The Great Submission

David, Jacques-Louis. Bonaparte franchissant le Grand-Saint-Bernard. 1801. Musée national du château de Malmaison, Rueil-Malmaison.

Growing up, I was obsessed with Ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome. Every Christmas, my parents would give me encyclopedias where mythical empires and historical figures came to life, ruling, warring, and enacting humankind’s e…