N O F 1 8 4 8 H E D E T E R M I N E D T O E N T E R T H E N AT I O N A L
A S S E M B LY. H E F O U N D E D A M A G A Z I N E L E M O I S , B U T H I S P O L I T I C A L V I E W S W E R E C O N T R A D I C T O RY O R C O N F U S E D,
and in spite of his popularity he found it
impossible to persuade any district to adopt him. At one meeting he was greeted by cries of "O ho! the marquis! the
aristocrat! the Negro! Orléans’ secretary!”
…and pointing to his hair he added: “This
would be a representative's
brevet… but perhaps I shall send them a lock
of my hair by mail.”
“ I F I H A D H A D E N O U G H M O N E Y ” , H E O N C E R E M A R K E D T O A F R I E N D “ I S H O U L D H AV E
G O N E T O M A RT I N I Q U E T O B E E L E C T E D F R O M T H E R E ” …
D R A M AT I C A RT WA S N O T I N FAVO R W I T H T H E N E W R E VO LU T I O N, A N D I N T H E
F O L L O W I N G Y E A R T H E T H É ÂT R E H I S T O R I Q U E FA I L E D.
Dumas’ creditors began to circle like a pack of wolves. Next was the turn of Monte Cristo. At the end of 1851
imperial order was resumed in France. The republican Victor Hugo (author of Les Miserables) was exiled, and
Dumas left for Brussels.
DUMAS MOVED ON TO RUSSIA AB OUT 1859 , WHERE FRENCH WAS THE
SECOND LANGUAGE OF THE ELITE…
…and his writings were enormously
popular. Dumas spent two years in Russia,
before leaving to seek different adventure. He published travel books about Russia.
His purse full, he set out to join Garibaldi, leader of the movement to unify Italy, Garibaldi appointed
him director of Fine Arts, and Dumas threw himself into the
science of excavation and preservation. His status didn’t last long. The Neapolitans, resentful of
the foreigner in their midst, organized a demonstration against him, and he was soon on his way
back to France.
HE SET OUT AGAIN ON HIS TRAVELS, AND WHEN HE RETURNED TO PARIS HIS
PLAYS WERE ONCE MORE IN FAVOR.
Giuseppe Garibaldi
THE BOHEMIAN LIFE BEGAN AGAIN ON A SMALLER SCALE, WITH LESS LUXURY AND FEWER SERVANTS…
…it was Monte Cristo over again. Dumas was surrounded by sycophants who fleeced him for
all they could get.
H E T R I E D T O H I D E H I S WAY O F L I F E F R O M H I S S O N A L E XA N D R E , W H O WA S O N H I S WAY
T O B E C O M I N G A W R I T E R A L M O S T A S FA M O U S A S H I S FAT H E R …
…but eventually the young Dumas gave up and refused to go near the apartment. Now Dumas was truly a forgotten
man reduced to applauding at performances of his son’s plays.
His next novel, about the sacking of Frankfurt in 1866 by
the Prussians, failed.
Alexandre Dumas fils
His extensive travels and his sampling of the food in
various countries stood him in good stead. His
reputation spread, but his debts were increasing and he was losing control of all
the rights to exploit his books and plays.
SUDDENLY DUMAS FOUND HIMSELF A NEW CAREER AS A COOK.
AT THE PARIS EXPOSITION IN
1867 HE MET HIS LAST LOVE…
…the American circus rider Adah Menken. Within a
few months, however, she
suffered a fall and died. Dumas was now truly alone.
…pawning valuable objects at the Mont-de-Piété, and when he could no longer pay the tradesmen, sending for his
son. In July 1870 he returned to Paris, and his son decided
to take him to his villa at Puys, near Dieppe.
NOW HE L IVED FROM DAY TO DAY, B ORROWING FROM EDITORS AND HIS
DRAMATIC AGENT…
NO W DUMAS, WH O H AD NEVER C O UNTED ANYTH ING,
WAS O BSESSED WITH TH E F EAR O F BEING WITH O UT MO NEY…
…and the family took care to fill his drawer with cash. His other
preoccupation was with his literary legacy. One day he asked Alexandre whether he thought his
work would live. The younger Dumas explained his conviction that the work would last forever
and the old man’s face lit up.
The next day Dumas died. That evening the Germans occupied Dieppe. He was buried temporarily in the
little cemetery of Neuville; then, when the enemy had
evacuated Villers-Cotterêts, his body was
taken there.
" O N T H E S T E P S O F T H E S C A F F O L D D E A T H T E A R S O F F T H E
M A S K T H AT H A S B E E N W O R N T H R O U G H L I F E , A N D T H E R E A L V I S A G E I S D I S C L O S E D . ”
f r o m T h e C o u n t o f M o n t e C r i s t o
D UMAS PUSH ED H IM SE LF TO TH E TO P, WH IC H WAS
WH ERE HE WANTED TO BE , AND IN THAT SENSE …
…his life is the most ambitious and interesting of his melodramas. He talked of himself as a popularizer, but he was an entertainer who studied history with
passion and desire, and few storytellers have had such
lasting power.
In his novel Georges he sketched aspects of his father’s
experience with an insight which shows how deeply he
considered the matter, and he recorded with an unblinking
truthfulness the insults which must have come out of his
childhood experience.
DUMAS UNDERSTOOD THE RACISCM OF THE AGE VERY
WELL
IN MANY WAYS, MANY OF HIS OTHER B OOKS CAN BE READ AS ALLEGORIES IN
WHICH HE EXPRESSES CRUCIAL INSIGHTS…
…about what it meant to share different and conflicting origins. All the more impressive, then, was his ability to reflect and represent key
aspects of the French culture, and to become a much-loved icon of French letters and world
culture.
The Man in the Iron Mask
“NOW I'D LIKE SOMEONE TO
TELL ME THERE IS NO
DRAMA IN REAL
LIFE!” from The Count of Monte
Cristo
fin
BIBLIOGRAPHIE
BLACK EUROPEANS: A British Library Online Gallery feature by guest curator Mike Phillips; http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/features/blackeuro/pdf/dumas.pdf
Alexandre Dumas; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexandre_Dumas
Alexandre Dumas Sr; http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=pv&GRid=6753&PIpi=19484461
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