Preview

Pros And Cons Of Jacques-Louis David

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
2273 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Pros And Cons Of Jacques-Louis David
Napoleon Bonaparte was remembered as the General and leader of the French army, the ruler of France as their First Consul, and the Emperor of France. Some thought positive of Napoleon, others thought negative of him, and Napoleon himself obviously thought positive of himself, too:
¡§Napoleon was a brilliant military commander who carefully planned each campaign, using speed, deception, and surprise to confuse and demoralize his opponents.¡¨ -Marvin Perry (Perry, 122)

¡§I closed the gulf of anarchy and brought order out of chaos. I rewarded merit regardless of birth or wealth, wherever I found it. I abolished feudalism and restored equality to all regardless of religion and before the law. I fought the decrepit monarchies of the Old
…show more content…
¡§Napoleon at St. Bernard¡¨, which was painted by artist Jacques-Louis David in 1800, was a portrait of Napoleon as he leads his troops through the Swiss Alps. The French Revolution and Napoleon created dramatic events, which made a change in time period from Neoclassicism to Romanticism (Smith). There were many ways that Jacques-Louis David organized the painting so that it was considered a Romantic painting. Those ways were that it was a dramatic painting, for it showed a noble pose by Napoleon, it had dramatic lighting, and the horse that Napoleon was riding showed diagonal lines, which created the movement of the horse (Smith). There were many signs of nature in the painting also. Such as the mountains and the sky in the background, and the cape on the Napoleon¡¦s back. You can see that the wind is blowing through Napoleon¡¦s cape by the way that David painted it (Smith). During the era of Napoleon as a General, he was famous for use of light artillery (Smith). It shows that he was famous for his artillery in the painting, for it is noticeable that Napoleon¡¦s men are seen in the background pushing a canon up the mountain (Smith). This symbolizes that Napoleon will lead his men through the mountains (Smith). Then, at the bottom of the picture, there are two rocks below Napoleon that say Bonaparte on one and Hannibal on the other. This is important because Hannibal, who was a Carthaginian General of Rome for eighteen or nineteen years, crossed the Swiss Alps during his time as General (Smith). These rocks show that since Hannibal crossed the Swiss Alps during his time as General, then Napoleon will fulfill the same objective (Smith). An interesting fact about this painting is that there is a recording that says that Napoleon crossed the Swiss Alps on a donkey (Smith). If this was true, then Napoleon would definitely not have wanted David to

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Napoleon Bonaparte was the first emperor of France from 1804 to 1814. He is famous for his efforts to form a connected Europe that France would lead. His career as a military and political leader led to many big accomplishments, but unfortunately he became too greedy over time leading to his exile.…

    • 373 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Napoleon Bonaparte- a popular military hero who had won a series of brilliant victories against the Austrians in Italy.…

    • 716 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Lolipop Chainsaw

    • 460 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Napoleon Bonaparte (15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821) was a French military and political leader who rose to prominence during the latter stages of the French Revolution and its associated wars in Europe.…

    • 460 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The ruler is one of the most important parts of a country. They can cause gain or loss for the people, and sometimes even a mixture of both. An exemplary leader can bring great change to a nation, and there are many who have caused incredible reforms. For example, Abraham Lincoln abolished slavery in the United States, and King Louis XVIII of France inadvertently caused a revolution. Though Louis may be well known, the most famous of France’s rulers was arguably Napoleon. His military success and determination led to a huge amount of power within his French Empire, but ultimately a great fall. The entire nation of France was able to appreciate Napoleon and give him perhaps more credit than he is due; they saw him as a beacon of hope. Much of Napoleon’s rule consisted of extreme changes to France’s society and church, but other areas, such as education, individual rights, and government, were hardly affected.…

    • 716 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Ap Us History Guide

    • 1080 Words
    • 5 Pages

    It is November 9, the Year of Our Lord 1799, and a battered French army begins the arduous climb up the Alps, just as a light snow begins to gently fall, a precursor of the hardship and bone chilling temperatures to come. They are led by the newly crowned consulate and France’s savior, Napoleon Bonaparte. There is a fear that Genoa may fall to Austrians. This fateful journey was captured in a painting by artist, Jacques-Louis David, who was a fervent supporter of the French Revolution. This painting was a gift and peace offering by the Spanish King to Napoleon in 1812, and it captures Napoleon, adorned with an embroidered coat and a deep red cloak, mounted on his steed and pointing up and away from the picture. In the background the French army climbs the steep and twisted path up the rugged terrain of the Alps. A thin layer of new snow lies on the ground and overhead dark and foreboding clouds loom. While the motive of David in his painting Napoleon Crossing the Alps is unclear, his peerless piece of art captures the tender emotions of the viewer with the use of a stark contrast between foreground and background, a diagonal line that appears in several important facets of the painting, and an expression on the face of Napoleon, himself, that calls to the viewer.…

    • 1080 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Flyer project

    • 322 Words
    • 1 Page

    Napoleon Bonaparte was a ruthless killer who hungered for power alone. He sacrificed much in order to contribute a great deal to the world by winning battles and discovering things such as the Rosetta Stone in Egypt. His thirst for control and power cost him everything he worked so hard for consequently leading to exile. Napoleon had many different sides to him. To some, he was an extraordinary military commander who led an army to victory. To others, he was a distinguished civil administrator. This is some of the positive effects and the negative effects Napoleon showed.…

    • 322 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Napoleon Bonaparte Quotes

    • 2014 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Napoleon Bonaparte is one of history’s greatest military commanders. Napoleon was a French military general and political leader, who grew famous and important during the French Revolution. He became the first emperor of France, serving from 1804 until 1814, and again in 1815, and his motive for military expansion changed the world. Napoleon changed military organization and training, and reorganized France’s education system. He is one of the most celebrated leaders in history, and is one of the most important people in modern world history.…

    • 2014 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    He worked for only more power and used people to his advantage. Napoleon did not like the idea of Animalism but he liked the idea of him being the most powerful so he created lies that would allow him to be boosted up above the other animals, giving himself the most power. Though Napoleon was not a good public speaker he used animals such as Squealer, a convening speaker who could manipulate words to their advantage. Napoleon represents Joseph Stalin who was a not in agreement to the idea of “communism” but liked the idea of him being in the highest power of authority. He was relentless and murdered anyone who opposed him, though he was a leader he also did not do very well with public speaking nor was he educated well, he only craved power. Stalin also used other speakers but in different ways, through propaganda.…

    • 452 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Napoleonic Art Analysis

    • 583 Words
    • 3 Pages

    To conclude with, Napoleon crossing the Alps painting was painted by an artist Jacques Louis David. The setting of this master piece was Napoleon crossing through largely obscured by rocks and French troops haul up the mountains along with large cannon. This painting viewed Napoleon as a strong leader with calm and ambitious face with a full hope and enthusiastic of winning this battle that he is going…

    • 583 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Throughout time, the history of Napoleon is retold over and over again. His conquests of Europe are legendary. He is considered one of the greatest military leaders, his victories are widely known, yet people seem to forget his losses. Napoleon had many domestic and diplomatic/military achievements, some were great and others were his worst blunders.…

    • 444 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Napoleon Bonaparte was a very influential character in the history of France. When Napoleon rose to power, many reforms were made regarding the social system, economics, education, and political aspects. For some, the reforms made under his rule were for the better of the people, but others viewed the reforms as negative changes. Nonetheless, Napoleon will always be thought of as a powerful figure in the French Revolution. A leader from the beginning, Napoleon was sent to France for military training at age nine.…

    • 977 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Napoleon Bonaparte, born on Corsica in 1769, would become one of the world’s most famous generals and leaders. Bonaparte, inspired by enlightenment thinkers like Jacques Rosseau, would become the military commander of Paris and then with his influence, he drafted a new constitution of France in which he erected the consulate. Napoleon would be one of three consuls but as the first consul, Napoleon’s power was much stronger than the other two. Napoleon, as first consul, could elect any person and sway any law. By 1802, he was granted the ability to be first consul for life.…

    • 1893 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    He has also been portrayed as a power hungry conqueror. Napoleon denied being such a conqueror. He argued that he was building a federation of free peoples in a Europe united under a liberal government. But if this was his goal, he intended to achieve it by taking power in his own hands. However, in the states he created, Napoleon granted constitutions, introduced law codes, abolished feudalism, and created efficient governments and fostered education, science, literature and the arts. One of his greatest achievements was his supervision of the revision and collection of French law into codes. The new law codes made some of the freedoms gained by the people of France during the French revolution. In 1793, Napoleon used cannon on a hillside to blast the British navy out of the power cannon can have in battle. Five years later a campaign in Egypt was disastrous, but he became a hero. Napoleon had early victories in Egypt. He started to lose as the battles began to move into the desert. He returned to France before the news of defeat arrived there. In 1800 he established a three-man Consulate. Napoleon understood the French weren’t ready for one-person government, however he was in control. Two years later he held a vote to get the support of the French citizens. Soon after, he was crowned emperor in 1804. During his ruling, he made a lot of reforms. He came up with the Napoleonic Code. It was legal reforms…

    • 845 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    France: Napoleon Bonaparte was the first emperor of France and is considered one of the world’s greatest military leaders. Napoleon ceded the Louisiana territory to…

    • 268 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Animal Farm

    • 863 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Napoleon may not have the brains but he sure as that cunning personality that makes him powerful. He never took part in any of the rebellion acts. In the Battle of the Cowshed, Napoleon was the only one injured while Snowball, the pig so called to be a traitor, was shot in the back. He never shows interest in the rebellion until Snowball starts coming up with the windmill plans to help the farm. He always had the dirty work done for him, for example, having Squealer paint extra words to the Ten Commandments.…

    • 863 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays