Book i, chapters 1124 summary the assailants of the barricade keep up their fire, hoping to provoke a riposte, exhaust the defenders, and then charge. Les mis rables tells the tale of jean valjean, a criminal who served many years in prison, and his. Fantine and eponine come to welcome valjean into salvation. The conflict between javert and valjean mirrors the conflict between justice and charity. Jean valjean, who had no recollection of ever having promised anything, remained speechless. Valjean, with the unconscious marius slung over his shoulders, searches for an escape. Les miserables some thoughts about the end of the novel showing. Hugo employs all of his descriptive talents as javert prepares to make his final exit in book four of. This is the end rereading les miserables, part 37 hyperborea.
The bishop and the redemption of jean valjean posted by fr. Just as the judge is about to pronounce a sentence, madeleinevaljean stands up and proclaims his true identity he is the exconvict jean valjean. In the play the bishop later says to valjean, by the passion and the blood, god has raised you out of darkness. The 19 years spent by valjean in the galleys transform him from a desperate boy into a hardened criminalrevealing, according to hugo, the social evil of the prison system.
Actor kyle jeanbaptiste, who made history as the first africanamerican to play jean valjean in a broadway production of les miserables, died friday. Marius is shot, but valjean catches him as he falls and carries him off. Quotes tagged as jeanvaljean showing 111 of 11 these two beings, who had loved each other so exclusively, and with so touching a love, and who had lived so long for each other, were now suffering beside one another and through one another. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of les miserables and what it means.
Unlike the movie, where valjean breaks down at the chapel after the bishop treats him with such love, there is no specific point in the book i read where jean valjean repents from his wrongdoing and vows to. Sure, les miserables has more characters than all the seasons of supernatural put together. Jean valjean goes to the barricade to save marius for his daughter cosette. The one difference, to note immediately, is that jean valjean has a. As he lies in his room in misery, valjean thinks that he will never see cosette again and that death cannot come soon enough. I also knew that jean valjean died at the very end, but i wasnt sure exactly how maybe he was wounded in battle. Dec 25, 2012 the bishop tells the police that the silver was his gift to jean valjean, thus sparing valjean from a return to prison.
Javert cannot forgive himself for not following the law and commits suicide rather than believe jean valjean is a truly good man. Most recently dean appeared as jean valjean in les miserables queens theatre previous theatre includes. Books viiix cliffsnotes study guides book summaries. This is the second time, during his studies on the penal question and damnation by law, that the author of this book has come across the theft of a loaf of bread as the point of departure for the disaster of a destiny. Valjean went into his fathers line of work, getting a job in. Jan 03, 20 javert commits suicide after jean valjean lets him go, and after he seens jean valjean carrying marius to safety.
He has lived an extremely long life, taking care of his own family, then spending 19 years in prison, then spending a long time recreating himself in montreuilsurmer, then raising cosette. After watching les miserables in the theater, i wanted to stand up at the end and shout, this is what christianity really is. Unlike valjean, who was faced with the same revelation at the beginning of the book and embarks on an arduous but rewarding spiritual journey, javert is too rigid to ever give up his strict ideas. Kyle jeanbaptiste, broadways first black jean valjean. Jean valjean starts life as a pruner, a man who works with trees. Jean valjean is the protagonist of victor hugos 1862 novel les miserables. When the bishop shows kindness towards him by giving him dinner and a room for the night, valjean is shock and overwhelmed, but is still unable to prevent himself from stealing the bishops ornate silver. Book i, chapters 1124 summary the assailants of the barricade keep up their fire, hoping to provoke a. Years later, in 1823, valjean is living under the name monsieur madeleine and serving as the mayor of a small town identified only as montreuilsurmer, where he is a successful manufacturer. Jean valjean seems like a three dimensional character at first.
Hugo spends the next chunk of the book describing the convent that jean valjean is hiding in. Jean valjens parents died, his mother died because of milk fever and his father died due. Les miserables some thoughts about the end of the novel. Corey watzek as jean valjean dyinglead away by fantine and eponine. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. Symbols the insight on the dramatic tale of les miserables. The les miserables quotes below are all either spoken by jean valjean or refer to jean valjean. Without javert, valjean pursues himself to his own shocking decline, stopped.
