I have something of an aversion to much modern fiction, but in recent times I have become acquainted with some works which are widely regarded as "classics", going back as far as the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, including those written by, among others, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, and Alexandre Dumas.
The latter's The Count of Monte Cristo found its way on to my Kindle, but only recently did I have the inclination to tackle it. I am glad that I did...
The first thing to say about The Count of Monte Cristo is that it is quite complex, and very long! The former quality possibly makes it less than ideally suited to the Kindle format, as it might be necessary to regularly refer back to an earlier chapter to clarify a detail or two. This is more easily accomplished with one of those antiquated paper books in one's hand!
It is rather easy, whilst reading this book, to become a little over-awed and confused by the sheer amount of detail which one feels obliged to absorb and consign to the near-memory, but any such misgivings will turn out to be unfounded, because the story unravels in such a way that everything makes sense.
In a nutshell, the story centres on a young man from the south of France, who is wrongfully imprisoned, suffering from a conspiracy of sorts. After dramatically escaping captivity, he decides to make good on his vows to exact revenge on those antagonists who engineered his misfortune.
The period in which the novel is set spans from the tail-end of the Napoleonic wars to some years later. Much of it takes in the intrigues involving several families who are central to the Parisian social scene, often on opposite sides of the feverish political fence of the times.
Part of the fascination of the book for me was its depiction of a particular period in history, one during which Europe was in a state of flux, where the foundations of the established order were being disturbed by the challenge posed by new ideas and forces. The juxtaposition of high society with the seamier side of life is also quite affecting.
The way in which various characters and strands of the overall story unerringly converge on this social milieu may strike some people as a little implausible or far-fatched, but the increasingly rapid pace and air of suspense eventually render such concerns lightweight. I found myself trying to work out precisely how this was all going to end, and thought I had solved the riddle, but even when the answers emerged, they were still very dramatic, and not entirely anticipated.
It is tempting I guess to regard The Count of Monte Cristo as an allegory on "good versus evil", or the notion of "divine justice", but I think that would be an over-simplification. For me, questions were posed which related to the issue of whether such things as revenge or retribution can ever occur in isolation, or in a vacuum,or be proportionate. Towards the end of the tale even the central character undergoes moments of self-doubt and remorse, realizing the distress which some of his actions have caused, and not just to those who were complicit in his unjust incarceration.
A long and demanding read then, but definitely one to be recommended....
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