#lm 2.3.11

[saints-and-poets-maybe]

[cliozaur]

The one, in which Hugo reveals that the mysterious old man is number 9,430 aka Jean Valjean. The details of his successful escape are presented, but they seem… somewhat doubtful. Hugo says “he did not lack money” to buy clothes and stay in a small country-house that served as “the dressing-room of escaped convicts,—a lucrative specialty.” Anyone has any idea where Valjean kept his money while in Toulon?

Upon arriving in Paris, he prioritizes buying mourning clothes for Cosette before finding lodging, showcasing his clear priorities. The complexity of his route from Montfermeil to Paris illustrates his anxiety about being caught: “they had changed carriages frequently; they had traveled short distances on foot.” The chapter concludes with an adorable scene of Cosette peacefully sleeping with her head on Valjean’s shoulder.

[the-wraxall-illustrations]

Page 126

[pureanonofficial]

LES MIS LETTERS IN ADAPTATION - Number 9,430 Reappears and Cosette Wins it in the Lottery, LM 2.3.11 ( Shoujo Cosette )

The day had been strange and filled with emotions for Cosette. They had eaten some bread and cheese purchased in isolated taverns, behind hedges; they had changed carriages frequently; they had travelled short distances on foot. She made no complaint, but she was weary, and Jean Valjean perceived it by the way she dragged more and more on his hand as she walked. He took her on his back. Cosette, without letting go of Catherine, laid her head on Jean Valjean’s shoulder, and there fell asleep.

[dolphin1812]

“ He [Jean Valjean] felt reassured and almost at peace, as though he had really been dead.”

Hugo includes this line to indicate how relieved Valjean is that the newspapers are reporting that he’s dead, and on the one hand, that’s very understandable. He’s afraid of being found by the authorities, and if they think he’s dead, that means they’re not looking for him. On the other hand, the idea that he “almost” was at peace, as if he’d actually died, implies that death is the only way he can find peace, which is tragic. This speaks to, in part, the horrors of what he’s lived through (and the lasting impacts, such as his need to distance himself from society in fear of being arrested) that never let him rest, but it also underscores just how much he needs Cosette. Hopefully, she’ll provide a distraction from his cares so that he feels peace outside of a grave.

It’s notable as well that this is “almost” peace, not actually peace. For the misérables, even death doesn’t actually end their suffering. We saw this with Fantine’s grave, which was automatically considered unimportant as soon as Valjean was out of the picture. We also saw this in the reference to her spirit watching Cosette, with the injustice her child experienced causing her to turn in her grave. Death ended her physical suffering, but with no solution to what caused her to die young and separate from her beloved child, can there really be peace?

On a lighter note, seeing how Valjean cares for Cosette here is really endearing. It makes sense that she wouldn’t complain of exhaustion. She hasn’t had anyone listen to her complaints since she was a toddler, and she’s used to being overworked and fatigued. But Valjean is observant enough to notice that she’s tired even though she doesn’t say anything, and he’s so casual about just carrying her so she can rest. I love how she keeps carrying Catherine as well and how he’s OK with that; it’s another sign of his care, since he knows the doll makes her happy. Cosette falls asleep quickly as well, demonstrating how much she already trusts him and feels safe around him. They already care so much for each other, and it’s really heartwarming to see.

[meta-squash]

Brick Club 2.3.11 “Number 9430 Comes Up Again, And Cosette Draws It”

“When he fell into the sea, or rather, threw himself in, he was, as we have seen, free from his irons. He swam underwater to a ship at anchor to which a boat was fastened.”

I’m momentarily going to return to the metaphors given to us in 1.2.8. If “good” society is the ship and the sea is prison, this parallels Valjean’s earlier life. He swam through prison, and after release, finds himself hiding in a lifeboat--his false identity as Father Madeleine, which saved him--and then was able to reenter “good” society through becoming mayor at M-sur-M.

There’s a public house that’s a haberdasher to escaped convicts. I’m sure Valjean heard about it from prison comrades. I’m also glad this little description exists because we note the existence of shops like this now, and return to it at the end of the book via Thenardier.

“He felt reassured, and almost as much at peace as if he really had been dead.” More confirmation that Valjean himself was in fact “dead” until he came upon Cosette in the woods.

I do so much love the image of Cosette asleep in Valjean’s arms, clutching her doll. It’s the first close human connection we have ever really seen Valjean make. He held Fantine’s hand, but his treatment of her was always this respectful, thoughtful distance. Aside from that, every other relationship or interaction we’ve seen him have has had distance whether professional or social status-based. This is the first time we’ve seen him touch another human being in a closer way. This is the first time we’ve seen him care about a person without such distance. This is the first time we see him trust another person and that person trust him right back. It’s important! Cosette completely trusts Valjean to keep her safe, enough to fall asleep in his arms. And Valjean trusts himself to keep her safe too! Enough to let her sleep!

Also! I was staring at the title, a little confused, and I realized that this more Valjean-and-elements! He leaps from the Orion into the sea, disappearing (according to the rest of the world) into the water and not resurfacing. When does he resurface for us? When Cosette draws the water at the stream.

[fremedon]

Brickclub 2.3.11, "Number 9430 Reappears and Cosette Wins the Lottery"

A very short chapter about which I don't have much to say. The narrator confirms Valjean's name, and we find out, very briefly, how he got from the Orion to here. (Quite literally--just as when he was released after his first time, Valjean has an itinerary to follow after his escape, one designed to muddle his tracks.)

