Alexandre Dumas, père

French writer and dramatist (1802–1870)

Alexandre Dumas (born 24 July, 1802 at Villers-Cotterêts, died 5 December 1870 at Dieppe) was a French writer of Haitian descent. He is famous for writing The Three Musketeers (1844), Queen Margot, The Count of Monte Cristo (1844-1845) and about the Man with the iron mask.

Alexandre Dumas, père
BornDumas Davy de la Pailleterie
(1802-07-24)24 July 1802
Villers-Cotterêts, Aisne, France
Died5 December 1870(1870-12-05) (aged 68)
Puys (near Dieppe), Seine-Maritime, France
Occupationplaywright and novelist
NationalityFrench
Period1829–1869
Literary movementRomanticism and Historical fiction
Notable worksThe Count of Monte Cristo
The Three Musketeers
Relatives

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Dumas's father was a general, who fought in the French Revolution. When his father died, his mother raised him. They didn't have much money when he was growing up.[1]

Dumas wrote his first plays in 1825 and 1826 after reading Shakespeare, Sir Walter Scott, Friedrich von Scholler and Lord Byron.

Dumas was also a gourmand (lover of food), and wrote Le Grand Dictionnaire de cuisine, an encyclopædia of food and cooking with 1152 pages.[2] He finished it weeks before his death. It is not thought very reliable, because it relies on Dumas' opinions rather than fact.[2]

Dumas was a member of the Club des Hashischins, or Hashish Club. The group of French writers experimented with hashish to get ideas.[3]

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References

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  1. Encyclopedia of World Biography. Vol 5, 2nd Ed. (2004). p. 136-138. Detroit: Gale.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Montagne, Prosper. (2003) The Concise Larousse Gastronomique, Octopus Publishing Group -Hamlyn. p. 93. ISBN 0-600-60863-8.
  3. "Drug Use from Encyclopedia of Medical Anthropology: Health and Illness in the World's Cultures". credoreference.com. 2011. Retrieved 15 May 2011.

Further reading

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Other websites

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