Victor Hugo's Social Critique through Quasimodo

Extract

[...] The perception of Quasimodo as an object devoid of humanity revealsisthe monstrosity of society itself, which creates and maintains exclusion through rigid aesthetic and moral norms. Foucault helps us understand that this dehumanization is a tool of power, which allows society to reinforce its control over those who do not conform to its expectations. [...]

[...] This idea can be organized through the dualitis between the 'human monster'» and the 'object monster'». The concept of « human monster» if referisThere is a person whose monstrous appearance hides a deep humanity. Although his deviating body may evoke fear or rejection, he remains capable of emotions, complex thoughts, and love. He thus retains a subjectivity that defies judgments based solely on his appearance. Quasimodo embodies this idea: although deformed and rejected by society, he shows great loyalty and selfless love, particularly through his attachment to Esmeralda and his sacrifice to protect her.ger. [...]

[...] The figure of the physical monster in Notre-Dame de Paris by Victor Hugo - Hugo's social critique through Quasimodo Hugo's social critique to through Quasimodo The 19th centuryisthis period is marked by a succession of major events, such as the French Revolution, which generated political and social instability in France. At the time of the writing of Notre-Dame de Paris, a new monarchy had been established in 1830, characterized by a weakened king in power, while public liberties, particularly that of the press and religion, were consolidatede.g. [...]

[...] Quasimodo then becomes a symbol of this struggle between his humanity and the objectification imposed by society. Despite his monstrous appearance, Quasimodo refuses to let himself be entiisto reduce him to the object that society wants to make of him. Foucault, in Surveiller and Punish6, shows us that modern institutions seek to transform individuals into docile objects through disciplinary mechanisms. Quasimodo, although excluded and controlled by society, preserves his subjectivity and ability to resist this dehumanization, particularly thanks to his imaginative capacity. We think of the central place of gargoyles in the work. [...]

[...] In Notre-Dame of Paris, Quasimodo is the product of a form of teratology.ratogénèliterary: sa difformitis a kind of metaphor for the environmental conditions - in this case social - that lead to the creation of this "monster". Just like a tetanus factorratogène perturbe the developmentdevelopment, the Parisian society, by its intolerance and its prejudicesjugis, façone the identityhe is Quasimodo as a monster. Quasimodo, although born deformed, becomes truly monstrous only through the gaze of society that marginalizes and oppresses him. [...]