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. 

Off the Shelves: I Puritani, Lovelace, and Athos

I know I should be reading Jane Eyre. I will. I promise. In fact, my ebook reader told me that I'm 2.7% through it. But something beautiful stands between me and Jane Eyre.

It is an opera: I Puritani. I Puritani is an Italian opera composed by Bellini, and it's a particular favourite of Queen Victoria. I heard she even watched it with her beloved Prince Albert. Opera sounds like a perfect date to me. Especially if it's as sweet as I Puritani.

Well, the opera is set during a tumultuous time in England's history. You can read the story of the end of the reign of Charles I. At that time, there were two sides in politics - the Royalists and the Puritans. The Royalists, as the name suggests, sided with the king. The Puritans were led by Cromwell. (To say that I know more about it would be a lie.)

So there's this young lady, Elvira, a daughter of a Puritan, who fell madly in love with Lord Arturo Talbot, a chevalier, and a Royalist. After all the difficulties in their relationship, her father finally agreed to marry her to Arturo despite the differences in their political preferences. Everybody's happy. Arturo sang a beautiful love song, saying how much he loved her, and how happy he was that they could be together. The feeling was mutual.

The path of true love, you know, wouldn't be that smooth. Right there, while preparing their wedding, Arturo met a woman who turned out to be Queen Henrietta of England. After her husband's execution, it seemed that she was next on the death row. Arturo, being a loyal subject, couldn't leave her to that fate. He vowed to save her.

Do not speak of her whom I adore; do not take away my courage. You shall be saved, oh unhappy woman, or I myself shall die. And my beloved maiden I shall invoke as I die. 

So away he went with the queen wearing the veil of Elvira. What can I say? Elvira, left at the altar, became mad. (If being mad makes you sing that beautifully, I don't think people would mind so much.)

Three months later, Arturo came home, still a fugitive. In the woods, he heard Elvira singing their love song, and he called her. No response. So he sang their song - the same tune, only different lyrics. The trick worked. She found him, confronted him, and the two were united.

After a threat of death and another singing episode, the opera ends joyfully.

See, I didn't plan to tell you the summary. You can watch full opera on YouTube and read the summary on Wikipedia. That's not the point of this post.

Puritans. Charles I. Chevaliers. Cromwell. Sad Queen. Those things bring only 2 names to my mind: Athos and Lovelace.

Twenty Years After, where the four musketeers went to England and witnessed the execution of the king, is set exactly during the same period. The same Queen, the same King. The character of Athos is pretty much the same with Arturo - a loyal Royalist who believes in aristocracy. Except, of course, Athos lacks the love story.

That's why we have Richard Lovelace. This time, it is a real person.

I fell in love with Lovelace for the first time when I read two lines of his poem in Sabatini's Captain Blood.

Stone walls do not a prison make
Nor Iron bars a cage.

But that's not all.

Richard Lovelace

Lovelace was a real Royalist who was imprisoned twice for his political views. During those imprisonment, he wrote the poems that would later be published after his death, among them "To Althea, from Prison" and "To Lucasta, Going to the Wars". Those poems have the same tone with the songs that Arturo sings.

The similarity between the two is their devotion to their country - to a cause greater than themselves. They devote their life to something grand, something important, and that's why their love stories are more interesting than Romeo and Juliet. In his poems, Lovelace expresses all his longing for his beloved, all his undying love and fidelity, but at the same time, confesses that what he is doing is more important than his own feelings towards her. Arturo is pretty much the same. And that's why he's amazing.

Thanks to I Puritani, I can't think about Lovelace without picturing the good-looking Juan Diego Florez who sings Arturo's aria, "A te, o cara" in the video below.

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?

Book Kaleidoscope 2012: Day 3, Top Five Most Favourite Book

I skip the second day, since I read mostly ebook, and I didn't really choose the covers well, so just forget that. Now the third day theme is more interesting for me, since there are books that I really love from my reading this year. I will pick only 5 of them, and I hope this will be easier than picking up 5 boyfriends out of countless amazing men in the books I read.

Let's start!

5. Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux

Ramin Karimloo as Phantom

I actually read it! It's a wonderful story about a genius whose physical qualities are not as good as the quality of his brain. It's touching and a bit scary, but overall, I'm in love with the air that dominates the novel: the air of music and the air of darkness.

4. Odyssey by Homer

Odysseus and Penelope by Primaticcio

Again, it's amazing. Actually I was a bit scared by Homer and other Greek authors since they are so old. But thanks to the brilliant translation and also to my lecturer and my friends from mythology class, I can enjoy the book. Odyssey is actually quite an adventure. Besides, I love the lady Penelope, who shows both loyalty and intelligence, thus proving herself worthy of being the wife of Odysseus.

3. Antony and Cleopatra by William Shakespeare

Pompeo Batoni's painting depicting Antony's death

Anything featuring Antony must be in the list. I don't put Julius Caesar because this year I was merely re-reading the play, but Antony and Cleopatra is something very new to me. I was surprised to read how stupid people can be when they are in love. Yet Antony is still charming with his qualities as military general, and also as a loyal friend. Cleopatra's character is a little bit shocking, though.

2. The Three Musketeers and Twenty Years After by Alexandre Dumas

The Four Musketeers in 2011 Film

The four musketeers are amazing. They are utterly amazing. These books must be in the list of 'best adventure books ever' or something like that. When you read the book, you forget all the problems in the world and you just read. You imagine doing and seeing things and being part of the book yourself. I experienced express-reading when reading these two novels.

1. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

Les Miserables 2000 mini-series

You know it must be here. It must get the first place. Les Miserables is a masterpiece. I've been talking about Les Mis everywhere since the day I started reading it. The book invites all kind of emotion from the readers. It demands the reader to feel agony, pain, disappointment, love, loneliness, treachery, anger, enthusiasm, and hope. Reading once is not enough. I will read it again one day.

So, these are the books I love the most from this year's reading. Can't wait to read yours.  

Book Kaleidoscope 2012: Day 1, Top Five Book Boyfriends

Now, Fanda's BookKaleidoscope forces me to write some fangirling materials in this blog. Ehm, I usually choose Tumblr to fangirl, or at least Twitter. But this post is an exception.

Top five book boyfriends sounds tempting enough. I've read not very much this year, but at least I can say that I have more than 5 boys to like, and at least 5 to love. Choosing favourite characters is a hard job, really. You start to feel like a judge in heart-stealing contest of some sort. But here we are.

Athos a.k.a Comte de la Fere

If I have to choose between the musketeers, I'd choose him. He dashingly appears in the novel, and stays so during the two novels that I have read. He outsmarts his friends and opponents, he is a good general and also a desperate lover at the same time. He's loving and loyal, with huge sense of honour, that sometimes costs him much.

Edmond Dantes a.k.a Monte Cristo

Need I say more? I have loved him for several years now. He's a naïve fellow who turns into a charming angel for his friends and terrible demon for his enemies. He's a genius, a proud genius, who once “like Satan thought himself for an instant equal to God”. His life is an adventure, a war, and a game, but he is given happiness in the end.

Mark Antony

If there's anyone I like in Julius Caesar, it is Antony. If there's anyone I like in Antony and Cleopatra, it is Antony. The reason I love him in Julius Caesar is his renown speech. It's a wonderful work of art. The reason why I love him in Antony and Cleopatra is his kindness towards Pompey and Enobarbus. There's something in him that is grander than Octavius or even Julius. He remains a great figure for me.

Enjolras

For those who wonder who he is, well, read Les Miserables. I don't even understand what makes me love him this much. He's not even a major character. But I like his dedication for what he believes in. He has his mind so focused on a goal that he hardly cares about anything else. He is described not as “Cherubino,” a lovey-dovey kid in Marriage of Figaro, but rather as the “angel of Ezekiel,” a mighty angel blazing as fire. His death is sad but beautiful. He dies for what he believes in. (And then I care no more about Marius.)

King Richard the Lion-Hearted

This king from Walter Scott's Ivanhoe really get into my heart since the first time I read the book. Come on, who wouldn't like a knight in black armour, winning each tournament he runs into, and turns out to be the first man in the country? I am actually torn between this king and the other unofficial king, Robin Hood, that is. But I don't really like the version of Robin I read this year so, let's stick to Richard.

