Les miserables was written by french novelist victor hugo asked in les. In the 19th century as the population and literacy grew, the association of literature and the elite began to unravel and an era of art for the masses began. Les miserables, five volumes, complete by victor hugo. The strange power of les mis, the book the new republic. Set in the parisian underworld and plotted like a detective story, the work follows the fortunes of the. Great book spent 2 hours a day, 5 days a week, for almost two months listening to all 5 volumes of les miserables. It reveals the journey he went through until he met cosette, a little girl whom he took as his own daughter and the struggles that followed throughout his life. Summary plot overview the convict jean valjean is released from a french prison after serving nineteen years for stealing a loaf of bread and for subsequent attempts to escape from prison. He gets a new name via association with myriel and his obvious kindness and generosity to others and gradually builds a successful and prosperous life for himself with a renovation of the jetwork industry in montreuil. Only the saintly bishop, monseigneur myriel, welcomes him. The plot fails with the timely arrival of the inspector. Jean valjean eight years after he breaks his parole, becomes mayor of a. Les miserables or, as it is often shortened, les mis is a novel by victor hugo, published in 1862. It continues the story of cosette and marius, but is more a.
But theres no right or wrong way to read cozy classics. Its not easy to put les miserables in a nutshell, considering that its one of the longest novels ever written. Everything you need to know official london theatre. It should be no surprise that the great french novelist victor hugo was a passionate believer in god and in the power of prayer for this powerfully comes across in his wonderful and inspiring novel les miserables, now, of course, also a successful broadway and west end musical, with lyrics by herbert kretzmer and music by claudemichel. In 1862, this french historical novel was published in the market. Free study guide for les miserables by victor hugo. It was an instant popular success and was quickly translated into several languages. The translation is clear and easy to follow, with poetry translated in the footnotes so.
See a complete list of the characters in les miserables and indepth analyses of jean valjean, cosette, javert, marius pontmercy, and fantine. The major plot involves jean valjean who is released from prison, and through the kindness of father myriel, becomes a new man. The major conflict threaded through the book is between valjean and javert. Everyday low prices on a huge range of new releases and classic fiction. Jun 22, 2008 free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by project gutenberg. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of les miserables by victor hugo. Les miserables penguin classics hugo, victor, denny, norman, denny, norman on. Sparknotes is here for you weve got everything you need to ace or teach. Its not easy to put les miserables in a nutshell, considering that its one of the. It is set in france and spans the course of 17 years, starting in 1815 and ending in 1832. Buy les miserables classics by hugo, victor, denny, norman, denny, norman, denny, norman from amazons fiction books store.
The books opens by describing the life of a really upstanding dude named bishop myriel. Facts about les miserables talk about one of the greatest novels in 19th century. Set in the parisian underworld and plotted like a detective story, the work follows the fortunes of the convict jean valjean, a victim of society. Les miserables by the french writer victor hugo starts with the release of jean valjean after 19 years of imprisonment.
Based on the classic novel, les miserables, by victor hugo, and the classic broadway stage show of the same name, les miserables is the story of jean valjean, a prisoner who breaks parole, and the police inspector, javert, who tries to hunt him down for breaking parole. Aug 14, 2018 an amateur production brought to you by the barn academy barn academy summer project this is the worldfamous story of the power struggle between jean valjean and the police inspector javert. Several days after his prison break, he is recaptured and sent to the galleys in toulon. Les miserables by victor hugo 1915 from argosy book store. Apr 30, 2016 les miserables i have been posting quotes from this book for a while now. The title is french, translating in english to the wretched ones. Les miserables study guide contains a biography of victor hugo, literature essays, a complete etext, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. The movie starts as jean valjean, a former convict on parole, goes into the house of bishop myriel. Victor hugos les miserables is such a popular and loved book that it has been adapted into plays and movies many times, most recently in 2012. Read a plot overview of the entire book or a chapter by chapter summary and analysis. The convict jean valjean is released from a french prison after serving nineteen years for stealing a loaf of bread and for subsequent.
Jean valjean is an exconvict who was imprisoned for stealing a loaf of bread. As children get older, parents can expand on the stories in ever more elaborate ways. Anyway, i reckon les miserables is perhaps the greatest novel and musical of all time, but is by no means perfect. Jean asks for food and shelter, and myriel accepts.
Hugo wrote several novels, but the only three that have continued to be much read today are les miserables. Summary of les miserables 1998 movie freebooksummary. When valjean arrives at the town of digne, no one is willing to. Set in early 19thcentury france, les miserables is the story of jean valjean, a french peasant, and his desire for redemption after serving nineteen years in jail for having stolen a loaf of bread for his sisters starving child. In the englishspeaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its original french title. A little backgrounder on les miz as hit musical returns. Les miserables is known to many through its numerous stage and screen adaptations, such as the stage musical of the same name, sometimes abbreviated les mis. Appearing as it did in 1862, les miserables was perhaps the last great literary masterpiece to achieve a wide readership among all classes of society. A novel mingling mysticism, madness, sadistic cruelty. Theres practically no way to sum up this massive, gorgeous, breathtaking novel in a nutshell. Towards the end of the novel, hugo explains the works overarching structure. Novel of the century, by david bello david bellos new book is a comprehensive guide to les miserables, and a compelling story in its own right, packed with detail about the. Only the bishop of digne invites him in and treats him with compassion. If you need a little help, just use the brief synopsis on the back of each book or the longer synopses the cozy version above.
