Incarceration In The Count Of Monte Cristo

439 Words1 Page

In the progression of The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas, with the evolution of Edmond Dantès came an ending where justice was found. After spending 14 years in prison, Dantès’ escape brought him into the outside world to find that there were those whose lives flourished and those who suffered greatly. The very people that ensured his incarceration found themselves on top with their wealth and influence. Upon discovering this information he set out to find revenge and justice. For those that tried to help him, he sought and found ways to repay them for their humanity. On the other hand, those who had wronged him received much less hospitality and kindness for their actions. After all, they sent him to prison unjustly and Edmond pursued …show more content…

Once he had set everything right again, the reader feels as though he has softened. This is portrayed through his sudden openness when expressing his emotions, as well as his love for Haydée. While he did not believe himself worthy of being happy again, having done such terrible things to his foes, he realized, “God, who raised me up against my enemies and made me victorious, didn’t want me to have this penance at the end of my victory. I wanted to punish myself, but God wishes to forgive me,” (Dumas 529). In the obligation he felt, he assists the complicated love relationship between the son of a man who helped him on many occasions, Maximilien Morrel, and the daughter of the public prosecutor that gave him his sentence, Valentine de Villefort. In a ruse, Valentine was thought to be dead, and Maximilien was in so much despair that he was willing to kill himself. When Dantès brought him to Marseilles, Maximilien claimed that he should have just stayed in Paris. Dantès’ response was simply, “If I had thought happiness was waiting for you in Paris, Maximilien, I would have left you there,” (Dumas 491). In this way he expresses his love and desire to make Maximilien joyful again.
Through these experiences and adventures, along with an abundance of others entailed in the novel, Dantès learned humility, compassion, and limits of where revenge can

Open Document