The contrast between Valjean's spontaneous, almost feral escape attempts the first time around and this well-planned, well-executed jailbreak is striking. Valjean has resources he didn't have before--including some cash he managed to keep hold of. But he also has an ability to plan and hope for the future, which is part of the Bishop's gift, and a goal in Cosette.

And now that he has her, he has a lifeline back to humanity--if a temporary one. We've talked a lot in this readthrough about characters in this book gaining strength through living on borrowed time--being aware they are (effectively or literally) dead, and accepting it. When Valjean comes across one of the newspaper reports of his death, we are told "He felt reassured and almost at peace, as if he really had died."

Very excited for tomorrow, when we meet the Gorbeau House!

[everyonewasabird]

Brickclub 2.3.11 ‘Number 9430 comes up again and Cosette draws it’

They’re away from the Thenardiers for good. Maybe that’s why the sky clears for the reader also: the disguise--or the pretense of disguise--falls away, and we learn clearly and simply what happened to Jean Valjean.

Hugo doesn’t pretend we didn’t know this time, but it still feels like a weight is lifting. There’s a palpable feeling of everybody not having to deal with quite so much bullshit, now that the Thenardiers are left behind and Valjean can just be called Valjean.

The summary of his flight north through France transitions into the summary of his flight with Cosette--a big journey for a seven-year-old whose whole world was overturned this morning.

She lays her head on his shoulder and falls asleep, and it’s adorable. I wish that he could take the lesson here that it’s not the gifts she needs but him.

ETA: building off what @fremedon said the other day, though, about the distant POV mirroring Valjean’s trauma, I wonder if it’s also an internal clarity being reflected here.

Valjean was traumatized by his second time in the bagne, and some of that trauma manifested as a fugue state we’ve been watching gradually clear over the course of this evening. The clarity in this chapter may also be a reflection of Valjean returning to himself.

[eirenical]

LM 2.3.11 Number 9430 Comes up Again, and Cosette Draws It

HELLO, FRIENDS.  I’m sorry it’s been so long since I’ve posted.  I got lazy, then Waterloo happened, then life got in the way and aren’t I just a bundle of excuses?  But I had Things To Say about chapters in Waterloo and chapters before Waterloo and UGH, stuff with the Thenardiers, but if I wait to post until I’ve caught up on all that, I’ll never post again.  So, here’s me getting back on track.  And I’ll retroblog the other stuff when I have time.  Sorry, again!  -.-;;;

So, to start, this is a very short chapter.  (Which is probably good, because I’m WOEFULLY out of practice, here.)  Really it’s a sum up along the lines of, “For those of you who didn’t follow all the convolutions that came before... here’s what’s going on.”  And I like that Hugo did that.  Because TBH, if I’d been reading this in a serial fashion, as it was published, by the time I reached this part, I’d NEED a sum up.  O_o;;;

Beyond that, a few things that amused and or confused me:

How on EARTH did Valjean plan all this from inside a prison ship?  I mean... the man’s resourcefulness knows no bounds, apparently.  And his mayoral charm must have played a part in it.  But is anyone else amused by the irony that the reason he’s IN this predicament to begin with is because of 3 failed prison escapes -- escapes that led to him being imprisoned for 12 years more than he was originally slated for -- and in this chapter they make it sound as though escape were easy?  That it’s SO easy, in fact, that everyone does it?  That’s one hell of an irony.  What is it that the priest says in Count of Monte Cristo?  Don’t commit the crime for which you were imprisoned?  Guess Valjean never read Dumas.  ^_~

Anyway, this leads me to... There are so many escaped convicts from that area that there’s a shop that caters to them?  I’m laughing.  I’m laughing so hard.  XD  That’s one great justice system you have there.  O_o;;;

Where did Valjean get that money to buy clothes with?  I guess he snuck out to unbury his treasure before going to the shop?  But the chapter made it sound like the shop was right there when he got out of the water.  Also, there’s something that always bothered me about that buried treasure -- didn’t Valjean have someone donate all of his money?  Where did this treasure even come from?  Did he have it kept on the side to not be donated in case of random incarceration?  I don’t know.  That always confused me.

I really like that Valjean is such a planner, now.  It’s as though now that his intelligence has been awoken, it can no longer rest.  He plans for every little step of the journey before going to get Cosette.

In light of that, I wonder a bit about how long it takes him to reveal his intentions of taking Cosette.  Maybe it’s just his meticulous nature, making sure that he gathers all the facts before stepping in.  Maybe it’s a last moment of doubt that he’s doing the right thing.  Maybe it’s his tendency to over-analyze tripping him up as it the night before he handed himself in.  I don’t know, but I like this interpretation of Valjean as a cautious person who things far ahead of where he is.  It’s SO different from how those scenes play out in the musical.  In the musical, he seems brash and arrogant in those scenes.  He swoops in, saves Cosette, and roasts the Thenardiers, all in one song sequence.  I like this slow and deliberate Valjean better.  It shows that he’s taken just that one more step beyond his life as a prisoner when he DID often act brashly and without thought.  (Though there’s something to be said for swinging TOO far in the other direction.  ;D)

And last... that line about reading that he’d “died” bringing him such peace.  On the one hand, that’s such a sad line -- that his greatest sense of peace are in these moments where he touches death.  On the other hand, I like the idea that this peace might come from him realizing that his own “death” gives him a blank slate from which to start over.  To do better.  To do good.  But that’s really a lie, again.  Because he’s started over like this before.  And in the originating lie are the seeds of his eventual destruction.  It begs the question -- can true good be born of a negative act?  That’s one lesson that I’m not sure Valjean has learned just yet... or ever will.

[the-wraxall-illustrations]