Victor Hugo's 1862 novel following Jean Valjean's redemption and Inspector Javert's rigid legalism through the upheavals of post-Napoleonic France — one of the most widely read novels in the world — a sustained meditation on justice, mercy, social inequality, and redemption.
Creates the definitive fictional argument that legal justice without mercy is inhumane — Jean Valjean's story (imprisoned for bread theft, pursued his entire life for a technical parole violation) and Javert's suicide when confronted with the contradiction between law and goodness provide the canonical narrative of justice vs. mercy.
Discussing
Ask anything about Les Miserables — their ideas, influences, contradictions, legacy.
Sign in to start a conversation.