Off the Shelves: Nirvana in Fire vs. The Count of Monte Cristo

Firstly, it has been a while. I know. Looking at my blog and noticing that my last post was February last year gave me a shudder. So sorry about this. Again, in my defense, it's not that I have stopped reading, it's just that I don't really have any time to write about them. Besides, unless no one will complain about it, I can't really fangirl about the same thing again and again on this blog, right?

Second, I actually want to insert this post under "Books on Screen" category. However, seeing that it is not actually and adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo but rather an adaptation from a novel of the same name, I can't really do that, can I?

So here we go.

Nirvana in Fire is a Chinese drama based on a novel with (let's way) the same title. The story is about the only survival of a whole family who was convicted of treason and exterminated who carries out his plan to avenge the dead and restore the reputation of his family and friends. This drama is so full of intrigue and emotion, politic and friendship, and through this drama, we see people with amazing personality, that make us love them despite their flaws. It has been quite a while since last I watched anything as amazing plot-wise. But we're not talking about this. 

When I started watching this drama episode by episode, it dawned on me that the story - even the character - seemed very familiar to me. It's exactly The Count of Monte Cristo, and it's not just the revenge part.

The Plot

In Monte Cristo, the story started when Edmond Dantes was imprisoned for years for something he didn't do. In Nirvana in Fire, Lin Shu's whole family was accused of treason and killed while in fact, guess what, they had nothing to do with it. 

Edmond Dantes then returned from what he described as hell as The Count of Monte Cristo, a wealthy nobleman whose origin is mysterious and intriguing. Just as Lin Shu who returned from a literal burning battlefield as Mei Changsu/Su Zhe, a powerful leader of Jiangzhou Alliance - the most powerful and resourceful Jianghu sect in the country. 

Then, step by step, Edmond Dantes executed a well-prepared plan, using everything and every one around him taking revenge on the people who had made him suffer until his conscience couldn't handle it anymore. In almost the same manner, Lin Shu executed a well-prepared plan to help his childhood friend and an unfavoured Prince to ascend the throne while taking care of those who stood in his way to readdress the case that got his family and friends killed. 

In the end, both Edmond Dantes and Lin Shu chose to disappear, though in a different way. In the end, they left people they loved after making sure that things would be fine for them. 

Characters

Let's get to the character. 

Monte Cristo is always described as a cold, vampire-like human being. His calm, poised, and genteman-like manner is his charm and his best disguise. That is definitely not the cheerful, open, and warm Edmond Dantes when he was just about to marry and become a captain of a ship. 

Edmond Dantes, Chinese Version

Mei Changsu is pretty much the same. Described as someone with "manners as cold as snow, like a dark fragrance fluttering on the river," he was no less a vampire than Monte Cristo. Being constantly sick, he had a pale and weakly complexion, but his mind was never sharper. Not even his closest friend could recognize him as the former Lin Shu, a smart, naughty General with amazing martial art and strategy. 

Add to that the similarity in the way people treat them. As a count, Monte Cristo was served in a most satisfactory manner one could imagine. People came and did things he'd want them to do without even asking because "they knew his preference." Because of his charm, riches, and personality, even his enemies were forced to treat him with courtesy. Mei Changsu, being a sect leader, had people waiting on him to care for his every need. These people genuinely cared for him, and tried their best to make his life as comfortable as possible.

If Monte Cristo had Ali, the mute Nubian, Changsu had Fei Liu, a kid with extraordinary martial art skill. Monte Cristo's Bertuccio is pretty much Changsu's Li Gang and Zhen Ping. In place of sweet and exotic Haidee, there's Gong Yu, an accomplished songstress with one sided love for Changsu. 

Let's move on to the villains. You won't believe me, even the villains are similar. 

First there's Xie Yu, Nirvana in Fire's version of Fernand Mondego (is it his name?) or Comte de Morcerf. Ambitious and cunning, with personal envy towards Lin Shu's father, he plotted to get rid of him and stationed himself as the king's trusted advisor. Not just that, his child Jingrui "accidentally" met Changsu and they became friends, just so that Changsu could use him to move his plans forward. Sounds familiar? Yes, I am thinking about you, Albert. 