The next guy is special, because he is not a boyfriend to me. No, no. This guy is older and more mature, and I think I will have him as something else. This way, I still don't break the rule and only take 5 to be my boyfriends. :p

Jean Valjean

Can I have him as my grandpa? He's such a nice man. Despite what he has done in the past, he changes. He tries hard to be a better man. He learns through his life the most important things. He shows love, mercy, kindness, and forgiveness. He's a man with a big heart. His death dries out my eyes.

So, to sum up: this year I've been in love with mostly Frenchmen! Don't understand how such thing could happen. Four out of six are French, one is Roman, the other British (sort of). Five of six are old, one is quite my age. Four of five have experience of killing somebody, one doesn't. Three of them have bad experience with a lover, three don't even have any girlfriend. Well, I can't even figure out their similarities.

I hope I will be able to find people like them next year.  

Weekend Quote #22

“That is a dream also; only he has remained asleep, while you have awakened; and who knows which of you is the most fortunate?"

This time I go back to Monte Cristo, one of my all time favourites. The quote above is what he says regarding death.

Monte Cristo is watching an execution with Franz and Albert. Both of his guests are young and inexperienced, while Monte Cristo (according to himself) has seen death execution several times. Franz finally faints, and Albert closes his eyes. Waking up, Franz comments that the experience passed like a dream – a nightmare. “But how about the culprit?” he asks.

The quote above is Monte Cristo's answer. Well, the first part of it is nothing but fact. Death is like slumber. Perhaps Dumas borrowed the expression from Shakespeare, a bit. But the second part of the comment Is interesting.

Normal person would say, “Of course the living is more fortunate. No one wants to die.” But we're talking about Monte Cristo, a person who has seen and tasted so many bitterness in the world. This person has wished for death several times in his life, including when he was imprisoned in Chateau d'If. No doubt there are times when he feels that death is a relief from all the sufferings he has to face.

That's my quote for the weekend. What about 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
• Share your experience related to the quote
• Share similar quotes you remember
• Or anything else. Just have fun with the quote.

  

Coat of Arms: French Arms

Another coat-of-arms article. I make this article after a suggestion from Melissa, since the arms appears in both Dumas' Three Musketeers and Hugo's Les Miserables in subtle ways.

Ancient Arms of France

The fleur-de-lys has been a common charge in heraldry. But perhaps the most known use of it is in the French arms. The ancient French use the arms of azure, semy de lys or, while the modern (since 1376) only has three fleurs on it. It has been used in the Kingdom of France since the 12^th century, and therefore the arms, or the term “golden fleurs-de-lys” sometimes represents the whole French monarchy, or French in general.

When someone renders a great service to the state, his arms may bear an allusion to the arms of France. For example, after defending the Royal Banner faithfully in battle, and soaked it red in his blood, Chateaubriant was given the arms Gules a semy of fleurs-de-lys or (red shield with golden fleurs-de-lys upon it). Thus we can imagine the honour bestowed upon the Inseparables in Dumas' Three Musketeers when Richelieu had three golden fleurs-de-lys embroidered on their napkin after their breakfast in Bastion Saint-Gervais.

Modern Arms of France

Another additional information. King Edward III of England quartered the Arms of England with Arms of France following his claim to the French throne. The fleurs-de-lys remained in British Monarch's arms until King George III dropped it and put the Arms of Scotland there.

During the French revolution, the royalist bore a white flag with three golden fleurs-de-lys on it, thus displaying their support for monarchy. The inseparablility between French monarchy and its arms in history is evident in Hugo's sentences in his novel Les Miserables, one of them being, “It is as august in rags as in fleurs de lys.” The term “rags” refers to the lowly people and the fleurs-de-lys, obviously, the monarchy.

For more information on heraldry, please visit Heraldica.org. Critics, additional information and questions are welcome.

A Memorable Quote: Twenty Years After

This prompt is hosted at November'sAutumn. The idea is to share a memorable quote that you find in a book that you are reading, or in my case, the last book that you have finished reading. The last book that I finished is Dumas' Twenty Years After, as you can see from my recent posts.

