Soliloquy Of Edmund Dantes' by Justus Isaiah Richardson

How long has it been, since my captivity began?
I have marked each day upon the wall of my prison.
It matters not that I am guilty or innocent.
I have paid for crimes I would not willingly commit.
I have been locked away, within these darkened shadows,
Forgotten by those who were once proud to call me friend.
But it is I who am the victim of ruthless foes.
My dearest Mercédès' was a wealthy man’s desire;
And I was fool enough to believe he was my friend.
How could Villefort have known about Bonapart’s letter,
If not for the loose tongue of my good friend Mondego?
Danglars remained on the Pharaon that night on Elba,
When Mondego and I tried to save our captain’s life.
I’ve had much time to ponder the details of my fate,
My friend, Abbé Faria lent great insights as well.
Arriving at the only conclusion left to me,
I began preparing for the day of my vengeance.
Abbé Faria has been most helpful in my training,
But because of today’s cave-in, I fear I’ve lost him.
Though he was unable to gain our freedom in life,
In death he has provided the means for my escape.
If I should survive my attempt at liberation,
I will follow the directions the Abbé gave me.
And if a treasure does exist on Monte Cristo,
I will use it to, once more, bring justice to the world.
That island, with its treasure, will be my salvation.
Monte Cristo will be my kingdom, and I, its king.
But no, king is to lofty a term to be believed;
I’ll need a more suitable title to make this work.
My body, wrapped head to toe, is carried to the cliffs.
The warden orders his men to give me a good toss.
They swing my body to and fro to the warden’s count.
Count? Of course! Beware to those who conspired against me!
The Château d'If has claimed the life of Edmund Dantes’,
And for vengeance sake, the grave is where he shall remain.
But from his ashes will rise his avenger of blood,
And his passing will give birth to his vindicator.
Farewell Edmond; long live the Count Of Monte Cristo!

Bipedalguy (4.156.51.74) -- Sunday, December 31 2006, 03:00 am

Sweet revenge?
This is an interesting, and very creative write. I don't recall the author's name in the original. I assume that you see in your own experience a parallel to the counts sad fate. Sad, because as I recall, the count achieves revenge, but however just that revenge, he finally sees that it was obtained at the a dear cost to his beloved, who had innocently built a relationship with his betrayer. Revenge is not always sweet.
I'm curious to know the authors connection to the story.

Bipedalguy (4.156.129.185) -- Sunday, December 31 2006, 05:55 am

My last comment is confusing.
My comment (above) makes no sense. I want to explain that when I wrote the comment, both the title and the author were listed as "Justus Isaiah Richardson". The title has since been corrected to "Soliloquy of Edmund Dantes'. I couldn't understand why this story about "Edmund Dantes" re "Count of Monte Cristo" was named after the author. That's why I suspected an association between the original story and some experience of the author.
I'm sorry for the confusion.

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