The Hunchback of Notre Dame

The Hunchback of Notre Dame

by

Victor Hugo

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The Hunchback of Notre Dame: Book 11, Chapter 1 Summary & Analysis

Summary
Analysis
The noise of the riot wakes Esmeralda up. At first, when she looks out of her cell, she thinks that the rioters are demons who have come to wage war on the church. Gradually, she realizes that they are men figthing in the square and she thinks they have come to hang her. She collapses on her bed, overcome by fear, and, although she is not a Christian, she prays desperately to Notre Dame for salvation. 
Esmeralda is superstitious and, like many people in medieval society, she believes in demons and evil spirits. And at the same time, she prays to the church—even though she’s not a Christian. Her actions here show that, especially in times of desperation, people’s choices are deeply influenced by their social contexts.
Themes
Appearances, Alienation, and Hypocrisy Theme Icon
The Supernatural, Rationalism, and Knowledge Theme Icon
Suddenly, the door bursts open and two men enter the cell. One is Gringoire and the other, Frollo, is disguised by a black cloak. Gringoire is delighted to see Djali and tells Esmeralda that they have come to rescue her. Esmeralda is relieved, but the presence of the other man unnerves her. The group hurries down the tower stairs and Djali nearly trips Gringoire several times. Gringoire exclaims that this is the way with life and that our best friends often make us fall.
Gringoire prefers the pretty goat, Djali, to the extremely beautiful Esmeralda. This provides comic relief in the novel, but it also supports Hugo’s idea that 19th century society—which Gringoire represents—does not appreciate the beauty of Gothic architecture—which Esmeralda reflects—and prefers insipid or picturesque things instead. Gringoire’s comment also reflects the tragic irony of the situation—he is Esmeralda’s friend and wants to help her, but he has unknowingly led Frollo, who wants to harm Esmeralda, right to her.
Themes
Gothic Architecture, History, and Art Theme Icon
Lust, Sin, and Misogyny Theme Icon
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
Frollo unlocks the back door of the tower, which leads onto the tip of the island on which Notre Dame sits. A small boat is moored there and Esmeralda, Gringoire, Djali, and Frollo climb in. Esmeralda is still very unnerved by Frollo and presses close to Gringoire in the boat. Gringoire is oblivious to her fear, however, and he chats away happily as they make their way upstream. He complains that Louis XI is a very cruel king who keeps all the money that he saves for himself.
Gringoire does not understand Esmeralda’s extreme fear of Frollo or Frollo’s malevolent intentions towards Esmeralda, because he has never experienced extreme passion of any kind. Gringoire represents 19th century society in the novel, which, Hugo suggests, rejects genuine, complex emotion in favor of simplistic pleasantness. Gringoire’s comment also supports Hugo’s belief that the medieval monarchy was extremely corrupt and oppressive and kept all the money and power for themselves.
Themes
Gothic Architecture, History, and Art Theme Icon
Lust, Sin, and Misogyny Theme Icon
Appearances, Alienation, and Hypocrisy Theme Icon
Justice, Punishment, and Freedom Theme Icon
Gringoire suddenly asks Frollo if he saw the young man who fell from the tower and was impaled on a statue. This young man was Jehan. Frollo stops rowing for a second and gives a pained sigh. Esmeralda shivers because she has heard this sound before and now knows it is Frollo. Frollo begins to row again. As the boat passes a famous garden, Gringoire remarks that the garden contains a famous “tree of lust” which is responsible for much adultery and sin. Sins of the flesh are terrible, he says, and can incite jealousy and destruction.
The tree reflects Frollo’s lust for Esmeralda, which does indeed cause him to behave destructively. Frollo is a priest and must remain celibate, as lust was associated with sin in the medieval period, whereas abstinence was associated with spiritual purity. Because of these beliefs, Frollo is ashamed of his lustful desires and tries to repress them. This does not cause his sexual urges to dissipate, however, but simply causes them to erupt in violent ways. Through Frollo’s character, Hugo suggests that it is medieval society’s attitude towards sex, and not sex itself, which is dangerous.
Themes
Lust, Sin, and Misogyny Theme Icon
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They can now hear cries of “hang the witch!” coming from the towers of Notre Dame. Esmeralda nearly faints with fear and clings to Gringoire. Gringoire feels conflicted. He is desperate to save Djali and knows that he cannot escape with both Esmeralda and the goat. He reaons that Frollo is very keen to help Esmeralda so, when the boat is moored on the opposite side of the river, Gringoire sneaks away and takes Djali with him.
Gringoire represents 19th century artistic tastes, which, Hugo suggests, favor picturesque and pretty aesthetics over of the extremity and complexity of the Gothic. Hugo uses the idea that Gringoire prefers Djali to Esmeralda to suggest that Gringoire does not understand real beauty or passion and that, like 19th century society, his superficial tastes lead him to make foolish, even absurd choices. The reader already knows that Frollo wants to hurt Esmeralda rather than keeping her safe, but Gringoire remains blissfully ignorant of the consequences of his actions.
