8. Marie DuPlessis’s tragic death became a literary inspiration
In February 1847, 23-year-old French courtesan Marie Duplessis died of tuberculosis, alone and in debt. Marie had been the lover of several famous men, including Alexandre Dumas the younger. However, her tragic death at such a young age somehow captured the imagination of Paris, and the dead Marie became a muse. Within a year of her death, her former lover Dumas had made her the heroine of his novel, La Dame aux Camelias. The book, in its turn, became a play, making Dumas a great deal of money and ensuring Marie’s immortality.
