The Abbreviated Monte Cristo


 The Abbreviated Monte Cristo

Everything you've ever wanted to know about Abridged editions, Children's editions, Comics and Manga and Movie versions of The Count of Monte Cristo

It's an age-old question, "I've heard of/someone recommended to me/I've seen the movie The Count of Monte Cristo, and I want to read the book now! There's so many different ones floating around! Which one should I get?"

The answer is not exactly easy or obvious. Different audiences have different needs, expectations and desires. The actual Alexandre Dumas novel was written in 1844 in French, and was quickly translated into English. The most famous unabridged English edition was done in 1846, and published by Chapman-Hall and is in public domain and is available for free on the Internet.

Alternatively, there is a revised, re-translated unabridged edition by Robin Buss, done in 1996 (and still in copyright). It's brilliant, and the translation into modern English makes it definitive for scholars, bibliophiles and hardcore fans of the book. An unabridged version, whether it's from Chapman-Hall or Robin Buss, is about 1,200 pages. 

But is it right for everyone? My answer is "no". There's other audiences to consider: children, junior-high and high-schoolers, non-native English speakers, and busy adults who may not have the time to read the complete work, with all of the multiple plot threads and large cast of characters (and their connections) to keep track of. Some people just want the story itself, without all of the additional minutiae (French politics, paintings, mythology, and literary references that needed 30 pages of explanatory notes, provided by Robin Buss in his unabridged edition).

One size does not fit all.

And that's where ABRIDGED EDITIONS come in! I will say it once, with emphasis: Not all abridged editions are bad! Don't knock it 'til you've tried it. There is an edition of The Count of Monte Cristo for each audience, and everybody deserves to read a good one.

It's just a case of finding the right one and avoiding the fast-buck trash masquerading as The Count of Monte Cristo! And that's what I'm here for, with the results of my months-long research project!


    Main Site:

    Miscellaneous Monte Cristo-related:

    Favorite Links:

    • WeLoveTranslations ⮜ Lucy Day's extremely helpful and informational site, comparing translations of selected classics.
    • SomePeopleJuggleGeese ⮜ Lucy Day's original site, which helped me get a handle on things when I was a Monte Cristo noob and didn't know where to start.
    • Wise Wolf's Review Corner ⮜ Great reviews of Monte Cristo movies, differing somewhat from my own opinions and conclusions. Very thorough and well-written. Be sure to read 'em all (check the sidebar).
    • The Accounts of Monte Cristo ⮜ Simon reviews movies, TV series, related books, radio shows and misc. including the stuff I don't have patience for.


        Questions? Comments? Have an abridged book that you'd like me to include (or send to me)? Have an alternative POV and want to review any of these books? Fill in the "Comments" section below!

        Comments

        Unknown said…
        You should talk about the Montecristo musicals... there's just to many. Although three or four are from major theater companies and you can easily watch them on YouTube.
        April 13, 2022 at 3:19 AM
        brendan said…
        Have you ever looked at the 1894 Crowell or the (also) 1894 Little, Brown, and Co editions? They both claim to be sufficiently revised, corrected, and unabridged editions of the 1846 Chapman and Hall translation.

        The Crowell edition claims "upwards of fifteen thousand such faults have been corrected.... Technical terms have been expressed in accurate correspondents, ... nautical phrases, so ludicrous in all other English translations, have been revised by a French Man-of-War's man, an Ex-Lieutenant of the United States Navy, and an experienced Commander in the Merchant Service... Publishers do not hesitate to claim that this is the first complete, accurate, and readable English version."

        The Little, Brown and Co edition claims "omissions have been supplied; expansions have been rigorously reduced to the author's own crisp form of statement; erroneous and misleading renderings of words and phrases have been corrected; and where, as in many instances, the translator had usurped the functions of the author, he has been remanded to his proper subordination"

        But I'm not sure either of these editions are still in print (or ever were reprinted).

        I ask because Standard Ebooks uses the 1894 Crowell edition which is what I'm reading now, and I've found to be eminently readable. However, I don't have experience with any of the other editions, (un)abridged, (un)expurgated or otherwise, so I'm interested in what your analysis of them would be.

        Links:
        Crowell:
        - Standard ebooks edition: https://standardebooks.org/ebooks/alexandre-dumas/the-count-of-monte-cristo/chapman-and-hall
        - Google books:
        - https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Count_of_Monte_Cristo/dWlKAAAAYAAJ
        - https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Count_of_Monte_Cristo/yGlKAAAAYAAJ

        Little Brown:
        - https://archive.org/details/countmontecrist05fiorgoog/page/n8/mode/2up
        - https://archive.org/details/countmontecrist02fiorgoog/page/n12/mode/2up
        March 3, 2025 at 11:37 AM
        Ze Mastor said…
        Hi there! I'm not exactly so deeply into the Chapman-Hall translation that I'd look for the 15,000 differences between the original (1846) and the "revised" versions. There is something about C/H that I had always attributed to a bad, or censored translation... hiding something very important about Eugenie Danglars. It's in Chapter 53: “Robert Le Diable".

        1846 Chapman-Hall English translation: "As regarded her attainments, the only fault to be found with them was the same that a fastidious connoisseur might have found with her beauty, that they were somewhat too erudite and masculine for so young a person."

        If we compare this with Dumas' French, and the Google translated version, we will see that the "fastidious connoisseur" and her being "too erudite" was the complete invention of the C/H translator!!! Dumas never said such a thing!

        Original French: "Quant à l'éducation, qu'elle avait reçue, s'il y avait un reproche à lui faire, c'est que, comme certains points de sa physionomie, elle semblait un peu appartenir à un autre sexe."

        Google translation of original French: "As for the education she had received, if there was anything wrong with her, it was that, like certain points of her physiognomy, she seemed to belong to another sex."

        Despite their brag about 15,000 corrections, Crowell (1894) STILL reprinted the Eugenie description as verbatim from C/H!

        The 1888 "revised" version by Routledge made a few changes: "As regarded her attainments, the only fault to be found with them was the same as with her beauty, that they were somewhat masculine." (note that they removed the "fastidious connoisseur" and "too erudite", bringing it closer to Dumas).

        The 1889/1894 revision on Little, Brown and Co. made different changes: "As regarded her attainments, the only fault to be found with them was the same that a fastidious connoisseur might have found with her beauty, that they were such as belonged to the other sex." (note that the "fastidious connoisseur" was retained from C/H, but is more direct than C/H or Routledge that she had aspects more in-tune with the opposite sex).

        1996 Robin Buss: "As for her upbringing, if there was anything to be said against it, it was that, like some traits of her physiognomy, it seemed more appropriate to the other sex."

        So basically, Routledge and Little, Brown were still basing their "revised versions" on C/H, but we can see some small steps in correcting the most obvious blunders. My theory is that by 1888, the copyright had expired, so other publishers rushed in to reprint the book, and add their own little spin to make their editions unique. And by touting their many corrections, they can convince people to buy their revised, updated, corrected and most totally awesome version, instead of buying the "old" 1846 one!

        All of them are in Public Domain these days, and there are ebooks galore that use C/H or one of the many variants.
        March 7, 2025 at 9:13 PM
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