Les Miserables is my favorite book. It is also one of my favorite musicals. The story is deep, and though very complex, the themes are simple. Regret, Repentence, Love, Forgiveness, Justice, Mercy, etc.
I have read the book 6-7 times and have actually made my own abridged version because I didn't think any of the previous abridgments did it right. (but I digress)
The musical makes one huge mistake in my view. Eponine comes with Fantine to take Valjean to heaven.
The musical changes parts of the story, and that's fine. It embellishes Eponine's love story with Marius, but it works, so who cares. (and On My Own is an AMAZING song)
But why does Eponine come get Valjean when he's dying? She has almost no interaction with him...ever. In the book, in the musical, they almost never meet, and it's never meaningful. There is no connection.
Why does she come to take him to heaven then? Because the music sounded better with a female duet and they needed someone to join Fantine for that song.
Who would be a better choice?
#1 The Bishop. No one makes more sense. The Bishop was the one who helped ValJean turn his life around. The Bishop was the entire crux upon which Valjean changed his life. Valjean kept those silver candlesticks forever, and looked at them each time he had a moral dilemma. The Bishop is a man of God, and who would be more natural to be sent to retrieve Val Jean.
Oh - and that's who does it in the Book. Yes - Victor Hugo wrote the story, and he says the Bishop was with ValJean when he dies. I think this is the one part of the musical that should be re-written. I want to hear the duet of the Bishop and Valjean when they are equals, and share in the same sentiment.
#2 Javert. Wouldn't it be amazing to see that Javert has realized his error, and has not only been forgiven, but is now reconciling with Valjean and they could be friends in heaven? This wouldn't be as great as the Bishop, but it would be interesting.
If this wasn't esoteric enough - click here to read my comparison of Valjean with Tevye (from Fiddler on the Roof)
8 comments:
To be honest I spent a lot of time mulling this over. It did not make sense to me that she came for Valjean at the end. However, one day it clicked and I've rationalized it to myself by thinking that the one thing Fantine and Eponine have in common is that Valjean saved the person they each cared about most. Rationalizing from that Eponine is there as a "thank you" for saving Marius at the Barricade.
That answer has worked for me and added a little bit of power to the scene. However, in the cam footage from the Les Mis movie that has been leaked it looks like only Fantine is there at the end, so they might be correcting the "error" in the film version. I just want to know who Fantine is going to harmonize with now!
I was also contemplating this, and I think that Eponine accompanies Valjean because they are very similar characters. Both of them essentially offer up their lives for Marius, and athough they both lose a loved one in the Cosette/Marius relationship, they care too much about the people they love to try and stop it. Also, they are both redeemed by love - Valjean to young Cosette and Eponine with Marius. And in the end, Eponine wants to "welcome" Valjean into heaven, because she is the only other character who knows what it's like to die for another.
Just to follow up, so that this post has a happy ending: in the film version of Les Miserables, the Bishop joins Fantine in taking Valjean to heaven. It's a fantastic moment, and - as you say - makes far more sense than having Eponine do it, as she doesn't even know Valjean!
Two reasons:
1. Valjean sacrificed himself to make Cosette and Marius happy (and alive). Fantine is there to thank him for Cosette, Eponine to thank him for Marius.
2. Thematically, those three characters *are* "The Miserable ones." (yes, the Parisian poor as well, I get it, bare with me). But Fantine is destitute and forced into prostitution, Valjean is poor and spends 20 years in prison, Eponine is born of swindlers and thieves and is a thief herself. But each is redeemed through his or her toil born from the unselfish love of another.
I like the Bishop being there, as well. But I think having Eponine present is a nice, nuanced point that is, essentially, the story's message: "To love another person is to see the face the God."
I would like to see Enjolras do it. He represents a different kind of love, the love of the "general other" instead of just one specific person. And it would be nice to see him get a moment with some real human connection, instead of just being all gung-ho about revolution all the time. I think he's similar to Fantine in many ways (physically, at least) and in the book, he is a far more admirable and sacrificial character than Éponine is. While he interacts with Valjean barely more than Éponine does, I still think it makes more sense. In the book, Éponine wouldn't have wanted Valjean to save Marius because she wanted him to die with her, so she wouldn't have been grateful that Valjean brought Marius to Cosette.
I've seen justifications of Valjean-Fantine-Éponine that are like "Fantine is there because of Cosette, and Éponine is there because of Marius". But why can't Enjolras be there for Marius instead? I don't think a female harmony is necessarily prettier than a male-female one.
Also, the bishop is such a small part that I feel that Valjean, Fantine and Enjolras are the main heroes of the story.
I agree with you about the bishop, though. Enjolras would be my second choice. Although I would miss him coming in at "They will live again in freedom in the garden of The Lord".
That actually makes so much sense just from the line "to love another person is to see the face of god". Valjean saved the person eponine loved most, and the same with fantine.
It's because she was there to thanks Valjean for saving the one she loved the most, Marius.
Completely wrong dude. Here’s my logic: the most important and powerful line in the musical is ‘to love another person is to see the face of god’. Let’s take a look at the main characters and determine who can sing that line.
1. Valjean
Well, obviously that doesn’t work cuz he’s the one dying
2. Javert
Who did he love? He was the most cruel and least loving person in the musical. He does not deserve that line.
3. Marius
Well, he loves Cosette but they are still alive, so that wouldnt make too much sense
4. Cosette
Same deal with Marius
5. Fantine
Ok, this makes sense cuz she did love Cosette and she is dead, so good fit.
6. Enjrolas (sry I can’t spell)
He has a song abt how love is not as important as the cause.
7. Thenardier and Madame Thenardier
Putting aside their obvious disinterest in Young Cosette and Teenage Eponine, they are still alive so no good.
8. Gavroche
He probably can’t read that sentence as he’s a child and his life was about the revolution.
9. Bishop Myriel
We saw him for like 10 minutes in the beginning. We know nothing of his life.
Now, that leaves us with only one main character left: EPONINE! Guess what? She’s dead and loves another person. This means that she can join Fantine and sing that line because she has seen the face of god in Marius the same way that Fantine and Jaljean have seen the face of god in Young Cosette. Makes sense, right?
Post a Comment