What a great book, but some of the history lessons were a little too long. After 19 years in prison for stealing bread, jean valjean gets out of prison and goes to live with the bishop of digne, monsieur myriel. If i had only one book outside the bible to take with me through the rest of my life it would be victor hugos les miserables. However, just a few days following valjeans escape, an incident takes place around montfermeil that is not unrelated to our story. The characters are french and the book is centered around their lives. He adopts the name monsieur madeleine, and becomes a successful factory owner. Check out our revolutionary sidebyside summary and analysis. If a writer wrote merely for his time, i would have to break my pen and throw it away, the largerthanlife victor hugo once confessed. In the case of les miserables it was eminently worth it. Les miserables is about a former convict, jean valjean 24,601, and how he changes his life to help many, many people.
Thats because les miserables isnt your everyday excon story published in 1862, its a platform for victor hugo to rant against the injustice thats committed against the poorest and most vulnerable members of modern society. Upon his release, he finds that he is treated like an outcast everywhere he goes, until the bishop myriel helps him to create a new life for himself. Includes study guide, historical context, biography, and character index. Les miserables study guide contains a biography of victor hugo, literature essays, a complete etext, quiz questions, major themes, characters. One day, an ex convict wanders into the bishops village and cant find any food or lodging because everyone turns him away.
Book summary jean valjean, after spending nineteen years in jail and in the galleys for stealing a loaf of bread and for several attempts to escape, is finally released, but his past keeps haunting him. Nov 05, 2017 quite possibly my favorite drama storyline of all time, les miserables is a french historical novel published in 1862 by victor hugo. The people who say marius and eponine should have ended up together. The unabridged version is known to be 1,463 pages long, whereas the abridged version is only a little over 800. Les miserables summary from litcharts the creators of sparknotes. As midnight strikes, valjean steals myriels silverware, and escapes. Valjean has served his time and earned release from prison, but it is release. Use the words and images as prompts to invent stories of your own and. Sep 26, 2012 as for the story itself, les miserables is simply one of the greatest stories ever told. The sequel to les miserables was published in 1995.
After 19 years of penal servitude, jean valjean is released by policeman javert. Based on the classic novel, les miserables, by victor hugo, and the classic broadway stage show of the same name, les miserables is the story of jean valjean. Les miserables synopsis broadway musical the musical takes place at the beginning of the xix century. The book is given its epic scope by the wealth of historical detail and meandering political rhapsodizing. As a touring production of the musical les miserables makes its ninth visit to baltimore, some trivia about the shows inspiration, creation and popularity. Les miserables, novel by victor hugo, published in french in 1862. Specifically, lets turn right to the last page to discover how the les mis book. The literal meaning of les miserables is the miserable ones. After nineteen years as a prisoner on the chain gang, jean valjean is released on parole with his yellow ticketofleave, which he must always carry with him, always branding him as a thief. Get all the key plot points of victor hugos les miserables on one page. It continues the story of cosette and marius, but is more a sequel to the musical than to the original novel.
The novel contains multiple conflicts and subplots. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. This summary of les miserables includes a complete plot overview spoilers. Eponine had a great childhood and cosettes was pretty awful. Les miserables, by victor hugo, is an epic historical novel that, though titled les miserables, which translates to the miserable people, is also a story about undying love set largely against the backdrop of the june rebellion, also known as the paris uprising of 1832.
The book is nearly 3,000 pages long and considered an epic. Nobody trusts an excon, so the poor guy has a pocketful of money that he cant spend on food or lodging because no one will take him in. The few persons who at this time were at their windows or their doors, regarded this traveller with a sort of distrust. With that in mind ive compiled a list of some of the errors and plot holes ive noticed in les mis that stop it from earning the crown for awesomest thing in the world, which it bloody well should have. Les miserables summary from litcharts the creators of. Nice to know about waterloo, french revolution, french slang words, the paris sewer system, etc, but way to much information. When valjean arrives at the town of digne, no one is willing to give him shelter because he is an exconvict. Jean valjean, after spending nineteen years in jail and in the galleys for stealing a loaf of bread and for several attempts to escape, is finally released, but his past keeps haunting him. I have tried and failed quite a few times to read the famed book, but the page count and density have yet to allow me to finish it. Les miserables, victor hugo les miserables is a french historical novel by victor hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. Les miserables by victor hugo goodreads share book.