1.

The 3 mother/son relationships portrayed in the book seem to have only a vague, single
vein of similarity, and their representations reveal stark contrasts. Mercedes, in particular,
seems to possess a greater love for her son, Albert, than her husband, Fernand. This is
demonstrated when she tells the Count, "Take your vengeance, Edmond, but take it on
those who are guilty! Take it on Fernand, take it on me, but don't take revenge on my
son." (Dumas, 377) In that scene, it is also said that Mercedes would rather die herself
than see her son perish. This attitude is very different from Madame de Villefort, who
poisons both herself and her son, saying in her note, "You know I was a good mother,
because it was for the sake of my son that I became a criminal. A good mother does not
leave without her son." (Dumas, 483) So at the very least, Madame de Villefort believed
herself to be a good and loving mother, even though she appeared to rather not let
Edouard live on without her. The last mother/son relationship was (I assume) vaguely
between Madame Danglars and her illegitimate son, Benedetto. They didn't have any
interactions after Benedetto was taken to be buried alive as a baby, but Madame Danglars
is seen to at least hold some maternal care for the man, as illustrated in her anger against
Villefort for lying about the child's death (Dumas, 280). Perhaps through these portrayals,
Dumas intended on showing the complexity of the relationship between mother and son,
and how it can drastically vary from person to person.
2. Id like to think that the love between Valentine and Maximilien, although rather Romeo
and Juliet-ish in their struggles, was meant to be portrayed as the truest love among the
characters. Maximilien displays a sort of undying loyalty to Valentine throughout the
novel, even going as far as to threaten suicide multiple times if he had to live without her,
(Dumas, 446). Valentine harboured similar feelings, as was illustrated when she told her
grandfather that if she had to marry any other man she would kill herself (Dumas, 296).
Once again, very Romeo and Juliet-like in their suicidal tendencies, but at the same time
it conveys how deeply they care for one another.
3. At the beginning of the novel, I whole-heartedly believed that the unjust actions against
Edmond Dantes deserved punishment, but as I reached the end I started to disagree with
the methods taken to administer justice. Although some of the characters that were on the
receiving end of such justice had not wronged Dantes personally, they still sort of got
their comeuppance in the end for doing bad things to other people, which is sort of okay I
suppose, but the suffering of innocents such as Edouard and Albert seemed entirely
undeserving. So, no, I dont think the Count was entirely justified on an ethical level.
4. I think the cruelest character in the novel could be either the Count or Benedetto, but
seeing as the Counts actions were at least somewhat explained by his suffering in prison,
and Benedettos acts of cruelty and violence were not justified beyond a claim that his
father and that God were the ones to curse him with his evil and corrupt nature (Dumas,
478). His wretched nature is displayed several times throughout the book, but the most
striking event to me seemed to be the murder of his stepmother, as told by Bertuccio
(Dumas, 197).
5. There are many strong themes in the novel, I believe, but a potential theme that struck me
as important was the idea of self administered justice, and how it is not so easily defined.

The Count believed that his form of justice came from God, and that his actions were
fully justified and that the consequences they wrought were deserved. But this belief is
challenged when, accidentally, by the manipulations of Dantes, Edouard died. The Count
is affected by this event, and is shown to have doubts about his own divine justice
(Dumas, 485). That seed of doubt doesnt seem to grow very much, but through this
event I am left to question if there really is a right way to administer justice and
vengeance.
6. I believe the happiest characters at the end of the novel are Maximilien and Valentine.
After all, they had both just been reunited after a period where Maximilien thought the
woman he loved to be dead. Additionally, the question as to whether or not they could be
together hung in the air throughout the novel, and the idea of being forever separated
instilled feelings of despair and threats of suicide within the two lovers, so their joy at
finally being together is clear at the ending.
7. The socioeconomic statuses of the characters plays into several major plot points
throughout the novel. For example, the motivations behind Madame de Villeforts
criminal actions are to secure the title of heir and the consequent fortune for her son,
Edouard. Another example would be that of the Count of Monte Cristo himself, because
without his fortune and social status, he would have been unable to manipulate the events
of the book and the characters so easily. In fact, many of the characters in the book are
driven by motivation to preserve their reputation or to increase the amount of money they
have.
8. If I could have dinner with one of the characters in the book, it would probably be Ali.
Mostly because I personally think hes really cool, and that I think he is probably the
sanest and sinless character in the entire novel, exempting Haydee and perhaps Franz..