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Reflection about the count of monte cristo
Reflection about the count of monte cristo
The count of monte cristo critical analysis
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Abraham Lincoln once said,“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.” In the song, Viva la Vida, written by Coldplay, alludes to the French Revolution and King Louis XVI. The song highlights Louis XVI’s power which led to his beheading. Similarly, The Count of Monte Cristo, a classic work of fiction by Alexandre Dumas, illustrates the life of Edmond Dantes, a young sailor who is falsely imprisoned. Once he escapes, he inherits a vast fortune which in turn gives him power, and he uses these tools to get revenge on his enemies who imprisoned him. After he hurts many people who were innocent Edmond, now the Count of Monte Cristo, begins to feel a sense of regret and guilt. The book concludes …show more content…
by Edmond desiring a fresh start, leaving Paris and his power behind. In both Viva la Vida and the Count of Monte Cristo, the songwriter and author use plot and diction to establish the idea that those who are given extreme power will change, whether it be their personality, ideas, or even identity. While both the song and novel implement many different literary elements, the use of plot is highlighted throughout both of these works. In Viva la Vida, Coldplay sings, “I used to rule the world, seas would rise when I gave the word, now in the morning I sleep alone, sweep the streets I used to own... One minute I held the key, next the walls were closed on me...I know Saint Peter won’t call my name” (Lines 1-4 and 10-11 and 46-47) These lines promote the idea that Louis XVI or the un-named king in this case, once had unlimited power, which represents the exposition, but then lost it all, which represents the rising action. He now feels dismal and rejected by his kingdom which represents the climax. The falling action/resolution is when the king acknowledges that Saint Peter, the gatekeeper of heaven won’t let him in because of his bad character/acts while he was in power. The Count of Monte Cristo, being a novel, has a clearly defined plot. However, a particular scene highlights the use of plot in this piece of writing. From pages 184 to 189, Bertuccio, the Count’s servant, shares his story with the Count. He explained to the Count, “...and I have only one thing to say to you: I’m going to kill you [Villefort, one of the count’s enemies and the public prosecutor]. From this moment I declare a vendetta against you.” This is the rising action in Bertuccio’s tale. It is already clear that Villefort let his power make him insensitive and hurt Bertuccio in some way. However, later in the story, Bertuccio says,”...I discovered that he made mysterious trips to Auteuil, to this very house...I saw a beautiful young woman walking in the garden. I saw immediately that she was pregnant and that her pregnancy was very far advanced... My hatred became mixed with curiosity and I decided to wait and see what Villefort was doing. After a while I saw him take out a box...I dug up the box, took it and ran...Inside it [the box] I saw a newborn baby whose...face showed that it must have been smothered to death.” This shows that if Villefort had been less powerful, he might not have killed his baby. Because he wanted to keep his job and standing in society, he knew he could not be seen with an illegitimate child, so he killed the baby. This contributes to the plot of the overall novel because it adds to the suspense of what the Count will do to incite his revenge on his enemies, and helps the reader continue to see Villefort as an enemy who deserves justice. Besides the use of plot, Coldplay and Dumas both implement the literary element of diction into their pieces.
In Viva la Vida, lines 27 through 28 say, “ People couldn’t believe what I’ve become.” This line blatantly tells the reader/listener that because of the king’s power, he changed in such a way that his subjects and the people around him saw an extreme change occur in him. In the Count of Monte Cristo, there is a similar transformation. The conversation between the Count and Villefort is a perfect example of the change that has happened to Dante's,”...you are unable to see those men whom God has placed above kings and ministers by giving them a mission to fulfill, rather than a position to occupy.” “And do you regard yourself as one of these extraordinary beings?”, asked Villefort…”Yes I’m one of them,” said the Count of Monte Cristo coldly…”You say you fear nothing but death? He [Villefort] asked. “I didn’t say I feared it; I said that it alone could stop me” Before Edmond was sent to prison, he was innocent and content with the world. He believed he had no enemies. Now, as the Count, he clearly sees his enemies and he considers himself an “extraordinary being”-an agent of God whose purpose is to bring justice to his enemies. While Edmond once was forgiving, he is now out for vengeance which he will fulfill with his acquired
power. On the whole, power is something that man people try to acquire, however, once they have, they may find themselves a changed person- often for the worse. In Viva la Vida we see that because the ruler let his power change him, he eventually experienced ultimate failure. In the Count of Monte Cristo, we see that those in power will do nearly anything to keep it, and those who came to power have changed their goals and ideals. As Abraham Lincoln said, adversity and troubles can be handled, but power is a way to truly test a person’s character.
One of the major themes of Alexandre Dumas’s book ‘The Count of Monte Cristo’ is the theme of despair and loss of hope. This theme is shown through many different characters and their struggles throughout the book. I think that this is an important theme because all though the book follows The Count of Monte Cristo through him seeking out vengeance, everything can be lead back to despair and the loss of hope. First, the Dantes family goes through loss of despair and loses hope many times throughout the novel.
In this book, The Count of Monte Cristo, many readers find the use of honesty in the novel to be problematic. The Count of Monte Cristo or in other words Dantes, is dishonest by lying to everyone about who he is. Because he was in prison for such a long time, his looks changed and when he got out no one knew who he was.
In the Count of Monte Cristo directed by Kevin Reynolds Edmond Dantes is betrayed, deceived and imprisoned. After many years of mentorship Dantes gains the skills he needs to seek his revenge. Dantes is motivated through betrayal and anger seeks his well deserved, justified revenge.
"Power tends to corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely" - Lord Action. In "The Crucible" composed by Arthur Miller control, power, fear and greed were the main factors that began the Salem witch trails. Power brings out the true nature of a person and we see that happening to Abigail throughout the play. That brings me to my next point fear, Abigail used the fear of accusing people of being witches to gain power and control. It all started with Abigail misunderstanding lust for love. John Proctor thought softly of her and she began dreaming of replacing his wife willing to go to any needs necessary.
Is the main message of Dracula, by Bram Stoker really about the exploitation of powers and how they affect Victorian People’s lives?
American author John Steinbeck once said, “Power does not corrupt. Fear corrupts - perhaps the fear of loss of power”. As seen in Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, people of authority can feel pressured to go along with actions or make decisions they know are wrong because they fear losing their power and influence in society. They also tend to let to their opinions and motives impact their work and responsibility to make competent decisions. The Crucible demonstrates how people of authority, like Parris and Danforth, try to use good judgement to make fair decisions, but are often influenced by their own personal opinions whether they realize it or not.
As the adolescents wail in their pretentious horror of a fictional bird, Proctor slowly realizes the conformation that Satan has entered Salem. Arthur Miller’s tragic allegory, The Crucible, shows the destruction of sinister Salem in 1692. The protagonist, John Proctor, a damnable farmer, has a lecherous affair with the antagonist, Abigail Williams, an ignorant and covetous juvenile. Satan mixes their interior motives to manufacture a catastrophic concoction. The ingredients of destruction consist of selfishness, immaturity, and corruption. The voracious desires of the natives of Salem lead to their evil and self-indulged intentions.
Macbeth is less than ecstatic. "Good sir, why do you start, and seem to fear /
Even after four hundred years, Shakespeare's plays still continue to resonate with modern audiences. This is because Shakespeare's plays explore universal themes which still remain relevant in today's society. In Macbeth, Shakespeare dramatically explores how one man's excessive ambition and greed for power led him to tyranny and absolute destruction. The ideas explored in Macbeth still remain relevant in the contemporary world where individuals can get tempted by wealth and power and forget all sense of moral direction.
It is in human nature that the more power one desires the more corrupt actions one must do to attain it. In Shakespeare’s tragedy of Macbeth, a Scottish noble's craving for power leads him to do terrible deeds that leads to his demise. Shakespeare shows that power corrupts by using Macbeth who corrupts under the thought of have power over others. Macbeth becomes corrupt under the thought of becoming king and gaining almost complete control over the people that he rules. Macbeth wants the power badly enough to do horrible deeds such as commit regicide. Lady Macbeth becomes very ambitious and allows herself to become seduced to the idea of becoming Queen. Her ruthlessness urges Macbeth to commit regicide by questioning his love for her and his own manhood.
Power and Authority in The Crucible While viewing The Crucible by Arthur Miller, I noticed the most primary themes seemed to be the theme of power and authority. Not only are the girls who claim witchery able to abuse the system, but the townsfolk who accuse witchery are using the mass hysteria in order to obtain what they desire. In the play/book, the characters have a common fear.
The phrase “Sooner or later; The good are rewarded and the wicked are punished” (Dumas pg. 97), captures the the counts goals of not rushing or giving up and letting time work for you. Not giving up and taking control of his life has lead the count to reaching his goals. In the beginning of the book, Dantes was swimming through the waters outside of Chateau u d'If is noted of having the, "The presence of mind to hold his breath and rip open the sack”(Dumas pg. 80). This show how Dantes determination and effort lead to him getting the revenge on the bad men in his life. The use of diction in The Count of Monte Cristo gives examples of how preserving through the bad parts of life can lead people to their
In “The Count of Monte Cristo,” Villefort is carefully described as, “... ambitious. He would sacrifice anything to his ambition, even his own father.” (Dumas 36) This description from the king of France portrays that Monsieur Villefort is a man who will do anything for power. This comes back to hurt him in the end, when all the “sacrifice” for the ambition comes to the surface and he is exposed for all the wrong he had done in the name of power. The diction chosen by the king, “sacrifice anything” shows that Villefort is willing to gain his power by any means necessary, even by disowning his own father and lying about Edmund to further his power. In “Viva la Vida,” the song describes the way the king ruled as, “... Never an honest word, And that was when I ruled the world.” (Coldplay 21-22) This quote uses diction, saying the king was dishonest and never told the truth with the quote, “never an honest word.” This quote portrays that the king used lies and deception to gain more power and rule more and more. These lies, like most lies, came out in the end and he was stripped of the power he lied and did evil for. In conclusion, both Dumas’ and the songwriter use diction to show the lies and deception Villefort and the king from “Viva la Vida” use to quench their desire for power, however, the literary works always show where the
The novel, The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas is heavily influenced by Dumas’ own life. Dumas’ upbringing was an essential key in creating the characters of the story. Him and many people involved in his early life are extremely similar to the characters of the novel. Also, many events from his life helped to shape the story. His upbringing during the French revolution set the background for the novel that takes place in post-revolutionary France.
The story’s The Blessings, and The Mount of Monte Cristo In the story Monte Cristo, a man who is in jail hears very strange noises that he does not understand where they are coming from. The man’s name is Edmond Dantes. The noise continued for hours and he did not know what it was. After a while he figured it was the idea that haunts all prisoners, that idea is liberty.