I'd like to share my favourite quote of the book, which comes from my favourite chapter of the novel and spoken by my favourite character among the Musketeers.

The air is tense, and two of his friends are quarelling, each states that he is right and the other is wrong. Among the four of them, two has drawn their swords, and one is ready to draw any time he needs to defend himself. If they fight, their friendship will be lost forever.

Athos stands, unsheathes his sword, and breaks it. Then he says these lines:

"Never!" exclaimed Athos, raising his right hand to Heaven, "never! I swear before God, who seeth us, and who, in the darkness of this night heareth us, never shall my sword cross yours, never my eye express a glance of anger, nor my heart a throb of hatred, at you. We lived together, we loved, we hated together; we shed, we mingled our blood together, and too probably, I may still add, that there may be yet a bond between us closer even than that of friendship... 

D'Artagnan, I have always loved you as my son; Porthos, we slept six years side by side; Aramis is your brother as well as mine, and Aramis has once loved you, as I love you now and as I have ever loved you. What can Cardinal Mazarin be to us, to four men who compelled such a man as Richelieu to act as we pleased? What is such or such a prince to us, who fixed the diadem upon a great queen's head? 

D'Artagnan, I ask your pardon for having yesterday crossed swords with you; Aramis does the same to Porthos; now hate me if you can; but for my own part, I shall ever, even if you do hate me, retain esteem and friendship for you."

Athos always speaks with such intensity and tranquility that cools his friends down. These words save them all from what might be an 'unevitable fight among ex-friends'. Certainly a quote I will remember.

Character Thursday: Cardinal Richelieu

Alright. This is perhaps my first time choosing an antagonist for my Character Thursday. I write this based on two novels of D'Artagnan Romances: The Three Musketeers and Twenty Years After. I choose this character because he appears only in the first, and all people remember him on the second. The other characters, on the contrary, still develop, so I must wait until I finish them all before I can judge Aramis, D'Artagnan, or Raoul. And perhaps I will write more about the dear count, Athos.

Cardinal Richelieu is introduced as an ambitious, lusty person in the first novel. There is a rivalry between him and the king as to who has the best guard. Out musketeers prove that the king wins, in that respect only. The Cardinal rules France. He is even more powerful than the king himself.

The novel hints that he loves the queen, Anne of Austria, who doesn't share the same feeling towards him. Besides the Queen, Richelieu also has two other women mentioned in the novel as his lovers. As Aramis, he's not really faithful to his call as a 'man of God'.

Portrait of the Cardinal by
Philippe de Champaigne (1640)

As a politician, however, he excels. The Musketeers don't like him at all, and refuse to serve under him, but even Aramis admits (sincerely or not) that he is “the most illustrious politician of times past, of times present, and probably of times to come” that would “extinguish the sun if the sun incommoded him.” But France seems to be peaceful during his reign, at least compared to what it becomes under Mazarin, as stated in Twenty Years After.

Being an enemy of the Four Inseparables doesn't make him act unjustly to them. He applauds the courageous action of Athos and his companions in Bastion St. Gervais, and rewards them for their deeds. Later, when he meets the four having a council together, Athos pays a sharp sarcastic statement to him. But instead of killing him, he just goes away, murmuring that he would be happy to have the four. Who wouldn't? Lastly, when D'Artagnan comes to him with Milady's carte blanche, he tears the paper, but he doesn't seem angry towards the young soldier, but instead he promotes him to be a lieutenant. So to a certain degree, he's still a gentleman.

The sequel, Twenty Years After, makes it clear that our friends respect Richelieu, despite their private experiences with him.They even praise him as a great Cardinal. From the second novel, I learn not to judge people too rashly, too hastily. That's my character for this week, what about yours?

PS: This character analysis is solely based on the novel, and not from the real person. I have done no research about Armand Jean du Plessis, and therefore cannot say anything in or out favour of him.

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Character Thursday

Adalah book blog hop di mana setiap blog memposting tokoh pilihan dalam buku yang sedang atau telah dibaca selama seminggu terakhir (judul atau genre buku bebas).

