Claude Gueux by Victor Hugo (Book Analysis) E-Book

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• Herausgeber: BrightSummaries.com
• Kategorie: Bildung
• Serie: BrightSummaries.com
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 18

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2016

Beschreibung

Unlock the more straightforward side of Claude Gueux with this concise and insightful summary and analysis!

This engaging summary presents an analysis of Claude Gueux by Victor Hugo, a moving novel in which a man is sentenced to death for having given in to the provocations of a prison Director and killing him. Victor Hugo examines the question of responsibility and guilt and presents a vibrant plea against the death sentence with this striking representation of the injustices of the French society of the 19th century. Hugo was known for being very involved in politics later on is his career, and made several speeches in favour of the abolition of capital punishment. He also wrote numerous short stories and novels on this topic, presumably as a way to raise awareness and spread his message.

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• A complete plot summary
• Character studies
• Key themes and symbols
• Questions for further reflection

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Leseprobe

Victor Hugo

French novelist, poet, playwright and politician

Born in Besançon in 1802Died in Paris in 1885Notable works:Hernani (1830), playThe Hunchback of Notre-Dame (1832), novelLe Misérables (1862), novel

A poet, novelist, playwright and politician, Victor Hugo was the most symbolic writer of the French Romantic movement. Elected as a figurehead of the Romantics, he also led a politically engaged life, defending significant causes, such as the abolition of the death sentence. During the second empire, he was forced to go into exile (1851-1870) in Jersey, then in Guernsey, where he wrote Les Misérables.

On his death, in 1885, the Republic organized a national funeral for him, and he was celebrated by the people as the most important French writer of all time.

Claude Gueux

A plea against the death sentence

Genre: novelReference edition: Hugo, V. (1990) Le Dernier Jour d’un condamné, Claude Gueux and L’Affaire Tapner. Paris: Le Livre de Poche.1First edition: 1834Themes: prison, death sentence, guilt, poverty, trial

Claude Gueux was first published in 1834. The work is based on a true story and belongs to the same line as another of Hugo’s novel:The Last day of a Condemned Man (1829). Indeed, both works are about the imprisonment of a man and his final execution. Moreover, they both act as pleas against the death sentence.

The novel is divided into two successive and distinct parts: the first part is an illustrative story, which provides a context to the story and a starting point for the second part, which is a reflection about society.

1 All quotes taken from the reference edition have been translated by BrightSummaries.com.

Summary