What are the Underlying Themes in The Count of Monte Cristo?

A most intriguing novel by Alexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo makes the reader confront his or her own challenges. Betrayed by his own friends, arrested at his wedding feast, and charged for treason, for Edmond Dantes, that was only the beginning. During this terrible time, Dantes also loses his father, fiancé, and any hope for a happy life. The disguise of an aristocratic count is the way that Edmond reveals himself to Paris society all in the name of revenge. Throughout this novel, the reader finds himself truly examining his own life. Several meanings surface throug…