- Kalian bisa menjelaskan mengapa kalian suka/benci tokoh itu, sekilas kepribadian si tokoh, atau peranannya dalam keseluruhan kisah.

- Jangan lupa mencantumkan juga cover buku yang tokohnya kalian ambil.

- Kalau buku itu sudah difilmkan, kalian juga bisa mencantumkan foto si tokoh dalam film, atau foto aktor/aktris yang kalian anggap cocok dengan kepribadian si tokoh.

Syarat Mengikuti :

1. Follow blog Fanda Classiclit sebagai host, bisa lewat Google Friend Connect (GFC) atau sign up via e-mail (ada di sidebar paling kanan). Dengan follow blog ini, kalian akan selalu tahu setiap kali blog ini mengadakan Character Thursday Blog Hop.

2. Letakkan button Character Thursday Blog Hop di posting kalian atau di sidebar blog, supaya follower kalian juga bisa menemukan blog hop ini. Kodenya bisa diambil di kotak di button.

3. Buat posting dengan menyertakan copy-paste “Character Thursday” dan “Syarat Mengikuti” ke dalam postingmu.

3. Isikan link (URL) posting kalian ke Linky di bawah ini. Cantumkan nama dengan format: Nama blogger @ nama blog, misalnya: Fanda @ Fanda Classiclit.

4. Jangan lupa kunjungi blog-blog peserta lain, dan temukan tokoh-tokoh pilihan mereka. Dengan begini, wawasan kita akan bertambah juga dengan buku-buku baru yang menarik

Twenty Years After: Friendship under Test

Twenty Years After relates the story of our Inseparables (how I love to call them that) twenty years after the end of the previous novel. Richelieu has been replaced by Mazarin, an Italian who is considered inferior than the late cardinal.

This less-favourite minister knows about D'Artagnan and asks him to support him. D'Artagnan agrees as long as he's paid, but he's not really in league with Mazarin. Mazarin asks him to join venture with his former group of four, but both Aramis and Athos refuses to do so. Only Porthos agrees to help Mazarin, with a promise that the minister will make him a Baron.

About the four friends. D'Artagnan is still a musketeer, Aramis is now Monsieur d'Herblay, an abbe with a heart of a musketeer, Porthos is a rich landlord, with three castles, and Athos a happy count living with his son, Raoul. Later in the novel, D'Artagnan and Porthos become a Mazarinist, because they serve Mazarin, and Athos and Aramis are Frondist. There is where the problem lies. They are not the men they were.

The four meet again fighting each other, but retreat the moment they realise who their opponents are. They then promise to hold a council in less intense circumstances, to talk about everything. Each comes with sword on his belt, and doubt in his heart. Will they still be friends? Do they still have faith in each other? It is very important because they still share one enemy – Milady's son who comes for vengeance.

I will not talk about the part I like best, but I will talk about the thing I hate the most from the novel. It's doubt. Doubt between those four that tortures me like a thorn in the flesh. There is this air of disbelief between them; everyone can feel that they are no more four heads and one heart. I don't mind their keeping secret from each other, but suspicions? I just don't know anymore.

This is the conversation between D'Artagnan and Porthos.

“Athos and Aramis have played a game with me which alarms me. We discovered yesterday the truth; what is the use of going to–day to learn something else?"
"You really have some distrust, then?" said Porthos.
"Of Aramis, yes, since he has become an abbe. You can't imagine, my dear fellow, the sort of man he is. He sees us on the road which leads him to a bishopric, and perhaps will not be sorry to get us out of his way."

At the same time, somewhere, Athos and Aramis are having this conversation.

"Oh, no, dear count!" cried Aramis, "is it not a warlike encounter that we are going to?"
"What do you mean, Aramis?"
"That the Place Royale is the termination to the main road to Vendomois, and nothing else."
"What! our friends?"
"Are become our most dangerous enemies, Athos. Let us be on our guard."
"Oh! my dear D'Herblay!"
"Who can say whether D'Artagnan may not have betrayed us to the cardinal? who can tell whether Mazarin may not take advantage of this rendezvous to seize us?"
"What! Aramis, you think that D'Artagnan, that Porthos, would lend their hands to such an infamy?"
"Among friends, my dear Athos, no, you are right; but among enemies it would be only a stratagem."

Needless to say, my heart bleeds when I read these things. As if these weren't enough, there are still more, and I put here another one, that hurts me more than the others, because it comes from the mouth of Athos, the dearest of all four to me.

Athos: (talking about D'Artagnan) "I saw him. He was in the front row of the crowd, admirably placed for seeing; and as on the whole the sight was curious, he probably wished to stay to the end."
D'Artagnan: "Ah Comte de la Fere, is it your habit to calumniate the absent?"
Athos: "I am not calumniating you, my friend. They were anxious about you here; I simply told them where you were. You didn't know King Charles; to you he was only a foreigner and you were not obliged to love him."
...
D'Artagnan: “Go, sir count. You see nothing to keep you a little longer in England? Well, for my part, I, a bloodthirsty ruffian, who can go and stand close to a scaffold, in order to have a better view of the king's execution—I remain.”

Nevertheless, I still love them all. As the story develops, it is shown more clearly that D'Artagnan is a smart and tricky person, Athos a mild but idealistic nobleman, Aramis a capricious and illegible half-abbe, and Porthos a strong and energetic friend. One last sentence: I encourage you to read it and see for yourself.

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
• Share your experience related to the quote
• Share similar quotes you remember
• Or anything else. Just have fun with the quote.

Character Thursday: Athos

I didn't believe in love at the first sight. And then there was Athos.

“You have sent for me, Sir,” said Athos to M. de Treville, in a feeble yet perfectly calm voice, “you have sent for me, as my comrades inform me, and I have hastened to receive your orders. I am here; what do you want with me?”

Thus he appeared, majestically, heroically, before M. De Treville. His being wounded to the point of dying makes his appearance even more commendable.

He's the oldest of the three, the most silent and the most grim. He even has a lackey, a man called Grimaud, whom Athos has “trained in his service in a thoroughly peculiar fashion,” that is to say, to serve without a sound. I even start to think that they communicate through telepathy.

Alright, to make this post more systematic, and easy to read, let me divide my impression in several little headings.

His looks

He is young, about 30, of “great personal beauty and intelligence of mind.” But of his mind we will talk later. He always makes sure his apparel is worthy of his being a Musketeer and a descendant of ancient nobles albeit he never pays much attention to his looks.

“He was of middle height; but his person was so admirably shaped and so well proportioned that more than once in his struggles with Porthos he had overcome the giant whose physical strength was proverbial among the Musketeers. His head, with piercing eyes, a straight nose, a chin cut like that of Brutus, had altogether an indefinable character of grandeur and grace. His hands, of which he took little care, were the despair of Aramis, who cultivated his with almond paste and perfumed oil. The sound of his voice was at once penetrating and melodious; and then, that which was inconceivable in Athos, who was always retiring, was that delicate knowledge of the world and of the usages of the most brilliant society — those manners of a high degree which appeared, as if unconsciously to himself, in his least actions.”

His personality

Matthew Macfayden as Athos
(The Three Musketeers 2011)

Athos is weird. Even his friends say so. As stated before, he scarcely talks, and talks only as much as he needs to say, no more. He trains his lackey to obey his gesture, and I can imagine his house as a very quiet silent place, with neither him nor Grimaud, his lackey, uttering a single word except very necessary.

But as a proverb in my country says, “Calm water sweeps away swifter still.” Athos silence hides many great qualities that any man would respect and envy at the same time.

First of all, he is brave. His courage is one of the greatest trait one should look in a Musketeer. He is always ready to fight, even when he is badly wounded, as you can see in the opening of this post. He is not afraid, even of the cardinal, upon whose heart he places a singular blow, when he is so desirous to safe a letter that compromises his friends, calmly said, “Monseigneur, the letter is a woman’s letter, but it is neither signed Marion de Lorme, nor Madame d’Aiguillon.” Both lady have love affairs with the cardinal.

