Jean Valjean
In the novel
citation needed] After devoting the novel's opening chapters to Bishop Myriel, a kind-hearted old clergyman in the town of Digne, Hugo, without any transition, launches into the story of Valjean. He is a strange man, who arrives one October evening in Digne, searches for a place to stay the night and is turned away. At last he is taken in by the bishop, who trusts him, feeds him supper, and gives him a bed for the night. Hugo then details Valjean's background. He was born sometime in 1769 in a small town and orphaned as a child. He became a pruner and helped support his widowed sister and her seven children. In the winter of 1795, when resources were scarce, Valjean stole a loaf of bread from a local baker by breaking the window. He was caught and imprisoned for five years in the Bagne of Toulon, the Toulon prison. He attempted to escape four times, and each time his sentence was lengthened by three years; he also received an extra two years for once resisting recapture during his second escape. After nineteen years in prison, he was released, but by law must carry a yellow passport that announces he is an ex-convict.
Jean Valjean-6