“there is a stage where the unfortunate and the infamous are mingled and confounded in one word,—a fatal word, “Les Misérables,””
“The book which the reader has before him at this moment is, from one end to the other, in its entirety and its details, whatever the intermittences, exceptions, and short-comings may be, the progress from evil to good, from injustice to justice, from falsehood to truth, from night to day, from appetite to conscience, from corruption to life, from bestiality to duty, from hell to heaven, and from nothingness to God. The starting-point is matter, the terminus the soul; the hydra at the commencement, the angel at the end.”
Les Misérables is a French epic historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. Les Misérables has been popularised through numerous adaptations for film, television, and the stage, including a hugely successful musical. Beginning in 1815 and culminating in the 1832 June Rebellion in Paris, the novel follows the lives and interactions of several characters, particularly the struggles of ex-convict Jean Valjean and his experience of redemption. Examining the nature of law and grace, Hugo elaborates upon the history of France, the architecture and urban design of Paris, politics, moral philosophy, antimonarchism, justice, religion, and the types and nature of romantic and familial love.
The novel is subdivided into three levels. Confusion can arise as the names for each level sometimes varies between editions; the names adopted here are as follows:
- Les Misérables was originally published in five Volumes (sometimes called parts)
- Each Volume is divided into between eight and fifteen Books (also, sometimes called parts)
- Each Book is divided into Chapters, which are not very long – generally between one and ten pages.
There are 365 Chapters, leading to an obvious scheme for reading the book over the course of a year.
The resources presented here are as follows:
- Complete text – 1887 translation by Sir Lascelles Wraxall
- Characters
- Abridged audio
- Concert of songs from the musical
- A brief timeline showing outlines of relevant French history, the life of Victor Hugo and central events in Les Misérables
- External link – How to Read Les Misérables