Extended Essays 2021

Part 2: Rebirth and Renaissance

Rebirth and renaissance, and the suppression of the id (seen to be the landscape of the devil and evil) are central aspects of many religious ideologies. Dumas’ and Lynch’s symbolic use of the sea, however, largely contradicts this conception. In The Count of Monte Cristo , Dantès is submerged into the sea during his escape from the Chateau d’If after his metaphorical death. He emerges as a reborn yet oddly, vindictive man, contradicting the religious metaphor of being born again into a new and moral life. Likewise, in The Lies of Locke Lamora , Lamora is plunged into the sea after being betrayed by The Gray King. When he surfaces, he becomes obsessed with retribution. Thus, the sea becomes a symbol of baptism and vengeance in both texts. By depicting the sea as such, the authors present Dantès’ and Lamora’s desires that sprouted after their second baptisms to be supported by God, causing the readers to also support their actions. This allows the readers to feel pleasure when they commit acts of violence. Dantès' character is completely transformed by imprisonment. Beginning with a stable mindset, happy and youthful, the melancholic environment of the Chateau d’If gradually wears on Dantè, eventually costing him his sanity. As he rises from the sea after being plunged into it during his escape from the prison, his transformation is complete. Literally, this situation has minimal relation to baptism, even less the action of being submerged by water. Furthermore, the Catholic Church suggests that rebaptism is not possible (U S Catholic Church, 2003). However, before Dantès is submerged, Dumas alludes to his metaphorical death, which is evident during Dantès prison soliloquy where he wishes “to die” (152) and then is described by Faria as his “child” (195), symbolizing his figurative rebirth. Thus, when he is thrown into the sea during the escape, he experiences a legitimate ‘second baptism’ – that of his vengeful vindictive self. The sea that

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