Monte Cristo Notes- Religion

Rossi, 1
Michael Rossi
September 9, 2009
Advanced Placement English Language
Prepare a page of notes on The Count of Monte Cristo:1 page of notes on Dantes playing the role of God. Post to blogs and have a typed sheet to hand in. Have quotes for support.

Notes
Throughout much of the text Edmond Dantes had believed that the riches given to him by Abbe Faria was actually a weapon given to him from in God in order for Dantes to extract vengeance upon those who had harmed him and to bless those who were true to him before his days in the Chateau D’if. Dantes’ mindset began with him taking his vow of vengeance: “This treasure […] doubled its value in his eyes; daily would he expatiate on the amount, holding forth to Dantes’ face would darken, for the oath of vengeance he had taken would come into his mind, and he was occupied with the thought of how much harm a man could do to his enemies in modern times with a fortune of thirteen or fourteen million (115).This vow led Dantes to believe that his life roll as an avenger was chosen by God.
Dantes became the Count of Monte Cristo and carried out all of what he believed to be his divine tasks. The Count emanated an aura of perfection and eloquence. The Count made a firm effort to squash any signs of his imperfection, however dealing with his long, lost love proved to be too overbearing for Dantes and his knees buckled under the weight: “Then his plans were frustrated at the eleventh hour through no action on his part; now, just as his schemes for revenge were materializing, he must relinquish them for ever, solely because he had no reckoned with one factor-his love for Mercedes” (567). Mercedes proved to be the single crack in Dantes’ armor, forcing the pain of humanity back into Dantes life. Other schemes of vengeance were foiled by Mercedes influence. Very soon it was not only those whom Edmond loved that pulled him back to humanity, but his enemies whom the Count had set out to destroy. This is best
Rossi, 2
demonstrated when the count reached a realization of his cruelty when he was wreaking havoc on the house of Noirtier: “Realizing that he had passed beyond the bounds of vengeance, he felt he could no longer say: ‘God is for me and with me.’ With an expression of indescribable anguish, he threw himself on the child’s body, opened his eyes, felt his pulse, and, rushing with him into valentine’s room, locked the door” (475). It took the count a moment to step back to rise above himself and view the situation as the count should have viewed it, as the humble Edmond Dantes.