Les Miserables

A stranger arrives in Digne in October 1815. Hungry and exhausted, he is "of average height, stocky and robust, in the prime of his life" (67). The stranger tries to buy food and board at an inn but—after the landlord exchanges messages with the town hall—he is sent away. Repeatedly, he is told to make himself scarce. The hungry, tired stranger is turned away from every establishment in town until he finally told to try knocking on Myriel's door. The bishop immediately tells the stranger to come in to his home and insists that they have dinner together. The stranger introduces himself to the bishop as Jean Valjean, an ex-convict who has “spent 19 years in chains” (78) in the prison Bagne of Toulon. He has now been released back into society only to be turned away from every establishment because he carries the yellow passport of a former criminal. He was once a tree-trimmer, but he was sentenced to five years in prison for stealing a loaf of bread to give to his sister's starving family. He received 14 more years for a series of attempts to escape from the notoriously cruel prison. After so many years in prison, Valjean is shocked that Myriel is treating him with respect. They eat a simple dinner using the gleaming silverware while discussing the local cheese production methods.

Valjean accepts Myriel's invitation to spend the night in the house. Late that night, Valjean wakes up and is struck by a moment of self-reflection. The narrator reflects on how the injustice and pain of Valjean's punishment has turned him into a husk of a man, consumed by outrage over how the world has treated him. He possesses "a physical strength far exceeding that of any other inmate" (90) in the brutal prison in which he spent so many years. On being freed, he was "dazzled by the idea of liberty" (93), though he quickly realized what kind of liberty awaited a man with a yellow passport. This poor treatment only alienated him from the society which labeled him a criminal. In this frame of mind, at two in the morning, Valjean steals the bishop's “antique silver cutlery” (94) and—pausing only to study Myriel in his “childlike sleep” (97)—runs away.

The following day, the police stop Valjean. Inspecting his bag, they find the stolen silverware and march him back to the bishop's house. To the policemen's shock, Myriel claims that he is glad to see Valjean and that the stolen silverware is, in fact, a gift. His only complaint is that Valjean forgot to also take the silver candlesticks. The police release Valjean. Myriel gives Valjean the silver but insists that he must sell the cutlery and the candlesticks and use the proceeds "to become an honest man" (100). Valjean is shocked, humiliated, and unsure what has happened. He accepts the bishop's conditions and leaves Digne. Still struggling to escape his thoughts, he steals a silver coin from a young boy named Petit Gervais—a crime of opportunity. When the terrified boy cries, Valjean is surprised by his own wickedness. He tries to return the coin but cannot find the boy. Valjean breaks down in tears for the first time in 19 years and promises himself that he will become a good person. That night, he returns to Digne and prays outside the door of Myriel's home.

In 1817, France is once again ruled by a constitutional monarchy, and the elected government has limited power. Remnants of Napoleon's rule are being eliminated from society, and the monarchy has brought "an end for ever to the era of revolutions" (108). At this time, four middle class and "unexceptional young men" (110) named Tholomyès, Listolier, Fameuil, and Blachevelle strike up sexual relationships with four “lovely” (111) young working-class women named Fantine, Dahlia, Zéphine, and Favorite, respectively. The young women work as seamstresses but rely on their wealthier lovers for financial support. Fantine is the youngest of the women, and she is praised for her "lovely blonde hair [and] splendid teeth" (112). Of the women, she may be the most innocent. She is an orphan who knows little about her parents. Her coupling with Tholomyès is her first meaningful relationship, and she becomes deeply devoted to him.

After the young women ask the men for a surprise, Tholomyès suggests that the four young men play a prank on their lovers. After spending the day strolling through the parks in the style of fashionable young couples, they invite the women to dinner. While eating, the drunken Tholomyès delivers a pompous monologue in which he warns the women that “marriage is a form of grafting” (122) that they should avoid. Then, the men leave the table, instructing the waiter to wait an hour before delivering to the table a letter announcing that their middle-class parents have forbidden them from consorting with working class girls. However, the letter assures the women that "the meal is paid for" (126). Dahlia, Zéphine, and Favorite are unsurprised by the men's behavior; Fantine smiles while hiding her broken heart. She is secretly pregnant with Tholomyès's child.

Fantine gives birth to a daughter. She names the girl Cosette but struggles to raise the girl alone, as any woman with a daughter born out of wedlock would. While passing an inn near her hometown Montreuil-sur-mer, she notices the well- dressed daughters of the innkeeper playing outside. The inn is owned by Monsieur and Madame Thénardier. Dejected and desperate, Fantine begs Madame Thénardier to look after Cosette while Fantine searches for a job Monsieur Thénardier intervenes and demands money to care for the girl. Although Fantine does not want to leave her daughter, she takes comfort from the innkeepers' happy daughters. She assumes that Cosette will be treated well. Unfortunately for Cosette, the Thénardiers cannot be trusted. When Fantine leaves, they press the young Cosette into work. Her life becomes "a hailstorm of violent and undeserved punishments" (135). They treat her cruelly, make her wear torn rags, and physically abuse her for their pleasure while frittering away any money sent by Fantine for Cosette. One day, Monsieur Thénardier discovers that Cosette was born out of wedlock. He demands even more money to care for "the creature" (136), and Fantine has no choice but to agree.