"The Man Who Laughs": a summary of the novel by Victor Hugo

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

The literature of the nineteenth century is read by both young people and the older generation. Among French geniuses, Victor Hugo stands out, having written several major novels. If you want to know about the amazing story of a young man who is ugly on the outside and beautiful on the inside, you should read the work "The Man Who Laughs" (summary). Hugo for a long time collected historical information about England, so that the novel turned out not to be fictional, but close to reality. It took two years to write the book. The novel is still quoted to this day, several films have been made, and theatrical scenes have been staged.

Introduction, introduction to the characters

If you like fascinating stories about love, hate, betrayal - be sure to read the book written by Victor Hugo, "The Man Who Laughs". The summary of the first preliminary chapter will acquaint the reader with Ursus and his tame wolf Gomo. An eccentric doctor travels and earns his living, researches the vegetation insearch for new medicinal herbs. The habits of his pet seem quite human, and it was not for nothing that Ursus gave him the name Homo, which means "man" in Latin.

In contrast to these two goodies, the second chapter is about comprachikos. These are entire classes of people engaged in dirty deeds: they ransom or steal children, and then with a scalpel mutilate their face and body beyond recognition. Previously, this reverent topic was not raised in the literature, but it is unfair to say that the activities of these people are fiction. The first writer to reflect this idea in his work was Victor Hugo. "The Man Who Laughs" is an amazing novel about the life and adventures of the royal heir, who was rewarded by the Comprachicos with a forever frozen smile on his face. Killing a baby is a crime, they say, but there is another way to get rid of it - change its appearance and take it away from its native land.

Part one: sea and night

Eight silhouettes were visible on the southern tip of Portland in terrible bad weather. Among them it was impossible to distinguish between women and men, but one of them was a child. People who sailed from Spain left the boy, and they themselves cut the ropes and set off for the open sea. The abandoned baby did not know who he was, but readers can immediately guess that the child is the same "man who laughs." The book tells about the adventures of a grown child, but for now he has one task - to get out and find housing. The child sees ghosts, but he sees a corpse dismembered on the gallows. Having crossed half a league, he broke out ofstrong and hungry, but continued to wander. He follows in the footsteps of a woman and finds her dead … A one-year-old girl would have died in her arms if the brave fellow had not decided to take her with him. After long wanderings, the unfortunate man finds the house of Ursus. The doctor unkindly meets the children, but offers them food and lodging for the night, and in the morning he discovers the disfigured face of the boy and the blindness of the girl. He names them Gwynplaine and Deja.

The fate of villains

The number of children abandoned by the comprachicos increased, because in England these people were facing a terrible punishment. The captain of the urca, leaving the baby, went with his team away from land, but the worst punishment awaited them at sea: a snow storm began. He was in doubt about the correct course due to the weather, but did not dare to stop the path. The only sane person in the classroom, the doctor, warned of a possible death, but they did not listen to him. He accidentally discovers a flask with the name Hardquanon in the cabin - this is a surgeon, to whom a man who laughs owes his frozen smile. The summary of the book will soon reveal who the crippled boy really was.

Here came the sound of a bell. Urka went to her death. A buoy raged from a strong wind, on which a bell was hung, foreshadowing the reef. The captain performs several successful maneuvers and gets the team out of a tight spot. The storm ended, but a hole remained in the urk - the hold was full of water. All things were thrown into the sea, and the last thing that could be thrown into the sea is their crime … Everyone subscribed toparchment and placed it in Hardquanon's flask. Slowly going under the water, none of them got up. They all died, and there, on land, the poor boy survived - a man who laughs. The synopsis almost does not convey the horror of the storm and the death of the comprachicos, and patient readers are advised to read a good hundred pages describing the horror of the water element.