This quality, combined with his brilliant mind, produces an excellent man in him. Athos, with his vast knowledge, deep wisdom, and clever strategy would flourish in his military career or anything he likes to choose to do. Still more, he qualifies to be one of the greatest comtes in France. He knows etiquette by heart, and no one can deceive him upon heraldry. I can assure you that both matters are so complex you don't even want to let me start babbling about both. (Now I remember that I still have some posts about coat-of-arms to do.) And the point that makes me love me even more: he understands Latin.

“If a repast were on foot, Athos presided over it better than any other, placing every guest exactly in the rank which his ancestors had earned for him or that he had made for himself. If a question in heraldry were started, Athos knew all the noble families of the kingdom, their genealogy, their alliances, their coats of arms, and the origin of them. Etiquette had no minutiae unknown to him. He knew what were the rights of the great land owners. He was profoundly versed in hunting and falconry, and had one day when conversing on this great art astonished even Louis XIII himself, who took a pride in being considered a past master therein. 

Like all the great nobles of that period, Athos rode and fenced to perfection. But still further, his education had been so little neglected, even with respect to scholastic studies, so rare at this time among gentlemen, that he smiled at the scraps of Latin which Aramis sported and which Porthos pretended to understand. Two or three times, even, to the great astonishment of his friends, he had, when Aramis allowed some rudimental error to escape him, replaced a verb in its right tense and a noun in its case. Besides, his probity was irreproachable, in an age in which soldiers compromised so easily with their religion and their consciences, lovers with the rigorous delicacy of our era, and the poor with God’s Seventh Commandment. This Athos, then, was a very extraordinary man.”

Some more things to say. He never borrows money, though he would lend money easily for his friends. He drinks, but rarely drunk. He doesn't have any mistress, something I find very honourable indeed. He has fatherly tender affection for the young d'Artagnan. He is certainly one of the most exemplary soldier.

His past

Nobody's perfect, and so is Athos. His excellent qualities would make him perfect if not for his dark demon that lives inside his soul. His friends notice that Athos dislike any discussion upon women, and at times, he would stay alone, undisturbed, in the corner of the room, drinking all by himself with a complexion that would move anyone to a mixture of pity and fear.

"Then the demigod vanished; he remained scarcely a man. His head hanging down, his eye dull, his speech slow and painful, Athos would look for hours together at his bottle, his glass, or at Grimaud, who, accustomed to obey him by signs, read in the faint glance of his master his least desire, and satisfied it immediately. If the four friends were assembled at one of these moments, a word, thrown forth occasionally with a violent effort, was the share Athos furnished to the conversation. In exchange for his silence Athos drank enough for four, and without appearing to be otherwise affected by wine than by a more marked constriction of the brow and by a deeper sadness"

It's Milady. Both of them are united in the middle of a secret that nobady knows, but those two. Because of that lady, Athos leaves his home, his land, and his title to become a humble musketeer. But, as Dumas believe, God is just. He doesn't leave unpunished those who commit sin deliberately.

So, can you imagine my face when I read his name on the page? Yes, rosy red. I bet the cardinal would love to give 20 of his best men for this man's service, and a hundred at least in exchange of the four in package. But for me, give me Athos, and do what you will with the rest.

Wait! Maybe, I'll take all four.

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Character Thursday

Adalah book blog hop di mana setiap blog memposting tokoh pilihan dalam buku yang sedang atau telah dibaca selama seminggu terakhir (judul atau genre buku bebas).

- Kalian bisa menjelaskan mengapa kalian suka/benci tokoh itu, sekilas kepribadian si tokoh, atau peranannya dalam keseluruhan kisah.

- Jangan lupa mencantumkan juga cover buku yang tokohnya kalian ambil.

- Kalau buku itu sudah difilmkan, kalian juga bisa mencantumkan foto si tokoh dalam film, atau foto aktor/aktris yang kalian anggap cocok dengan kepribadian si tokoh.

Syarat Mengikuti :

1. Follow blog Fanda Classiclit sebagai host, bisa lewat Google Friend Connect (GFC) atau sign up via e-mail (ada di sidebar paling kanan). Dengan follow blog ini, kalian akan selalu tahu setiap kali blog ini mengadakan Character Thursday Blog Hop.

2. Letakkan button Character Thursday Blog Hop di posting kalian atau di sidebar blog, supaya follower kalian juga bisa menemukan blog hop ini. Kodenya bisa diambil di kotak di button.

