Set in the 1790's, the story introduces the reader to the bloodshed and brutality of the French Revolution, painting a picture of the French revolutionary government as bloodthirsty and power-hungry.
And becoming more and more well-known is a band of derring-doers led by an Englishman whose pluck and ingenuity are unsurpassed--a man only known as the Scarlet Pimpernel. The League of the Scarlet Pimpernel succeeds, time and time again, in snatching French aristocrats seemingly right from under the blade of the guillotine, and delivering them to the safety of England--to the outrage of revolutionary France and to the glee of England. We also meet one of the Scarlet Pimpernel's greatest admirers: Lady Marguerite Blakeney, a Frenchwoman who is endowed with all the beauty, wit, charm, and worldy goods a girl could want, yet is--through it all--unhappy. She--the "cleverest woman in Europe" and its center of social functions--is the wife of an Englishman--the "biggest fop in Europe"; and therein lies the struggle. The Scarlet Pimpernel is a brave and courageous man in the midst of a bloody war, while her husband--however wealthy--is dull-witted and bland. The book traces France's attempts to track down the Scarlet Pimpernel while it reveals the history of Marguerite's marriage and takes us along her journey of discovering how the Revolution has impacted her marriage. She finds courage and strength within herself and learns how the Revolution now holds the key to her happiness and to finding a new understanding of and respect for the man who is her husband. | ||
Plot & Themes Time/era of story - 1600-1899 - War/Revolt/Disaster on civilians Yes Conflict: Main Character Gender - Female Profession/status: Age: - 20's-30's Ethnicity/Nationality Main Adversary Identity: - Male Age: - 40's-50's Profession/status: Eccentric/Smart/Dumb: Yes Eccentric: How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters Setting How much descriptions of surroundings? - 7 () Europe Yes European country: - England/UK - France Writing Style Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |