Customer Reviews

The Man Who Laughs

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In the broadest terms, the central theme of this novel is: "Man's cruelty against man". More specifically, it maybe stated as: "The injustice and inhumanity meted out to, and the exploitation and oppression of the underprivileged, impoverished and vulnerable section of society by the privileged, powerful and wealthy."
According to Hugo, this is the fundamental problem of mankind - in fact, the essential condition of mankind.
TMWL is Hugo's most vehement denunciation of the evils and iniquities that exist in human society.
He has not just denounced (with bitter sarcasm) the masters of the human race-exposing the emptiness, immorality and meaninglessness of their lives-condemning their lust for power, their total disregard for the sufferings of mankind and their abuse of power and position- but has also shown how ugly and devastating is the oppression of the poor and weak.

Integrated with this theme is the (secondary) theme of the conflict between moral and immoral love-love guided by the spirit and love guided by the flesh.

At yet another level, the theme is : "The struggles of man-against all the forces in life which seek to destroy his spirit and cow him down- against evils in society, against weaknesses and evils within his own self and against the destructive forces of nature."
Whether man triumphs or not, is determined by the purpose Hugo wants to accomplish.

In TMWL, the antagonizing flaws as well as the overwhelming genius of Hugo reach their highest pitch. Never has Hugo dwelt so lovingly and carefully on each and every situation, thought, emotion and character. His characterization has rarely reached the depth and complexity as it does here:

Gwynplaine - the symbol of the basic problem confronting mankind-embodiment of the entire idea (& all the themes) dramatized by the novel.
Ursus - the symbol of wisdom, knowledge, justice and humanity driven by the injustice and oppression around him into bitterness, fear, cynicism - and hatred for man.
Dea-the symbol of Ideal love - based on the recognition of the values held by and virtues of man, totally oblivious of his physical appearance-love which has eyes only for the soul.
Barkilphedro - the symbol of hatred for the sake of hatred - who finds pleasure in others' sorrows.
Josiana - the most fascinating creation of Hugo-is meant to symbolize immoral love - a "love" which is a negation of the very meaning of love and a negation of values. Her craving for the uncommon, extraordinary or abnormal is not for the sake of these- but arises from her conception of herself-as something absolutely out of this world (which she is). Since she is the epitome of the different, beyond conformity, beyond the common pale of life-she shall have only that which is as uncommon, shocking, scandalizing and unique as she is-whether a God or a monster-morality, values, virtues, vices don't matter (reflecting, as an extreme case, the irrelevance of moral values in the lives of the rich-& how meaningless is their concept of love).

Hugo's style is at its poetic best-the imagery, the language, the metaphors are so colorful, vivid and lyrical that it makes a standard and a genre of its own- unequaled and unsurpassed.
However, he tends to drag issues and keeps repeating one thing beyond any conceivable necessity.
His interrupting essays make reading tiresome at times.
He gives too many unnecessary details.
As to the plot structure, Hugo being a master plot-maker, it is tightly constructed but relies too heavily on coincidence and accident (which Hugo has unconvincingly tried to render logical).

But these drawbacks, however exasperating, cannot but be ignored in the face of the startling ingenuity and originality of the story, the depth which Hugo reaches in exploring the human soul(the profound psychological and philosophical depiction of Gwynplaine's ripening manhood, his maturing sexuality-in all its confusion, agony and ecstasy is beautiful), the amazing artistry of his symbolism( one of the best being the dead body rotting in the open - symbolizing the monstrosity of human laws), and the grandeur and sweeping drama of his scenes-the best, most unforgettable ones being the climax scene (in the House of the Lords) and the one dealing with the fate of the hooker carrying the escaping Comprachicos (which I think is the best scene ever written-it is simply unsurpassable).

In the end, I'd like to say that TMWL is one of the most powerful and compelling novels ever written. It is more than just a novel- it is a great work of art. The fact that this novel is hardly known today and has always been either ignored or condemned by critics is a sign of the disintegration of literature and art.

