ژوزف بالسامو،خاطرات يك پزشك جلد دوم [Joseph Balsamo - Memoirs of a Physician, vol. 2 of 4]

Joseph Balsamo #2/4

by Alexandre Dumas, الكساندر دوما

Extrait : Madame du Barry habitait à Versailles un bel appartement autrefois habité par Madame Adélaïde. L’or, le marbre, les parfums, les tapis, les dentelles enivrèrent d’abord Gilbert, nature sensuelle par instinct, esprit philosophique par volonté ; et ce ne fut que lorsqu’il y était déjà depuis longtemps, qu’enivré d’abord par la réflexion de tant de merveilles qui avaient ébloui son intelligence, il s’aperçut enfin qu’il était dans une petite mansarde tendue de serge, qu’on lui avait servi un bouillon, un reste de gigot et un pot de crème, et que le valet, en les lui servant, lui avait dit d’un ton de maître : – Restez ici !

Genres: Classics, Historical Fiction, French Revolution, France

478 pages

About the author

This note regards Alexandre Dumas, père, the father of Alexandre Dumas, fils (son). For the son, see Alexandre Dumas fils.

Alexandre Dumas père, born Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie, was a towering figure of 19th-century French literature whose historical novels and adventure tales earned global renown. Best known for The Three Musketeers, The Count of Monte Cristo, and other swashbuckling epics, Dumas crafted stories filled with daring heroes, dramatic twists, and vivid historical backdrops. His works, often serialized and immensely popular with the public, helped shape the modern adventure genre and remain enduring staples of world literature.
Dumas was the son of Thomas-Alexandre Dumas, a celebrated general in Revolutionary France and the highest-ranking man of African descent in a European army at the time. His father’s early death left the family in poverty, but Dumas’s upbringing was nonetheless marked by strong personal ambition and a deep admiration for his father’s achievements. He moved to Paris as a young man and began his literary career writing for the theatre, quickly rising to prominence in the Romantic movement with successful plays like Henri III et sa cour and Antony.
In the 1840s, Dumas turned increasingly toward prose fiction, particularly serialized novels, which reached vast audiences through French newspapers. His collaboration with Auguste Maquet, a skilled plotter and historian, proved fruitful. While Maquet drafted outlines and conducted research, Dumas infused the narratives with flair, dialogue, and color. The result was a string of literary triumphs, including The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo, both published in 1844. These novels exemplified Dumas’s flair for suspenseful pacing, memorable characters, and grand themes of justice, loyalty, and revenge.
The D’Artagnan Romances—The Three Musketeers, Twenty Years After, and The Vicomte of Bragelonne—cemented his fame. They follow the adventures of the titular Gascon hero and his comrades Athos, Porthos, and Aramis, blending historical fact and fiction into richly imagined narratives. The Count of Monte Cristo offered a darker, more introspective tale of betrayal and retribution, with intricate plotting and a deeply philosophical core.
Dumas was also active in journalism and theater. He founded the Théâtre Historique in Paris, which staged dramatizations of his own novels. A prolific and energetic writer, he is estimated to have written or co-written over 100,000 pages of fiction, plays, memoirs, travel books, and essays. He also had a strong interest in food and published a massive culinary encyclopedia, Le Grand Dictionnaire de cuisine, filled with recipes, anecdotes, and reflections on gastronomy.
Despite his enormous success, Dumas was frequently plagued by financial troubles. He led a lavish lifestyle, building the ornate Château de Monte-Cristo near Paris, employing large staffs, and supporting many friends and relatives. His generosity and appetite for life often outpaced his income, leading to mounting debts. Still, his creative drive rarely waned.
Dumas’s mixed-race background was a source of both pride and tension in his life. He was outspoken about his heritage and used his platform to address race and injustice. In his novel Georges, he explored issues of colonialism and identity through a Creole protagonist. Though he encountered racism, he refused to be silenced, famously replying to a racial insult by pointing to his ancestry and achievements with dignity and wit.
Later in life, Dumas continued writing and traveling, spending time in Belgium, Italy, and Russia. He supported nationalist causes, particularly Italian unification, and even founded a newspaper to advocate for Giuseppe Garibaldi. Though his popularity waned somewhat in his final years, his literary legacy grew steadily. He wrote in a style that was accessible, entertaining, and emotionally reso

Reviews

[Hannaneh Abolghasempour · Rating 5 out of 5]

در واقع از این جلد هست فیلسوف های عزیزی مثل ژان ژاک روسو و ولتر وارد داستان می‌شن(در تکاپوی ترور شخصیت اشراف زاده ها و حکومت!)
و ژان ژاک روسو در واقع به عنوان یکی از شخصیت‌های داستان هست (البته اگه میدونست ژیلبر کوچولوی داستان از پنجره اتاق زیرشیرونی خونه‌‌ش مادموازل آندره رو دید می‌زده، الان تو گور می‌لرزید!😂)
حوادث داستان خیلی استادانه به هم گره خوردن؛ مادام دوباری(معشوقه لویی ۱۵ام) در تلاش برای مخالفت با آقای شوازل(نخست وزیر)، آقای شوازل هم درحال مخالفت با مادام دوباری و شاه هم که بینشون نمیدونه چیکار کنه😐
و بقیه هم درحال توطئه های مختلفن که یکیو برکنار کنن، یکی دیگه رو بذارن جاش😂
و ژوزف بالسامو هم به صورت کاملا هوشمندانه مغز متفکر همه این توطئه هاست!
این وسط ولیعهد هم به تعمیر ساعت های قصر مشغوله(نخندین 😂این یکی حداقل برخلاف بقیه که می‌خورن می‌خوابن، توطئه می‌کنن، یه هنری داره!😂)
شب عروسی ماری آنتوانت و ولیعهد هم مردم میان بیرون برای آتیش بازی و جشن که طوفان میاد و کلی تلفات می دن!! حالا این طوفان و تلفاتش تو کتاب به عنوان شومی سلطنت آینده این ولیعهد تعبیر شده.
خلاصه ماجرا این که سیاست همیشه چیز وحشتناکی بوده، هست و خواهد بود...

