What popular conceptions about Antoinette does Erickson try to dispel? Is she successful?

Could Louis and Antoinette have avoided their fate? How?

How does Erickson portray the French nobility and their lifestyle?

Adultery appears to have been common in Antoinette's social circle. In what light does Erickson cast Antoinette's own affair with Axel Ferson?

What were the political conditions that led up to the French Revolution according to Erickson? Did Antoinette play any role in them?

How does Erickson depict Antoinette as a mother? How does she compare to her own mother, Queen Maria Theresa?

How does Antoinette face her final fate in Erickson's account? Is Antoinette courageous?