Almira Desiani Khanna ( 14757 )

BA Animation Level 2 2D
Assignment 1 Semester 1, Contextual Studies
Lasalle College of the Arts, Faculty of Media Arts

Narrative in Les Misrables

This essay will use Les Misrables (2012) by Tom Hopper as its film source and pit it
against Propp's The Seven Spheres of Action and Narrative Element in order to see how their theory
of narrative and character types affect the writer as a viewer to read the film. Les Misrables itself is
based on a musical with the same name by Alan Boulbil and Claude-Michel Schonberg, which is
also based on the 1862 french novel by Victor Hugo.

Propp's The Seven Spheres of Action

Les Misrables characters are often accurately fitting into Propp's The Seven Spheres of
Action. Being an epic romantic film, Les Misrables is expected to provide characters that are
simple enough for a wide audience to understand and relate to within 2 hours time limit. Because of
that, named side characters who mostly play the role of the helpers become very one-dimensional,
whose only shown motivation is to support the hero or to fight for a cause that the hero is also
fighting for. Examples to this are Gavroche and Fauchelevent.
Jean Valjean, the main character, fits the Hero traits perfectly. He might has been a thief and
lives in hiding all his life, but he is not ill-willed. The role of both the Dispatcher and the Donor are
given to the bishop who frees Valjean under the belief that Valjean can change himself and follow
the path of the right. Valjean believes in the priest, and continues his life as Monsieur Le Maire. As
Le Maire, He is shown to help those in need, including Fantine. One thing to note that unlike heroes
in folk tales, most of Valjean's actions are self-motivated in the sense that he is not pushed around
by the dispatcher or people around him. An example to this are when he decides to see whether

Marius is worthy of his daugther or not by going to the rebels' barricade.

Valjean's life as Le Maire is gone after he confesses that he is Jean Valjean, the criminal that
Inspector Javert has been looking for. Javert plays the role of the villain, being obsessed in
capturing Valjean whose crime is only stealing bread and completely believes that a criminal cannot
change or redeem himself. He also represents the french government, which is shown to be cruel
and does not take care of the people. The Female in Distress role is given to both Fantine and
Cosette. Fantine's on-screen struggles, her downfall to prostitution, and Cosette's curiousity on
Valjean's actual identity support the character type while also making them look human rather than
an object to be protected.
Later, Marius is introduced together with the Friends of the ABC. He also fits the Hero
character type despite being introduced later, sporting a lot of classical traits such as being naive
and heroic. Meanwhile other characters in the same group such as Gavroche, Enjolras, and Eponine
play the role of helpers. Eponine in particular also sacrifices herself in order to protect the man she
loves, Marius.
Some of the characters roles are not fully black and white, such as the thief couple. Despite
being a sneaky and cheap pair of villain in the start of the movie, the couple also accidentally helps
Marius in finding Jean. There is also Eponine, although mainly becomes a loyal helper to Marius,
holds back a message from Cossette to Marius out of jealousy for a while.

Propp's Sequencing List

Les Misrables also generally follow Propp's sequencing list. The movie starts with the first
action in the list, hero is introduced, by showing Valjean's last struggles as a convict as he is
released on a parole. This scene also reflects to the second action in the list, an interdiction is
addressed to the hero. After that, Valjean gets into trouble again and is freed by a bishop, which
reflects to the second and stronger version of an interdiction is addressed to the hero. Valjean
follows the bishop's wishes, becomes a honest man called Monsieur Le Maire and helps a lot of

people in need until he meets Javert again. Unable to lie from Javert's suspicions, Le Maire
confesses that he is actually Jean Valjean, much to Javert's anger. Javert then confronts Valjean,
which ends up in a swordfight that becomes the first hero and villain in direct combat story beat.
On his way of hiding, Valjean and his new adoptive daugther Cosette is found by Fauchelevent, a
man he has helped during his years as Le Maire. Fauchelevent offers a shelter and protection, and
Valjean is saved from Javert.
Nine years later, Marius is introduced as a member of the rebel students and immediately
falls in love with Cosette. At the same time, Javert finds Valjean again, resulting in Valjean's attempt
to escape from the city. Marius sends Cosette one last letter before she departs, which causes
Valjean to go to the rebels' barricade to see if Marius is a man fitting for his daughter. This scene
reflects to hero leaves home story beat for Valjean and hero is tested or interrogated story beat for
Marius as the secondary hero. A battle between the rebels and the government army breaks out, and
Marius is wounded. Valjean then immediately carries Marius to a nearby doctor, but is confronted
by Javert. This leads to the final Hero versus Villain story beat. Valjean ignores Javert's threat to
him in order to bring Marius to a doctor. While remembering how Valjean mercifully set the
captured Javert free from the hands of the rebels, Javert starts to doubt himself and his duties. He
then proceeds to commit suicide, which follows the villain is defeated beat, although the act is done
not by the hero but by the villain himself.
The next morning, Marius wakes up on a hospital bed. Things has returned to normal, with
Cosette and Valjean waiting for Marius. This reflects to hero returns story beat. Valjean then leaves
the place, claiming that a criminal like him should go into hiding, which translates to a self-made
hero unrecognized story beat. The final beat, hero marries and ascends the throne, happens when
Marius marries Cosette. He finds out where Valjean is hiding through the thief couple, and goes to
Valjean together with Cosette. There, Valjean dies in peace and joins the spirits of Fantine, the
bishop, and other rebels, meaning that he is forgiven and free.

Summary
Overall, Propp's The Seven Spheres of Action and Sequencing List fit with Les Misrables'
narrative and characters. It is mostly because Les Misrables is an epic romantic musical film,
which aims for a wide audience and has a limited amount of time to tell its story together with the
musical scores. The film explores the main characters' motivations and doubts, but not so for the
side characters whose only role is to support the main characters.
There are also few differences in this film that deviates from Propp's theories. Marius which
is introduced later in the film, also becomes a true hero instead of a false hero from the theory Propp
proposed. Not only that, Marius as the secondary hero also goes through his own version of
sequencing list, though often happens hand in hand with Valjean's sequences.
In conclusion, Propp's theories are suitable for the writer to read Les Misrables, as it has a
classic and mostly linear narrative and characters.

Bibliography
Edgar-Hunt, R., Marland, J. and Rawle, S. (2010). The language of film. 1st ed. Lausanne: AVA
Academia.
Les Misrables. (2012). [DVD] Tom Hopper.