Les Miserables

Victor Hugo's Preface:

So long as there shall exist, by virtue of law and custom, decrees of damnation

pronounced by society, artificially creating hells amid the civilization of earth, and adding the element of human fate to divine destiny; so long as the three great problems of the century---the degradation of man through pauperism, the corruption of woman through hunger, the crippling of children through lack of light—are unsolved; so long as social asphyxia is possible in any part of the world;—in other words, and with a still wider significance, so long as ignorance and poverty exist on earth, books of the nature of Les Misérables cannot fail to be of use. 

Reflection:

My thoughts on Victor Hugo’s preface are that he somehow managed to adequately and efficiently capture the message, meaning, and main theme of Les Miserables into one sentence before he even wrote the book, and I find that fascinating. He defends the poor and unfortunate while making society look bad and fills the reader with sympathy for the lives of the Miserables. But then again, are those people really the Miserables? Or is society?

Examples from Les Miserables:

The problems displayed in Victor Hugo's preface are shown in many places all throughout the course of the book. One example is that Jean Valjean stole a loaf of bread to feed his sister and her seven starving children. He is put in prison and continually tries to escape so that he can return to the family and take care of them- giving him nineteen years. After being released her is no longer himself, but has been overtaken by a monster- emotionless, careless and selfish. Even when he breaks that, the yellow passport still calls him dangerous and society rejects him. 

My Preface:

So long as there shall exist, by way of society’s expectations, discouraged people encountering life’s daily struggles, creating comatose cyborgs, in addition to the means of survival; so long as life’s three greatest problems—stress of every day’s struggles, the need to live up to the media’s standards, and the unattainable pursuit of happiness—cannot be grasped and held under one’s control; so long as humanity continues to plunge deeper into its dissatisfaction; —and with a still wider significance, so long as these people need just one small moment of circumvention, delicious, rich, comforting desserts will not fail to be of use.  

Book Project Option

Create a conversation between a character and a reporter in an interview or between a character and a psychiatrist.

Psychiatrist: Hi Ponyboy. Sit down. How has your week been?

Ponyboy: Well, I went to school, and I did my homework with only a little bit of arguing with Darry, and I ate chocolate cake for breakfast only three days this week because Soda used all the chocolate for his milk. I read Gone with the Wind for the fourth time, and I had a little run-in with the Socs, but nothing big. My teacher passed me with a C, so I still can have a decent chance at college. Darry did only a little bit of yelling about this. I slept in the bed with Soda instead of the empty lot this week, and I didn't have that one dream. And, well, I guess that’s about it.

Psychiatrist: What about smoking?

Ponyboy: Four packs a day, about.

Psychiatrist: Do you know what smoking does to you, Ponyboy?

Ponyboy: Well of course I do, it gets you all messed up on the inside. But I’m already pretty messed up all around, and the only thing it ever does is make everything feel good again, so I think its pretty okay. Darry doesn't like it. Soda doesn't mind. Everybody does it though. It’s kind of like eating or walking, you just do it without a second thought. That’s how it is around us greasers. We've all been smoking since we were young.

Psychiatrist: I recall that you said you were different from them, that you had a chance.

Ponyboy: Well of course I do, I do well in school.

Psychiatrist: There’s more to getting along in life than just doing well in school, Ponyboy.

Ponyboy: I know that, but here’s how I see it: one day I’ll be like Darry, all hard working and stiff and caring a heck of a lot more than necessary about every little thing. I’m not saying that’s a bad thing, it just doesn't seem very desirable. So right now while I don’t have any real responsibilities, I want to enjoy my freedom and do what I want. Maybe a couple smokes and some chocolate cake is just the way I say that I still have that freedom.

Psychiatrist: Okay, we’ll talk about that later…tell me about your relationship with Darry.

Ponyboy: Well, ever since I figured out that he really does love me a lot, a kind of gave him a break about yelling at me, because I know he’s just doing it out of care. And he yells a lot less now. I guess maybe he figured out he should be a little less hard on me.  And he still whips up a chocolate cake whenever we've eaten it all, so I can’t be too picky.

Psychiatrist: And what about Soda?

Ponyboy: Oh me and Soda are just swell. I stop by the gas station on the way home from school now, because Darry doesn't ever want me walking alone. I buy a coke and a candy bar and play around with Soda and the girls he picks up until his shift is over, and then we drive home. Darry always has a nice meal cooking when we get there. Me and Soda talk about everything with each other, and I listen to his problems now too, because I know that he has them just like everyone else. And every night before we doze off we open the window and look at the stars for a while, because star gazing is the best way to stay gold. I want to stay gold for Johnnycake.

Psychiatrist: You sound like you’re very happy now, Ponyboy.

Ponyboy: Well I am. I figured there’s no use staying sad about the guys who died because that’s not what they would want. They’d want me to eat chocolate cake and fool around and smoke and act tough and tuff just like we used to. So that’s just what I’ll do.

Psychiatrist: I’m glad you have an optimistic look on life again. I’m afraid your session is over, I’ll see you next week, Ponyboy.

Ponyboy: Okay.

Psychiatrist: Oh, one more thing.

Ponyboy: Yes?

Psychiatrist: Stay gold, Ponyboy. Stay gold. 

Dense Question

Text: How has William discovered his identity and purpose through his experiences, failures, and achievements in his life? 
Other World or Lit: How is William’s discovery of himself different from Equality’s discovery of himself? How are they the same?
Reader: What is an experience in your life that helped to shape your identity? Was it a positive or negative experience, and how did it effect you?

       William’s unfortunate circumstances throughout the book such as the famine and him not being able to go to school helped to shape his identity and purpose because he was forced to discover new things on his own and be inventive. Because of the famine, William could not afford to go to school, so he went to the library where he read the books about electricity which inspired and gave him the knowledge to create the windmill. This then led to the trials of other inventions like alternative heat and radio transmitters. He did these things to help make life easier and more comfortable for his family and the people in his immediate community, and helped him to realize how much he liked to do for others. His identity became his selflessness and his giving heart, and his purpose was to help others.

       William discovered himself through helping other people and that gave him satisfaction and happiness. Equality discovered his identity through the realization that he was a lone human and he could accomplish things on his own that no one else could; his discovery was internal and self-directed. However, the discoveries of oneself were the same because the two characters both had obstacles they had to overcome and inventions that they made that ultimately led to their discoveries of identity.

       My identity has been shaped through a handful of situations throughout the past few years. Some of them being positive experiences, and a little more being negative. It seems that identity is shaped the most when one is faced with obstacles, as was the case with me. I now am more mature, more outgoing, more cautious, less boring, more caring, and I have more common sense. I guess you could say that in order for someone to grow, mature, and discover who they are, they have to experience life first, in all its glory and tragedy.