The story of Capt.Martel, who was notable in 1716 and 1717 until his disappearance, and of Capt "Teach", also known as Blackbeard, who raided ships from 1716 until his demise at Ocracoke NC in the fall of 1718. There is much to learn anout Blackbeard outside of DeFoe's account so we are adding my research to next week's episode.

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This book is an excellent choice!

Episode Overview Title: A General History of the Pyrates by Daniel Defoe (Chap 1) Henry Avery & Crew

Duration: 43:02

Key Figures: Henry Avery (the "Arch-Pirate" who famously vanished with his loot) and Daniel Defoe (widely believed to be the true author behind the pseudonym "Capt. Charles Johnson").

Quick Historical Context The Author Mystery: While the book was originally attributed to Captain Charles Johnson in 1724, most modern scholars credit Daniel Defoe. Defoe's background as a journalist and his fascination with criminals (seen in Moll Flanders) makes him the prime suspect for having the "inside scoop" from Newgate Prison.

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Leave Her Johnny Nascara da Alexander

The Sailor's Bargain Kaazoom

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The Count of Monte Cristo was an enormous commercial and critical success, captivating readers with its intricate plot and universal themes. Following its publication, Alexandre Dumas earned a fortune but died poor due to an extravagant lifestyle, chronic overspending, and political upheaval.

Success of the Novel The novel, published in serial form from 1844 to 1846, was an immediate sensation and remains one of the most widely read French authors globally. Popularity: The serialization format, coupled with Dumas' ability to create suspenseful, page-turning narratives, ensured massive popularity among the 19th-century reading public. Themes: Its exploration of justice, vengeance, mercy, and forgiveness, along with a complex plot and well-developed characters, resonated strongly with readers and secured its place as a classic of world literature. Enduring Legacy: The book has been translated into numerous languages and adapted into countless films, TV series, and stage productions, demonstrating its lasting cultural influence. Life of Dumas After Publication Dumas became one of the most famous and wealthy Frenchmen of his day, but his life after the novel's publication was marked by extravagance and financial difficulty. Flamboyant Lifestyle: He lived a life as dramatic as his heroes, engaging in numerous love affairs and foreign adventures. He was known for his extreme generosity, often granting money and gifts to anyone who asked. Château de Monte-Cristo: A testament to his success, Dumas built an extravagant mansion on the outskirts of Paris, which he named the Château de Monte-Cristo, along with a theater, the Théâtre Historique, specifically for his plays. Financial Ruin: Despite earning millions, his lavish spending habits outpaced his income, leading to significant debt. He eventually had to sell the Château de Monte-Cristo property just two years after its completion. Exile and Travel: In 1851, to escape his creditors, Dumas fled to Brussels. He later traveled to Russia and then Italy, where he founded a newspaper, Indipendente, and supported Garibaldi's campaign for Italian independence. Later Years and Death: Dumas returned to France in 1864 and continued to write prolifically. He died of a stroke at his son's home near Dieppe in December 1870, far from a rich man, despite his monumental literary success.

CHAP 115 SUMMARY

Peppino, the jailor in the catacombs, announces to Danglars the next day that, if the banker would like to eat, he must pay 100,000 francs for a chicken, or 100,000 francs for a loaf of bread. Peppino says he knows that Danglars is carrying over 5 million francs worth of banknotes on his person, and so he asks that, for each individual item, Danglars pay out 100,000 francs so that he might survive. Danglars realizes this is how his ransom is to be meted out, and he does in fact pay 100,000 francs for a chicken, which he considers rather "thin" as he eats it angrily in the cave. This is a small, humorous episode in Danglars capture, allowing Vampa, Peppino, and their men to slowly peel away Danglars' money. It should be noted that this money has effectively been stolen from Boville, who was to use it for charitable ends. Thus, though Vampa is stealing it for himself, he is at least stealing from a thief, one who is doing all he can to maintain his social standing in the face of public shaming.

CHAP 116 SUMMARY

Danglars continues bargaining his money, thousands by thousands, so that he might eat in the prison for five days. The Count of Monte Cristo finally appears with Vampa when Danglars is down to his last 50,000 francs, and the Count says that he is now pardoning Danglars—and that Villefort and Fernand were not so lucky, as the first is now mad with grief, and the second is dead by suicide. The Count announces that he is actually Edmond Dantes, and that Danglars' utter financial ruin is for the sake of punishment, but the Count allows Danglars to start his life anew somewhere else upon release by Vampa. He also states that the 5 million francs "paid out" to the bandits have been given to the hospice account of Boville, from which Danglars first drew them under criminal circumstances in Rome. This shows that, though he could exact even more damning revenge on Danglars by killing him, the Count has chosen not to – he has placed a limit on his desire for vengeance.

