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Introduction:

The Count of Monte Carlo is a literary novel by Alexander Dumas, published in 1846. It has gained recognition for its historical and fantastical twists. The story follows Edmond Dantès, who gets arrested on his wedding day by his jealous friends. He goes through prison and escapes to the island of Monte Cristo. 

Plot: 

At just nineteen, Edmond Dantès had everything a man could ever want: a successful career as a ship captain, a beautiful fiancée named Mercédès, and the admiration of his friends. However, jealousy stirs among some of his friends, such as Danglars, who envies Dantès’s success, and Fernand, who secretly loves Mercédès. Together, they scheme to accuse Dantès of treason for carrying a letter from Napoleon, even though he has no political beliefs. On his wedding day, he gets arrested. The prosecutor, Villefort, sees through the plot but is forced to imprison Dantès to protect his interests when Dantès mentions the recipient of the letter, Villefort’s father. Sent to the Château d’If, Dantès meets Abbé Faria, a wise priest who teaches him many subjects and tells him about a hidden treasure on Monte Cristo. After Faria dies, Dantès cleverly escapes by hiding in Faria’s clothes and swimming to freedom. Once he finds the treasure, Dantès plans to reward those who helped him and punish those who betrayed him. He disguises himself as Abbé Busoni and returns to Marseilles, where he learns about the fates of his enemies. Ten years later, he reemerges as the wealthy Count of Monte Cristo, seeking revenge. He exposes Fernand’s dark past, leading to Fernand’s disgrace and ultimate suicide. Villefort faces a slow downfall as his wife’s actions and his secrets come to light, driving him insane. Dantès also ruins Danglars by exploiting his greed and leaving him broke. Despite his revenge, Dantès helps Maximilian Morrel, ensuring the happiness of his beloved Valentine Villefort. Ultimately, Dantès finds his happiness with Haydée, starting with a new beginning.

Analysis:

The author shows the unfairness of life through what Dantès went through: the betrayal, the prison, the escape, and the process of his affluence through the island of Monte Carlo. He also showed his generosity and kindness towards Morrel. Even though Morrel avenged Dantès, he still supported him. The novel ends with a happy ending for Dantès, who has suffered and ventured for many years throughout the book. He also had many love interests, as his previous lover was Mercédès, while his love interest at the end was Haydée. The brief introduction of the character, Abbé Faria, doesn’t show an intricate character development of him. However, it can be observed that he was an influential character in Dantès’s escape plan from the prison. He also advised and kept him company through the troubling times in prison. He also shows his wisdom through their conversations in prison. If Abbé Faria were analogized, he would be someone like Jesus or God, for he knew everything and was wise, even the ways to get rich. The themes in this story are hope, determination, and freedom. Dantès portrayed determination through not giving up despite looking at impossible obstacles. He also presented hope since he believed that he could go back to his homeland as a different person to award and punish those accordingly. Freedom was one of the biggest themes in this novel as Dantès awaited his freedom in prison for over fourteen years for something he didn’t do. 

Conclusion: 

The Count of Monte Cristo is one of the most famous literary novels written by Alexander Dumas, published in 1846. It has gained recognition for its historical and fantastical twists over the years. The story follows Edmond Dantès, who gets arrested on his wedding day by his jealous friends. He goes through prison and escapes to the island of Monte Cristo. He ends up returning to Marseilles and learns the fate of his friends who betrayed him. He eventually achieves a happy ending, meeting a love interest and punishing those who had betrayed him. The novel shares three major themes: hope, determination, and freedom. Dantès represents all three of these throughout the book, such as freedom from prison and his desire and hope to go back to his homeland.