Napoleon's Selfie Obsession in Egypt
Napoleon's Egyptian Adventure: A Selfie Story
It was the year 1798, and General Napoleon Bonaparte had just landed in Egypt. But this wasn't your typical military campaign. While his troops were busy setting up camp, Napoleon was preoccupied with something far more important: the perfect selfie.
Pyramids and Poses
"The light! The angle!" he exclaimed, adjusting his bicorne hat. He paced before the towering pyramids, his newfangled camera—a bulky contraption he'd insisted on bringing—clutched in his hand. "This needs to be epic!"
His aides watched in amusement as the young general struck pose after pose. One moment he was pointing heroically at the Sphinx, the next he was attempting a casual lean against a camel (which, predictably, didn't cooperate). All for the sake of capturing the perfect moment.
The Rosetta Stone's Accidental Discovery
One sweltering afternoon, while attempting to get a selfie with the setting sun behind a particularly large pyramid, Napoleon stumbled upon a group of his soldiers digging in the sand. "What's this?" he asked, more out of annoyance at the disruption to his photo shoot than genuine curiosity.
"We found a stone, sir," one of the soldiers replied, wiping sweat from his brow. "It's covered in strange writing."
- Bicorne:
- A two-cornered hat, often worn by military officers.
- Rosetta Stone:
- A stone slab inscribed with hieroglyphics and their Greek translations, which helped decode Egyptian writing.
- Archaeological:
- Relating to the study of past peoples and cultures by excavating and examining their remains.
- preoccupied:
- Completely focused on one thing so that you do not notice or pay attention to other things around you.
- contraption:
- A strange, complicated, or unusual machine or gadget.
- sweltering:
- Extremely hot and uncomfortable.
- waned:
- Gradually decreased, weakened, or faded away over time.
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Preview questions from this passageShowHide
- 1Why was Napoleon in Egypt in 1798?
- 2What was Napoleon more interested in than military campaigns?
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About this fiction passage for Middle School
“Napoleon's Selfie Obsession in Egypt” is a fiction reading passage about Historical Fiction, written for Middle School. It takes about 3 minutes to read (385 words) and comes with an interactive quiz and a printable worksheet with comprehension questions and an answer key.