Introducing the royal court

Linnaeus Clencharlie is an amazing person: he was a peer, but chose to become an exile. James II is ready to take all measures against this recalcitrant lord. His son David was once a page of the king, but soon became the groom of the Duchess Josiana: both were beautiful, desirable, but did not want to spoil the relationship by marriage. Anna was a queen and the blood sister of a duchess. Ugly and vicious, she was born 2 years before the fire in 1666. Astrologers predicted the appearance of the "elder sister of fire".

David and Josiana didn't like to be seen together in public, but one day they went to watch boxing. The sight was truly breathtaking, but Josiana did not get rid of her boredom. Only one could help her in this - a man who laughs. With all the beauty of the athlete's body, his face was disfigured. Everyone laughed at the sight of the buffoon, but the sight was disgusting.

Gwynplaine and Deja

Hugo shows the face of a man who until now was known only by his actions. Gwynplaine was 25, Dea was 16. The girl was blind and lived in complete darkness. Gwynplaine had his own hell, but meanwhile he lived with his beloved, as if in paradise, they loved each otherfriend. Deja thought Gwynplaine was wonderful - she knew the story of her salvation very well. She alone saw his soul, and all the others - the mask. Ursus, who was the named father for the two of them, having noticed the feelings of the lovers, decided to marry them. However, the person who laughs could not touch Deya - for him she was his child, sister, angel. As babies, they slept in the same bed with each other, but soon innocent children's games began to develop into something more.

Traveling Artists

Ursus with his children in his van called "Green Box" gave performances to the townspeople and the nobility. He began to grow rich and even hired two charming girls as his assistants - Venus and Phoebe. The doctor, and now the director, wrote all the interludes himself. One of them, called "Conquered Chaos", he created specifically for Gwynplaine. The audience expressed wild delight and laughter at the sight of the crippled face illuminated at the end. Ursus watched his student, and when he noticed that Gwynplaine began to look closely at those around him, the thought occurred to him that this was not what the young man needed. He and Dea better have children. By that time, a new name had finally been assigned to Gwynplaine - "The Man Who Laughs." He began to be recognized on the streets, and Ursus decided that it was time to go to London. The success of the wagon of itinerant artists did not allow others to develop. The "green box" took precedence over church eloquence, and the church turned to the king. The duchess frequented the performances of Gwynplaine and Dea, and now she sat in a place of honor inalone. The blind girl sensed the danger in Josiana's face and asked Ursus not to see her again. Gwynplaine, on the other hand, felt attracted to the duchess: for the first time he saw a woman, moreover, very beautiful, who was ready to respond to him with sympathy. To learn about all the intricacies of the relationship between a woman with the soul of the devil and a man with the same appearance, be sure to read the novel "The Man Who Laughs" (summary). Hugo tried to portray the character of typical women of the nineteenth century, which are often found today.

All masks removed

A lot of time has passed since the end of the Duchess's visit, but Victor Hugo did not want to forget about her influence on traveling artists. The man who laughs got a kind of poisoning from a woman, and he wanted to take possession of Dea. The sweet hour never came, but one day, while walking, he felt a letter in his hands and the duchess's page standing next to him. It was written on the paper that Josiana loved and wanted to see Gwynplaine. The artist immediately felt something was wrong and returned to the "Green Box" late at night. The morning was the same as usual, until the visit of the rod-bearer ruined it. It meant complete obedience, and, without uttering a word, a man who laughs dutifully followed the newcomer … From this moment on, the book begins to tell about a different story, namely, about Gwynplaine's stay in the royal monastery.

The reader must have guessed that the novel will not end with such an imminent death of the protagonist. Gwynplaine was taken to Southworthprison, where he had been expected for a long time. The half-naked prisoner looked up at the crippled man and exclaimed, laughing: "It's him!" The sheriff explained that it was not a buffoon at all, but Lord Crencharlie, a peer of England, standing before those present. Those present read a note in a corked bottle of Hardquanon, a man, a skilled plagiarist surgeon, who disfigured the face of two-year-old Fermain Clencharly. There was everything in detail about how he was abducted in infancy. Hardquanon was exposed, and Balkifedro opened the eyes of a wandering artist.

