Quotes from book
Les Misérables

Les Misérables
Victor Hugo Original title Les Misérables (French, 1862)

Les Misérables is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its original French title. However, several alternatives have been used, including The Miserables, The Wretched, The Miserable Ones, The Poor Ones, The Wretched Poor, The Victims and The Dispossessed. Beginning in 1815 and culminating in the 1832 June Rebellion in Paris, the novel follows the lives and interactions of several characters, particularly the struggles of ex-convict Jean Valjean and his experience of redemption.Examining the nature of law and grace, the novel elaborates upon the history of France, the architecture and urban design of Paris, politics, moral philosophy, antimonarchism, justice, religion, and the types and nature of romantic and familial love. Les Misérables has been popularized through numerous adaptations for film, television and the stage, including a musical.


Victor Hugo photo
Victor Hugo photo

“There is nothing like a dream to create the future.”

Source: Les Misérables

Victor Hugo photo

“Adorable ambuscades of providence!”

Les Misérables

Victor Hugo photo

“Love is the only future God offers.”

Source: Les Misérables

Victor Hugo photo
Victor Hugo photo
Victor Hugo photo
Victor Hugo photo

“I was dying when you came.”

Source: Les Misérables

Victor Hugo photo
Victor Hugo photo

“To err is human. To loaf is Parisian.”

Les feuilles d'automne (1831)
Variant: To divinise is human, to humanise is divine.
Source: Les Misérables

Victor Hugo photo
Victor Hugo photo
Victor Hugo photo
Victor Hugo photo

“One does not cross-examine a saint.”

Les Misérables

Victor Hugo photo
Victor Hugo photo

“He did not study God; he was dazzled by him.”

Source: Les Misérables

Victor Hugo photo

“Are you afraid of the good you might do?”

Source: Les Misérables

Victor Hugo photo
Victor Hugo photo

“To love or have loved, that is enough. Ask nothing further. There is no other pearl to be found in the dark folds of life.”

Variant: To love or have loved is all-sufficing. We must not ask for more. No other pearl is to be found in the shadowfolds of life. To love is an accomplishment.
Source: Les Misérables

Victor Hugo photo

“Let us sacrifice one day to gain perhaps a whole life.”

Source: Les Misérables