Napoleon: The Messiah
Omon Imolorhe
Date Submitted: November 18, 2009
The artwork, Napoleon at the Jaffa Plague House, is a depiction of Napoleon’s visit to his troops that were struck by the plague during their battle with the Turks at Syria. It shows a different side of Napoleon that is normally not described in history. The artwork aims to show Napoleon in his softer elements through the expression of Napoleon’s curiosity and compassion towards others while also giving an insight into the events that took place at that time. The artwork also places emphasis on the various soldiers and their emotions towards one another as well as the people who are attending to them. Furthermore, the artwork is symbolic of Romanticism through the use of various characters and, background effects and lightings that are characteristic of paintings and drawings that are from that time. The artwork makes use of a combination of dark lightings and colorings as well strategically placed bright lighting. These elements combine to create a feeling of sadness that can be seen on the faces of the various soldiers who are either looking up at Napoleon, perhaps in reference to their failure at not being able to fight for their beloved country, or are not looking at him because they are ashamed that looking at Napoleon would lead to something terrible. On the other hand, the elements create a feeling of hope that they will get better in time to serve their country again due to the presence of their leader. The combination of these feelings in this picture creates a dramatic and intense scene. Furthermore, the coloring in the picture starts on a dark tone and moves towards a brighter tone. Not surprisingly, the brightest tone of color is cast where Napoleon is standing. The idea of portraying a bright light around portrays Napoleon as someone bringing light and hope to the situation of the soldiers. Also, it leads credence to the idea that Napoleon was a messiah who was sent to give the soldiers a message of deliverance from their sicknesses. Napoleon’s generals stand around in disgust and irritation, and even try to prevent him from touching the infected soldier. However, he still goes ahead to touch the infected soldier. On the farthest right side of the artwork, there is a blind man who seems to be groping his way to meet Napoleon in the hope that meeting Napoleon will cure him if his illness. Likewise on the lower left side of the picture, there is another soldier lying on the floor and looking up to Napoleon for help from his ailment. By engaging in this acts of perceived messiah ship and hope, Napoleon plays into
the belief that a leader of the people has healing powers as was believed in the eighteenth century France. These people were very religious (Christian, to be exact) and relayed their religion in the art forms. The choice of coloring and use of lighting creates that impression and emotion, and does so very well. Moreover, the dark colors in connection with the smoke covered background give an idea of the period that the people in the picture are involved in, a period if war. The lonely flag at the background also adds to the portrayal of that idea that they are at battle and maybe their losses are greater than they expected or anticipated. The use of space in the painting is very generous in reference to the fact that the people in the picture are sick and therefore, Napoleon should not be sick. The space between Napoleon and the man he attempts to touch is considerably much due to the fact that there is a man at the bottom who, it looks like, attempts to stop Napoleon from touching the infected man. To Napoleon’s right, the space between Napoleon’s officer and the man holding the bread basket is also much and probably plays into the same idea of Napoleon not being allowed around the sick. However, the reverse of that idea is Napoleon is perceived as someone who has healing powers and that idea is portrayed when he stretches his hand out to touch the sick. Also, the man holding the basket is staring at Napoleon with a stare that anticipates something happening at that period of time. The architecture in the picture is reminiscent of gothic architecture in which the buildings have arches. That may be due to the fact that after the French captured that area, they proceeded to build works of architecture that were like the ones existing in France at that time. The color of the building also helps to keep the focus on the characters and enhances the story behind the art work. Also, the bright light that strategically shines on Napoleon helps to enhance the design of the building without taking the focus away from the key characters involved, most notably Napoleon and the sick man. All the elements in this piece of art come together to create a balance and give the art work a meaning. The main character, Napoleon, is portrayed as a messianic character that has come to heal his soldiers and give them hope in order for them accomplish their mission. Furthermore, the picture gives an
insight into Napoleon’s emotional side. The picture also shows Napoleon as someone who, despite his brutal conquests, had a heart for France to succeed. Moreover, the picture shows that he invested wisely in his soldiers and expected the best from them. Lastly, the picture shows how Napoleon thought of himself as someone sent to liberate France from its illnesses and attempted to achieve that.