Les Misérables · Chapter
Jondrette Makes His Purchases explained
Marius, while being observed by Courfeyrac and Bossuet, follows Jondrette through the streets of Paris.
What happens
Marius, while being observed by Courfeyrac and Bossuet, follows Jondrette through the streets of Paris. Jondrette purchases a cold chisel from an ironmonger's shop and then disappears over a wall into a waste land. Marius returns home just before Ma'am Bougon locks the house for the night, noticing four men in an empty attic along the way.
Themes in this chapter
Social Injustice and Poverty
Jondrette's ragged trousers and the squalid hovels he visits highlight the extreme poverty and social decay in the Parisian slums.
Suffering and Sacrifice
Marius's secretive and risky surveillance of Jondrette suggests his willingness to endure hardship and danger in pursuit of justice or protection for others.
Characters to notice
- Marius Pontmercy
Marius follows Jondrette through the streets, spying on his purchases and movements, and returns home cautiously.
- Courfeyrac
Courfeyrac spots Marius and comments on his behavior, deducing he is following a man.
- Bossuet
Bossuet walks with Courfeyrac and observes Marius's peculiar air, joking about the man he is following.
- Thénardier
Jondrette (Thénardier) is the man Marius follows; he purchases a cold chisel and disappears over a wall.
- Ma'am Bougon
Ma'am Bougon locks the house door at dusk, forcing Marius to hurry back.
Key passages
“One would say, to see all these snowflakes fall, that there was a plague of white butterflies in heaven.”
The heavy snowfall looks like a swarm of white butterflies falling from the sky.
Bossuet's poetic observation about the snowstorm.
“He has the air of a man who is following someone.”
He looks like he is tailing someone.
Courfeyrac's remark to Bossuet about Marius's behavior.