In homage, or perhaps as a recurring injoke in the performing arts, the number has. A convict from a poor provincial family, whose long and torturous transformation amounts to the most significant narrative arc of the novel. Marius, eponine, gavroche, enjolras, courfeyrac, combeferre, javert, jean valjean. Jean valjean the central character of les miserables, jean valjean is released from prison after serving nineteen years for stealing a loaf of bread as well as various escape attempts. Narrator in blood brothers uk tour, sam in mamma mia cyprus. When the troops enter the wineshop, they find only enjolras.
Gavroche is really thenardiers son but he was thrown out as a little boy, because he wasnt bringing in any money. The symbol of the bishops candlesticks in les miserables. Jean valjean is given the opportunity to execute javert, but he spares his life. The combination is often known as the epilogue as the musical also has a prologue. So in terms of timeline in the book and in the movie, i would put his death being 1834 to 1840, as the rebellion that nearly cost marius his life occurred in june of. We have seen this resurrection before, when valjean falls off the orion and fakes drowning before resurfacing in montfermeil. Later in the conflict, javert allows jean valjean to go free.
Jean valjean, fortified by his blessing from the bishop, rejects societys assessment of him and begins a new life as madeleine. At this point in the story jean valjean feels hopeless and and realizes he can change. Do not forget, never forget, that you have promised to use this money in becoming an honest man. Dec 30, 2018 the fate of hugos protagonist jean valjean in tim hoopers 2012 film adaptation is quite a bit different than the original novel intended. After being released from the galleys after nineteen years, jean valjean cannot imagine how to lead his life in any other way than through theft and concealment. The tree that jean valjean sees in the beginning of the book symbolizes himself. Just as the judge is about to pronounce a sentence, madeleine valjean stands up and proclaims his true identity he is the exconvict jean valjean.
Welcome the episcopal palace of d adjoins the hospital. Valjean decides to go free the man and become an even more honest man, just like the bishop would have wanted. I do still want to rewatch the movie now that ive finished the book, and. The bishop drew near to him, and said in a low voice. But deep inside his emotions he shows a defined viewpoint on life making him a flat character.
When valjean attempts to book a room at an inn, he shows his yellow. That, and hugos obsessive need to follow every thought as far as it takes him. George mole in the secret diary of adrian mole menier chocolate factory. Jean valjean is often referred to as a christlike character, and there are several examples of how this comparison is drawn. Its a lonely, dead, sad looking tree in the middle of nowhere. Jean valjean was like a man on the point of fainting. The garden symbolizes beauty, love, compassion, and the life force. Most dialogue is taken word for word from the book. Jean valjean represents the man who accepted forgiveness, and javert rejected it. The episcopal palace was a huge and beautiful house, built of stone at the beginning of the last century by m. His parents died when he was very young, leaving him with his older sister to fend for him.
Les miserables, theme forgiveness, self sacrifice, and. Jean valjean saves marius life, though marius does not know who saves him. In my opinion, valjean s death was a beautiful thing. A wellaimed salvo kills twothirds of them, but it is a pyrrhic victory. So long as there shall exist, by virtue of law and custom, decrees of damnation pronounced by society, artificially creating hells amid the civilization of earth, and adding the element of human fate to divine destiny. In my opinion, valjeans death was a beautiful thing. The source novel as translated indicates that he died of wasting, a condition marked by undernutrition, reduced physical activity and which ultimately results in. Trivia edit like in the novel and in the english musical production, valjeans slave number is 24601.
Jean valjean was taken before the tribunals of the time for theft and breaking and entering an inhabited house at night. Valjean has just promised he will take care of fantines daughter when he is caught by javert. Fortunately, thenardier tries to blackmail the happy couple. Jean valjean decides to start his life over as an upstanding citizen due to the kindness of. It was the only part of the book that actually brought tears to my eyes. The judge immediately asks if there is a doctor present to escort the esteemed mayor home, since he seems to be in a state of confusion.