Themes
Gothic Architecture, History, and Art Theme Icon
Esmeralda is left alone with Frollo. Frollo seizes her hand and drags her towards the Place de Grève. Esmeralda follows helplessly, broken by the futility of her efforts to escape Frollo. She panics when she sees the gallows but there is no one in the dark square to help her. Frollo pulls back his hood and Esmeralda recoils from him. 
Esmeralda is a tragic victim of fate. Although she has done nothing wrong and has done her best to escape from Frollo, she cannot shake his influence and fate keeps leading her back to him.
Themes
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
Frollo paces before the gallows and tells Esmeralda that he can still save her. She will be hanged, though, if she does not give herself to him. He begs her not to speak of Phoebus—Frollo will not be able to control himself if she does—and he tells her that he still loves her. Frollo demands that Esmeralda choose between him and the gallows. Esmeralda falls to her knees before the gallows and says that it does not appall her the way that he does.
Frollo’s passion for Esmeralda has driven him to fanatical and destructive behavior, because he couldn’t come to terms with the strength of his feelings. Frollo’s misogynistic beliefs about women—that they are more lustful and, therefore, more sinful than men—and his belief that Esmeralda has deliberately tempted him mean that he does not care for her suffering and only cares about satisfying himself.
Themes
Lust, Sin, and Misogyny Theme Icon
Frollo is in despair. He laments that the fiery passion he feels for Esmeralda does not show through his skin. He cries out that it is not his fault he loves her and decries the terrible “fatality” of it all. Esmeralda is a good person, he says, but she is only cruel to him, who loves her most. Frollo covers his face and begins to cry and Esmeralda watches in horror. When he finally looks up, he tells her that he has destroyed his career, his virtue, and his life, all for her.
Although Frollo cannot help his sexual attraction to Esmeralda—which Hugo argues is a natural emotion and should not be repressed—Frollo’s fatalistic belief in predestination (the idea that people’s lives are planned by God and, therefore, cannot be changed) means that he does not take responsibility for his misogynistic behavior towards her—which he certainly could help. Instead, he blames her for his own destructive choices, showing again that believing too strongly in fate can lead to cowardly, irrational behavior.
Themes
Lust, Sin, and Misogyny Theme Icon
A horrible expression crosses Frollo’s face. He utters the words: “Cain, what hast though done with thy brother?” He begins to weep for Jehan’s death and says that it is all Esmeralda’s fault because she has caused him to damn himself. He sinks to the ground and, when he looks up again, he is appalled that Esmeralda has watched him cry and has not tried to comfort him. He asks her if she has no pity and tells her that he will still save her if she will give him one kind word.
Before his obsession with Esmeralda, Frollo had a loving relationship with his brother, Jehan, who has been killed in the riot at Notre Dame. Frollo’s fixation with Esmeralda has eclipsed all positive emotions in his life, and, now that Jehan is dead, he feels guilty for neglecting him and allowing him to enter a life of crime, which led to his death. But rather than take responsibility for his own behavior, which has had many tragic consequences, Frollo misogynistically blames Esmeralda because, he believes, she has enticed him into abandoning everything to pursue her. Frollo also believes in predestination and feels that, although he pursued Esmeralda voluntarily and she never even knew about his feelings, he had no choice and was compelled by fateful forces outside of his control.
Themes
Lust, Sin, and Misogyny Theme Icon
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
Esmeralda tells Frollo that he is a murderer and Frollo throws himself on her and tries to rape her. Throughout, he murmurs that she must choose between him and death. Esmeralda fights Frollo off and screams at him. She says he is hideous and old compared with Phoebus. Frollo shakes her and tells her that she will die for this. He drags her across the Place de Grève and pushes her against the wall. He asks her one last time if she will give herself to him and, when she says no, he calls out to Paquette la Chantefleurie.
Medieval society is extremely misogynistic—people believe that women are inherently more sinful than men and often hold women responsible for men’s lustful feelings towards them. So, as a woman, Esmeralda has no way to defend herself from her horrible fate or from Frollo’s advances.
Themes
Lust, Sin, and Misogyny Theme Icon
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
An arm reaches through the grill in the wall and winds around Esmeralda. Paquette la Chantefleurie, the recluse who lives in the “rat hole,” holds Esmeralda tight and cackles at her. Frollo tells Paquette that she may now have her revenge and he goes to summon the guards to hang Esmeralda. Esmeralda begs Paquette to let her go but Paquette clings to Esmeralda and laughs at her plight. She tells Esmeralda that she will be hanged as revenge for Paquette’s baby, who was eaten by gypsies 15 years ago.
