by Alexandre Dumas
Alexandre Dumas's epic of betrayal and revenge follows Edmond Dantes, falsely imprisoned, who escapes and transforms himself into the mysterious Count to exact meticulous justice.
adj. relating to the highest social class in society.
His aristocratic bearing in Parisian salons convinced everyone that the Count had been born to wealth and power.
adj. able to figure out numbers or amounts.
Every smile the Count offered in Parisian society was calculating, designed to open doors that vengeance required.
v. to reduce from a higher to a lower rank or degree
Fernand sat degraded before the tribunal, stripped of every honour that betrayal and ambition had falsely built for him.
v. to change appearance to hide identity.
Dantès appeared disguised as the Abbé Busoni, his former friends looking directly at him without a flicker of recognition.
adv. in a way that shows authority or power.
The Count imperiously dismissed the banker's protests, knowing the man's ruin was already irreversibly set in motion.
adj. unable to be calmed down or satisfied.
The Count was implacable in his design, having waited fourteen years without allowing hatred to cool by one degree.
v. to control or influence something skillfully.
The Count could manipulate an entire household through a single well-placed confidence whispered at the right dinner table.
adv. in a way that shows no mercy or kindness.
He mercilessly exposed Villefort's crimes before all of Paris, watching the prosecutor's composure collapse like wet plaster.
adv. in a way that shows great attention to detail.
Dantès meticulously arranged every detail of his enemies' downfall, leaving nothing to chance or sentiment.
v. to arrange or organize a plan or event.
The Count would orchestrate each ruin with the patience of a composer arranging the final movement of a symphony.
v. changed in form or appearance.
The sailor Dantès was entirely transformed — in bearing, knowledge, and cold purpose — by his years of imprisonment.
adj. likely to betray trust or confidence; dangerous and unpredictable.
Fernand's treacherous letter had condemned an innocent man to a dungeon that swallowed years like sand.
adj. not willing to forgive or excuse mistakes.
The Count was unforgiving toward those who had conspired, yet capable of deep tenderness toward the innocent.
adj. having or showing a strong desire for revenge.
Dantès had entered the Chateau d'If an innocent sailor and emerged something altogether more vindictive and magnificent.
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