Edmond Dantès (alias the Count of Monte Cristo; his other aliases are Sinbad the Sailor, Abbé Busoni, and Lord Wilmore)
Dantès is the dashing and romantic hero of the novel; at the age of nineteen, he is falsely imprisoned for a crime which he did not commit and is kept in the horrible dungeon of the Chateau d'If, where he undergoes unbelievable hardships and sufferings that would destroy an ordinary man. While imprisoned, Dantès hears a fellow prisoner digging a tunnel, and so he too begins digging. When the two men finally meet, the other prisoner turns out to be a learned Abbé, who teaches Dantès many languages, sciences, history, and other subjects. They become as father and son, and when the Abbé is about to die, he reveals to Dantès the hiding place of a long-secret buried treasure, consisting of untold wealth in gold coins, diamonds, and other precious jewels.
After fourteen years of bitter imprisonment and hardships, and after a very daring and miraculous escape, Dantès is able to discover the buried treasure on the island of Monte Cristo, and so he buys the island. He becomes the Count of Monte Cristo and dedicates himself to becoming God's avenging angel. The rest of his life is spent, at first, performing acts of goodness and charity for the good people whom he has known. Then he devotes his life to bringing about God's retribution against the evil people who were responsible for his imprisonment. The largest portion of the novel deals with his unique methods of effecting this revenge against his enemies, who became, during Dantès' fourteen years of imprisonment, very powerful and very wealthy people.
Monsieur Dantès, Pere
Edmond Dantès' old father, for whom he has a deep devotion—so deep, in fact, that part of the revenge which he takes against his enemies is due to the fact that their treatment of his father caused him to die of starvation. Likewise, those people, like Monsieur Morrel, who treated Dantès' father kindly when he was in despair, come into the good graces of Monte Cristo and are rewarded by him.
Monsieur Morrel, a shipbuilder and shipowner
This is a kindly man interested only in doing good for others and for his family. At the beginning of the novel, when the captain of one of his ships dies en route home, Monsieur Morrel is so impressed with the way that the young, nineteen-year-old Edmond Dantès takes over the captainship of the Pharaon that he makes him captain of the ship. This act causes the antagonism of others. Likewise, when Dantès is imprisoned, Monsieur Morrel risks his reputation by continually applying for Dantès' release, even though politically it is an extremely dangerous thing to do. When he learns of the death of Edmond Dantès' father, Morrel arranges the proper ceremonies. Later, upon learning about these facts, the Count of Monte Cristo is able to return the favors triple-fold, for not only does he save Monsieur Morrel's life, but he is able to recover Monsieur Morrel's fortune.
Julie Morrel Herbault
Monsieur Morrel's daughter, who first meets the Count of Monte Cristo as "Sinbad the Sailor"; he sends her on an errand to obtain monies which will save her father's business.
Maximilien Morrel
The son of Monsieur Morrel who will later become not merely a close young friend of the Count of Monte Cristo, but because of his nobility of soul and his devotion and loyalty, he will become the Count of Monte Cristo's spiritual "son" and the recipient of a great deal of the Count's fortune. Thus, virtue is highly rewarded.
Cloclès
A long-time employee in the Morrel firm who remains loyal to the firm, despite its financial difficulties.
Abbé Faria
The wise, learned, and lovable political prisoner in the Chateau d'If; he is a remarkable and ingenious person, capable of creating some digging tools out of virtually nothing. He writes the life history of a noble Italian family, the Spada family (who possessed such great wealth that, after the family suffered poisoning, their fabulous treasure remained hidden for centuries until the Abbé Faria was able to decipher the secret message giving the location of this treasure, which Faria, in turn, reveals to Dantès). Faria becomes Dantès' spiritual "father" and teaches Dantès not only worldly matters of languages, science, and mathematics, but also spiritual matters. His death in the Chateau d'If provides Dantès with his daring means of escape.
