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Art was used during the French Revolution to pursue a frank political agenda, including creating a martyr of an assassinated hero of the revolution. Marat is shown here murdered in his bath, assassinated by a rival revolutionary Charlotte Corday (member of the Girondins). Marat suffered from a skin disease and bathed frequently for relief. He saw visitors in his bath and is holding in his hand a fraudulent letter of introduction. He was a radical journalist for the Jacobins, David's party. The wound and dagger are of minimal importance in the painting. There is little blood, and the skin ailment is invisible. Instead we see a spiritual and noble Marat in an austere setting, a hero of the revolution.
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