Ms. Molyneaux
English H per. D
April 17, 2015
Significance of Les Miserables
In the first section of reading in Les Miserables, it is already clear that the title of the novel is very relatable to the characters. In French, Les Miserables means ‘the miserable ones.’ In the beginning of this story, all of the characters introduced are going through rough times in their lives, and they are indeed miserable. The first character introduced is Jean Valjean, a well-known dangerous criminal. Jean has gone through nineteen years of prison for burglary and trying to escape, and when he gets out of prison he is treated horribly by the people of the surrounding town. No one will accept him, except for the bishop of D--.Another character experiencing troubles is Cosette. When Cosette is introduced, her mother, Fantine, is giving her away to stay with the Thenardiers because she cannot afford to take care of her. The Thenardiers are very cruel to Cosette, and she is in fact miserable. She is fed “a little better than the dog, and a little worse than the cat… Cosette ate with them under the table in a wooden dish” (46). She is also working as their maid by the age of five, which is very cruel and unusual treatment for a child of such young age. Overall, the title Les Miserables is very significant and suits the characters very well with their harsh lifestyles.
this comment is grading Morgans post:
ReplyDelete-content: A
-analysis: B - this topic can't really be analyzed all that deeply because it is very evident that the people in this book are miserable
-evidence: A -nice quote
-usage & mechanics: A
-deadlines & formatting: A
I agree with Morgan. The title is a basic description of the characters lives. Both Cosette and Jean Valjean have awful lives demonstrated in the first 80 pages of the novel. Cosette is mistreated as a child by the people who are fostering her and Jean Valjean can't seem to get past his past. Jean Valjean had been "dazzled with the idea of liberty" but soon saw that his "liberty" only went so far with a yellow passport (p. 25). The title describes how miserable these characters lives truly are and we have only been introduced to two of them so far.
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ReplyDeleteI agree with Morgan about the title of the book. So far, the stories are based on men, women, and children whom are going through major hardships in their lives. For example, Cosette is dropped off at the Thenardiers and as she grew older " her misery " also increased year by year (47). Also, the formal prisoner, Jean Valjean, is rejected from every hotel in D---. He is even declined shelter by a family because of his criminal history. After Jean Valjean is brushed off by the residents, he finds comfort in a " straw bed of the wretched dog-kennel" and the dog soon growls at him! Valjean runs out of the kennel and screams " I am not even a dog!" (11).
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