The Tragicomedy of Victor Hugo

I have not yet read Les Miserables in its entirety. This probably counts as a personal failing for a Literature major, but there stands the awful truth. I have, however, read most of it and listened to the musical several dozen times. I’ve just finished reading The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Victor Hugo’s other great work. While Les Mis is celebrated in music, verse, and movies, Hunchback exists in relative obscurity. Some argue it was written simply because Hugo wanted an excuse to write a travel book for Paris and the Bell Ringer of Notre Dame had a useful perspective.

Yet, as I read it, it occurred to me that they are almost the same story, yet one is driven by virtue and ends as a comedy, while the other is driven by vice and ends as a tragedy. Both figure the rejects of society. Jean Valjean, a convict, and Quasimodo, a cripple with little power of speech—both are feared and despised, and both, coincidently, are given shelter by churchmen. Yet while the bishop forgives Valjean his faults and urges him towards a higher life and serve humanity, the priest of Hunchback urges Quasimodo to shun the world, to seek only his company and to flee his humanity.

This is the first great break of the novel. Valjean’s sense of his forgiveness and love of people leads him to compassion for Fantine, to adopt Cossete, and save Marius’ life. Quasimodo’s inexperience and fear starves him of affection so deeply that when he loves, he loves as one obsessed, he has no way to form friendship with either the priest or Phoebus, the young soldier, and as a result dooms the one he loves, the dancer Esmeralda.

Esmeralda stands as the equivalent of Cossete. But where Cossete chooses to obey her father and submit to an external rule. Esmeralda is entirely guided by her passions—most powerfully, her infatuated love of Phoebus. But where Cossete recognizes a higher law than that love, Esmeralda will sacrifice honor, family, and culture for Phoebus’ whim. Cossete is rewarded with a loving husband and a good marriage, while Esmeralda meets tragedy. Fantine and Esmeralda’s mother also have interesting parallels, but I would hate to reveal all the plot twists.

Finally, there are the young men of the story. Phoebus is a young braggart who lives only for his own pleasure. He seduces Esmeralda in the night, but refuses to acknowledge her existence by daylight. Even when she stands falsely accused for his attempted murder. He wants a rich wife to secure his own comfort and promotion-he knows no higher goal. Marius, though young and headstrong, lives to serve: his country, his family, and soon, Cossete. While Phoebus only takes, Marius can’t wait to offer up his own life.

There are numerous other parallels, Javier and Frollo’s sense of justice, the convict versus the gypsy in society, the treatment of fallen and holy women and the similarities thereof, but those I leave to your discovery.