Character The Countess Of Morcerf
CHARACTER
The Countess of MORCERF
Introduction:
The play “Count’s Revenge” written by J.H. Walsh has four major characters, the hero, the heroine, the villain and the young man, Albert, the side hero. The Countess of Morcerf, wife of the villain has played the female lead in the play. She was formerly called , Merseded. She belonged to Spain and the author has used for her the words “a beautiful Catalan girl”. She had been an extremely charming girl, more than twenty years ago, living in the city of Marseilles and in love with a young and handsome sailor, Edmond Dantes.
Outstanding Qualities
The events of the play make it quite evident that the countess was a lady with remarkable and highly impressive qualities. She was very sensible and sober. When her son, Albert, disclosed to her the incident of disgrace of the count of Morcerf, she displayed great patience and courage. She did not show signs of nervousness but cross-questioned Albert about the source of information and tried console and encourage him.
She was courageous, responsible and sincere. She was a faithful wife and affectionate mother. She remained faithful to her husband in spite of his selfish and cruel attitude and mean nature. She never protested or misbehaved with him.
A Loving Mother
Soon after the incident of disgrace of her husband, the countess of Morcerf proved that she was a loving mother and she had full realization of her duties as a mother.
When she came to know that her son, Albert, had given a challenge of duel to the count of Monte Cristo, she quickly decided to take a bold step, in order to save Albert’s life. Without delay and keeping her self-respect aside, she proceeded to the house of the count of Monte Cristo and implored him to spare her son’s life. It was an act of rare courage and motherly love for her only son.
A Pleasing Personality
The speech and behavior of the countess of Morcerf clearly indicated that she was very polite, cultured and soft-spoken lady. She was very sensible and had remarkable control over her emotion. She often proved that she had a quality of tolerance and patience. When Albert’s life was in the balance, she remained calm and composed. Her patience and peaceful attitude made her husband suspicious and he asked her,
“I must say, madam, that you take the whole situation very calmly. One would think it was nothing to you that your son’s life was in the balance.”
Noble Character
The countess had a pure and noble character. Although she still had a soft corner for her formal fiancé and lover, the count of Monte Cristo, yet she observed the principles of morality and decency. She maintained the reasonable distance between herself and Monte Cristo. She said to him,
“Will you not, remembering past, listen to the entreaties of the one who never knowingly wronged you, and who has never ceased to admire and respect you?”
She was alone with The count of Monte Cristo, when she spoke these words but she did not use the word “love” in place of “admire and respect” in order to move his heart. This showed the greatness of the countess and firmness of her character.
Straight-forward Attitude
The countess of Morcerf was an honest, sincere and straight forward lady. When she realized that her husband was the real culprit and the count of Monte Cristo had been victimized by him, she ceased to blame the count of Monte Cristo. She boldly said,
“No, Edmond, I connot blame you if you take a worse vengeance, a far worse vengeance.”
In the third scene of the play, she once again proved the fact that she was a courageous and straight-forward woman when she said to her treacherous husband, without any reservation.
“Fernand, after this affair of the duel is settled, I plan to leave Paris and go away.”
It meant that she had decided to get rid of her mean, relentless and wicked husband who had ruined her life, tortured the innocent Edmond Dantes and betrayed France.
Conclusion
The countess of Morcerf leaves a lasting impression upon the mind of the readers on account of her immensely impressive qualities, such as honesty, sincerity, dignity and spirit of devotion. Her sober, sensible and graceful behavior made her a respectable and admirable personality. She was a model of patience, and endurance as we notice that she calmly and patiently faced the torture at the hands of her husband, for twenty long and painful years. She was unlucky because she lost the man she loved and then her domestic life turned into a hell. In short, the countess of Morcerf enjoys a very eminent position in the play.