Marius's Narcissistics

Valjean’s Protective Ways Over Cosette Jean Valjean has full custody over Cosette after her mother died. Although Valjean is not Cosette’s biological father, he wants to be the best father figure for Cosette. He is very protective over her because he has never had anyone to love before. Because of his

"It is precisely of him that I wished to speak. Dispose of me as you please; but help me first to carry him home. I only ask that of you." Upon examination of Les Miserables, it is clearly evident that the elements of Forgiveness, Self – Sacrifice, and Courage are

Throughout the movie Les Miserables directed by Bille August, Paris is shown as an unforgiving society in the late 1700's and early 1800’s. Once a person has done something wrong, they will never be trustworthy citizens, or even a part of society. The cruel nature of society is on display by the prejudice shown by Javert to both Fantine and Jean

Jean Valjean sacrificed much as he sought redemption. One of the first sacrifices that Jean Valjean makes is that of his identity, during the Champmathieu affair. As Monsieur Madeleine, Jean Valjean was a trusted official in a high position. He struggled with himself when he heard that the ‘real’ Jean Valjean had been caught: should he stay in M—sur m—where he was comfortable and popular, or do the right thing, remove a man from an undeserved galley life, and become a convict once more. When Madeleine revealed himself as Jean Valjean, he forever gave up that comfortable position of authority. He became a convict again – a wanted convict. He would now live out the rest of his life hiding, of not running, from the police. Jean sacrificed his safety. Saving Marius’ life by carrying him through the sewers also proved to be a sacrifice. Jean’s entire existence revolved around Cosette. She was what kept him on the track the bishop set him on. He adored her. He was devastated to learn that she was in love with Marius, yet he saved

“Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind.” says the writer C.S lewis. Indeed this is evident in Sophocles’ Oedipus The King. The rather disturbing events that takes place during the play. The pride of Oedipus, the tragic hero of the play, sets off a chain reaction of events that could have been avoided if Oedipus kept his pride in check. However, he can not and his ego inflates to the point his persona can only be described as a mental disorder. Through analyzing Oedipus’ behaviour and his interactions with the other characters in the play, it can be concluded that he suffers from Narcissistic Personality Disorder.

Everyone needs someone to love and care for as well as someone who can return that love and care. When Cosette comes into Valjean’s life, it makes him feel something he didn’t feel in a long time, “When he saw Cosette, when he had taken her, carried her away, and rescued her, he felt his heart move” (123). At this point, she becomes more than just a girl but another symbol in Valjean’s

India Lewis Greenwell AP English 30 October 2013 Les Miserables: The Significance of Sacrifice Sacrifice is a prominent part of human living. In order to get what is needed or wanted, sacrifice is necessary, whether it is small or great. In the novel, Les Miserables by Victor Hugo, he shows that in society, those with less must often sacrifice more. Hugo conveys sacrifice through the characters Fantine and Jean Valjean, by showing how they sacrifice in order to gain and also how their poverty makes their sacrifice even greater.

In Edmond Rosten’s Cyrano De Bergerac minor characters are significant in highlighting elements of Cyrano’s character and Romantic conventions existent in the play. Characters such as Le Bret, Ragueneau, and the nuns each serve a specific role in highlighting Cyrano’s chivalry and characteristics, while providing perspective and context of his reputation in his society. Le Bret, Cyrano’s closest confidant, worries about Cyrano and the reckless actions he takes in pursuit of chivalry, loyalty, and courage. He attempts to keep Cyrano grounded, and reminds him of the limitations and rationale that Cyrano often ignores in attempt to embody a morally and intellectually superior man. Ragueneau and the nuns serve contrastingly different roles,