Victor Hugo's 1868 novel "The Man Who Laughs" (l'Homme qui rit) is the superb narrative of a young man who, as a child, was abducted, sold and deformed -- obstensibly for profit, but, as it turns out, for dark political reasons as well. To tell too much of Gwynplaine's story is to give away the plot's secrets, though the truth is its key secret is revealed less than 200 pages into the novel. Set in England at the end of the 17th Century and the beginning of the 18th, "The Man Who Laughs" skewers English aristocracy the way "Les Misérables" (1862) did French authorities. Gwynplaine's long denunciation in the House of Lords is obviously Hugo speaking, while depictions of the scheming Barkilphedro, the dissolute Lord David Dirry-Moir, and the strange Josiana (whose passive-aggressive sexuality would have fascinated Freud) are reflections of the Stuart dynasty's ugly corruption "its features hidden by a mask of joy". (Queen Anne herself is dismissed as a fool.) The only pure characters are Dea, a blind woman in love with Gwynplaine, and Homo, a wolf. Even Ursus, the itinerant philosopher, seems to fight his humanity, denying the love he feels for his three companions: the scarred man, the blind woman, and the animal. Why this magnificent novel is not better known is a mystery. One reason, perhaps, is that it would be difficult to dramatize. (There was a 1928 silent film version which is rarely if ever shown.) There have, of course, been several versions of both "Les Misérables" and "The Hunchback of Notre Dame", not to mention a megamusical based on the former. Hugo's prolixity and his penchant for sesquipedalian words must make translation an enormous chore, which is why Joseph Blamire's English translation (to my knowledge the only English translation to date) came out a full twenty years after the original publication. For the average 21st Century reader, this is nourishment not easy to digest. Hugo's style is a series of lengthy descriptions and digressions filled with obscure references. I've got one word for you: skim. But don't skim so rapidly that you miss some of the shining epigrams: "Aristocracy is proud of what women consider a reproach -- age! Yet both cherish the same illusion, that they do not change." Obviously, this is not junk food. On the contrary, for readers with rich tastes "The Man Who Laughs" is a literary feast.

I first read this book ten years ago and marvelled at the powerful writing and timeless themes. This book was my first introduction to Hugo and I could not wait to read his masterpieces: "Hunchback of Notre Dame" and "Les Miserables". Although I acknowledge that these books are wonderful, I still hold that "The Man Who Laughs" is just as good, if not better, and more emotionally gratifying than other Hugo's classics.

I first read this story in Russian and the English translation disappointed me. It was more choppy and rough than the Russian version and lacked the sofistication of the latter. However, it is still a great book nonetheless. The story is rich with complex characters that no one will soon forget. The human weakness of Gynplaine is very appropriate and his demise is almost poetic. Nobody should miss out on reading this incredible story and judge for themselves if it deserves to stay out of print when it is for sure one of the greatest novels ever written.

The only negative aspect of the book that, although it did not bother me, may bother some readers is the preacheness of Gynplaine and Ursus, albeit done very masterfully. The character of Dea is too saintly. Although she needs to be very pure for the story to work, she is virtually a saint which is unsettling and makes the reader treat her at an arm's length instead of getting her into their souls as they undoubtfully do with Gynplaine. The whole milieu is very dark and that may make some people uncomfortable. When I first read it, it took me a long time to want to re-read it although I found it to be one of the best books I have ever read.

These negative points are more than acquited by extremely well-told story with characters and situations that are unique and unforgettable. I though that this "old" story would not give me any new insight but it did. This story's major plus is my favorite character, Josianna: she is extremely complex although I got the feeling that Hugo wanted to make her more one-dementional. Still, her scene when she finds out that Gynplaine is a Lord and is going to be her husband is a brilliant testament to her wild and uncomformist nature.

I urge anyone who has not read it to read it. Even if they do not like it, they will find the experience worth-while. For those readers who love Hugo, this is a not-to-be-missed read. For those readers who do not like Hugo, this is a must.

It always surprised me that "The Man who Laughs" did not get as much praise or even attention from the critics as "Les Mis" and "Notre-Dame". After rereading "The Man who Laughs" I came to the conclusion that this novel tells more about the character of the author than any other. Hugo's bitterness and disappointment at the end of his life pours out in gorgeous, engaging absurdities. The pain and confusion he could not possibly have felt when he was writing "Notre-Dame" became apparent when he was writing "The Man who Laughs". While the main love story in "Les Mis" closely resembles that of a formula novel, the romantic storylines in "The Man who Laughs" are more convincing despite their absurdity.

TMWL by Victor Hugo

We talk about magnificent writing, we redefine our understanding here. Victor Hugo's The Man Who Laughs is one of the best novels I have ever read and and most likely, one of the best I ever will read. Written in the mid 19th century, the story ties together history and commentary, philosophy, comedy and tragedy, it contains all the things one can ask of good literature. Hugo has surpassed many writers in his ability to set a scene. Vivid descriptions give readers an understanding of time and location (early 15th century England). The story is so engaging, unlike anything I had ever read before. V.H. is most well known for The Hunchback of Notre dame and Les Miserables, but it seems a mysterious to me how TMWL, conceivably his best work, has faded into the unknown.

I will not ruin the excitement you will receive reading the novel, I will only tell you about the writing and a bit about the plot. It is the story of a man who placed in hard circumstances turns his problems into advantages, not in a way to dominate, nor for greed, but because he is a good person. His life is an odd one and is quite amusing. He lives with his mentor and a beautiful lover. There is much philosophy in characters discourses which is silly and intriguing. And circumstances which harp on the emotions.