Josiana and Gwynplaine

Recently, a soldier found a corked bottle near the shore and took it to the Admiral of England. Balkifedro showed the find to Anna, and she immediately had the idea to harm her beautiful sister. Josiana was about to be married off to Gwynplaine. Balkifedro's cunning plan succeeded. He personally made sure that in the Green Box Josiana saw Gwynplaine's performance. To think that a man who laughs becomes the Peer of England. The summary of the novel may not reveal the relationship at the royal court, so readers may have a question about why it was worth mutilating a baby when his belonging to high society was exposed twenty years later. When Gwynplaine woke up from a swoon of surprise and asked where he was, he was told: "At home, my lord."

Gwynplaine was pacing up and down the room, unable to believe what was happening. He was already imagining himself in his new position, when suddenlyhe was visited by the thought of Dey, but he was forbidden to visit his family … The man who laughs longed for his father and beloved to rest with him in the royal chambers, and not huddle in a wagon. The palace was like a gilded dungeon: in one of the hundreds of rooms, Gwynplaine found a beautiful woman sleeping on a luxurious bed - it was the duchess. The beauty beckoned him with kisses and spoke sweet words. She wanted to see Gwynplaine as a lover, so as soon as she received a letter from Anne ordering the marriage of the new peer of England and the duchess, Josiana drove the subject of her passion away. As it turned out, the Queen's sister had two husbands: Lord Crencharlie and Rear Admiral David Derry-Moir.

Green Box without lead actor

As soon as Gwynplaine was taken away by the staff-bearer, Ursus followed him. Exhausted by conjectures and expectations, the doctor was even glad that he would get rid of his adopted children - Deya would die of longing after her lover. Ursus returns to the Green Box and puts on a performance of Chaos Conquered by imitating the voices of the audience and Gwynplin. Even the blind Deya easily determined that there was neither a crowd of people nor the main actor…

Wouldn't a loving father go after his son, who was arrested in the early morning for no reason? Ursus supposed that the wand-bearer had taken Gwynplaine away as a rebel who had offended the queen. In fact, the doctor could not even suspect what fate the person who laughs received. The summary may not reveal this touching moment when Ursus accepted Gwynplaine more than a pupil orpartner. He screamed with the words "they killed my son!" when he saw the executioners carry out the coffin to the sound of a bell. Soon the "Green Box" was visited by a bailiff with an order to leave the territory of England by Ursus for keeping a wild animal - a wolf. Balcifedro confirmed that the person who laughs was really dead, after which he allocated a small amount for the speedy collection of the owner of the wagon.

Gwynplaine's admission to the House of Lords

In the evening, Lord Crencharlie was sworn in. The ceremony took place in a mysterious hall in the twilight - the organizers of the event did not want the members of parliament to know that now one of them is a man who laughs. The summary of the chapter "Life storms are worse than ocean ones" conveys the author's main idea: even such an outwardly mutilated man as Gwynplaine has a kind and fair heart, and the unexpected change of his position from a buffoon to a peer did not change his soul. The Lord Chancellor arranged a vote to increase the annual bonus to the king - all but the former traveling artist approved this proposal, but one refusal was followed by another. Now Rear Admiral David Derry-Moir also protested with the new peer of England, who challenged everyone present to a duel. Gwynplaine's fiery speech about his past irritated the members of parliament: the young man tried to warn the greedy lords and expressed his hatred for the king, told how ordinary people die at the expense of the feasts of the nobility. After these words, heforced to flee.

"The Man Who Laughs": a summary of the chapters of the last pages of the book

Gwynplaine seemed to have lost everything. He took a notebook out of his pocket, wrote on the first page that he was leaving, signing himself Lord Clencharlie, and decided to drown himself. But suddenly he felt that someone was licking his hand. It was Homo! Gwynplaine found hope that he would soon reunite with the one from whom he had suddenly been separated. Maybe soon the wedding of two hearts would take place, and Ursus would wait for his grandchildren - any sentimentalist writer came up with such an ending, but not Victor Hugo. A man who laughs begins to pay for his sins, being a few steps from happiness … The wolf ran to the Thames, and Gwynplaine followed him - there he met his father and Deya, who was dying of a fever. Both are waiting for a meeting in heaven, because the lover does not survive separation and drowns in water.

