The Count of Monte Cristo
Hope, justice, vengeance, mercy, forgiveness, and death - the themes in Dumas’ The Count of Monte Cristo are universal. The story has even more of a connection with Dai Sijie’s novel Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress. The Count of Monte Cristo takes place in France, Italy, and islands in the Mediterranean. The main character, Edmond Danté, is wrongfully imprisoned for a portion of the story. While in prison, Danté meets a priest, who provides him with an education in subjects including language, history, economics, philosophy, and mathematics. The two also discuss seeking revenge for Danté’s imprisonment, as well as the secret location of a buried treasure. It is with all of this information that Danté escapes.
The Count of Monte Cristo relates to the Seamstress, Luo, and Ma, because Danté and the Seamstress share a similar fate. Just as Danté leaves prison after receiving the priest’s advice, the Seamstress undergoes a related change after listening to Luo and Ma’s many stories. Danté ends up being “re-educated” by the priest, and he transforms from a “criminal” to a count. Similarly, the books work to reform the minds of Sijie’s three main characters.
The Count of Monte Cristo would have been banned by Mao during China’s Cultural Revolution for numerous reasons. The story’s major theme is revenge, especially that on the aristocracy. Mao would be most critical of any literature that advocates violence against the upper class. He would fear that his people would be influenced by such literature. This fear is appropriate, however, because of the influence the story has on Luo and Ma. Although they do not plan to kill the upper class after reading The Count of Monte Cristo, they could possibly spread the idea of revenge to other Chinese people who are also the victims of re-education.
The Count of Monte Cristo relates to the Seamstress, Luo, and Ma, because Danté and the Seamstress share a similar fate. Just as Danté leaves prison after receiving the priest’s advice, the Seamstress undergoes a related change after listening to Luo and Ma’s many stories. Danté ends up being “re-educated” by the priest, and he transforms from a “criminal” to a count. Similarly, the books work to reform the minds of Sijie’s three main characters.
The Count of Monte Cristo would have been banned by Mao during China’s Cultural Revolution for numerous reasons. The story’s major theme is revenge, especially that on the aristocracy. Mao would be most critical of any literature that advocates violence against the upper class. He would fear that his people would be influenced by such literature. This fear is appropriate, however, because of the influence the story has on Luo and Ma. Although they do not plan to kill the upper class after reading The Count of Monte Cristo, they could possibly spread the idea of revenge to other Chinese people who are also the victims of re-education.
