The Count of Monte Cristo Anticipation Guide

People who are too trusting deserve whatever they get if someone takes advantage of them. If you are innocent of any crime, but put in jail, it is not wrong to escape from jail. Wives whose husbands are missing for a long time or are presumed dead should definitely get married again, if the opportunity presents itself. Even if someone hurts you or your family, you should always let the law take care of them and not try to get revenge yourself. If you find buried treasure, you should be allowed to keep it, even if the person who buried it shows up and tries to claim it.

The Count of Monte Cristo Background Information

The Author Alexandre Dumas was born July 24, 1802 as a third child of a French revolutionary general. He took part in the revolution in 1830 that placed the Duc d’Orleans on the French throne, as King Louis Philippe. He wrote hugely successful plays and produced many travel books of his travels in Switzerland and Italy. During the 1840’s, he wrote a series of romanticized historical novels designed to teach French history. Some of those novels were The Three Musketeers, The Man in the Iron Mask, and The Count of Monte Cristo. In his lifetime, he wrote over 300 volumes, including plays and novels. He married two of his mistresses and had two children, one from each mistress. He died on Dec. 5, 1870 of a stroke.

The History in The Count of Monte Cristo

Napoleon and French History French Revolution – 1789 Result of such acts as France becoming a republic (1792) & King Louis XVI beheaded (1793) Napoleon Bonaparte rises to power. Seizes control of France in Declares himself emperor in 1804 April of 1814, Napoleon abdicated the throne and was exiled to the island of Elba. Louis XVIII ascended to the French throne, restoring the Bourbon dynasty and bringing about the First Restoration.

Napoleon remained on Elba for only ten months, when he escaped and landed with 1, 100 men near Cannes on March 1, Napoleon crosses the Alps and marched on Paris where Louis XVIII fled. However, Napoleon was defeated in battle by the British general, Wellington, at the battle of Waterloo in June of Napoleon was only in power for 100 days. He was sent into exile to the Island of St. Helena where he died six years later. Louis XVIII returned to the French throne, known as the Second Restoration and persecuted those who had helped Napoleon during his return (supporters called Bonapartists - now considered traitors).

The Inspiration for the Story

Alexandre Dumas felt affects of Napoleon’s reign. His father was a General in Napoleon’s army, fell out of favor, was poisoned, imprisoned, and died young leaving the Dumas family in poverty. Heard stories of father’s wild adventures and triumphs spawning imagination and love for adventure and heroes.

Francois Picaud Dumas found a memoir written by a Jacques Peuchet which related the story of a shoemaker named Francois Picaud. Picaud was living in Paris in 1807 and engaged to marry a rich woman. Four jealous friends falsely accused him of being a spy for England. He was imprisoned for seven years, during which a dying fellow prisoner bequeathed him a treasure hidden in Milan. When Picaud was released in 1814, he took possession of the treasure, returned to Paris under another name, and spent ten years plotting successful revenge against his former friends. After he had gained all of his revenge, he was taken prisoner by a former friend and forced to pay 25,000 francs for each meal. However, the kidnapper ended up going into a rage and beating Francois by strangling him, stabbing his eyes with a knife, and cutting open his chest.

Facts About the Novel

Author’s Purpose & Historical Influence: – Considered historical fiction – Uses historical facts as a canvas on which to place fictional characters and plot. – Dumas’ goal was to teach French people their historical heritage. – Novel discusses European societal customs as they were during that time and earlier. – Novel begins in Effects of Napoleon’s reign play a role in the plot. Written during the Age of Romanticism – People rejected science and reason. – Focused more on nature, emotion, individual experience (ideas considered “rebellious”).

The Book… The book was originally published in serial form with cliff-hanger endings. People would wait in long lines to buy the latest installment. It took him 18 installments and two years to publish the entire book. Within a few months, the novel was translated into ten languages. The book is acclaimed as one of the most popular novels ever written, usually ranking in the top ten novels of all time. The book has been described as the “greatest revenger’s tragedy in the whole history of the novel” (Hemmings). Avriel H. Goldberger states about The Count of Monte Cristo that it ranks with the great revenge stories of all time, but states: “This is not because Monte Cristo has equal merit as a work of art or as a probe of the psyche, but because it speaks so powerfully to our need to fantasize impossible victories of the individual against injustice.”