In the book, at mariuss and cosettes wedding, valjean finally comes clean about his past. Kyle jeanbaptiste, a 21yearold new york actor who made his broadway starring debut july 23 in les miserables as the youngest and broadways first africanamerican jean valjean died august. Javert first becomes familiar with the convict jean valjean as an assistant guard in the bagne of toulon. It was chosen by victor hugo when he believed that he was conceived on 24 june 1801 that is, 24 601. Dec 31, 20 the wedding is a new beginning for marius and cosette, but its the beginning of the end for jean valjean.
Jean valjean was an alluring hero of les miserables for many reasons, one of which was his drastic conversion from a miserable criminal into a heroic, peaceful man. Another example would be that of gavroche and his supreme sacrifice. Aug 30, 2015 kyle jeanbaptiste, the first african american and youngest actor to play the role of jean valjean in les miserables on broadway, has died after falling from a fire escape, according to a show. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one.
And so jean valjean, having sacrificed his last happiness, has it returned to him a hundredfold. Les mis rables tells the tale of jean valjean, a criminal who served many years in prison, and his gradual redemption after a priest offers. The bishop has a garden he lovingly tends, just as he cultivates the. This and the finale, into which it flows without pause, are sometimes counted as one song. Valjean decides to go to arras to free the man wrongly accused because he realizes that allowing the man to be convicted as jean valjean would make him a murderer in a moral sense. Macrae on january 23, 20 23 comments victor hugos 1862 novel, les miserables, set in the french revolution, was really about a revolution in the human heart and a contagious outbreak of virtue. Aug 29, 2015 actor kyle jean baptiste, who made history as the first africanamerican to play jean valjean in a broadway production of les miserables, died friday.
But there are two christianities represented in les mis by the police inspector javert and the convict jean valjean and though valjeans version triumphs in the film, javerts christianity is winning big. Apr 24, 2015 corey watzek as jean valjean dyinglead away by fantine and eponine. He leaves the wedding early and agonizes all night. His general point about the convent is that all things, even religion, have to give way to social progress in the long run. Javert commits suicide after jean valjean lets him go, and after he seens jean valjean carrying marius to safety. The thief had flung away the loaf, but his arm was still bleeding. Valjean is also known in the novel as monsieur madeleine, ultime fauchelevent. Unfortunately, his sister was widowed, having seven children to look after, the eldest being eight and the youngest being one year old. Gillenormand has gone overboard with joy and opulence, valjean has fallen into despair. The wedding is a new beginning for marius and cosette, but its the beginning of the end for jean valjean. Valjean had fallen back, the light from the candlesticks fell across him. Jean valjean is alone, with nobody, just like the tree.
He is executed as the army hunts down and kills the remaining revolutionaries. The story depicts the characters 19yearlong struggle to lead a normal life after serving a prison sentence for stealing bread to feed his sisters children during a time of economic depression and various attempts to escape from prison. A summary of jean valjean, books onethree in victor hugos les miserables. The story depicts the characters 19yearlong struggle to lead a normal life after. Les miserables, five volumes, complete by victor hugo. Nov 14, 2015 hugh jackman as jean valjean russell crowe as javert anne hathaway as fantine amanda seyfried as cosette eddie redmayne as marius pontmercy aaron tveit as enjolras samantha barks as eponine. Study 2 terms les miserables reading quiz flashcards. Valjeans death is the penultimate or last, depending on the song organization musical number in les miserables. In a sense it was a happy ending for man who was miserable all his life to have his daughter and her husband the man who inherited the job of taking care of cosette realize what a great man valjean was, regardless of his past and to lay. The bishop tells the police that the silver was his gift to jean valjean, thus sparing valjean from a return to prison. The fate of hugos protagonist jean valjean in tim hoopers 2012 film adaptation is quite a bit different than the original novel intended. Hugh jackman as jean valjean russell crowe as javert anne hathaway as fantine amanda seyfried as cosette eddie redmayne as marius pontmercy aaron tveit as enjolras samantha barks as. In a sense it was a happy ending for man who was miserable all his life to have his daughter and her husband the man who inherited the job of taking care of cosette realize what a great man valjean was, regardless of his past and to lay down the burden of his.
280 1242 973 587 1081 498 150 319 1346 1152 50 602 1562 674 1212 424 1193 1081 1636 1226 92 497 711 177 1465 23 692 1452 635 445