Then there's Xia Jiang, another trusted subject of the king. He was famous for being just, disciplinary, rigid in his obedience to the law, etc. His was the head of the king's private intelligence bureau and never once broke his trust. However, he was the main instigator of the "treason case" that led Lin Shu's family and friends to their death. So, in short, he is Villefort. Also, his conversation with Mei Changsu actually reminds me of the conversation that Villefort and Monte Cristo had in the book. 

Difference?

One big difference between the two is actually the ladies.

In the Count of Monte Cristo, the ladies don't give too much impression at all, right? Unless when they are, as Monte Cristo (actually Shakespeare) said, frail. Mercedes was reprimanded for being fickle in her affection, the Madames of the other two families didn't fare much better. If there are praiseworthy ladies in the book, they are only Haidee and Valentine - both young and sweet, with happy ending. 

I waited 12 years for him, Mercedes

In Nirvana in Fire, the ladies have strong presence and personalities. Some of them waited or mourned for they people they loved for more than a decade. The main female character is a general with an army of her own, able to physically and mentally support her beloved ones. Another is a mother and doctor, with wisdom to keep herself and her son out of danger. There's also a scary one, playing a strategist for the other party.

But the biggest and the most important difference for me lies in the motive of the main character. In Monte Cristo, the main purpose of the main character is to avenge himself and to bring justice to people who had made him suffer. In Nirvana in Fire, to my surprise, the motive is pretty far from that. The main character even let one of the perpetrators go because revenge is not his goal. In the end, what he wanted is just for his family and friends' name to be restored, and his country to return to its glory. 

Heroic.

I am not saying that I love one more than the other. As I have said somewhere in this blog before, Monte Cristo is one of the books that changed me. I will always treasure it. Nevertheless, it's interesting to see the story told in another setting and another culture. 

By the way, I highly recommend Nirvana in Fire for those who like Monte Cristo. If you can stand watching 54 episodes of Chinses drama, that is. 

Books into Screen: The Count of Monte Cristo (2002)

The book that changes the way I see literature. My first love for Dumas. The most influential fiction I've ever read, right after Les Miserables. The picture of consequences in life, scepticism born out of injustice, darkest hue of human nature, in short, the sweet honey and bitter poison of reality. Yes, I'm talking about Dumas' masterpiece – The Count of Monte Cristo.

I was referring to the book; the film adaptation is blasphemy.

I can't imagine the worst possible way to destroy the whole beauty of The Count of Monte Cristo other than the way it has been adapted, changed, and ruined in this particular film. The reason that I have restrained myself so long before deciding to watch it at the first place is the duration. You can't condense Monte Cristo into two brief hours without butchering it. Comparison: the best adaptation of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, a novel in 200 something pages, is a mini series of 6 episodes. Monte Cristo is a big thick chunk you can use as a pillow. It covers the lives of so many people, each with his own story, his own past, his own choices, and his own end. It's a lesson of life and death, of happiness and sorrow, of courage and cowardice, of love and hatred, of loyalty and betrayal. It's not “just a love story”.

The film is just a love story.

It is so comically predictable. Sex scene of the unmarried couple in the beginning is quite a spoiler for the “whose-son-is-he” near the end. The picture of saintly woman trying to do the “right” thing is a stark contrast with Mercedes I'm familiar with. Instead of facing the fact that this woman was good enough waiting for 18 months before she married Fernand, without knowing whether Edmond was dead or alive, the film gives her 1 month only to mourn for her beloved thinking that he was dead – but with good excuse of being pregnant. Positive side, the count had an excellent opportunity to say “in a month you won't even remember my name”, and Fernand later on, had a privilege to say to his supposedly son, “Your mother was a whore in her youth as much as she is now.”

And the love story ends happily. The Count of Monte Cristo has a family by the time the film ends, the beautiful lady reunited with her true love, the young son has a brand new rich father, the rival is dead, and everything's perfect. Nobody cares that it makes Albert a bastard in a society that regards birth as something substantially important. Nobody cares that by revealing himself as Dantes before the law he puts himself under the law, and is punishable for breaking out of jail. It's a neverland after all.

Oh, and the other people. I'd forgotten. Were there any other people? I mean, people of importance? Where's Haidee, who opened the future for the Count? Where's Ali, the Nubian, who had been the Count's loyal slave and best friend? Max, every one, the boy for whom the Count had greatest affection? Where are the other dozen of people whose lives were improved, ruined, or ended by the Count's determination?

