I find that longer books are best read with a companion and a pen and paper. After doing multiple buddy reads with Ariel, this is the first time when I am reading a classic with a friend. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas is a well known book, though the reason Clinton got it for me on my birthday last year was because he loves the latest movie adaptation. So far, as I am reading this, I am telling him the story line and at the end of Part 1, he says I am 30 min into the movie. A lot is yet to happen. I am reading this book with my bookstagram friend, Kelly, who is actually reading it in Potuguese. We have not touched on the language aspect in this first part of the book discussion, but I plan to bring it up when we finish the book. My edition is the one translated by Robin Buss.
Since this is not a regular discussion (we still have about 1000 pages to go in the book!), I’m not including the synopsis. The discussion does give an idea about where the story is going with minimum spoilers. Use the Goodreads link below to learn more about the book as a whole.
The Count of Monte Cristo: Goodreads Link
First Published in 1844
Content Notes: Depictions of death, injustice, illness and living in destitute conditions.
The Count of Monte Cristo
Part 1 (Chapters 1-21)
For a 1200 page novel, I am finding The Count of Monte Cristo to be a unique read. In most longer works (non-classics) that I have read, I find at least the first quarter of the book to be a slow start but that is not the case with this book. The first part, consisting of 21 chapters is full of action, fleshing out the key players in the story through events that will have massive repercussions in the characters’ lives.
[Kelly] I don’t think I’ve ever read something this long (except for The Cairo trilogy, which was three books in one). I was happy to see that it isn’t a hard read (I tried to read Anna Karenina and just couldn’t). The first pages were a bit slow, but once you get into the story it flows better.
We meet Dantès who is a nineteen year old sailor. He has just returned to Marseille from a long voyage. On the way, his captain passed away and his dying wish charged Dantès with the mission to deliver a letter to someone in Paris. There are a number of people who are jealous of young Dantès – there is Danglars who does not get along with him and wants to be the captain of the vessel that Dantès might command in the near future. There is also Fernand who is in love with Mercedes, the girl that Dantès is going to marry. While good fortune shines on Dantès, dark clouds start to gather as these self-centred people hatch a plan to get rid of Dantès altogether. No, they are not going to kill him… just get him out of the scene so that his good luck can no longer mean their bad luck.
What they do is pretty much like killing him, because no one hears from him in a long time, until now 14 years.
The first part of The Count of Monte Cristo is a tale about selfishness and self-preservation. There were so many acts in these 200 pages that spoke to how, as humans, we can be happy for others, but at the same time, if given the tools, not think twice to ruin that same person. What I found fascinating was that while Danglars was giving Fernand the idea, he knew that doing something this cruel to a young man would invoke feelings of revenge. That their very act will come back and haunt them in the future.
…but Dantès cannot stay in prison for ever; one day he will come out, and on that day, woe betide the one who put him there!
The Count of Monte Cristo, pg 37
But they did it anyway. What did you think of this, Kelly?
I think they were only thinking about themselves and didn’t think about the consequences, like, you’re sending him to prison, ok, he’ll probably leave someday, but what about his family, the people who love him? And they don’t seem afraid of Dantès leaving prison and coming after them.
The first part covers a span of almost fifteen years, fourteen of which are from Dantès’ time in the island prison of Chateau d’If. Fortunately, he meets the priest, Faria Abbé, who is a learned gentleman. Abbé takes Dantès under his wing and teaches him everything he knows, from languages and history to telling time in their dark cell and creating tools out of nothing. With Abbé’s guidance, Dantès also comes to understand what happened to him the fateful night he was arrested and who all are responsible for his misery.
He decided it was human hatred and not divine vengeance that had plunged him into this abyss.
The Count of Monte Cristo, pg 133 (my favorite page so far)
I liked all the part where Faria teaches Dantès, this friendship may have saved them both (until Faria’s death, I mean)
The time spent in prison by Dantès matures him as well as educates him. He was merely nineteen years old when he was convicted, without a trial or jury, and by the time he escapes, he is thirty-three. The transformation that Dantès goes through is beautifully written and I found so many quotes and insights about life. World War novels have shown me the lengths to which people go when they are put under stress but the truth of the matter is that we don’t have to go to war to learn about ourselves. Terrible terrible luck that puts a man unjustly into prison can be the making of him.
As Abbé aptly explains:
Misfortune is needed to plumb certain mysterious depths in the understanding of men; pressure is needed to explode the charge. My captivity concentrated all my faculties on a single point. They had previously been dispersed, now they clashed in a narrow space; and, as you know, the clash of clouds produces electricity, electricity produces lightning and lightning gives light.
Abbé in The Count of Monte Cristo, pg 160
What were your thoughts on Dantès’ time in prison and his companion, Abbé?
If it were not for each other’s company, I guess they wouldn’t have survived, they would have given up hope and maybe starved to death, which at one point, Dantès was willing to do. It gave both of them hope, if not of leaving, doing something useful with what they shared and learned there.
Historical context is very important in this novel. Set in the early 1800s when Bonaparte was exiled from France, the crime that Dantès is convicted of is connected to Bonaparte, which is why it does not warrant more investigation according to the authorities. Have you read other books set in that timeline?
I’ve read books that mention Bonaparte, but didn’t go deep into history or what happened to him. Ah! I’ve read Waterloo, by Bernard Cornwell, but he focuses on what it was like fighting in that battle.
At the end of Part 1 of The Count of Monte Cristo, Dantès has escaped from the prison. His dear friend is dead and he has two missions – to find the treasure that the Abbé told him about, and to take revenge. But fourteen years have passed. Where are Danglars, Fernand and Villefort, the prosecutor who is responsible for convicting him without a trial? What will he do next? Based on how much happened in this Part 1, I wonder what all will unfold in the next 1000 pages. Is there something in particular you are hoping Part 2 will answer for us?
Definitely how revenge will take place and how he will become the count, I’m curious about everything!! But maybe not everything will be answered in Part 2.
Though this is a slow read for me because I am reading so many other books on the side, I absolutely love the writing. It is so different from the literature that is published nowadays in terms of structure and vocabulary. I keep wanting more!
I’m really happy to be able to read this. I wish sometimes that I could read more slowly, but I just can’t. This discussion will certainly help me remember things better, now I’m remembering part 1 before starting part 2. I’ll try to take some notes (which as you saw on Instagram, is something I don’t usually remember) do I can maybe help you here, I just answered your questions, I feel like you’re doing all the hard work LOL. But I’m learning how these buddy reads can work 🙂 Thanks!!
We will back with the discussion for Part 2. If you plan to read The Count of Monte Cristo and add to our discussion, here are the breakdowns of the parts:
Part 1 – Chapters 1-21
Part 2 – Chapters 22-38
Part 3 – Chapters 39-57
Part 4 – Chapters 58-77
Part 5 – Chapters 78-97
Part 6 – Chapters 98-117
For more book discussions, check out this page. 🙂
Cover Photo by Pika Alyani on Unsplash
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