Les Misérables, Book 1: The War Between Four Walls, Chapter 4 summary
Book 1: The War Between Four Walls, Chapter 4 of 365 · 10 min to read the chapter
In Chapter 4, Enjolras, Combeferre, and Marius persuade the barricade’s defenders to spare men whose families depend on them, but five chosen men have only four disguises. Jean Valjean enters unnoticed and contributes his National Guard uniform, saving Marius from choosing which man must remain and enabling all five to escape.
What happens
- Enjolras argues that thirty defenders suffice and offers four uniforms as disguises, but nobody volunteers to leave.
- Combeferre urges men to consider dependent relatives and describes a fatherless child who dies after suffering hunger.
- Marius supports the appeal, and the defenders unanimously select five men with claims to survival.
- With only four uniforms available, the five each offer to stay, and Marius faces choosing one.
- Jean Valjean arrives and adds his uniform; Marius recognizes him, and Enjolras welcomes him.
- Jean Valjean silently helps the fifth man dress despite Enjolras’s warning that the defenders face death.
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In this chapter
What to notice
The appeal shifts attention from the fighters’ chosen sacrifice to the suffering of their dependents. It supplies the central reason for sending some men away.
Quick check
What resolves the shortage of disguises for the five chosen men?
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