#lm 1.1.12

[the-wraxall-illustrations]

[cliozaur]

The one, from which we find out that Hugo knows his Dumas. And he also expresses some discontent about the nature of success, which seems a bit insincere on his part. We also learn that Bishop Myriel did not engage in patronage and nepotism. Given everything we already know about him, this revelation is not surprising, I guess. Unfortunately, it also means that he did not mentor disciples who could have followed his footsteps. This only serves to underscore that he was a unique figure and did not conform to the norms of the Catholic clergy in his time.

[dolphin1812]

This chapter is primarily Hugo’s Opinions, but some of them are interesting, so I want to try to comment on them.

The chapter as a whole is a criticism of corruption/a focus on status in the Catholic Church (which the bishop is outside of and is, consequently, unpopular with many other churchmen). This section summarizes much of his critique:

“The priest is nowadays the only man who can become a king in a regular manner; and what a king! the supreme king. Then what a nursery of aspirations is a seminary! How many blushing choristers, how many youthful abbés bear on their heads Perrette’s pot of milk! Who knows how easy it is for ambition to call itself vocation? in good faith, perchance, and deceiving itself, devotee that it is.”

On the one hand, Hugo recognizes that the Church can seem to be the only legitimate avenue of social advancement, as anyone can theoretically rise to prominence within it. (Of course, given the emphasis that Hugo places on priests in court, those from a wealthy background were probably more likely to succeed in this; I don’t know a lot about the Church in this time, but I’d imagine that “advancement” is less likely to be “peasant to pope” and more “minor noble or well-off bourgeois to pope”). At the same time, entering a profession like the priesthood – which is supposed to be about serving God – for these reasons is inherently suspect, as it trains one’s focus on the material over the spiritual. As many churchmen retain this focus, it isn’t something initiates learn to reject, but rather something that’s encouraged as they learn to flatter others for better positions.

However, Hugo expands his criticism to a broader social phenomenon: equating success (high social status) with merit.

“Be it said in passing, that success is a very hideous thing. Its false resemblance to merit deceives men.”

Success does not inherently equal merit, but Hugo points out a more insidious aspect of this equation:

“Prosperity argues capacity. Win in the lottery, and behold! you are a clever man. He who triumphs is venerated. Be born with a silver spoon in your mouth! everything lies in that.”

While it’s true that an ordinary person can become “successful” (i.e. wealthy) through a stroke of luck (the lottery), the luck that determines success typically happens much earlier: at birth. Someone born with that “silver spoon” will already have a respected position (whether as a noble, a merchant, etc), but will also have the resources to change their position (for example, leisure time to study, a social network that fosters business connections, and so on). Even without doing so, they’re respected, because they’ve already inherited their wealth/title. Thus, praising one’s “success” could merely be admiring material things that one has possessed since birth, not through anything innate to them.

[vapaus-ystavyys-tasaarvo]

Catching up with Les Mis Letters since I haven't really managed to keep up properly this week:

1.1.10

The sun was setting, and had almost touched the horizon when the Bishop arrived at the excommunicated spot. With a certain beating of the heart, he recognized the fact that he was near the lair. He strode over a ditch, leaped a hedge, made his way through a fence of dead boughs, entered a neglected paddock, took a few steps with a good deal of boldness, and suddenly, at the extremity of the waste land, and behind lofty brambles, he caught sight of the cavern.

It was a very low hut, poor, small, and clean, with a vine nailed against the outside.

Near the door, in an old wheel-chair, the armchair of the peasants, there was a white-haired man, smiling at the sun.

^ This is a long passage to quote but I just HAD to highlight the writing here. Hugo's way of playing with the expectation and subversion makes his text just so much fun to read. The build up to the reveal of a monster, using language that's full of connotations: lair, wasteland, cavern... and then the simple, harmless reality.

It doesn't even matter that you can see it coming, it still works, because it demonstrates Myriel's mindset without spelling it out.

I love this chapter so much and I don't even know if I have the energy to get into all the reasons why. The fact that it's such a great response to the first nine chapters, the counter-argument to Myriel. How it perfectly sets up the themes of the novel; on the one hand the message of goodness and charity, on the other the harsh fact that it will never be enough. That in fact violence and terror are inherent in society already and the present system must be destroyed to get rid of them, even if there's no peaceful way to do it. That the violence against the status quo isn't any more violent than the status quo itself.

And that is tragic, and it is difficult to accept, but that doesn't make it less true. He doesn't shy away from mentioning the painful facts about the former prince. But he also reminds you that this is not a valid argument against pursuing justice. You can and should weep for all the children, not just those who were born into privilege.

And it humanises Myriel more than any other chapter, reminds you that he has natural human flaws and biases and pettiness. He wasn't just born perfect. He had those unpleasant instincts, but he did his best to conquer them.

