- Qui sont les personnages (leur relation)(Kylian)

- Lien/séparation entre homme politique et l’homme en lui même (Kylian pour la

politique, Erin pour l’homme sensible)
- L’art épistolaire → populaire (Erin)
- Le lien → Comment leur correspondance marque la sensibilité, rapport : Un exemple
ou deux (chacun un exemple) (Kylian : Lettre 16)

We’ll talk about the correspondence from Napoléon the first to Josephine de Beauharnais

In order to see another face of this historical character. To go beyond the political aspect of
Napoleon the first. To know him like David Chanteranne said : Napoleon “becomes, once the
door closes, a passionate lover. The eagle becomes a chick”
At first we read the correspondence to Napoléon from Joséphine collected by David
Chanteranne. Then we searched about Napoleon and Josephine’s background. Who
concretely are they ? What was their link and their match?

Kylian

- Napoleon and Josephine: A correspondence between romance and history.

- Premier paragraphe : correspondance d’après le recueil par David Chanteranne.

We’ll talk about the correspondence from Napoleon the first to Joséphine de Beauharnais to
see another face of Napoleon as an historical character.

- Why this subject ?

Another face of this historical character. Go beyond the political aspect of Napoleon 1rst. To
know him. As David Chanteranne said, Napoleon « becomes, once the door closes, a
passionate lover. The eagle becomes a chick »

- How we organized our research :

We read the correspondence of Napoleon to Joséphine, collected by David Chanteranne.

We then searched for Napoleon and Joséphine’s background : Where they came from, how
they met.
We looked at the epistolary genre, how popular it was at this period, what it created, what
message it wanted to send and the feeling it conveyed to the reader. Quelque chose de très
voyeur.
Education : Les Liaisons dangereuses : Education sexualisant. Choderlos de Laclos.
Vraie correspondance, pas mise en scène. Voyeurisme intime.
On s’est intéressé au lien entre les deux. Puis nous en avons sélectionné deux pour pouvoir
appuyer nos exemples.

Something very voyeuristic.

Education: Les Liaisons dangereuses: Sexualising education. Choderlos de Laclos.
Real correspondence, not staged. Intimate voyeurism.
We were interested in the link between the two. Then we selected two to support our
examples.

- A brief presentation of the topic, the questions it may raise and its relevance in the context
of this English course :

Présentation : Plan.

Questions : Is Napoleon as authoritary as he said in his letters or is it another mask ?

Comment sont les lettres de Joséphine ? Ses réponses ? Où ils se rejoignent et où ils
divergent ?
Questions sur le genre épistolaire : Authenticité, masque ? Langage codé ? But de
publication final ?

Link: Not fictional like Dangerous Liaisons, nor is it intended to be. But Napoleon's writing
style turned it into a real work of art, which made it part of epistolary literature. A testimony to
this era, to the lives of two great historical figures through the epistolary genre.

3eme § :
- Reprise du plan
- Questions
- Lien avec la thématique

Napoléon est un personnage d’excès : tout est chez lui poussé à son extrême limite. Il se
battra toute sa vie : son énergie et ses convictions d’avoir raison emportent tout à sa suite. Il
est impétueux, volontaire, ne recule devant rien.

Introduction à la psychopathologie du jeune Bonaparte - napoleon.org

Napoléon, un personnage d’excès | Le Devoir.
Joséphine de Beauharnais, le crève-cœur de Napoléon
Joséphine de Beauharnais : qui était la femme de Napoléon ? - Geo.fr
Napoléon et Joséphine : un couple ordinaire
Napoléon et Joséphine : la vérité sur leur histoire d’amour tourmentée | National Geographic
Kylian Roussel, Erin Milhorat

Napoleon and Josephine: A correspondence

between romance and history

We’ll talk about the correspondence from Napoleon the first to Joséphine de Beauharnais to
see another face of Napoleon as an historical character.

We choose this subject, in order to see another face of Napoleon as we know in history
books, to go beyond the political aspect of Napoleon the first and to know him like David
Chanteranne said : Napoleon “becomes, once the door closes, a passionate lover. The
eagle becomes a chick”.
How did we organize our subject ? At first, we read the correspondence of Napoleon to
Joséphine, collected by David Chanteranne. Then, we searched for Napoleon and
Joséphine’s background : Where they came from, how they met. After, we looked at the
epistolary genre, how popular it was at this period, what it created, what message it wanted
to send and the feeling it conveyed to the reader, like Les Liaisons dangereuses by
Choderlos de Laclos which is a sexual education between two persons. We are interested
by their correspondence and their link which made the reader an intimate voyeurist. At last,
we made a link between our searches and the letter’s book from Napoleon to Josephine
collected by David Chanteranne.
Our topic will first talk about who was Napoleon the first and Josephine de Beauharnais and
their relationship. In a second time we're gonna talk in one hand about Napoleon the political
man and in another and to Napoleon as a sensitive man. In a third time we’re gonna talk
about the epistolary genre, his origin and his evolution. Last but not least, we’re gonna see
with concrete examples how their correspondence was at the same time a mark of a
passionate love and a stormy relationship.
This subject may raise questions about Napoleon's personality : Is he as authoritarian as he
said in his letters or is it another mask ? But we can also be curious about Joséphine
involvement : What are her letters like ? Where does the couple converge and where do they
diverge ?
Napoleon and Joséphine’s correspondence is not fictional like Dangerous Liaisons, nor is it
intended to be. But Napoleon's writing style turned it into a real work of art, which made it
part of epistolary literature. A testimony to this era, to the lives of two great historical figures
through the epistolary genre.

To sum up, we dived into the private domain of Napoleon the first, his correspondence where
we saw a piece of literature that showed his complex relationship with Joséphine and made
us learn about epistolary literature.
Oral rédigé :
Présentation Napoléon et Joséphine :

Napoléon Bonaparte (1769-1821), homme d'État, militaire et premier empereur français.

Marie-Joseph Rose de Tascher (1763-1814), mariée à Alexandre de Beauharnais en 1779
et divorcée en 1785.
Amante de Paul Barras, député à la Convention, Napoléon la rencontre après être devenu le
général en chef de l’armée de l’intérieur et bon ami de Barras. Ils se marient en mars 1796.
Nombreuses infidélités de Joséphine qui dilapide la fortune du couple. Devenu premier
consul en 1804, Napoléon a besoin d’un héritier. Ils finissent par divorcer en 1809 pour
raison d’Etat.

Homme politique

But with Josephine we can see a sensitive man :

The love between him and Josephine was true and full of passion. He talked about
Josephine with the nickname “mio dolce amor”. The letter’s intimity creates a proximity
between the reader and Napoleon, also we can imagine his feelings.