3. Buat posting dengan menyertakan copy-paste “Character Thursday” dan “Syarat Mengikuti” ke dalam postingmu.

3. Isikan link (URL) posting kalian ke Linky di bawah ini. Cantumkan nama dengan format: Nama blogger @ nama blog, misalnya: Fanda @ Fanda Classiclit.

4. Jangan lupa kunjungi blog-blog peserta lain, dan temukan tokoh-tokoh pilihan mereka. Dengan begini, wawasan kita akan bertambah juga dengan buku-buku baru yang menarik

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. 

The Three Musketeers: The Inseparables

I still can't believe I finished it in one night. It has been long since the last time I read anything without stopping. Thanks to the brilliant writer Dumas, I spent last night, without closing my eyes even for one second, reading The Three Musketeers ebook on my computer, blushing and smiling, even laughing as the story possessed me.

It is clear from my description, that I find the book very much interesting, and that this book, combined with the love I have for Monte Cristo, has placed Dumas among my favourite authors. I cannot deny that I didn't read it earlier because I was afraid that it might be less interesting than Monte Cristo, but an impulse made me read it anyway.

So, to the story. I will not bore my readers by relating things widely unknown. The story is so popular that even mentioning the names of the characters would be unnecessary. Therefore I will just write here the things that impresses me in the story.

I like how Dumas describes the friendship between the four. They would be a role model to any friendship. All four have different ideology, thoughts, and feelings, yet they are united as “four heads united in one heart”. It's touching to see how they trust each other, how they are ready to share all they have, to lay down their lives for the sake of their companions. Had Monte Cristo one of those honourable men as his friend, he would not give up upon humanity.

My favourite scenes from the book? Firstly, it is when the Duke of Buckingham confesses his love to the queen. I have to admit that I blushed like a pink rose as I read the chapter page by page. I almost pity him for such a foolish love, and even would love him if he didn't start a war only for the sake of showing off to the queen. (At least that's what the book implies, though I don't really believe that such a selfish motive would move the smart Duke to kill many of his compatriots in war.)

Second, when d'Artagnan travels to find his friends that he has left behind for the sake of fetching the queens diamond studs. It's funny to see how different the three musketeers are, and to peek into their personal lives. I laughed hard (in the middle of the night, remember) when I read about Aramis and his thesis, and how he tramples upon it the second he knows that his love is not lost.

Lastly, the breakfast at Bastion. Ha! Now that's brave, and very awesome. To think that they actually hold a council amidst the danger of the enemy, surrounded by the dead, and at last win despite being outnumbered, that's really awe-inspiring.

“Shall we return to the camp?” said Porthos. “I don’t think the sides are equal.”

“Impossible, for three reasons,” replied Athos. “The first, that we have not finished breakfast; the second, that we still have some very important things to say; and the third, that it yet wants ten minutes before the lapse of the hour.”

That's my impression after reading the book, and I believe I will write more about it in the future. I have already planned to use some of the characters from the book for my Character Thursdays. So adieu, my friends, or rather, au revoir.

Reading Plan

I cannot find appropriate words to express how hard it is for me to choose which book to read among the 44 books I need to before 2017. I know that the Club holds an Austen event this month, but having no Austen among my list I cannot join the readalong, because I want to finish first my list before moving to other works (as much as I can, for I know how capricious my reading mood is, and sometimes I read other books anyway).

While waiting for Shakespeare's readalong on September, I'd like to finish a book or two from my list. Some books have arisen my curiosity, such as Defoe's Robinson Crusoe and Goethe's Faust, but I still feel hesitant to try. So instead of forcing myself to read what I don't feel like reading now, I turn my attention to books from more familiar authors, and my heart chooses (again) Dumas.

Seeing two more books under his name on my list, The Three Musketeers and The Man in the Iron Mask, I feel it would be amusing to read the series, considering how many adaptations have been inspired by the adventures related in those volumes. Some of the movie adaptations, though, show themselves contradicting each other, and it makes me even more curious to find the “true story” of our four musketeers.

I hope I will finish The Three Musketeers before the end of the month. The other novels can wait.