Screening of the novel "The Man Who Laughs". Movie summary

The outstanding work of Victor Hugo was filmed four times: in the USA, Italy, twice in France. The first film was made in 1928, half a century after the novel was written. The black and white silent film is 1 hour and 51 minutes long. Director Paul Leni missed some scenes, but tried to convey the main idea of the novel "The Man Who Laughs", however, the ending turned out to be happy. Skillfully applied make-up and outstanding acting by actors Conrad Veidt, Olga Baklanova, Mary Philbin and Cesare Gravina amaze the audience from the first minutes.

The next movie was made in 1966 in Italy,the premiere took place on February 3. The music for the hour and a half movie was written by composer Carlo Savina. Five years later, in France, Jean Kerchbron made a stunning film with actors Philippe Bouclet and Delphine Desier.

The last film to date "The Man Who Laughs" was staged with the participation of the great French actor Gerard Depardieu as Ursus. The long-awaited premiere took place on December 19, 2012, while the trailer appeared online much earlier. Not all viewers were satisfied with the picture: the characters of the main characters are not fully revealed, and their appearance does not correspond to that described in the book. The role of Gwynplaine was played by the handsome Marc-Andre Grondin, while Dea was not so charming, unlike the heroine Hugo. "The Man Who Laughs" is a great novel, but director Jean-Pierre Amery failed to accurately capture the writer's message.

Notes for a reader's diary

Victor Hugo is not taught in schools, and it is included in the university program only in some universities. Literary connoisseurs do not spare time for summaries of read works, including the novel "The Man Who Laughs". A summary for a reader's diary can be represented by a retelling of each part.

In the two preliminary chapters, Hugo introduces the reader to the healer Ursus and says a few words about comprachicos. The first part of "Night and the Sea" consists of three books, each of which has several chapters. Writertells about the kidnapping of a boy and the retribution of the comprachoses for deadly sins - everyone drowns, and the boy finds salvation in the house of Ursus. The blind girl Deya, who is picked up by the brave Gwynplaine, the man who laughs, also becomes a member of their family.

Summary of the "By Order of the King" part can be conveyed in a few sentences. The new Ursus family makes a living by giving performances. Guiplain and Deja become adults, and their father dreams of marrying them. Family happiness is hindered by Countess Josiana, who attends performances and falls in love with a disfigured young man. The film "The Man Who Laughs" perfectly conveys the relationship of this fatal woman with the unfortunate woman: she lures him, bewitches him, but soon loses interest. In the same book, Gwynplaine learns that he is a noble person and becomes a member of parliament, but life in the castle is alien to him and he returns to the Green Box, where Deya dies of a fever in his arms. Then the person who laughs also dies. The content of this part conveys the idea that no matter how ugly an individual may be outwardly, he can have a pure soul and a big loving heart.

A story of the same name by an American writer

Half a century later, following Hugo, Jerome David Salinger writes his novel. The Man Who Laughed tells about the events of 1928. A forty-year-old man recalls his childhood, how after school he and other children stayed in recreational classes with student John Gedsudsky. The young man took the guys to the New York park, where they played football and baseball. On the way, he entertained schoolchildren with fascinating stories about a noble robber, for whom Salinger chooses an interesting pseudonym. The person who laughed covered his face with a pale scarlet mask of poppy petals so that his detractors could not see his features. John secretly met with a we althy girl Mary Hudson, with whom he soon had to part. It so happened that this sad event was followed by another - the death of a noble robber at the hands of enemies. The story is dominated by the color red, which is a danger signal, and the word "blood" occurs exactly ten times, so a quick-witted reader can immediately guess about the sad ending.