The Count of Monte Christo
The Count of Monte Cristo is a novel by Alexandre Dumas about love, betrayal, jealousy and revenge.
The Count of Monte Cristo offers an unusual reflection on happiness and justice and compensating the past.
Everyone in the story of The Count of Monte Cristo seems to be jealous of Dantes. Fernand Mondego for his love,Baron Danglars for job, Gaspard for his fortune and Gerard for a reason. The four of them plot to rid themselves of Dantes, each benefiting in their own way with Dantes out of the picture.
The four men conspire and Dantes is taken away in secret and imprisoned at Chateau d’If, an inescapable prison.
While in prison, Dantès meets Abbé Faria, who teaches Dantès history, science, philosophy, and languages and also bequeaths to him large treasure hidden on the island of Monte Cristo. Dante manages to escape from the prison and travels to Monte Cristo and finds Faria’s enormous treasure.
Ten years later, Dantès emerges in Rome, calling himself the Count of Monte Crist. None of his old cohorts recognize the mysterious count. Armed with damning knowledge about each of them that he has gathered over the past decade, Dantès sets an elaborate scheme of revenge into motion.
A great story and one of my favorites and must read for all those who love good literature!!
Josei Toda stated with reference to this inspiring work of literature by Dumas and offered a Buddhist perspective:
“Those who perpetrate evil or injustice will without fail receive retribution for their actions in accord with the workings of the law of cause and effect.
That said, it is still imperative that we expose evil, and that we use our anger at injustice toward thoroughly denouncing it and rooting it out. If we permit evil to run rampant, even more people will suffer at its hands. A halfhearted struggle against evil only gives it greater leeway to grow and flourish.
“Anger can be a function of either good or evil” .Anger that springs from good and justice, and is directed at fighting evil and injustice, can produce great good. To oppose extreme evil is an act of extreme good. The greatest “revenge” against evil is for the champions of good to be victorious and for good itself to flourish.”
