Also thinking about when Dumas was living, he was in an odd epoch where the old guard had come back to power after the French Revolution. The upper classes had every thing to prove and desperately wanted to keep the lower classes down so were insisting on status things like language. Dumas himself was not that secure underneath either with his father being metisse and himself being illegitimate.

Interestingly there is still a class of 'bourgeois' who live like that here. They have arranged marriages between them selves and still use very formalised language. They also keep the divisions between themselves of what lineage you come from too. There has been a move against it, especially by young women who can be living in very restricted circles with limited life options. Somewhat easier for guys of course who have the mistress option.

I didn't realise that he was writing for magazines just like Dickens, so like someone on this thread said about no wasted chapters, when you publish in episodes you have to keep up a certain pace every single time. No wonder he wrote a ripping yarn.