Ruth Scurr: belief

Transcript context

…What do you think of the common criticism of Napoleon that he lacked diplomatic talent and always had to make up for that with battlefield advantage? I think that’s part of the anti-Napoleonic group. He’s a very divisive figure. You’re going to have people who attempt to diminish him. That would be one way: to say, “This guy is basically some kind of yawp; he can’t negotiate. He doesn’t even have great French. Therefore he has to start going for battles.” I don’t think that’s right. I think he absolutely does diplomacy. You could argue that a lot of the battles are started by other people, not necessarily by him. But what we’re hitting here the moment we bring his name up is the very, very polarized attitudes to him. Now, if we view Napoleon’s life through his gardens, which is a main theme in your new book, Napoleon: A Life Told in Gardens and Shadows, what do we learn about Napoleon that we don’t learn by viewing Napoleon through the lens of his artistic emissions: David, Canova, many others. What’s the difference?…

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