Summary of The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas

Description

Alexandre Dumas, author Victor Hugo once wrote, “is more than French…He is universal…He inspires the soul, the mind and the intelligence; he creates a thirst for reading; he fosters human genius.” Indeed, there are few who can hold a candle to Dumas when it comes to page-turning storytelling, and The Three Musketeers is no exception. This swashbuckling adventure tale – rife with intrigue, passion, bravery, revenge, loyalty and unswerving friendship – has kept readers entertained for nearly two centuries. The novel never flags in its energy, moving swiftly from one incident to the next as it blends the fantastical with real figures and events from 17th-century France. Though some may quibble over Dumas’s free and easy handling of the past, even the most serious-minded reader would struggle not to enjoy the larger-than-life inventiveness of The Three Musketeers. 

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Sujets

• Classics
• Fiction

Informations

• Publié par: GetAbstract AG
• Date de parution: 20 mars 2020
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9798887270999
• Langue: English

Extrait

The Three Musketeers
Alexandre Dumas•First edition: Paris 1844

Historical fiction
Realism

Take-Aways Alexandre Dumas’s The Three Musketeers remains the epitome of swashbuckling adventure for nearly two centuries after its initial publication. A young Gascon named d’Artagnan comes to Paris to seek his fortune. There he befriends three Musketeers: Athos, Porthos and Aramis. The four thwart the cardinal’s plans to turn the king against his queen, pursue affairs of the heart, fight the cardinal’s guards, and perform acts of bravery in battle. They punish Athos’s former wife – the evil Milady – for her many crimes, and d’Artagnan receives a promotion and becomes a lieutenant in the Musketeers. The remarkably prolific Dumas preferred working with others when writing. The Three Musketeers shuns the traditional, three-act structure: Subplots abound, and exciting events follow one another in quick succession. Actual historical figures and events anchor plot points of The Three Musketeers , though Dumas takes substantial liberties with these elements. In keeping with Romance genre conventions, both the novel’s heroes and its villains engage in morally questionable behavior. The July Monarchy – a period of two decades following the ouster of Napoleon Bonaparte in 1814 – was a time of great uncertainty in France. Initial inspiration for the novel came from a 17th-century work entitled Mémoires de d’Artagnan . Like the d’Artagnan character, Porthos, Aramis and Athos were also based on real Musketeers. “All for one, and one for all.”

What It’s About
Adventure for the Ages
Alexandre Dumas, author Victor Hugo once wrote, “is more than French…He is universal…He inspires the soul, the mind and the intelligence; he creates a thirst for reading; he fosters human genius.” Indeed, there are few who can hold a candle to Dumas when it comes to page-turning storytelling, and The Three Musketeers is no exception. This swashbuckling adventure tale – rife with intrigue, passion, bravery, revenge, loyalty and unswerving friendship – has kept readers entertained for nearly two centuries. The novel never flags in its energy, moving swiftly from one incident to the next as it blends the fantastical with real figures and events from 17th-century France. Though some may quibble over Dumas’s free and easy handling of the past, even the most serious-minded reader would struggle not to enjoy the larger-than-life inventiveness of The Three Musketeers. 

Summary
D’Artagnan Seeks His Fortune
In April 1625, a young man from Gascony, fiery-tempered and intelligent, arrives in Meung – a small French town. The young man, d’Artagnan , has left home to seek his fortune in Paris, carrying a letter of introduction to the famed leader of the king’s Musketeers and King Louis XIII ’s right-hand man, M. de Treville – a fellow Gascon. At a tavern, d’Artagnan overhears a gentleman mocking the traveler’s steed. The proud young man immediately picks a fight and ends up soundly beaten by the man’s accomplices. Later, d’Artagnan spies the stranger outside the window, speaking with a beautiful blonde woman in a carriage, a woman whom he calls  Milady . The next morning, he realizes his letter to M. de Treville is missing. The host confesses that the stranger stole the letter. Undaunted, d’Artagnan continues on to Paris.
The king’s Musketeers are a rowdy lot, who love nothing more than annoying their counterparts: the cardinal’s Guards . D’Artagnan watches two Musketeers – a tall, loud, flamboyantly-dressed fellow named Porthos and a stout, delicately featured man, Aramis , who aspires to a position in the Church – bickering, before d’Artagnan was taken to meet M. de Treville. M. de Treville calls out for three of his Musketeers. Two of the trio, Aramis and Porthos appear. M. de Treville scolds the men for losing a recent fight with the cardinal’s Guards. As the pair protest, Athos – a noble-looking, slightly older man – appears, pale from a wound he received in the fight. Suddenly, he collapses.
Three Duels
Once a doctor is called for Athos, d’Artagnan is at last able to tell M. de Treville about himself. Though M. de Treville is sympathetic to d’Artagnan, he worries that d’Artagnan might be working for the cardinal. He tests him by praising the cardinal, betting that an enemy would mock the so-called Red Duke. To M. de Treville’s surprise, d’Artagnan states that his father taught him that the cardinal was worthy of his respect.