Is Javert Good Or Bad

“Let us watch the world burn,” said no one ever. In the history of the world, nobody has done anything just because they want to make the world worse. Yes, even Hitler thought he was doing the right thing when he was murdering millions of people for characteristics they could not help but have. So, with this in mind, why is Javert any different from us? In Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables, Inspector Javert is the antagonist of Jean Valjean, a selfless and beloved man; he is constantly seen obsessing over catching Jean Valjean. But, do these aspects of Javert actually deem him evil? While Javert’s views are narrow-minded and his treatment of Jean Valjean is cruel, Javert is not a villainous character; Hugo uses him not necessarily just to antagonize Jean Valjean, but to show how people can change. His experiences in life led him to believe the only correct
His actions are not out of malice, but it is out of what he thinks is right. He does not chase Jean Valjean for years because he hates him, but because lawfully, it is the right thing to do. Similarly, he does not arrest Fantine because he wants to watch her suffer, but because, to his knowledge, she committed a crime that deserves punishment. His mindset, although extreme, is not villainous. He “personified justice, light, and truth . . . as destroyers of evil . . . he protected order . . . he avenged society . . . he stood erect in a holy of glory” (129). How can one deem a person evil if their actions are not of malicious intent? If Javert does not match the definition of villainous, how can he be labeled as one? Throughout the whole novel, he was misunderstood; his actions were mistaken for spite rather than for duty. Honestly, it is hard to blame the police for doing their job. The truth is, the only villains there are exist only in comic books, for example, the Joker, Doctor Doom, and Magneto.