Scaramouche, the novel published in 1921 and written by Englishman of Italian origin Rafael Sabatini (1875 – 1950), has become in one of the great classics of adventure novels of the 20th century. And the text has it all. To begin with the vibrant style of the genre, then the theme set in a pre-revolutionary France of the eighteenth century where duels and swords are the order of the day, and to top it off the fame of Scaramouche was multiplied by being adapted several times to Hollywood cinema.
That context of the years before the French Revolution is very important to understand the plot. The protagonist is André Louis Moreau, a disbelieving lawyer of political causes and who lives in the house of the Lord of Gavrillac since he does not know who his parents were. His life will take a complete turn when his great friend Phillippe de Vilmorin, a young seminarian, is killed in an unbalanced duel against one of the great lords of the region.
The reason is that Vilmorin accuses the nobleman of corruption and despot. When Moreau sees him dead, he swears to defend that same cause of equality, so to save his life he must flee. He first joins a company of comedians, where he will take the name of Scaramouche, and with his scathing speeches he continues to criticize social inequality and collaborates in inflaming the people who see his performances.
Obviously that causes him problems and in the end he has to leave the company, but luckily he is taken in by a fencing master, from whom he ends up learning everything related to the world of swordsmen. So now he has another weapon to avenge the death of his friend and continue attacking the nobility. And meanwhile in France the Revolution breaks out, the takes over the Bastille and the aristocracy is going to be executed by guillotine.
Again this is a major change in his life, as he feels indebted to his adoptive family, and he must protect them. But also in the course of events he will also discover his true origin. Something that we are not going to reveal here, since it would be stealing much of the intrigue from the story. By the way, a book for any age and condition, because it is always a friendly text, dizzying to read, very entertaining and capable of taking us to the reverie of another era. In short, it has all the ingredients that a good adventure novel needs.
