Philip Dwyer, Napoleon: The Path to Power. New Haven and London - Book Report/Review Example

Philip Dwyer, Napoleon: The Path to Power. New Haven and London The book Napoleon: The Path to Power cannot and should not be called a biography. Categorizing it as a biography will be contradictory and a disfavor to Professor Dwyer work, as it will create expectations which his work has been unable to live up to. Dwyer did not reveal a new dimension to Napoleon’s military developments. But he has adequately discussed each facet of political history of Napoleon’s early life.. Dwyer has succeeded in capturing his audience by establishing a structured approach, which is reflected in the pattern of his arguments. Dwyer briefly explains his motive: “Indeed, Napoleon contributed much towards constructing his own myth, from his youth even until he fell from power, when, while in exile, he dictated his memoirs to a group of disciples who took down his every word in the hope that his version of history would prevail” (p. 1). And then Dwyer specifically answers this question: how Napoleon was perceived by everyone around him and how his image was marketed to those who found it appealing? As Dwyer himself states, “The following pages are about understanding how Napoleon went about constructing his life, and how he constructed his own legend” The book is structured up on two major themes. First, Professor Dwyer reveals the extraordinary use of modern propaganda by Napoleon. The book succulently records Bonaparte’s numerous media blitzes, reports to the government, aggressive use of arts, and the resulting capture of French public opinion that made his image more as a savior. Second, using some psychobiography tools Dwyer explains the major forces that contributed to the development of Napoleon’s life. He mainly focuses on Dwyer’s motivational factors: his youth, upbringing, love, hopes, fears, and, his darker side that led him to what he became. To begin, Dwyer attributes the behavior of Napoleon to his mood rather then his mental turmoil. An example in this regard is Dwyer’s narration of the event at Jaffa, according to him the intention of Napoleon to commit massacre at Jaffa was to terrorize and instill his fear in the hearts of the opposing camps in a hope to make them vulnerable and avoid any future resistance from them. He strongly shows his displeasure towards the actions of Napoleon and asserts them synonymous to an authoritarian and a repressive style of a rule. He further asks the question whether his lack of humanity was an inherent dormant trait that was now revealed or was that the realization that Josephine was disloyal made him insensitive towards the feeling of others?. The severity of this barbarousness about him was alarming and was taking a new form. Professor Dwyer skillfully supports his perceptions with ample research and evaluative historical analysis. About 519 pages of the book are supported by 1,500 endnotes. Hence, there is a domination of quality over quantity, as the profoundness and the strength of sources consulted is close to impressive. His findings and arguments are based on a thorough blend of published primary material supported by touch of archival documents. On the other hand, the picture of Bonaparte presented is supported by ample amount of examples. Dwyer establishes the thesis using the example provided by the encounter on the bridge at Arcola on the banks of the Alpone River on 15 November 1796 when the troops under the command of Napoleon were unable to make it to the other side of the bridge due to the heavy artillery of the Austrians. The scene succeeded in capturing the audience with the choice of words used, appearing to be a description straight from an eye-witness. Dwyer interprets the encounter for what it was: a French failure. The troops being showered with Austrian artillery and shielding themselves from the dykes the French General Augereau took position and charged with a small escort towards the bridge. But he failed and after his small escort was cut down Augereau retreated. The same scene was repeated by Bonaparte who led his poor staff and tasted the same fate. Dwyer cites General Joubert’s evaluation of the combat: “Never have we fought so badly, never have the Austrians fought so well” (p.3). After narrating the events at Arcola, Dwyer adverts to the main issue of the book: Bonaparte’s propaganda developments and the Napoleonic version of the “Big Lie”. Dwyer states how within a short period of time the roles played by Augereau and Bonaparte upturned as the former started following the latter’s lead. Bonaparte took advantage of the First Italian Campaign to carry on “the tradition of romanticizing and idealizing war” in order to fortify the French Public’s increasing need to worship. And so Bonaparte succeeded in exploiting this need for the hero. After that Dwyer describes the childhood of Napoleon. Later the book ends with the coup of Brumaire and Bonaparte’s rise to power as First Consul. The readers were spared from the in-depth analysis of Bonaparte’s youth as Dwyer did not intent to write a biography. The absence of Napoleon’s education on Corsica and his relationship with Carlo and Letizia remains more of a mystery. Instead Dwyer seeks for the forces that played a major role in shaping Bonaparte’s psyche. What contributed to Napoleon’s development was Carlo; his father’s “cooperation or collaboration” which instilled in him the seeds of distress. Upon his father’s death Dwyer states “brought no external outpouring of grief” on Napoleon’s part (p. 39)”. This does not mean the Carlo was beloved of Napoleon but now his feelings had become uncertain and mixed. Dwyer speculates that these feelings may have been a result of past incident when his father sent him away so many years ago, or maybe he was embarrassed by the social position of his father or maybe the lack of it. Dwyer arrives at a conclusion by evaluating the essays composed by Bonaparte at this time, such as the 1789 short story Nouvelle Corse. Dwyer also describes the profound impact of infidelity Napoleon’s wife Josephine had on him. And right from this moment change was observed in Bonaparte’s personality. And now Bonaparte’s ambition and aim was to please and impress his wife. Professor Dwyer made a significant contribution to Napoleonic historiography. While the claims about Bonaparte’s use of propaganda machine are definite, his use of psychohistory to make an image of Napoleon is less convincing but at the same time it is intriguing. For some the suggestions and speculations made by Professor Dwyer would be highly agreeable while for others it may be horrifying as to how the author portrays Napoleon as a ruthless and Hitler minded person who had no regards for human life. Works Cited Dwyer, Philip G. Napoleon: The Path to Power. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2008. Print. Read More