Then there's the tragedy of this scene! As others have pointed out, these two could have been friends, could have given each other so much, but they were kept apart by prejudice on both sides until it was too late. Myriel's slightly hypocritical prejudice that kept him away despite his belief in giving everyone a chance, including bandits! And it's understandable because it's a result of his own background, but it is what it is all the same. And on the other hand G's equally understandable prejudice against bishops, that still lead him to misjudge Myriel and never try to reach out to this person who was doing so much work that G would undoubtedly have approved of.

(Sidenote: shout out to Myriel for having the right instinct not to get defensive about G's wrongful accusations and end up arguing over irrelevant things rather than what really mattered in G's final moments. Especially since he was basically mirroring Myriel's own thoughts so it would have been one of those dumb "no I agree with you!" kind of arguments.)

Both of them isolated for their beliefs, both of them missing the opportunity to find some camaraderie and understanding in each other, even despite their differences in opinion. It hurts.

1.1.12

Don't have a lot to say right now about 1.1.12, but I have to point out that "this infectious virtue is avoided" is a great line

Also the whole speech about success has so many bangers, as others have mentioned

Is the duck reference another pun on canard btw?

1.1.13

one of those strong, thoroughly tried, and indulgent souls where thought is so grand that it can no longer be anything but gentle.

love this concept

some flowers on earth, and all the stars in the sky.

love this line

[persefoneshalott]

lm 1.2.8

god I love sea symbolism.

I'm used to 'the sea as a character's inner world and desires' (The Awakening, The Waves, etc). But this is the opposite? It's the inner fight in the soul (which is VERY connected to the outside world and society) and how it kills him.

The infinite shows up again but as a terrible punishing being.

I love how it uses fog and smoke too, confusing and obscuring and making the man doubt reality.

And the birds!! Again, nature is not comforting here, it's not connected, it is out of reach. (I can't stop thinking about how the sea only shows a reflection of the sky, the birds, the stars...)

[deep-peach]

[pilferingapples]

LM 1.1.12

I’ll wrap back around to post about 1.1.11 later, but I’ve hunted down my references on this one first, so up it goes:P 

References, translation checks, etc:

- the guy selling shoes with cardboard soles to the army seems to be a reference to this guy, Gabriel Julien Ouvrard, a financier who was accused of profiting from badly equipping the French army. ( his career is absolutely wild but I'm not finding any good in-depth English sources on him atm??) 

-"De même qu'il y a ailleurs les gros bonnets, il y a dans l'église les grosses mitres."

FMA- "Just as elsewhere there are top brass, in the church there are rich mitres"

Rose: "Just as there are bigwigs everywhere, so there are big mitres in the church."

Hapgood: "Just as there are bigwigs everywhere, there are big mitres in the church."

I don't think there's a "right" translation for this passage--"gros bonnets"is obviously " big hats", but Hugo is obviously playing around with language and maybe being a bit idiomatic, it's just interesting to see how different translations deal with it (also gad WHY can't I find my Donougher...)

-"Let a false Corneille compose Tiridate"-lmao this is just Hugo roasting poor Campistron , who he'd sniped on since Les Contemplations at least.

-Mousequeton and Claude- references to the Three Musketeers! (This is an affectionate reference, unlike the others here; Hugo's using joke characters for Humourous Comparisons as intended )Hugo was managing to read at least some of his friends' works...

This chapter fascinates me for reasons that have very little to do with the rest of the story and everything to do with Hugo.   The absolute distrust of "success" here is , no doubt, an overall reference to Napoleon III , and Hugo's perception of him as a fake "great man".  Given the understanding that the whole book's really about then-current politics, that's clear enough. 

On the other hand: Victor Hugo taking the stance that worldly success is no indicator of genius or quality is ...a hell of a statement. After a lot of thought and reading, I think it’s a really endearing statement, even; as much ego as Hugo had (and it was a lot),  he seems to have really never taken that as evidence of any superiority of his talent or imagination to other, less-known writers. I don’t know if that came from his own experience with career failures or his close friendships with so many creators who never reached his level of fame (..which honestly, almost no one in history reached Hugo’s level of fame at his peak) , but it seems to be a genuine sentiment, and Good For Him on that. 

Along with that: Hugo's obviously identifying with Myriel here to a large degree, as he did with the conventionist before. An old man , unpopular with the centers of power, living in isolation because he's just not able or willing to play politics right (...okay tbfair to Hugo, he was really absolutely awful at political life) ..

Except Hugo was wildly popular! and incredibly successful! After the coup he almost instantly became a hub of the political resistance/exile community, and quickly became a key part of the international political network organizing for republican/democratic movements and social justice.  His writing from his exile years was if anything more  successful than his earlier career . He was so  successful in exile --culturally, socially, financially-- that his opponents accused him of staying in exile as a cynical power move (ftr I think this is an absurd accusation, but it was a common one). 

And that wasn't new! Hugo had been wildly popular  and successful his entire life; even as a kid in school, other kids lined up to take his orders and his writing was winning awards (and cash prizes!)   