Another reviewer had written that TMWL descriptions that were too thorough and that the reader should skim when arriving at something resembling a diatribe, I would not suggest this. Though Hugo does reinstate the same ideas every few chapters, he sheds more light in each description. I have been tempted to skip the page length imaging of character reactions but am glad that I have not. There is much to be gained reading Hugo's lyrical and thought filled sections.

Summed up, this is a story of a good man rising because he is good, though he has a dilemma that would make any other person commit suicide. The character is placed in a time which Hugo presents as full of horrible people, but the good characters do not falter. TMWL is written eloquently, chock-block full of words which you may need your dictionary and even Latin-English dictionary for. TMWL has renewed fictions vibrancy. This is what we want the novel to be.

The PREVIEW of this book is NOT for this printing. Buyer beware.

This printing (Affordable & High Quality Paperback Book Edition) appears to be a text dump of a public domain book right onto the page. There is no typesetting and even the chapter titles read like headings in a Word document. The text flow is seriously screwed up: whole pages start in the middle of the page; orphan paragraphs are center-justified on the page; etc, etc. This is pure garbage (from a printing perspective.) Someone literally copied and pasted text into a file, printed it and bound it. This is going back to Amazon.

I have now read four books by Victor Hugo. The Last Day Of A Condemned Man, Les Miserables, Hunchback of Notre Dame, and recently I finished The Man Who Laughs.

I will spare the usual props I throw Hugo's way about him being the greatest author and yada yada yada. Although, as far as classics are concerned, I was dissappointed to go to my local library and in the Hugo novel section there were only two books (and a small gap where Hunchback was). Walking over to the D's for Dickens. There were at least 50 books, multiple copies.

I love Dickens and Hugo, but I don't think Hugo gets near enough attention for the quality he puts out. Dickens can fill just as many pages as the French master, but it seems that the substance is lacking in comparison. What a shame. Does America hate the French that much?

The Man Who Laughs or By Order Of The King was a very fast read. Considering she was 550 pages, I made it through in a couple of weeks, which says a lot for me, I am extremely slow at reading. An excellent plot and a strong mystery involving many characters keeps you interested. If he were alive today, Hugo would no doubt be a writer on Lost. Although, as one reviewer noted with a bright red mark, that you don't find out the lead characters name till almost 200 pages into the book, I found the back story behind the character one of the most fascinating aspects of the book. Homo and Ursus, a mountebank and his aide/wolf introduce the book, and shortly you are introduced to a group of strangers who abandon a boy on a shore. First it follows the boat and its destination then it retraces its steps and tells the story of this boy.

Many lengthy passages are devoted to writing about nobility and lands, and law officers of the day, and there's enough death and deceit and debauchery to keep you entertained (the seduction scene with Gwynplaine and the lady he is to be betrothed to is intense and hilarious). Hugo is still Hugo, and apparently this books was written while he was in exile. So there aren't the usual 30 page essays in the midst of his tales, but it's just a wonderful story.

The ending of Hugo's books are something wonderful, and you can guess and you can guess, but you never can tell. I thought I had the ending figured out, but alas, I was wrong and it took me a good half an hour while the ending sank in.

I think my favorite book of Hugo's so far has been Hunchback, but this story does not dissappoint, and I recommend it over any Dickens or Hardy any day. It's twenty bucks for the paperback, forty for the hardback, but I'd say for anyone who likes a classic, it's worth the price.

If you ever wish to read a book that will leave you speechless, listening to nothing but the pounding sound of your heart.. THIS IS IT! I never touched a book that goes as deep into the darkness of the human soul.. and into the beauty and tragedy of true love.

The Man Who Laughs is even better than Hugo's better known Les Miserables and The Hunchback of Notre Dame. A compelling plot filled with suspense and interesting characters, the novel deals with the most fundamental issues of humanity, including the nature of love, integrity, and justice, and integrates them superbly with the masterful plot.

The introduction by Shoshana Milgram is penetrating and thought-provoking.

Stumbling across this novel on a "beyond repair" shelf at my local library, I was drawn to its title
and its odd, surreal illustrations. "The Laughing Man" is, in itself, a surreal tale, but it builds
to a certain horror and certainty of pain and degradation before Hugo sweeps it up into romance and
moral ambiguity. There are no certainties here - no musical in the offing. No-one will sing Gynplaine's song.
The story is, really, a romance, but there's nothing romantic about
the setting, the background, and the truth in which Hugo sets it.
What makes the story more compelling after the first reading and
some research was the understanding that its basis is rooted in fact.
But I hesitate to give much away, let your interest be piqued. There
is great wisdom and sorrow here, utterly and absolutely contemporary
in its content and lament.
Let me leave with one quote... to salt your taste...
"In order that a human toy should prove a success, he must be
taken in hand early. The dwarf must be fashioned when young.
We play with childhood. But a well-formed child is not very
amusing; a hunchback is better fun."