“Men had only touched him to bruise him. Every contact with them had been a blow. Never, since his infancy, since the days of his mother, of his sister, had he ever encountered a friendly word and a kindly glance. From suffering to suffering, he had gradually arrived at the conviction that life is a war; and that in this war he was the conquered. He had no other weapon than his hate. He resolved to whet it in the galleys and to bear it away with him when he departed.”
Victor Hugo's epic tale follows the lives of various characters, including Jean Valjean, a former convict seeking a second chance at life, and the compassionate Bishop Myriel. The story delves into the social and political turmoil of the time, highlighting the struggles of the poor and the corrupt. more
Victor Hugo, a French romantic poet, novelist, and playwright, was born on February 26, 1802, and died on May 22, 1885. He is considered one of the greatest writers in French literary history, known for his profound humanistic concerns and rich imagination. more
“Suffering happens when we believe the solution is outside ourselves.”