Les Misérables, Book 8: The Wicked Poor Man, Chapter 5 summary
Book 8: The Wicked Poor Man, Chapter 5 of 365 · 4 min to read the chapter
In Chapter 5, Marius recognizes that his neighbors’ suffering exceeds his own hardship and reproaches himself for ignoring them despite paying their rent. His pity turns into an effort to understand their condition when he discovers a hole in the partition and climbs up to look into the Jondrettes’ attic.
What happens
- Marius realizes that his own poverty has not shown him the full depths of misery.
- The narrator describes how extreme need exposes women and children to degradation and crime.
- Marius blames his dreams and romantic preoccupations for keeping him inattentive to his suffering neighbors.
- While studying the partition, he notices a triangular gap near the ceiling.
- He climbs onto the commode and looks through the opening to learn about the Jondrettes’ condition.
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In this chapter
What to notice
The question rejects degradation as a reason to withhold help. It captures Marius’s movement from private dreams toward concern for his neighbors.
Quick check
How does Marius obtain a view into the Jondrettes’ attic?
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