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Revenge in literature
Revenge in world literature
Essay on the theme of revenge
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George Sand once stated, “There is only one happiness in this life, to love and be loved.” Is true love always happiness? The book titled The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas explores this idea in its subtle, yet crucial theme of love. Every character in the book gets a glimpse, if not a lasting look at love, yet this theme is often overlooked because to some it seems the theme of true adoration is never fully realized. As mentioned, the theme of love is often overlooked in the story of The Count of Monte Cristo, yet for two young characters it is quite evident. These characters go by the names of Maximilien and Valentine. Their love is one of strong romance, unbreakable by any force. Valentine is arranged to marry someone other than …show more content…
The Count loved a woman named Mercedes, but when he is betrayed by his enemies and sentenced to a life in prison Mercedes moves on without him. This is a case where it is believed that love is tossed aside, and has no importance in the book, yet both of those characters end up finding some sort of more true love. For the Count, this attachment isn’t realized for a long time as he is caught up in constant revenge. This romance is not blissful, nor easy, yet it is found at the end of the story, where it is most important. On page 528 of the novel, the Count solemnly gives up on life, stating that Haydée, the woman who he has come to feel for, will now be alone in the world: “Hayée! Hayée! You’re young, you’re beautiful; forget me and be happy.” Haydée’s response is as follows, “Very well, your orders will be carried out: I will forget you and be happy.” Valentine then interrupts and brings to light the obvious affection and sacrifice that each would give for one another. The Count asks, “‘Hayée, would you be happy to stay with me?’ ‘I’m young,’ replied Haydée softly; ‘I love the life you’ve always made so sweet for me and I’d regret it if I had to die.’ ‘Do you mean that if I left you -’ ‘I’d die, yes.’ ‘Then you love me?’ ‘Oh Valentine, he asks if I love him! Tell him if you love Maximilien!’” Though late to be realized, another true theme of affection is found in the …show more content…
Benedetto was given love by foster parents, yet he refused it for smuggling. Caderousse gives up marriage for riches. Fernand is consumed by greed. Danglars is concerned with power, and none of these characters are happy in the end. This is partially because of the works of the Count of Monte Cristo in his revenge. This brings up the point that maybe love was taken from these men as a revenge, therefore they are left lost and unhappy. The Count of Monte Cristo is often viewed as a story of revenge, not love, yet love is an essential theme to the story. The book points out that happiness doesn’t come through revenge, but love. Nearly every character gets a chance at love and joy, though not every circumstance is a happy one. Just as love is important to many people, whether it be the kind of romance, a mother, or a family, it is salient in The Count of Monte
There are many forces in the tragic play of Romeo and Juliet that are keeping the two young, passionate lovers apart, all emanating from one main reason. In this essay I will discuss these as well as how love, in the end, may have been the cause that led to the tragic deaths of Romeo and Juliet. Their strong attraction to each other, which some call fate, determines where their forbidden love will take them.
Many hearts are drawn to history's greatest love stories, such as Romeo and Juliet, Bonnie and Clyde, and Helen and Paris to name a few. One could argue that humanity’s way of finding happiness is to seek love. Pure, unadulterated love is one of the hardest feelings to acquire, but when one does, they’d do anything to keep it. Through Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter and his characters, Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale, readers discover that this innate desire to be accepted and loved is both our most fatal flaw and our greatest virtue.
Love is dependent upon the slightest change, but it can cause the utmost drastic consequences. This is the truth of two lovers in William Shakespeare’s furthermost celebrated play, The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet. In the case of Romeo and Juliet, love is inimical. Romeo comes from the family of Montague while Juliet comes from the family of Capulet. For reasons unknown, these two families are sworn enemies. However, Romeo and Juliet are not. In fact, they are in a secret relationship that only two others know about. The only two that Romeo and Juliet trust, the Nurse and the Friar. While the Nurse, Friar, and Juliet’s father, Lord Capulet, all have good intentions, they are all responsible for the suicides of Romeo and Juliet in the
Throughout the history of literature, love has always played a large role in plot because it is a feeling that is universally shared by all humans and has been throughout human history. Spanish culture specifically, tends to be a culture more associated with romance and love than others. It is no surprise that because of this high importance placed on love and romance in Spanish culture that many Spanish authors and playwrights incorporate some form of love into all of their works. Lope De Vega was no exception and was one of the most famous playwrights of his time during the Spanish Golden Age. Something that makes Lope’s plays, specifically some of his unpublished ones such as Fuenteovejuna and Punishment Without Revenge so interesting is not the presence of perfect, harmonious love but rather of corrupt and distorted love within the characters’ relationships in his plays. By writing plays involving imperfect love, Lope comments on the culture around love and marriage of his time and even criticizes it, something Spanish audiences during this time were not ready to handle, which is the reason why some of these plays were never published until recently.
