Les Misérables · Chapter
IV: In Which Jean Valjean Has Quite the Air of Having Read Austin Castillejo explained
Jean Valjean and Fauchelevent devise a daring plan for Valjean and Cosette to escape the convent.
What happens
Jean Valjean and Fauchelevent devise a daring plan for Valjean and Cosette to escape the convent. Fauchelevent has arranged for Valjean to enter the convent as his brother and Cosette as his niece, but the problem is that Valjean is already inside. They decide to use the funeral of a nun: Valjean will hide in the empty coffin meant for the deceased, be nailed in, carried to the cemetery, and then rescued by Fauchelevent, who will bribe or get the gravedigger drunk. Valjean agrees to the risky plan, drawing on his prison experience and historical precedent.
Themes in this chapter
Suffering and Sacrifice
Valjean is willing to endure being nailed in a coffin and risk suffocation to secure a safe life for Cosette.
Redemption and Transformation
Valjean's escape plan symbolizes his ongoing transformation from convict to protector, using his past prison skills for a noble purpose.
Characters to notice
- Jean Valjean
Devises the plan to escape the convent by hiding in a coffin, showing his resourcefulness and calm under pressure.
- Father Fauchelevent
The convent gardener who helps Valjean and Cosette; he is hesitant but ultimately agrees to the coffin escape plan.
- Cosette
Valjean instructs her to obey and stay quiet; she will be carried out by Fauchelevent in a basket.
Key passages
“The strides of a lame man are like the ogling glances of a one-eyed man; they do not reach their goal very promptly.”
A lame man moves slowly, just as a one-eyed man's gaze is ineffective.
Narrator's observation on Fauchelevent's hesitant pace.
“Any man who has been a prisoner understands how to contract himself to fit the diameter of the escape.”
A former prisoner knows how to make himself small to fit through an escape route.
Reflects Valjean's prison experience enabling his daring plan.
“A man who is making his escape does not cough or sneeze.”
Someone trying to escape will suppress any noise or reflex.
Valjean's stern advice to Fauchelevent about the coffin plan.