Les Misérables · Chapter
X: Result of the Success explained
Fantine, having been dismissed from the factory, descends into deeper poverty and desperation.
What happens
Fantine, having been dismissed from the factory, descends into deeper poverty and desperation. To pay the Thénardiers' demands for Cosette, she sells her hair and later her two front teeth. She takes a lover who abuses her, and her health deteriorates. Her debts grow, and she is forced to sell her remaining possessions, ultimately becoming a prostitute.
Themes in this chapter
Social Injustice and Poverty
Fantine's descent into prostitution and selling her hair and teeth illustrates the brutal economic pressures on poor women.
Suffering and Sacrifice
Fantine sacrifices her hair and teeth, and endures physical and emotional suffering, for the sake of her daughter Cosette.
Characters to notice
- Fantine
Fantine sells her hair and teeth to pay the Thénardiers, descends into poverty and prostitution, and grows to hate Father Madeleine.
- Cosette
Cosette is the child for whom Fantine makes sacrifices; the Thénardiers falsely claim she is ill to extort money.
- Thénardier
Thénardier writes demanding money for Cosette's supposed illness and threatens to turn her out into the cold.
- Marguerite
Marguerite is Fantine's neighbor and confidante, who witnesses her decline and the aftermath of selling her teeth.
- M. Madeleine
Fantine blames Father Madeleine for her dismissal and comes to hate him, though she makes no complaint.
Key passages
“She purchased a knitted petticoat and sent it to the Thénardiers. This petticoat made the Thénardiers furious. It was the money that they wanted.”
Fantine bought a woolen skirt for Cosette and sent it, but the Thénardiers were angry because they wanted cash, not clothing.
Highlights the Thénardiers' greed and Fantine's misguided attempt to help.
“The unfortunate girl became a woman of the town.”
Fantine, driven by debt and desperation, turned to prostitution.
Summarizes Fantine's final fall into the lowest social status.
“She had lost her shame; she lost her coquetry. A final sign. She went out, with dirty caps.”
Fantine abandoned all pretense of modesty and appearance, going out in dirty caps.
Illustrates her complete loss of dignity and self-respect.