Research Paper on Les Mis

Impact

Les Miserables is about the immense change in the character Jean Valjean. When Jean Valjean was a young man he was forced to feed his family through crime because they were too poor to afford food. His whole outlook on life was transformed from the influence of one man, the bishop. The bishop leads Jean Valjean to GOD, which makes Jean become an honest hardworking man. Not only does the bishop’s efforts help Jean, everyone who comes in contact with Jean, will have their lives changed for the better. Jean’s encounter with the Bishop is the reason for all the good events in the novel. So many good occurrences come from this meeting between a convict and a bishop.

The only person who allows the convict Jean to stay at his house for the night is the bishop. Jean could not understand why someone would let a convict stay with them, let alone for free. The bishop informs Jean that the church “is the house of Christ,” and that anyone who believes in GOD can stay, (Hugo 19). This statement plays a big part in Jean being lead to GOD, because Jean sees it as forgiveness. Jean does not accept what the bishop says at first, but when Jean is caught stealing from the bishop, Jean understands that he now does not have to be a bad man. This revelation occurs when the bishop tells the police and Jean that the items stolen are gifts, Jean realizes that he has no choice but to straighten out his life. The bishop further explains to Jean that “[he] no longer belongs to evil, but to good,” and Jean’s soul now belongs to GOD, (Hugo 33). With the bishop leading Jean to GOD, Jean will lead a better life.

Jean Valjean spent 19 years in the galleys for stealing a little bread for his starving family. His stay would have been much shorter, but he tried to escape several times. From the breakout attempts, one can see that the jail time has not made Jean realize that he needs to be responsible for his actions. Instead of taking the punishment for stealing,...