Les Misérables · Chapter
The Little One Who Was Crying in Volume Two explained
A young boy, thin and ragged, walks through the night near the Barrière de Fontainebleau, singing loudly.
What happens
A young boy, thin and ragged, walks through the night near the Barrière de Fontainebleau, singing loudly. He encounters an old woman rummaging in refuse, insults her, and then proceeds to a house where he kicks the door. The old woman, Ma'am Bougon, recognizes him and tells him his father is at La Force, his mother at Saint-Lazare, and his sisters at the Madelonettes. The boy reacts with a shrug and a pirouette before continuing on his way, singing.
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 Rising action.
- 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
- Social Injustice and Poverty
The boy's ragged clothing, his family's imprisonment, and the old woman's destitution highlight the pervasive poverty and social injustice of the era.
Characters to notice
- Gavroche
The ragged boy singing and kicking at the door, revealed to be the gamin.
- Ma'am Bougon
The old woman rummaging in refuse who confronts the boy and informs him of his family's imprisonment.
Key passages
“Hello! And I took it for an enormous, enormous dog!”
The boy mistakes the old woman for a huge dog.
Shows the boy's irreverent and mocking attitude toward the old woman.
“There's no one here.”
The old woman claims the house is empty.
She lies to the boy to discourage him from entering.
“At La Force.”
The boy's father is in La Force prison.
Reveals the family's criminal entanglements and the boy's familiarity with prison names.
