The lecture describes how Chevalier's claims are fairly accurate and of historical value by

providing explanations to the statements in the reading passage saying that they are false. It
is based on the following reasons:

First of all, the lecturer states that in Switzerland he spent a lot of money on gambling and
parties. These actions may had caused him to need for money. Since his wealthy was based
on properties that you have to sell in order to get the money. Therefore, it could be the
reason why he needed to borrow money even when he claimed to be rich. This gives an
explanation and contradicts the statement in the reading passage saying that he borrowed
money because he was not rich.

Secondly, the lecturer says that Chevalier mentioned in his memoir that in the night after
immediately having the conversation with Voltaire, he wrote down everything that he could
recall about it. This allowed him to show with certain accuracy the conversation between
him and Voltaire. This contradicts what was presented in the passage where they think the
conversation was written after many years without any supporting notes.

Finally, the lecturer stated that in the case of scaping the prison, it is not likely to be due to
bribery. Even though prisoners in the same place as Chevalier had more powerful friends
than him, they didn’t get freedom. Hence, it makes less probable that Chevalier got released
by that reason. Additionally, there are old Venetian government documents that
demonstrate a repairing of Chevalier’s prison room ceiling. This may indicate that
Chevalier’s claim about scaping the prison by making a hole in the ceiling is true. It clearly
contradicts the reading passage who believes that Chevalier got his freedom by bribery.

In conclusion, the lecturer considers that Chevalier’s memoir can have a significant historical
value since the negative claims about his work have been contradicted and given a proper
explanation.