Past exam of the geometry course of the University of Oxford / 2007 / B / 6 / ii

Bézout's theorem says that two projective plane curves over $\mathbb{C}$ of degrees $d,e$ with no common irreducible component have total intersection multiplicity $de$, so at most $de$ distinct intersection points. Let the irreducible curve have reduced homogeneous equation $F$ of positive degree $d$. In characteristic zero some partial derivative is nonzero. For $d>1$ this derivative has degree $d-1$ and cannot share a component with the irreducible degree-$d$ polynomial $F$. Every singular point belongs to their intersection. Bézout bounds their number by $d(d-1)$, proving there are finitely many singular points. For $d=1$ a partial is a nonzero constant and there are none.