Les Misérables · Chapter
The Gropings of Flight explained
Jean Valjean, carrying Cosette, flees through the streets of Paris and seeks refuge in a secluded lane.
What happens
Jean Valjean, carrying Cosette, flees through the streets of Paris and seeks refuge in a secluded lane. He examines a dilapidated building with a lead pipe and two doors, hoping to find a way inside, but discovers the doors are false or impracticable, leaving him trapped and desperate.
Free preview opens on this chapter — companions, themes, and character notes appear beside the text.
Narrative arc
Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.
- Setup
- Escalation
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
Marius’s psychological peak occurs as he is overwhelmed by a “whirlwind” of confusion, realizing that his pers…
Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.
Follow the arc while readingThemes in this chapter
- Suffering and Sacrifice
Jean Valjean's desperate flight and the physical and emotional strain of protecting Cosette highlight the theme of suffering and sacrifice.
Characters to notice
- Jean Valjean
Desperately seeks a hiding place for himself and Cosette, examining the building's facade and doors.
- Cosette
Accompanies Jean Valjean; he seats her against a stone post and instructs her to be silent.
Key passages
“In the imminent peril in which Jean Valjean found himself, this sombre building had about it a solitary and uninhabited look which tempted him.”
Facing immediate danger, Jean Valjean was drawn to the gloomy, deserted building as a potential refuge.
Valjean's instinct to hide in the abandoned structure.
“He seated Cosette with her back against a stone post, with an injunction to be silent, and ran to the spot where the conduit touched the pavement.”
He placed Cosette against a stone post, told her to stay quiet, and hurried to the drainpipe.
Valjean's protective yet urgent actions.
