# Little Gavroche explained — Les Misérables > Chapter companion for Les Misérables by Victor Hugo. ## What happens Eight or nine years after the events of the second part, a boy of eleven or twelve, known as Little Gavroche, roams the streets of Paris. He has a father and mother but is effectively an orphan, finding more comfort on the pavement than in his mother's heart. He occasionally visits his family at the Gorbeau hovel, where they live in extreme poverty under the name Jondrette. The chapter introduces Gavroche's free but harsh life and notes that the cell next to his family's is occupied by a poor young man named M. Marius. ## Themes in this chapter ### Social Injustice and Poverty Gavroche's life as an abandoned child with parents who do not care for him highlights the social neglect and poverty of the era. ### The Human Condition and Fate Gavroche's resilience and freedom despite his harsh circumstances reflect the human condition and the fate of the urban poor. ## Character check-ins ### Gavroche Introduced as a boisterous, pallid, nimble, wide-awake, jeering lad of eleven or twelve, who lives on the streets and occasionally visits his family at the Gorbeau hovel. ### Thénardier Referred to as Jondrette, the father of Gavroche, who lives with his family in the Gorbeau hovel under that alias. ### Madame Thénardier Gavroche's mother, who does not love him and shows affection only to his sisters. ### Marius Pontmercy Mentioned as the very poor young man who occupies the cell next to the Jondrettes in the Gorbeau hovel. ### Ma'am Bougon The new principal lodger of the Gorbeau hovel, who replaced the previous one. ## Key lines > This child never felt so well as when he was in the street. The pavements were less hard to him than his mother's heart. The boy found more comfort on the hard streets than in his mother's cold affection. _Illustrates Gavroche's estrangement from his family and his preference for the streets._ > He had no shelter, no bread, no fire, no love; but he was merry because he was free. Despite lacking basic necessities and affection, he remained cheerful due to his freedom. _Highlights the paradox of Gavroche's joy in the face of extreme deprivation._ ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/les_miserables_se/chapters/xiii-little-gavroche - Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/les_miserables_se - All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/les_miserables_se/chapters