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

The original French text is available at La Bibliothèque électronique du Québec.

Opening lines:
Il eût été de mauvais goût que Mme Du Barry partît de son appartement de Versailles pour se rendre à la grande salle des présentations.

This is the second volume of the series "Memoir d'un Medicin."

In this volume the famous character of the French philosophe Jean-Jacques Rousseau has an important role in the plot: Gilbert met him while he was preparing his manuscript "Reveries du Promeneur Solitaire."

Another historical character also shows up – Jean-Paul Marat:
"Un nom obscur, monsieur, le nom d’un homme modeste qui voue sa vie à l’étude, en attendant qu’il puisse, comme vous, la vouer au bonheur de l’humanité : je me nomme Jean-Paul Marat."

Some references to Voltaire are also made by the author.

The sequel of this book is Joseph Balsamo III.

[Hannaneh Abolghasempour · Rating 5 out of 5]

خب جلد سومش هم به پایان رسید😊
اینجا دیگه با همکاری های عجیب غریب ژوزف بالسامو، تونستن نخست وزیرو برکنار کنن ولی همچنان دعواست که کیو بذارن بجاش!🤦🏻‍♀️🙄
ژان ژاک روسو هم همچنان به ترویج عقاید فیلسوفانه (شاه با مردم عادی فرق نداره، همه انسان هستن) داره ادامه می‌ده.
ولیعهد هم که همچنان تو باغ نیست!!😂
یه قسمتایی از کتاب که خیلی دوست دارم و برام جالبه😍 اونجاییه که ژوزف بالسامو طرف مقابل رو به خواب مغناطیسی فرو می‌بره و اون فرد چیزهایی رو با فرو رفتن به خواب می‌بینه که با چشم جسم نمی‌تونست. مثل پیدا کردن لوکیشن یه آدم دیگه و یا خوندن یه نامه بدون باز کردنش🤔🙄
دیگه داستان خیلی جالب شده😍
برم جلد بعدی!😊😴😴

[nikoo · Rating 5 out of 5]

i realy love this man and his ablity for writing the most wonderful books

[Ladiibbug · Rating 5 out of 5]

Historical Fiction

Book 1 of a 5 book series, The Marie Antoinette series - books listed here. Book 1, volume 1 is Joseph Balsamo; book 1, volume 2 is Memoirs of a Physician. The other books are are contained in one single book.

https://www.goodreads.com/series/55139

*No Spoilers*

This series takes place in France beginning before and during the revolution. In book 1, in isolated ruins of mountain, a mysterious stranger meets with an assembly of 300 hooded, shrouded Freemasons ("the illuminated") to plot the downfall of the French monarchy.

Joseph Balsamo, the group's leader, an alchemist and Freemason, soon afterwards seeks shelter from a storm at the home of the now-impoverished Baron de Taverney and his beautiful young daughter Andree.

Joseph Balsamo is full of mysteries and bizarre surprises. I'll leave it at that, to let future readers experience the engrossing details of the unfolding of events for themselves.

Louis XV rules, and his grandson, the dauphin (heir apparent) is set to marry the young Marie Antoinette.

The scheming Madame Dubarry, Louis XV's mistress, is just one of the many characters orchestrating and manipulating events in a spider's web of intrigues and ambitions.

Book 1, volume 1 ends with a spectacular fireworks display gone wrong.

Superbly written, I could easily read this book over and over, just to savor the characters, subplots, intrigue and surprises.

[Yves · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ce livre c'est la fin du règne de Louis XV qui à cette époque n'était plus le Bien-aimé. C'est le début de la fin pour la monarchie française. Ce livre, c'est aussi la vieille noblesse, comme Le vieux Taverney ou Richelieu, qui fait face à une noblesse libérale qui a lu les philosophe. C'est aussi un système qui favorise toujours les favoris du roi au détriment de la compétence. Il y a aussi les magouilles de la Du Barry. Il y a aussi Joseph Balsamo qui est à la tête du mouvement qui veut mettre un terme à cette vieille monarchie qui n'a plus sa place.

Dans Joseph Balsamo, Dumas a pris soins de faire des personnages nuancés. Ils ont tous leurs qualités et leurs défauts. C'est ce qui les rends plus humains, plus vrai. Tous les personnages ont des zones d'ombre.

Pour moi, Alexandre Dumas est le meilleur auteur. Après avoir lu sa trilogie des mousquetaires et le Comte de Monte Cristo, je redécouvre cet auteur avec la série Les Mémoires d'un médecin.