The Man of Destiny

"The Man of Destiny" is one of Shaw's shorter works, just a one act play, in which we see the mastery of character development that is so common to the playwright's works. The play is an investigation of a young twenty-seven year old general by the name of Napoleon Bonaparte who has yet to achieve the accomplishments for which make him such an important figure in world history. In the play we find him waiting impatiently at an inn on the road between Lodi and Milan for a packet of dispatches to arrive, in which he will discover the truth of a personal betrayal. With rich dialogue and dramatic style Shaw delivers within this short little work a satisfying character study and a portrait of the everyday life of a great man prior to his greatness.