Universal Lessons in the Great Gatsby and the Count of Monte Cristo
Sung Woo Hwang
Mr. Waugh
ENG 4U1
06 22 13
Universal Lessons
There are reasons behind The Great Gatsby’s grand success as one the best American novels of the twentieth century and The Count of Monte Cristo’s success as one of the greatest French novels of nineteenth century. Both novels dominated the literature of their respective centuries. The first suitable explanation for their domination is that the authors of both books are geniuses. They expressed their opinions about social and political issues through literature. The second and the most obvious aspect about these two books is that they contain valuable lessons and morals. As social creatures, people wish for everlasting relationships with friends and family, but the authors of the two books oppose this idea and demonstrates why relationships cannot last forever. People do not want to take responsibility for their own troubles and yet, the authors display the reasons why one must take full responsibility for a problem that results from one’s action. The authors argue that the gradual change in the personality and the characteristics of a man is an inevitable phenomenon and yet, they also argue that one’s mentality does not change. The author of The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and the author of The Count of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas, teach universal lessons about these elements through characters and symbolism.
The first lesson the authors are trying to teach is that relationships do not last forever, by explaining the symbolic meaning of death, and through the effective usage of the characters in the books. In The Count of Monte Cristo, Mercedes and Dantes love each other but their relationship breaks up as Dantes is sent to jail. When Dantes escapes from jail and arrives home, he realizes that “Mercedes has disappeared” (Dumas, 171) and has married Fernand. In comparison, Gatsby and Daisy’s relationship ends as Daisy realizes that her commitment is to Tom. Daisy commits by marrying Tom
Mr. Waugh
ENG 4U1
06 22 13
Universal Lessons
There are reasons behind The Great Gatsby’s grand success as one the best American novels of the twentieth century and The Count of Monte Cristo’s success as one of the greatest French novels of nineteenth century. Both novels dominated the literature of their respective centuries. The first suitable explanation for their domination is that the authors of both books are geniuses. They expressed their opinions about social and political issues through literature. The second and the most obvious aspect about these two books is that they contain valuable lessons and morals. As social creatures, people wish for everlasting relationships with friends and family, but the authors of the two books oppose this idea and demonstrates why relationships cannot last forever. People do not want to take responsibility for their own troubles and yet, the authors display the reasons why one must take full responsibility for a problem that results from one’s action. The authors argue that the gradual change in the personality and the characteristics of a man is an inevitable phenomenon and yet, they also argue that one’s mentality does not change. The author of The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and the author of The Count of Monte Cristo, Alexandre Dumas, teach universal lessons about these elements through characters and symbolism.
The first lesson the authors are trying to teach is that relationships do not last forever, by explaining the symbolic meaning of death, and through the effective usage of the characters in the books. In The Count of Monte Cristo, Mercedes and Dantes love each other but their relationship breaks up as Dantes is sent to jail. When Dantes escapes from jail and arrives home, he realizes that “Mercedes has disappeared” (Dumas, 171) and has married Fernand. In comparison, Gatsby and Daisy’s relationship ends as Daisy realizes that her commitment is to Tom. Daisy commits by marrying Tom