Les Miserables Essay

712 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The analysis of les miserables

The book Les Miserables, By Victor Hugo, is the story of the transformation of the man named Jean Valjean from evil to good. The book begins when Valjean has just been released from prison after nineteen years of doing time, and is wandering the streets of France, his mind filled with evil, hateful thoughts. Then, Valjean is introduced to God, and becomes a good, God-fearing man. The book is about how he creates a new name and a new life for himself, but then sacrifices his freedom to save a man who has been accused of being him and faces the penalty of a life in prison in prison as a result. Throughout the book, the author uses a unique structure of writing to help the reader understand that Valjean has indeed changed from bad to good. He uses long paragraphs containing long compound sentences followed by short paragraphs containing one single short, blunt sentence to do so. By doing this, he helps the reader to relate to Valjean on a deep, emotional level. Because of this relation between the character and the reader, the reader can see that he is able to go from bad to good.

One part of the book where the author uses this unique sentence structure to help the reader relate to Valjean's emotions is when Valjean is trying to decide whether to turn himself in or not. In this moment, the selfishness of Valjean's past clashes with the selflessness of his relationship with God. He wants more than anything to escape going back to jail, but knows that it is the right thing to do. He has an internal battle with himself in this moment, and the long compound sentence paragraph followed by the short blunt sentence paragraph describe the way his mind is thinking in a unique way that helps the reader relate to the character emotionally. T...

... middle of paper ...

...ult of this, he should be pardoned of his crimes. He feels it unfair that anyone should suffer for his small bad deeds after having done so much good. This shows, once again,his overall transformation from bad to good. At this point, he is more good than bad, and is willing to sacrifice himself for another, but he is not purely good in that he is still doing so grudgingly.

As you can see, the unique sentence structure of long compound sentence paragraphs followed by short blunt sentence paragraphs used by the author in the book Les Miserables are extremely important to the overall purpose of the story. By using this structure, the author helps the reader relate to Valjean on a deep and emotional level. In doing so, he helps the reader follow the overall purpose of the book, which is to see Valjean's transformation from an evil-hearted criminal to a good, Godly man.

Show More
Related

  • The Grotesque Gem of the American South: Different Approaches to the Okefenokee Swamp

    949 Words  | 2 Pages

    With an evident attempt at objectivity, the syntax of Passage 1 relies almost entirely on sentences of medium length, uses a few long sentences for balance, and concludes with a strong telegraphic sentence. The varying sentence length helps keep the readers engaged, while also ensuring that the writing remains succinct and informative. Like the varying sentence length, the sentence structures vary as complex sentences are offset by a few scattered simple sentences. The complex sentences provide the necessary description, and the simple sentences keep the writing easy to follow. Conversely, Passage 2 contains mostly long, flowing sentences, broken up by a single eight word sentence in the middle. This short sentence, juxtaposed against the length of the preceding and following sentences, provides a needed break in the text, but also bridges the ideas of the two sentences it falls between. The author employs the long sentences to develop his ideas and descriptions to the fullest extent, filling the sentences with literary elements and images. Coupled...

    Read More

  • Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris

    774 Words  | 2 Pages

    Finally, within the syntax of the novel, Sedaris has interlocked various arguments together with the choice of his words. He skillfully crafts a very sarcastic and humorous piece through applying an argument that is intermingled with generalizations. Thus, it means that the syntax is direct and declarative. For instance, the author states that the teacher is exhausting him with her foolishness and is rewarding her efforts with barely anything but pain. However, the syntax that the author used in some parts of the essay can be said to be confusing because he is fond of changing the topics or employing a different approach of transition in order to make his point of view clear to the readers. This is evident because at some point of the story, he would insert the earlier events or apply metaphors to describe a given occurrence.

    Read More

  • Cinderella Man Essay

    805 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Great Depression of the 1930’s caused widespread poverty, but the popular culture of the time did not reflect this. People wanted to escape from this harsh time so movies, dancing and sports became very popular. Radios broadcasted boxing matches and boxers became stars. The heavyweight champion James J. Braddock aka “Cinderella Man,” gained popularity. James Braddock gained fame by winning many fights and proving everyone wrong when they said he was too old and couldn’t win.

    Read More

  • Ala In The House On Mango Street Analysis

    601 Words  | 2 Pages

    For example, when esperanza wants to describe what it’s like having to tote around her annoying sister, she sums up her loneliness by saying "Until then I am a red balloon, a balloon tied to an anchor". By using such fluid and poetic writing, Sandra gives us a great mental image of how Esperanza is feeling. This helps us understand Esperanza more as a character and it once again sums up Esperanza’s feelings of loneliness. Sandra Cisneros writes in a very short and choppy way that makes reading her book very easy but still contains the same power in her sentences. For example, “There was a family. All were little. Their arms were little, and their hands were little, and their height was not tall, and their feet very small.” This quote is short and choppy, but still gets the point across. It helps us to understand what this family looks like and makes the sentences easy to read and understand. Also, Sandra’s writing style as in writing vignettes makes the book more powerful. The reader only knows certain points throughout the character life, and mostly those that change the character or effect them in some way. This makes it easier to see how the character changes throughout the book and which things affect the character the most. Esperanza's mom tells her to not "lay her [her neck] on the threshold waiting for the ball and chain" of marriage. This is a sample of a vignette and poses as a good example of a powerful sentence the author uses to give you a good mental

    Read More

  • Rise Above the Misery in Les Misérables by Victor Hugo

    1757 Words  | 4 Pages

    As the era of literature slowly declines, the expert critiques and praise for literature are lost. Previously, novels were bursting at the seams with metaphors, symbolism, and themes. In current times, “novels” are simply short stories that have been elaborated on with basic plot elements that attempt to make the story more interesting. Instead of having expert critical analysis written about them, they will, most likely, never see that, as recent novels have nothing to analyze. Even books are beginning to collect dust, hidden away and forgotten, attributing to the rise of companies such as Spark Notes. An author deserves to have his work praised, no matter how meager and the masses should have the right to embrace it or to reject it. As much of this has already been considered, concerning Les Misérables, the purpose of this paper is to compare, contrast, and evaluate Victor Hugo’s use of themes and characterization in his novel, Les Misérables.

    Read More

  • Narrative On The Life Of Frederick Douglass Rhetorical Analysis

    790 Words  | 2 Pages

    He illustrates the agony of thinking and the burden it places on him. Through his self-reflection, Douglass explains the pain and discomfort his expanding knowledge bears upon him, a young boy exploring his present world to discover that maybe ignorance really is bliss. Through the use of several literary devices such as specified diction, irony, and parallelism, the speaker relays a desperate tone throughout this section of his narrative elaborating on the torment

    Read More

  • Perelandra

    1104 Words  | 3 Pages

    The fragment we were given is a three paragraph narration that has longer sentences at the beginning and little by little begins shortening them until by the final paragraph they are very short. The long sentences being used to slow down the time that will be very important in the passage and hence to build up the suspense and tension in the ambience until the sentences become short and speed up the time in the story, building the tension more and more to a point where it seems like something is coming or something will occur. The story is also told by a protagonist narrator which we know thanks to the use of the first person and the direct access to the character’s mind along with his feelings and thoughts. This narrator is retelling us the story (“I have naturally no wish to enlarge on this phase of my story. (…) I would have passed it over if I didn’t think that some account of it was necessary for a full understanding of what follows”[line 19-20]) of his trip over to Ransom’s house, a path which will trigger his paranoia and fear. The style of the writing is very direct as the narrator is practically in a one-sided dialogue with his readers.

    Read More

  • The Triumph of Les Misérables

    1426 Words  | 3 Pages

    Les Misérables (1862), a novel set in early nineteenth century France, presents a story of obsessions in honor, love, and duty, and through it redemption and salvation. It is the story of the poor Jean Valjean, condemned to an unfair amount of time in prison and a life on the run for stealing a loaf of bread for his starving family. The kind act of forgiveness from a Bishop with whom Jean Valjean stays one night, changes the course in which he chooses to live his life. Under a different identity, he becomes wealthy from a business he starts and later is elected mayor of the small town of Montreuil. He falls madly in love with Fantine, one of the workers in his factory. Because Fantine, one of the very poorest and most pitiful residents of Montreuil, has a child born out of wedlock, Jean Valjean as the respected mayor must keep his love for her a secret. When Fantine dies unexpectedly, Jean Valjean vows he will raise her daughter Cosette, and shield her from all the evils in the world. Through all of this, Jean Valjean is being pursued by Javert, a policeman whose entire life has been dedicated to finding Jean Valjean. While running from Javert, Jean Valjean and Cosette find themselves in Paris in the middle of the 1832 Revolution. As Cosette matures, she falls in love with Marius, a young revolutionist. Despite the objections of Jean Valjean, Cosette continues to secretly visit Marius at night. During the revolution, Marius is injured badly and Jean Valjean, after finding a love note from Marius to Cosette, quickly comes to the rescue of the wounded gentleman. Eventually Jean Valjean and Marius' Grandfather consent to the wedding of Cosette and Marius. In this novel, "there is a point at which...