113 THE PAST SUMMARY

the Count returns to Marseilles with Maximilien Morrel, witnessing Albert's departure for Africa before visiting Mercédès, who accepts her fate, and then revisiting his old prison cell at the Château d'If, where he receives Abbé Faria's manuscript and reflects on his past before telling Max to meet him on the Isle of Monte Cristo on October 5th for their final encounter, signaling the end of his vengeance and the start of a new path.

114 PEPPINOKey Events in Chapter 114: The Withdrawal: After fleeing Paris, Baron Danglars goes to the banking firm of Thomson and French in Rome to cash a receipt for five million francs from the Count, planning to use the money to rebuild his fortune.

Peppino's Role: Peppino, a young man connected to Vampa, works at the bank and informs Vampa of Danglars's large withdrawal, setting the trap.

The Ambush: The next day, as Danglars travels by carriage towards Venice, he is intercepted by Vampa's bandits, led by Peppino, and taken to the catacombs.

False Security: Danglars is placed in a comfortable cell with a bed and, remembering Albert de Morcerf's experience, assumes he'll be held for a reasonable ransom, believing he'll still have plenty of money left, and falls asleep contentedly.

The Count's Indirect Vengeance: This event is part of Monte Cristo's broader plan, as Vampa and his bandits are essentially working for the Count, systematically stripping Danglars of his wealth. In essence, Chapter 114 marks Danglars's capture and the beginning of his financial ruin at the hands of the Count, though Danglars remains blissfully ignorant

In chapters 111 and 112 of The Count of Monte Cristo, titled "Expiation" and "The Departure," the story reaches a critical psychological turning point as the Count's quest for revenge results in unintended tragedy.

Chapter 111: Expiation Following the public disgrace of his trial, Villefort rushes home. He has realized that he is no more virtuous than his wife and intends to forgive her so they can flee France together with their son, Edward.

The Discovery: Upon arriving, Villefort finds that his wife has already followed his earlier command to commit suicide. Horrifically, she has also poisoned Edward, refusing to leave her son behind to face a world of shame.

The Confrontation: A broken Villefort encounters the Count (disguised as Abbé Busoni) in his father Noirtier's room. The Count reveals his true identity as Edmond Dantès, expecting a moment of triumph.

The Turning Point: Instead of triumph, Dantès is met with the sight of Edward's corpse. Shaken to his core by the death of an innocent child, he tries and fails to revive the boy with his elixir. He begins to doubt if he has overstepped his role as the hand of "Divine Providence."

Villefort's Fate: The chapter ends with Villefort losing his mind completely, seen digging in his garden for his dead son.

Chapter 112: The Departure This chapter focuses on the emotional aftermath and the transition away from Paris.

Leaving Paris: The Count picks up a grieving Maximilian Morrel from the home of Julie and Emmanuel. As they leave the city, the Count looks back at Paris and declares his work of vengeance is finally done.

Return to Marseille: They travel to Marseille, where they witness Albert de Morcerf boarding a ship to begin his new life as a soldier.

The Meeting with Mercédès: The Count visits his father's old house and finds Mercédès living there in solitude. Their meeting is deeply bittersweet. While he offers her his fortune, she refuses most of it, choosing a life of quiet penance.

Resolution: The Count encourages her to live, but Mercédès remains a shell of her former self, resigned to her fate. This encounter reinforces the Count's growing sense of remorse for the collateral damage caused by his long-plotted revenge.

CHAP 109 THE ASSIZES Chateau-Renaud, Debray, and Beauchamp are in court to see the beginning of the famous Benedetto Affair. They discuss the rumor that the murderer in the house of Villefort is young Edouard, who has become increasingly jealous of his stepsister and her grandparents. But others in the group dismiss this as nonsense and wait for the excitement of the case to begin, with Villefort drawing up evidence against the accused "Prince," Cavalcanti.

CHAP110 THE INDICTMENT

Villefort is called as the crown prosecutor before the court, and the judges similarly call Andrea to testify. He admits that he lived a life of petty crime before causing the murder of Caderousse, and when the court asks him for his identity, he pauses and says he does not really know his "actual" name, for he was abandoned as a very young infant by his father. When the court asks who this father might be, Andrea/Benedetto declares that it is the crown prosecutor himself, Villefort. Villefort understands instantly that, from this point on, there is nothing he can do to protect his good name. Like Fernand and Danglars, he too will suffer in shame, and will need to determine some way to slide nobly off the public stage of French civic life. The crimes Villefort committed so many years ago have finally come back to light, causing the criminal to be punished.

