Paperback, 894 pages
English language
Published May 10, 1997 by Wordsworth Classics.
The Count of Monte Cristo (French: Le Comte de Monte-Cristo) is an adventure novel written by French author Alexandre Dumas (père) completed in 1844. It is one of the author's more popular works, along with The Three Musketeers. Like many of his novels, it was expanded from plot outlines suggested by his collaborating ghostwriter Auguste Maquet.The story takes place in France, Italy, and islands in the Mediterranean during the historical events of 1815–1839: the era of the Bourbon Restoration through the reign of Louis-Philippe of France. It begins on the day that Napoleon left his first island of exile, Elba, beginning the Hundred Days period when Napoleon returned to power. The historical setting is a fundamental element of the book, an adventure story centrally concerned with themes of hope, justice, vengeance, mercy, and forgiveness. It centers on a man who is wrongfully imprisoned, escapes from jail, acquires a fortune, and …
The Count of Monte Cristo (French: Le Comte de Monte-Cristo) is an adventure novel written by French author Alexandre Dumas (père) completed in 1844. It is one of the author's more popular works, along with The Three Musketeers. Like many of his novels, it was expanded from plot outlines suggested by his collaborating ghostwriter Auguste Maquet.The story takes place in France, Italy, and islands in the Mediterranean during the historical events of 1815–1839: the era of the Bourbon Restoration through the reign of Louis-Philippe of France. It begins on the day that Napoleon left his first island of exile, Elba, beginning the Hundred Days period when Napoleon returned to power. The historical setting is a fundamental element of the book, an adventure story centrally concerned with themes of hope, justice, vengeance, mercy, and forgiveness. It centers on a man who is wrongfully imprisoned, escapes from jail, acquires a fortune, and sets about exacting revenge on those responsible for his imprisonment. Before he can marry his fiancée Mercédès, Edmond Dantès, a nineteen year old Frenchman, and first mate of the Pharaon, is falsely accused of treason, arrested, and imprisoned without trial in the Château d'If, a grim island fortress off Marseille. A fellow prisoner, Abbé Faria, correctly deduces that his jealous rival Fernand Mondego, envious crewmate Danglars, and double-dealing magistrate De Villefort turned him in. Faria inspires his escape and guides him to a fortune in treasure. As the powerful and mysterious Count of Monte Cristo (Italy), he arrives from the Orient to enter the fashionable Parisian world of the 1830s and avenge himself on the men who conspired to destroy him. The book is considered a literary classic today. According to Luc Sante, "The Count of Monte Cristo has become a fixture of Western civilization's literature, as inescapable and immediately identifiable as Mickey Mouse, and the story of Little Red Riding Hood."
I went into this thinking it would be a hard slog. But things just do not stop happening the whole way through.
This book comes from an era where authors existed who could write intrigue correctly. Alexandre Dumas was one of these authors, and this fact is in full force in the Count of Monte Cristo. Everything is connected to the story, to character development, and even the plotting of that unhappy prisoner of the Chateau d'If.
Because of this, it is important to get an unabridged version of this classic. If you, as the reader, thought at any point, 'well, that was superfluous', you are wrong. If, at any time you said to yourself, 'well, this clearly was from a time where the author was paid for the word, not like today, guffaw' and then crack open the 12 volume in the current popular fantasy epic, you have no sense of irony. Understanding that Dumas doesn't waste a word and includes plenty of irony is essential. Edmond Dantes, though acting as …
This book comes from an era where authors existed who could write intrigue correctly. Alexandre Dumas was one of these authors, and this fact is in full force in the Count of Monte Cristo. Everything is connected to the story, to character development, and even the plotting of that unhappy prisoner of the Chateau d'If.
Because of this, it is important to get an unabridged version of this classic. If you, as the reader, thought at any point, 'well, that was superfluous', you are wrong. If, at any time you said to yourself, 'well, this clearly was from a time where the author was paid for the word, not like today, guffaw' and then crack open the 12 volume in the current popular fantasy epic, you have no sense of irony. Understanding that Dumas doesn't waste a word and includes plenty of irony is essential. Edmond Dantes, though acting as the avenging of angel of God, does not ultimately gain satisfaction in his vengeance. He carries it out because he believes he is delivering divine justice. Of course, things go wrong, and innocent people get hurt, people the Count is ultimately unable to save. In a sense, The Count of Monte Cristo can be viewed as a morality tale of what happens when you reject/betray God. Dumas seems to be saying that he does return, and will offer mercy to those who will accept it after he leaves them destitute... but if one does not depart from their wicked ways, they will only be used as tools to satisfy the thirst of righteous fury.
Or it can be read as a great adventure story about revenge, if you want to take everything so literally.