But there's this pervasive thing in his writing where he seems to really see himself as an isolated figure, out of step with his world , and if anything a little paranoid about it. This'll show up later again of course when his full-on self-insert appears , but for now....yeah, this rant against Success by one of the most successful people ever to write is Notable. 

[fremedon]

Brickclub I.1.12, “The Solitude of Monseigneur Bienvenu”

“In passing, we might say that success is a hideous thing. Its false similarity to merit deceives men.”

Well, that’s still distressingly relevant.

A chapter on Myriel’s lack of worldly ambition--partially tying off, for the censor’s benefit, the affirmation of his apoliticality in the previous two chapters, and partially a very Grantairean ramble on Hugo’s part.

Stray observation:

--The lack of ambitious young people around Myriel is presented as a good thing, and nothing this chapter undercuts that--but I think Mayor Madeleine’s similar social isolation definitely does. Myriel is not grooming a successor, or training young clerics to care about his dioceses and its people and languages. It’s not only Baptistine and Magloire who are going to suffer when he dies.

[everyonewasabird]

Brickclub 1.1.12 ‘Solitude of Monseigneur Bienvenu’

Not too much to say about this chapter, I think.

I don’t have much sense how controversial going after the hierarchy within the Catholic Church in this way would have been. It’s biting, and it’s well-observed, and it’s pretty great: “Every  cowl may dream of the tiara.” It also does more to align this book’s loyalties, too. There’s a lot that’s religious about this text, but the God we’re talking about isn’t the property of the Catholic Church.

Hugo’s disparagement of success as a measure of personal quality is excellent, and there are so many good lines in it. I suspect several specific people are being subtweeted in the last section, but most of it is flying over my head. I tried to look up whether the “Minister of Finances” might be Necker, but it didn’t seem to match him biographically.

This success talk reminds me a little of Grantaire’s line about the cross: “There is a gibbet which has made a success.” In form and content that’s a lot like statements made in this chapter, and it makes a good point--but it may be that deriding the cross is a step too far for Hugo, and the point is that Grantaire is aiming his cynicism at the wrong things.

Hugo, meanwhile, is aiming it rather well:

We live in a sad society. Succeed; that is the advice which falls drop by drop from the overhanging corruption.

Mood, Hugo.

[cliozaur]

The phrasing of "knows his Dumas" is killing me. XD Hugo and Dumas were besties, Dumas was the Courfeyrac to Hugo's Marius when they were starting out, so even though I know you didn't mean it this way, I'm imaginging Hugo grabbing Dumas and being like, "This Dumas! My Dumas! I know him!"

Yes, they were friends! And I like the imagined scene you depicted so much! Thank you for cheering my up!

[persefoneshalott]

Les mis censorship adventures 6

LM 1.1.12

The line criticizing the line gets cut in the old translation.

"He was not tall, he was a bit obese; and to combat it he took long walks on foot; his step was firm and his body was slightly bent, detail from which we don't intend to deduce anything. (CUT) Monsignor Bienvenu had what the people call a "fine head" , but he was so kind that he made them forget it was fine."

[pilferingapples]

Les Mis 365, retrobricking, 1.1.11, 1.1.12

Okay, let's see if I can't be a little briefer with the rest of the Bishop chapters! (I sure hope so!)  

1.1.11

-- I note that Myriel is summoned to the synod meeting in Paris in 1809...and the meeting is in 1811. And this was after the imprisonment of the Pope?!?  LIGHTNING ACTION, wow. Someone help me figure out the chronology I'm obviously missing?!?

--Hugo's whole deal about how it's. you know, TACKY to attack and criticize people on their downward swing if the criticism wasn't there on their rise sounds good, but it's got obvious problems of reason (sometime the problems weren't THERE on the rise, or weren't apparent; and hey, sometimes fear of challenging a rising power is TOTALLY LEGITIMATE and people shouldn't lose their right to action just because they tried to preserve their freedom or safety! And so on...) and it seems to not really apply to the Bishop's dislike of Napoleon??  I mean, Myriel was totally willing to snark at Napoleon at their very first meeting. 

-- this is where we get the explicit mention that the people of Digne LOVE their Bishop-- not just admire or trust, but love, as one of them. And because of that they give him their forgiveness for his worldly/political failings, just as he gives them absolution for their moral ones, and it's all very sweet and seriously I'm getting gushy, here. 

1.1.12

AUGH  And here's the bit about the Bishop's solitude, and why he's alone.

Leaving aside discussion of what the Bishop himself is losing out on through this (and I do think he is losing out on something valuable, in losing contact with the younger voices in his church, however much Hugo might sneer; ignorance of your own culture is never A Good, maybe especially when it's a sort of side-culture like the clergy, and the input of new generations IS important, darn it, even in such hierarchical and structured societies), I am kind of amused by Hugo's rant about OH THESE TERRIBLE TIMES, PEOPLE ONLY RESPECT SUCCESS, (and everyone is writing a book and kids no longer respect their parents, no doubt)  and ESPECIALLY amused by the slandering of innocent ducks and their feet.  What did the canards do to you, Hugo?