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The scene shifts to the prison, called the Lion's Pit, where violent criminals are kept awaiting trial. This includes Andrea, who still insists to the other prisoners that he is of royal birth, although they make fun of him, harry him, and threaten him. Late one day, Bertuccio pays off the guards to visit his adoptive son, telling him he has information related to Benedetto's real father. Bertuccio promises to return with this information in due course, and Andrea says he awaits it with great eagerness. This important interstitial chapter shows that Andrea is once again in prison, a place he's become accustomed to at this stage of the novel. It is not entirely clear to the reader what Bertuccio intends to do to his "son."n this brief chapter, Villefort finally confronts his wife Heloise after many days spent going over evidence—evidence not only of the poisonings in his own home, but also in the case regarding Benedetto, now known publicly as the Benedetto Affair (because it involves the famous Count). This affair has taken over Paris, and indeed every affair involving the Count seems to be of citywide, and indeed national, importance. In the space of only a few months, the Count has placed himself in the center of French social life. Villefort abruptly asks Heloise if she still has the poison she has used on the Saint-Merans, Barrois, and Valentine. He says that he asks not because he will denounce her publically, but instead because he expects her to do the honorable thing and commit suicide at her earliest convenience. If she does not do this in the next day, he warns, he will send her to prison, which will result in her eventual execution.

The Count heads to Pere Lachaise where the funeral is taking place, and finds Maximilien off to the side of the funeral ceremony itself, overcome with grief. The Count then follows Morrel back to the home of Julie and Emmanuel, and his fears are justified, for as he walks into Morrel's room unannounced, he finds the young soldier drafting a suicide note. The Count begs Morrel not to do this, but Morrel insists that without Valentine, life is no longer worth living. The Count realizes the effect that his ruse with Valentine will have on Young Morrel. And though he wants to tell Morrel the plot he has concocted, he also wants to make sure this plot can succeed. Thus, to protect Maximilien, he asks only that the young man promise him to hold off on the thought of suicide for some time. To stay his hand, the Count blurts out that he is Edmond Dantes, and that he is the man responsible for saving Old Morrel exactly ten years ago when that man was afraid he would become bankrupt. Julie and Emmanuel come upstairs, but the Count asks Morrel to reveal only that he is the benefactor, not that he is Edmond Dantes. His reasons for this discretion are unclear. The Count has, by now, revealed his identity to Mercedes, Caderousse, and Fernand. He reveals it here to try to convince Morrel that he has a plan in place to help him – that he is not simply a man of society in Paris, but a person with a deep connection to the Morrel family, going back to their days in Marseille.

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CHAPTER 103 MAXIMILIAN

Analysis Maximilien flies into a hysterical rage on hearing the news that his intended, Valentine, is dead. He does this in the presence of Villefort, the doctor, and Noirtier. When Villefort and the doctor ask who Morrel is, and why he has been admitted to the house in which the murder has taken place, Morrel asks Noirtier to confirm that he, Morrel, was engaged to Valentine before her death, and that he loved her dearly. Young Morrel is finally able to reveal to Villefort that he has been in love with Valentine all along, and that the two were to be married. Although Young Morrel believes that Valentine has already died, this admission of their love feels like a victory for him, a confirmation that their love, while it lasted, was real.

CHAPTER 104 DANGLER'S SIGNATURE

The funeral for Valentine commences, and the narrator shifts his attention to a commercial interaction between the Baron Danglars and the Count, who spots him outside his home. The Count says he would like to take up the balance of his initially-requested credit with the Baron, for a sum of 5 million francs, assuming that the Baron has it on hand. The Baron pretends that this is no issue, that he will be able to cash out the receipts the Count holds; but when the Count heads to the Bank of France with these receipts, the Baron is met by Boville, the former inspector of prisons, who is collecting money for a charity hospice. The Count wishes to allow himself the joy of collecting a final amount of money from Danglars that Danglars himself is unable to pay out. This is a mirror and an opposite to the scene far earlier in the text, when the Count, as Lord Wilmore, offers Old Morrel sufficient money to remain open and in business. The Count seems to delight just as much, if not more, in viewing the financial ruin of one family as the financial security of another. It turns out that this hospice also has 5 million francs drawn on the Baron. This rather complex set of banking conversations reduces to the simple fact that the Baron does not have enough money to cover his debts. He is, in fact, bankrupt. The Count of course knows this, but Boville does not yet, and so the Baron tries to maintain his composure with him during their conversation. He tells Boville, headed to the funeral, that he himself will not be going, that he must instead go back to the office. At home, Danglars takes his remaining funds (about 50,000 francs) and his passport and prepares to leave the country as his daughter Eugenie has just done, presumably to avoid financial ruin. Fernand has committed suicide rather than accept public humiliation for the treachery he engaged in overseas. Caderousse has died, not being given the option to atone for his past crimes, after the Count determined that he was fundamentally beyond redemption. But Danglars tries to take his chances abroad, figuring that if he escapes Paris, he at least has a chance of speculating whatever money he retains in another market, with the hope of regaining some of what he's lost.