Another important aspect of Dumas' Monte Cristo is the elaborate plan he had made just to avenge himself. He didn't touch those people with his own hand. Like an angel of death, instead of shooting a man with a gun he shaped the circumstances leading to their own ruins. Certainly not by exposing his source of riches as a bait for mouse-trap-like ambush. Not his style. Goodness! How I want to rant about the way he found Haidee, the way he got Bertuccio, the way he set Andrea Calvacanti on the stage, the way he intercepted and modified the telegrams, the way he dried up Danglars' fortune! Those smart elaborate plan changed into a sword fight and two ambushes. What?!

Blasphemy as it is, I shouldn't trample upon it so mercilessly. There are good bits in it. My favourite being Albert's reaction to his kidnapping in the catacombs (although actually, because he's the Count's son it doesn't really matter any more. It's just further proof that good trees yield good fruit, bad trees don't have a chance to change).

But maybe the film was written for modern world. Premarital sex and adultery are presented as harmless and normal while in the setting of the story it's a great taboo and a bad reflection on the Count's merit as a gentleman. As for me, a gentle and honourable Edmond Dantes of the book is more preferable. Monte Cristo's speech in Albert's birthday fits perfectly into the moral of the film and the taste of revenge and hatred in the modern world. “Do your worst because I will do mine.” I'd rather choose his final message, a message of evidently a wiser man, “Wait and Hope.”

Wait and hope for a better adaptation in the future, perhaps? Who knows?

Weekend Quote #7

“Tell the angel who will watch over your future destiny, Morrel, to pray sometimes for a man, who like Satan thought himself for an instant equal to God, but who now acknowledges with Christian humility that God alone possesses supreme power and infinite wisdom.”

Another quote from Monte Cristo. I think Dumas will dominate my blog this year. Let's save other authors for 2013.

This sentence is a part of the Count's letter to Maximillian, his last letter before returning to probably the East. The letter was brief, and mostly telling Morrel about his affection for him and his reason for his conducts towards the young man. He also informs Maximillian (goodness, what a long troublesome name to write) that he leaves some fortune for him as wedding gifts, which would make him a rich man, no doubt.

But the count only gives us two sentences about himself. The first is this weekend's quote. In all his conducts, in everything that he does as all other identities but Edmond Dantes, he always keeps that haughty air of a deity around him. For he says himself to Villefort this:

Yes, monsieur, I believe so; for until now, no man has found himself in a position similar to mine. The dominions of kings are limited either by mountains or rivers, or a change of manners, or an alteration of language. My kingdom is bounded only by the world... I have only two adversaries — I will not say two conquerors, for with perseverance I subdue even them,— they are time and distance. There is a third, and the most terrible — that is my condition as a mortal being... The rest I have reduced to mathematical terms. What men call the chances of fate — namely, ruin, change, circumstances — I have fully anticipated, and if any of these should overtake me, yet it will not overwhelm me. Unless I die, I shall always be what I am, and therefore it is that I utter the things you have never heard, even from the mouths of kings.

As proud as Satan himself indeed. And yet he says,

I have my pride for men... But I lay aside that pride before God, who has taken me from nothing to make me what I am.

The quote that I take today, reminds us all that there is something higher, wiser, and far more powerful than us, miserable human beings. And that He only is infallible, He only has the right to say, “I shall always be what I am,” because time changes everything, but He upon whom the time has no power.

That's my quote for the week. What's yours?
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Weekend Quote is hosted by Half-Filled Attic. Feel free to join. You can:

• Give the context of the quote
• Give your opinion whether you agree or disagree with it
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Classics Club August Meme: Favourite Classic

This is a meme held by The Classics Club, an awesome club dedicated to classic literature. As you may see from my blog, I love detective stories, adventure, and poetic works. “To love only one would be cruel to others,” for me, as Don Giovanni says in Mozart's opera. Difference is, he talks about women, I about authors. So let's see what I can do.

Favourite Adventure:

Look at my authors list, and you will see Dumas triumphs over others. Why? Simply because I love The Count of Monte Cristo so much. I read the simplified version first, when I was in Senior High, but because I love Faria so much I dashed to my computer and downloaded the ebook. I read it during my holiday and cried. I re-read it and re-read it again, just because I love how Monte Cristo speaks. Definitely my favourite this far.

