Les Miserables Essay, Research Paper

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Les Miserables

Les Miserables is one of the most captivating plays of our

lifetime! It grabs the audience and pulls you in head first.

You can’t take out eyes off of the stage, and even if you can,

the music will take your breath away! I have seen the play 3

times and I don’t think I enjoy anything in this world more

than watching that play!

Les Miserables starts off on a chain gang in France. The

sheriff comes out and gives one of the convicts his release

papers. This convict is the lead role who name is Jeran

Valjean, who has served 19 years on the chain gang for

stealing a mouthful of bread. Jean Valjean leaves the prison

and sets out to find work. But no one will give him work

because of his tattoo which reads 24601, his prison ID number.

Then in the time when he couldn’t be more down a priest

invites Valjean to stay with him. Despite the kind priest taking

him in and feeding him, Valjean decides to take the silver from

the table. In the run he gets captured be the police. But

instead of telling the truth about Valjeans thievery, he gives

the criminal more silver and sends the police away. He makes

Jean Valjean promise that he will become an honest man with

this silver.

The next scene in 10 years later set in a factory where we

meat the other main character, Fantine. As she is reading a

letter her perverted boss snatches it up with his hands and

reads it aloud. Fantine has a daughter that lives with an

innkeeper and his wife who are the only ones in this whole

play that give some comedy relief. They treat her daughter

horribly and when the boss finds out that she has a daughter

he thinks of her as a prostitute and kicks her out of the

factory, which is in the town in which the new honest Valjean

is the mayor. To support her child Fantine sells her chain and

her locks of hair. Then later because she can’t find work

becomes a prostitute.

Later a respected person in the community felt an itch

for a poke at a female and went to Fantine. Fantine realizes

that day that she can no longer be a prostitute because of her

morals and refuses. The man beats her and when Fantine

fights back he drags her to the police. As the police are taking

her away Jean Valjean, the mayor, comes in the stops them.

He believes Fontine and promises to help her.

Valjean goes to the innkeepers house and pays for their

troubles even though they have been absolutely horrible and

abusive to her. The daughters name is Cosset and she

instantly falls in love with her new “father.” On the long trip

home the two become very close and when they get back they

find out that Fantine, Cossets mother has died. So Cosset

agrees with delight to stay with Valjean.

20 years later in Paris we find that Cosset is grown up

and Valjean has grown old and withered. This is now the time

of the French Revolution and you can smell war in the air.

But an old face shows up, Shaver. Who is the sheriff that kept

incarcerated for so many years. He has come back to take

Valjean again. He has been hunting him for 30 years for

parole violation. but Valjean refuses and the two get in a huge

battle royal. Jean Valjean is victorious and runs away. Cosset

has no idea of her adopted fathers past and doesn’t even know

the story of her mother. Jean Valjean tells her and she is

crushed that he kept this information from her for so long.

But she gets over it by finding her love. A young gentleman

and her fall in love but are kept apart by the war. Him and

Valjean go to war together and Valjean ends up saving his life.

In the next scene there is an interesting twist! Everyone

is on the battle field and Shaver is also fighting in the battle

but is mistaken for a spy from the other army. Valjean asks if

he can be responsible for the prisoner and his wish is granted.

But in the night he sneaks past the guards and cuts his enemy

loose. After 19 years on a chain gang and 30 years of running,

he cuts his enemy loose.

But the day after that something horrible happens!

Cossets love is shot in the chest. Who else would show up and

rescue the day, Valjean. Not even knowing that he is Cossets

love he takes his still alive body away from the battle field and

to the hospital.

The revolution is now over and the French armies have

won but in these last few scenes Cosset and her love get

married and at the wedding Valjean and Cossets love

recognize each other. There is an incredibly dramatic part

here when they hug.

In the last scene we see and old ugly man on his death

bed. Then a youthful face comes out all in white, Fantines

ghost. Then another dressed in white then another. Everyone

that was killed in the play was out on stage and in about a

minuets time Jean Valjean leaves the stage just for a second

and comes out in white also. They all had died and now they

are all united again.

This play was just phenomenal. It opens your eyes to

what war and love can do to people. It also opens your eyes to

how miserable some people lived back in those days and still

do today. The music is breathtaking and ads 200 percent to

the plays dramatic effect. I would recommend seeing this play

if its the last thing you ever do. I have seen it 3 times and I

know I couldn’t live without seeing it again!

Bibliography

jerry and jerry

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