How Does Dante As An Agent Of Providence In The Count Of Monte Cristo

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In his novel, The Count of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas develops Edmond Dantes as an agent of Providence to demonstrate that God rewards the good and punishes the wicked. In the novel, the claim of Dantes’ position as an agent of providence is supported by his acquisition of means from God and the belief that he is chosen by God to punish the wicked. Edmond Dantes is given the means to escape and punish the wicked from God. Alexandre Dumas has Dantes monologue about his triumphant return and his own perceptions of its cause to Mercedez. During this monologue, Dantes describes the considerable fortune he obtained by telling Mercedez, “I considered that fortune as a sacred trust;” (495). Dumas refers to fortune as a sacred trust because of …show more content…

Dumas recalls back toDantes’ escape during Dantes’ confrontation with Mercedez. Dantes recalls himself feeling as, “a cloud of fire descending from heaven to destroy an accursed city”(495). Dumas uses an allusion to the Old Testament story of Sodom and Gomorrah, where God destroyed an entire city solely because he thought them to be guilty. This allusion allows readers to see that as Dantes views himself as an agent of Providence he believes he is a just punisher and punishes the wicked solely for their wickedness. While Mercedez begs Dantes to allow her son to live he makes multiple claims to be an agent of Providence along with telling Mercedez, “I haven't struck him down: providence has punished him” (375). This quote allows readers to understand the separation of Dantes from the punishment of the wicked by using the denotation of providence. The denotation of providence shows that it is not Dantes who punishes the wicked, but rather God through various outlets. Therefore the claim that God rewards the good is supported by Dumas in his inclusion of a comparison of Dantes to a biblical judgment and the statement of God’s hand in the punishment of the wicked through