Favourite Detective Story:

My favourite is the one and only Sherlock Holmes. As I have stated somewhere, he's my first contact with the past, I mean, with classics. His personality is so unique, or perhaps, annoying, that I can't help laughing everytime he mocks other people's stupidity. Among SH's novels, my favourite is perhaps The Valley of Fear, not only because it's thrilling, but perhaps because Sherlock finds himself a worthy collegue, Mr Douglas.

Favourite Children Story:

Does Christmas Carol counts as children story? If it is, then it is my favourite. It moves me to tears. I like to travel with Scrooge and observe as he remembers his past, reflects upon his present, and thinks about his future. The change that comes into his personality reminds us that somewhere inside everybody, there's good, that sometimes slumbers. We only need to shake the soul to wake it up.

Favourite Fantasy Story:

Lord of the Rings, of course. I can't find the right word to express how I feel about it. The details, the legends inside legends, the complexity of the story, the appendix, the languages, each with its own characteristics and alphabeth. I am almost convinced that the Middle-Earth really does exist somewhere here on earth. Once I even studied Sindarin just because I want to appreciate the effort Tolkien exerted to make it.

Favourite Romance:

Gaston Leroux's Phantom of the Opera. It's a beautiful story that makes me cry. I watched the movie first, and lately read the novel for the Classics Club Challenge. I forget whether I cried or not the first time I watched the movie, but I cried the first time I read the novel, and then cried like a baby when I watched the musical. I know it doesn't end happily, but I love it.

Favourite Poem:

I am torn between Shakespeare's Sonnets, Venus and Adonis, Milton's Paradise Lost, and Neruda's 20 Love Poems and a Song of Despair. But I think I will take Shakespeare. His sonnets inspire the Muse in my heart, and only after reading his I was able to write my own sonnets. His vocabulary is unmatched. Perhaps his motto in writing is, “If you can't find the word, make it.”

Favourite non-Fiction Prose:

Milton's Areopagitica. You can find me babbling passionately about this work in the related review. Beautiful and strong language that expresses his thoughts precisely. I always envy those who can write in charming way, because I can't, naturally.

So, instead of choosing one, I have seven favourites here. Haha. Can't wait to read yours. 

A Lasting Impression: The Count of Monte Cristo

This prompt is hosted at November's Autumn, and I think it's a very brilliant prompt. I couldn't help joining. But once I decided to join I face a serious problem: Which Classic would I choose? As a young reader, I sometimes find myself lacking a sense of loyalty towards my favourites. I would spend a month or two deeply in love in one book, and intoxicated by the other book shortly after that period.

But talking about lasting impression, I have more limited choices. There are books that I won't forget in all my life such as Sherlock Holmes' series, Hamlet, Merchant of Venice, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Phantom of the Opera, and the book I am going to talk about.

If you look at my sidebar, here, on my blog, you would notice one author that has more posts than the others. It's Dumas, and that's because I love his novel The Count of Monte Cristo. I first read it when I was in high school, and this year I re-read it again for the Classic Club's Project.

The moment I find very touching is when Dantes as Monte Cristo revisited his jail at Chateau d'If. There he contemplated on his life, the misfortune that had befallen him, the path he had taken, the choices he had made, his friendship with the deceased Abbe, his lost love for Mercedes, and so many other things.

“Woe,” he cried, “to those who confined me in that wretched prison; and woe to those who forgot that I was there!” 

His horrible experience in dealing with human beings made him so disappointed that he lost all trust in humanity. One of the quotes I will never forget from the book is:

“But man — man, whom God created in his own image — man, upon whom God has laid his first, his sole commandment, to love his neighbour — man, to whom God has given a voice to express his thoughts — what is his first cry when he hears his fellow-man is saved? A blasphemy... Oh, man, man — race of crocodiles.”

I don't think I will ever forget such a bitter sentence, spoken by someone who has tasted so many bitter experiences in his life. Yes, I pity him, the Count who has been played by the world, and by human cruelty and greed.

As for the unforgettable character from the story, aside of the Count himself, is Haidee. The Greek princess has the Count's soul inside of her. Her indifference to things beyond her business, the hatred that burns within her heart, the passion for revenge that rages in her mind, all so much alike with the Count. But I'm so happy that the two poor creatures find happiness at last.

