Discovering Justice and Revenge in The Count of Monte Cristo

As John Ford, an American film director, once said, 'Revenge proves its own executioner.' In other words, one who seeks revenge often entangles themself so deep they end up doing more harm than good. In Alexandre Dumas’s novel, The Count of Monte Cristo, Dantès is taken advantage of by people he thought to be his friends. He was accused of committing a crime he didn't commit by his supposed friends, and was imprisoned for many years because of the accusation and because it would benefit his prosecutor if he did so. He comes to the realization that the justice system will do nothing to aid him and that he has to take justice into his own hands. However, Dantès’s view of justice is filled with his hatred towards his enemies, and therefore justice to him is more like revenge. While Dantès does successfully achieve his revenge, it isn't without a hefty price. Through Dantès, his story, and the mistakes he made, the lesson of the importance of forgiveness is conveyed.

As Dantès was taken advantage of by people he thought to be his friends, he seeks to bestow justice upon them, but his definition of justice is closer to revenge. Danglars, envious of Dantès’s position as captain of the ship, The Pharaon, wrote a letter providing proof and reason to arrest Dantès. Fernand, envious of Mercédès’s love for Dantès, delivered the letter written by Danglars to the public prosecutor. Villefort, a greedy judge with evil intent and ambitions, gave the order to have Dantès imprisoned even though Dantès did nothing that could warrant his confinement. These three people presumed to be friends by Dantès took advantage of him, leading Dantès to seek revenge against them. Abbe Faria, Dantes's prison inmate who helped him escape from prison, reveals the nefarious intents of the three presumed friends behind Dantès's arrest, and then states, 'I regret having helped you clarify your past and having told you what I did... Because I've instilled in your heart a feeling that wasn't there before: vengeance'. Abbe Faria realizes too late that by helping Dantès uncover the reasons behind his imprisonment, he changed Dantès from an innocent sailor into a being driven purely by vengeance. The phrase 'instilled in your heart' conveys that who Dantès is as a person is completely changed. However, Abbe Faria was not the only person to perceive that Dantès's quest for vengeance changed him. As Monte Cristo, one of Dantes's many aliases, states to Villefort, 'I have always heard of Providence, yet I have never seen it or anything resembling it, which makes me think it does not exist. I want to be Providence, for the greatest, the most beautiful and the most sublime thing I know of in this world is to reward and punish'. Monte Cristo realizes and embraces the drive for revenge ingrained in himself. The term 'sublime' shows that the most important thing to him is rewarding those who didn't betray him and achieving his vengeance against those who did. It reveals that if he had all the power in the world and could essentially do anything he wanted, remunerating and acquiring his vengeance would be the two most important things to him. He acknowledges the lack of existence of a God, leading to him discerning the only way for him to acquire his vengeance is to act on it himself in place of God. This further shows how he views it as necessary for him to punish those who wronged him.

While Dantès was successful in attaining his revenge, it didn't come without a price. Dantès might have been able to bankrupt Danglars, drive Villefort to the edge of insanity, and push Fernand to committing suicide, but in doing so he hurt many innocent lives along the way. As Dantès states to Danglars while confronting him about his wrongdoings, 'I'm the man you betrayed and dishonored, the man whose fiancèe you prostituted, the man on whom you trod on the way to fortune, the man whose father you caused to die of hunger, the man you condemned to die of hunger but who now forgives you because he himself needs to be forgiven: I am Edmond Dantès!' Dantès states that he himself needs to be forgiven, proving that while he was able to punish Danglars, he made decisions and actions along the way he now regrets. By forgiving Danglars even after acknowledging all the wrongdoings Danglars committed against him, it further shows that Dantès realizes his mistakes and is even trying to repent for them. As Monte Cristo states, 'Having arrived at the summit of his vengeance after his slow and tortuous climb, he had looked down into the abyss of doubt.' Monte Cristo acknowledges he has finally achieved his vengeance after much perseverance. However, by stating that he looked down into the abyss of doubt shows that he had second thoughts about whether vengeance was the right choice. It demonstrates how he realizes the lives he hurt in his quest, such as little Edward, were worth more than his vengeance, and how he regrets his hunt for vengeance. Also, the use of the terms 'summit' and 'slow and tortuous' demonstrates how Dantes was severely affected, drained, and mentally afflicted by his quest for vengeance, but by still being able to realize his actions were wrong even after taking into account how drained and mentally afflicted he was shows how who Dantes is as a person truly changed from someone driven by vengeance to realizing the terrible mistakes that someone caused, a result of him losing a piece of himself after successfully attaining his revenge.

Dumas utilizes Dantès's regret in his vengeance-driven actions as an example of the importance of forgiveness. By not forgiving and by giving into bitter and rash emotions, Dantès hurt many lives, including himself. As Monte Cristo states, 'He realized that he had gone beyond the limits of rightful vengeance and that he could no longer say, 'God is for and with me.'' Monte Cristo states this right after he witnesses the result of his actions: the death of little Edward. This statement shows how by not forgiving and instead giving into vengeance, he performed actions he later regretted, revealing the importance of forgiveness. It shows how Dantès finally came to the realization that choosing to act as God and punish those he see fit was a terrible idea. Furthermore, this statement proves how naive Dantes was in his quest for vengeance, which took over his life and humanity. He was so naive that he thought God was supporting his acts of vengeance even though God is a symbol of purity and peace, and it took the physical sight of the result of his actions, the death of little Edward, for Dantes to finally realize that what he was doing was wrong, that God wasn't with him, and that his innocent self was corrupted long ago. Monte Cristo's statement shows how much Dumas stresses the importance of forgiveness to the readers by revealing the potential self-corruption and degeneracy that one could cause and undergo if they don't forgive and let thoughts like vengeance reside in their mind. As Dantès states, 'God alone knows that I now leave without hatred or pride, but not without regret'. This statement shows that Dantès acknowledges his mistakes and regrets them. By being empty of hatred and pride, it demonstrates that Dantès is no longer driven by vengeance due to him realizing how terrible vengeance is and what he has become. Furthermore, the statement shows how much Dantes was disconnected from humanity and society, a result of not forgiving and giving into thoughts of revenge. The words, 'God alone knows,' shows no other human knows how Dantes feels because of Dantes not having any positive connections with other humans, which occurs because he didn't forgive and became disconnected from society. Dumas uses Dantes's statement to show the importance of forgiveness to the reader by showing the terrible effects that not doing so entails, and by stating that Dantes was filled with regret by not forgiving and instead giving into hatred and pride.

Dantès is a prime example that what John Ford said, 'Revenge proves its own executioner,' is true. By giving into the want for revenge instead of forgiving, Dantès ends up doing more harm than good and is able to convey the importance of forgiveness to the reader. Even though Dantès was taken advantage of, the right choice would have been to let the issue drop and forget it. Instead, however, he set out on a search of what he thought was justice, but resembled revenge more than anything else. And while he did attain his revenge in the end, it didn't come without permanently losing a part of himself.