Les Misérables, Book 2: The Ship Orion, Chapter 2 summary
Book 2: The Ship Orion, Chapter 2 of 365 · 7 min to read the chapter
In Chapter 2, Boulatruelle’s searches in the forest near Montfermeil stir rumors of the devil’s treasure, while Thénardier and the schoolmaster suspect something more tangible. By getting him drunk, they piece together his account of a familiar stranger carrying a chest into the woods, but neither the stranger’s identity nor any buried money is confirmed.
What happens
- The narrator describes a local belief that the devil hides treasure in the forest and that seeking it brings death.
- Boulatruelle leaves his road work early to dig secretly in the woods, prompting rumors before he resumes his usual work.
- Thénardier and the schoolmaster get Boulatruelle drunk and piece together an account from his guarded answers.
- Boulatruelle reports seeing a familiar stranger enter the woods with a chest and emerge hours afterward carrying digging tools instead.
- He concludes that the stranger buries money, but his searches uncover nothing and most villagers lose interest.
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What to notice
The attempt to extract information produces only fragments. Boulatruelle’s restraint leaves both the stranger’s identity and the suspected treasure uncertain.
Quick check
Why does Boulatruelle think the chest contains money rather than a body?
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