Through the story I realise that no matter what happens to you, revenge is not the answer. Even if you get what you want, and they get what they deserve, it wouldn't bring you satisfaction. On the contrary, it adds more pain to your past suffering.

Character Thursday: Haidee

I skipped one week (sorry Fanda) due to strict schedule of unending business I need to finish. It was crazy. I don't want to miss it again, so here I am, with a young, female, adorable character from Dumas' Monte Cristo (again). Getting bored? Well, sorry, but I must write about her somewhere since I love her dearly.

Haidee is not mentioned in the story until much later, when Edmond has returned from faraway unknown land and reborn as The Count of Monte Cristo. She is introduced as a slave of Monte Cristo, a Greek, bought from Constantinople, and later as the daughter of Ali Pasha, a great Pasha from Yanina.

The extreme beauty of the countenance, that shone forth in loveliness that mocked the vain attempts of dress to augment it, was peculiarly and purely Grecian; there were the large, dark, melting eyes, the finely formed nose, the coral lips, and pearly teeth, that belonged to her race and country. And, to complete the whole, Haidee was in the very springtide and fulness of youthful charms -- she had not yet numbered more than twenty summers.

But what makes her beautiful is not only her appearance, which is of excellent beauty, but also her personality. She has the humility of a slave and pride of a queen. The Count has always treated her like a princess but she remains obedient to the Count, even though she knows the Count wouldn't be angry a bit to her if she declined him anything.

But her pride is clearly shown at the trial of Count de Morcerf, Albert's father.

The blush of mingled pride and modesty which suddenly suffused the cheeks of the young woman, the brilliancy of her eye, and her highly important communication, produced an indescribable effect on the assembly.

There she is, looking without any emotion, the punishment that falls upon the traitor and killer of her beloved father. She is indeed an amazing girl.

What I love the best from Haidee is her love for the count. The Count is at least 20 years older than Haidee, and yet she loves him so.

You are wrong, my lord. The love I have for you is very different from the love I had for my father. My father died, but I did not die. If you were to die, I should die too.

I think she would be a great
Haidee

And she was true to her words. In contrary of Mercedes who married another man after Dantes was missing, Haidee takes a pledge never to love anybody else, and would rather die than doing so. Perhaps Dumas intended to make this comparison between Haidee and Mercedes. And I'm so happy that Monte Cristo at last finds peace, if not happiness.

"Oh, yes," she cried, "I do love you! I love you as one loves a father, brother, husband! I love you as my life, for you are the best, the noblest of created beings!"

At the end of the novel, she rescues Monte Cristo from a silly bad ending, and changes the course of the last chapter to a happy ending. She is a blessing to the troubled-hearted Count, who has revenged so many people, yet has found remorse instead of satisfaction.

"Let it be, then, as you wish, sweet angel; God has sustained me in my struggle with my enemies, and has given me this reward; he will not let me end my triumph in suffering; I wished to punish myself, but he has pardoned me. Love me then, Haidee! Who knows? perhaps your love will make me forget all that I do not wish to remember."

Coat-of-arms: Monte Cristo

For the first article, I'd like to start with Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo, and this time, the main character's coat-of-arms. Why? First because I remembered I studied the heraldic terms while reading Monte Cristo for the first time. Second, I've just realised that he had a coat! I mean, I read the story tens of times and I didn't pay so much attention to the detail until last week.

So, here is the description of his arms in French:

“aux armes de Monte-Cristo, armes représentant une montagne d'or, posant sur une mer d'azur, avec une croix de gueules au chef”

And the description in English:

“Monte Cristo arms, which were a mountain, or, on a sea azure, with a cross gules on the shield.”

Monte Cristo arms

I try to make a picture of it based on the blazon, but the description does not really state the background colour of the shield. So I leave the background in sable, or black, because I think it suits the Count more than argent. You can see it here.

Now I'd like to explain the meaning of the blazon above.

Or, gules, and azure means gold, red, and blue (but you know that already). The term “posant” literally means sit. It is usually used with animals, but in this case, it just means the mount is put on the sea. The term “chief” means the upper one third part of the shield. So the red cross is to be placed up there.

So in plain terms, the blazon of the arms of Monte Cristo literally means,

“a golden mount on blue sea with a red cross on the upper part of the shield”

That's all for now. Any question, critics, or advice is readily welcome. For more information please visit Heraldica.org.