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Valjean And Fantine

    305 Words  | 1 Pages

    9. Valjean’s punishment certainly did not fit his crime. Neither did Fantine deserve the treatment she received in his factory. Discuss Hugo’s purpose in using these situations in his social commentary.

    Read More

  • Use Of Gothic Language In Bryan Stevenson's 'Just Mercy'

    1269 Words  | 3 Pages

    Throughout the story Stevenson portrays the prisons, prison guards and the prison system through his use of word choice. The structural style of the prison described through the use of gothic language, conjuring up dungeon type location, often times embellishing the actual conditions of the prison. He also used partial language describing the demeanors of the guards as harsh and uncaring. Stevenson also employed a series of shocking facts to appeal to the reader’s emotion, having them overlook his stylistic choices in language. These stylistic word choices retracts from Stevenson’s ideas of necessary reform, portraying him more as a story teller rather than an expert, which is detrimental to a his cause when an expert is clearly needed for a complicated subject like prison reform. His overuse of subtle prejudices, through his word choice was ineffective devaluing his argument as a

    Read More

  • Napoleon Dynamite Essay

    1108 Words  | 3 Pages

    Napoleon Dynamite is one of the best movies portraying loneliness and nerds. It is the story of Napoleon in high school and his lonely adventures. All the main characters feel separated, misunderstood, and have nobody to relate to. Napoleon has no friends and lives in his own fantasy land. He is avoided by everybody. His brother seems to be mislead, wanting to be a cage fighter but staying home all the time hopelessly trying to find love and attention on the internet. Their grandmother is never there for them, though she lives her own life right beside them. They live next to a huge field, reinforcing their isolation. Practically every home in the film is

    Read More

  • Slavery

    447 Words  | 1 Pages

    Escaping from slavery in 1838 had to be a treacherous experience; escaping slavery at any time would be! Most slaves couldn’t read or write, but one slave, Fredrick Douglass, broke that barrier and many more. In this particular writing he uses a wide-open state of mind to clearly get his thoughts across. He does this by using a wide variety of diction along with sentence fluency. An example can be seen in every sentence of every paragraph. “I saw in every white man an enemy, and in almost every colored man cause for distrust. It was a most painful situation; and, to understand it, one must needs experience it, or imagine himself in similar circumstances.” His narrative point of view about slavery, or rather first person experience on slavery, is expressed throughout as he explains slavery as being both life and death. How someone can write with such strong emotion, is beyond me, but Douglass does more than that. He captures and captivates the reader into thinking about and imagining his experiences.

    Read More

  • Analysis of George Orwell’s Essay, A Hanging

    671 Words  | 2 Pages

    The author’s purpose is to also allow the audience to understand the way the guards and superintendent felt towards the prisoners. We see this when the superintendent is upset because the execution is running late, and says, “For God’s sake hurry up, Francis.” And “The man ought to have been dead by this time.” This allows the reader to see the disrespect the authority has towards the prisoners.

    Read More

  • The Outsiders Theme Essay

    874 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Outsiders identified the 60’s, often there would be violence between groups and often involving a group’s social class. For instance, the tensions between the Socs and Greasers is violent, and this will lead to Bob’s death, Johnny’s death, as well as many injuries throughout both gangs. The book The Outsiders is written by S.E. Hinton and is portrayed through the eyes of a high school student in Tulsa, OK where S.E. Hinton grew up. Hinton began writing The Outsiders in 1965 at the age of 17 and the book was finally published in 1967 when she was 19. The difference in perspective upon the society and social class creates issues throughout The Outsiders and they assume the problems will be solved with violence,

    Read More

  • French Culture Essay

    909 Words  | 2 Pages

    French culture and society has evolved from many different aspects of French life. From the mastery of French cuisine to the meaning of French art, the French have changed and evolved in many ways to produce a specific modern culture, the dignified culture of the French. One thing that parallels the progress and continuation of French culture is the role of women throughout France. Compared to other nations, the role and rights of women in France were confronted earlier and Women’s suffrage was enacted earlier. The role of women in France, because of the early change in perception of women, enabled France to develop faster and with less conflict than other competing nations.

    Read More

More about Les Miserables Essay

Open Document