Hugo includes love in his novel to express the different types and meanings of true love. Marius waits to see Cossette and she does not show up. After going to the garden and realizing Cossette is not there, Marius was devastated. "He sat down upon the steps, his heart full of tenderness and resolution, he blessed his love in the depths of his thought, and he said to himself that since Cosette was gone, there was nothing more for him but to die" (274 Hugo). Marius' love for Cossette is so strong that without her he is incomplete. Cossette often received the short end of the stick while growing up with Eponine and the Thenardiers; however, this is not the case when it comes to winning over Marius' love. Hugo uses Marius to show two completely different kinds of love in his novel; one with Cossette, and the other with Eponine. Eponine lives a very different life as her parents, the Thenardiers, are not the best role models for her. Even though she grows up in a tough situation, she still knows how to love. Eponine falls in love with Marius, however the feeling is not mutual. When Marius finds Eponine on the ground during the battle at the barricades, he shares love with her as her life comes to an end. He does not have the same love for Eponine as he does for Cossette. After revealing two gunshot wounds to Marius, Eponine asks him to stay until her life ends. As soon as

The effects of love are different for each individual. Professor John Cacioppo discovered, “... love deprivation, unrequited love and loneliness have negative consequences on work performance and mental health...40 percent of people who are rejected in love experience depression” (A). Those who have happy childhood experiences filled with love, are

The characterization of Cosette and Eponine as foils in Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables advocates for the implementation of altruism by the rich to help the poor and less fortunate. These two character foils originate from similar backgrounds and beginnings – Hugo even has the two live together for several years – but the stories they later embody are incredibly divergent. This difference between them can be attributed to Jean Valjean’s benevolence when he, “seized the handle of the bucket which [Cosette] was carrying” as she went to fetch water for the Thenardiers. This simple act symbolically freed her from the burden of poverty, as the distressing labor she was doing was essentially involuntary – congruent to the situation poverty forces the

Throughout the book Les Miserables by Victor Hugo, Eponine’s love for Marius is very evident. Marius is oblivious to this, and only recognizes it once Eponine confesses her love for him. Marius is blind to the fact, and overlooks Eponine. Eponine falls blindly in love with Marius, knowing that he will

In the middle of the book, Jean Valjean has saved a young girl named Cosette and raised her as his daughter after her mother died. These actions also have a redeeming effect on Jean Valjean, as he put his promise to the girl’s mother before his own safety and escaped from another bout in prison to find the young girl. Jean Valjean does not think this redeems him, however. He is very suspicious and changes their names to hide from the law enforcement. He also became very suspicious and cagey when a young man, Marius, became interested in Cosette. In Marius’s words, he “ began to be less punctual, and did not bring ‘his daughter’ every day” (168). After some time, he and Cosette move away so Marius cannot find them. Jean Valjean thinks he is

Hugo is saying that human nature is basically good. An example of this being proved is on page 362, “‘From what motive, indeed, does this convict come and say: I am a convict? Well yes! the motive is strange. It is from honor.’” When Marius married Cosette, Jean Valjean didn’t have to tell Marius the truth about who he was. He could have easily continued to let Marius believe he was Monsieur Fauchelevent, lived happily in Marius’ household without having to ever mutter the name Jean Valjean. But he knew it wouldn’t be right to do that so he couldn’t. Even though he had to give up the ideal life, Jean Valjean came clean about his past because that’s what he believed was the right thing to do. Telling the truth came with very harsh consequences and Jean Valjean did it willingly. No one was forcing him to tell Marius about his past, nobody suspected him of being anything less than Cosette’s father, everyone in the household respected and loved him. Jean Valjean didn’t want to deceive Marius and lie to him so he had

The construct of narcissism finds its origins in ancient Greece and Ovid’s Metamorphoses, with the proud and vain figure of Narcissus, cursed by the goddess, Nemesis, to fall in love with his own reflection. However, conceptualizations of pathological narcissism did not became a part of psychological theory until the late nineteenth century with Freud’s eminent essay: On Narcissism (Ronningstam, 2005). As Freud theorized on narcissism and, ironically, experimented with cocaine, the formal diagnosis of addiction was precipitously incorporated into the medical literature in response to increasing uncontrolled narcotic use and growing public health concern (Markel, 2012). Perhaps predictably, theorizing on the possible association between narcissism and addiction, particularly in the psychoanalytic tradition, has been addressed by theorists since. The term narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) was first introduced by Heinz Kohut in 1968, and saw inclusion in formal diagnostic literature in 1980 as a part of the significant revisions to personality disorders in the third edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM; American Psychiatric Association, 1980).