Holden’s love life distinctly reflects that of Salinger’s, as he strays from the orthodox motivations of society and hopelessly seeks a steadfast relationship. After physically fighting with Stradlater over his impulsive actions toward Jane, Holden ponders the sincerity of his intentions in having intercourse with her. He disapproves of Stradlater’s careless motives and discovers his personal desire for a long-lasting romantic bond as he states, “I just kept laying there on Ely's bed, thinking about Jane and all. It just drove me stark staring mad when I thought about her and Stradlater parked somewhere in that fat-assed Ed Banky's car. Every time I thought about it, I felt like jumping out the window” (Salinger 26-27). Using a reflective tone, Holden recognizes his desire for a sincere relationship through his shock and
The Lais of Marie de France is a compilation of short stories that delineate situations where love is just. Love is presented as a complex emotion and is portrayed as positive, while at other times, it is portrayed as negative. The author varies on whether or not love is favorable as is expressed by the outcomes of the characters in the story, such as lovers dying or being banished from the city. To demonstrate, the author weaves stories that exhibit binaries of love. Two distinct types of love are described: selfish and selfless. Love is selfish when a person leaves their current partner for another due to covetous reasons. Contrarily, selfless love occurs when a lover leaves to be in a superior relationship. The stark contrast between the types of love can be analyzed to derive a universal truth about love.
In one of William Shakespeare’s most renowned and celebrated plays, the story of a General named Othello unravels in tragic form as he falls victim to the lies created by Iago. Once revered as a war hero and wed to the beautiful Desdemona, Othello’s life spirals downward with the untimely death of his beloved in his own hands, ultimately ending with his own demise. Love is the force behind this tragedy. Tragedy is the main driving force that brings happiness and tragedy to the characters within the play. But even as such a prominent force, it lacks clear definition. Love has a different meaning to the characters in the play. Characters like Othello, Desdemona, and Iago all have different perspectives on love, which informs their behavior in different ways.
Cottino-Jones sums up love and the community in this story in her book. She says, "the lovers in this books are constantly faced with violence, death and isolation when their affairs come into conflict with society’s rigid behavior codes "(Cottino-Jones, 79). Lack of communication and social factors made everyone in the story unhappy or dead.
At the Capulet feast, Romeo and Juliet’s first kiss is interrupted by the nurse, who warns that he is the only son of her family’s worst enemy. The contradictory ideas of “only love” and “only hate” are expressed in a paradox that signifies the grave consequences of Juliet’s love.
A life changing journey is taken as Jean Valjean, Cosette and Marius feel the emotion of love and learn to cope with its effects. Each character soon realizes that the effects of love are very powerful. Happiness, self-confidence, and depression are all found during the enduring journey. Studies have proven that, “...without love we die...” (B). Jean Valjean, Cosette, and Marius realize that they can not survive without experiencing the profound effects of love.
“Don’t waste your love on someone who doesn’t value it.” In the play Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare exposes the life of two young lovers in the Renaissance period fighting for something they cannot live without; each other. Although fate takes its toll, the everlasting feud between two families, conditional love by parents, and the irresponsibility’s of father and mother like figure are the main causes in the death of Romeo and Juliet. The idea of love is something that is valued in this play from many different aspects of characters, lines, and scenes. Shakespeare leaves the minds of readers soaring over not why it happened, but who was at fault.
From the beginning of fiction, authors have constantly exploited the one topic that is sure to secure an audience: love. From the tragic romance of Tristan and Isolde to the satirical misadventures in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, literature seems obsessed with deciphering the mysteries of affection. The concept most debated is the question of where the line falls between lust and love and what occurs when the two are combined, and few portray it more clearly than Edmund Rostand in his French drama Cyrano de Bergerac. The influence of fickle physical attraction and deep romantic love on each other are explored by the interactions of the four main characters: De Guiche, Christian, Roxane, and Cyrano.
...rays three themes of love. First of all, the character of the Chauvelin exhibited a great love for his country, even if it meant dying for it. In addition, the type of family love resided between Marguerite and her brother, even though parting separate ways, where their love is described on page 45 as, “the same deep, intense love.” Lastly, Marguerite and Percy’s relationship showed the intimate love of another person, between a couple. Overall, this book renders the different types of love, which leaves the reader yearning to follow the character’s good examples. In-between the lines, this beautiful story weaves a charming picture of true love and what the consequences of such feelings may behold, either good or bad. Analyzing love may sound sappy, but in the long run, will help individuals personally decided which relationships to keep or liberate themselves from.
In The Lais of Marie de France, the theme of love is conceivably of the utmost importance. Particularly in the story of Guigemar, the love between a knight and a queen brings them seemingly true happiness. The lovers commit to each other an endless devotion and timeless affection. They are tested by distance and are in turn utterly depressed set apart from their better halves. Prior to their coupling the knight established a belief to never have interest in romantic love while the queen was set in a marriage that left her trapped and unhappy. Guigemar is cursed to have a wound only cured by a woman’s love; he is then sent by an apparent fate to the queen of a city across the shores. The attraction between them sparks quickly and is purely based on desire, but desire within romantic love is the selfishness of it. True love rests on a foundation that is above mere desire for another person. In truth, the selfishness of desire is the
Love has been expressed since the beginning of time; since Adam and Eve. Each culture expresses its love in its own special way. Though out history, though, it’s aspect has always been the same. Love has been a major characteristic of literature also. One of the most famous works in literary history is, Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. This story deals with the love of a man and a woman who’s families have been sworn enemies. There love surpassed the hatred in which the families endured for generations. In the end they both ended up killing their selves, for one could not live without the other. This story is a perfect example of true love.