Paquette hates gypsies because she believes they killed her child. Paquette’s great love for her child has warped into a terrible hatred of Esmeralda and this suggests that great passions can transform into twisted obsessions if this passion is thwarted by fate or cannot be expressed. Esmeralda is a tragic victim of fate and has done nothing to bring her situation on herself.
Themes
Lust, Sin, and Misogyny Theme Icon
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
Esmeralda cries out that she is looking for her mother, whom she lost just as Paquette lost her baby. Paquette snarls that, if Esmeralda’s mother ever comes to look for her in the Place de Grève, Paquette will show her the gallows. Paquette holds a baby’s shoe through the bars and says that this belonged to her baby. Esmeralda cries out and unwraps the amulet she wears round her neck. She pulls an identical baby shoe from the sachet and Paquette understands suddenly that Esmeralda is her daughter.
This revelation highlights how ironic Paquette’s hatred of gypsies is. Because she let her love for her daughter transform into twisted hate, she never bothered to consider that Esmeralda could be her daughter. In other words, she believed she had lost her daugher, and her inability to deal with that painful (false) belief made it so that she really did lose her daughter in the end. 
Themes
Lust, Sin, and Misogyny Theme Icon
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
Paquette la Chantefleurie begins to weep with joy. She seizes a slab of stone from the floor of her cell and smashes the grate that covers the window. Lifting Esmeralda through it, Paquette begins to fawn and weep over Esmeralda, remarking on her beauty. The sound of the guard’s horses as they approach the cell brings the two women back to themselves.
Fate tragically reunites Esmeralda with her mother just when she is about to be executed. It is doubly tragic that Paquette has helped Frollo catch Esmeralda and has, therefore, brought about her own beloved daughter’s demise.
Themes
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
Esmeralda begs Paquette to save her. Esmeralda explains she is about to be hanged. Paquette is horrified. She forces Esmeralda into a shadowy corner of the cell and covers her as best she can. Frollo can be heard as he leads Phoebus and the guards towards the cell. Tristan l’Hermite pushes his face into the cell and addresses Paquette. He asks her where the witch has gone, and Paquette says that she escaped.
Tragically, Paquette has helped the guards trap Esmeralda, because before she realized Esmeralda was her daughter, Paquette hated gypsies and wanted to see Esmeralda killed. This suggests that negative obsessions, like hatred or revenge, often have devastating and unpredictable consequences.
Themes
Lust, Sin, and Misogyny Theme Icon
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
The guards make to leave. One man, however, asks why the bars of the cell are smashed. Paquette sneers and says they have always been like that because a cart smashed against the wall. Another member of the guards agrees that he saw this happen. The first man says that, if this is the case, the bars should be smashed in rather than out. Tristan questions Paquette again, more aggressively. Paquette struggles, but she manages to fend off their questions. Eventually, the guards reluctantly turn to leave.
Some of the guards easily take Paquette’s story at face value, even though there is clear evidence that it’s false. This suggests that information in medieval society is unreliable and that, before rational knowledge became more widespread, many people relied on gossip, superstition, and hearsay, rather than evidence, to understand the world.
Themes
Appearances, Alienation, and Hypocrisy Theme Icon
The Supernatural, Rationalism, and Knowledge Theme Icon
Esmeralda huddles in her corner and listens to this exchange between Paquette and the guards. She is almost mad with fear. As the men walk away, Esmeralda hears Phoebus ask if he may now rejoin his own company. This sound strikes hope into Esmeralda’s heart and she throws herself at the hole in the wall and screams out for Phoebus to save her. Phoebus does not hear, however, and Tristan and the guards return.
Esmeralda has gone mad because of her ordeal and is fatally drawn to Phoebus because he represents her past, which was full of joy, in contrast to the horror of her current situation. In this sense, her obsession with Phoebus mirrors Frollo’s obsession with her; she is so certain that he will help her that she gives away her hiding spot, just as Frollo remains certain that Esmeralda can love him, despite all evidence to the contrary. Through Esmeralda’s choice here, Hugo indicates that obsessive emotions are always a bad thing—even when a virtuous person like Esmeralda is the one feeling them.
Themes
Lust, Sin, and Misogyny Theme Icon
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
Paquette tries to put the guards off again but Tristan orders them to break down the wall of the cell. The men get to work, looking somewhat guilty as they listen to Paquette’s desperate pleas. Eventually, the men break through the wall and Tristan orders them to take Esmeralda. Paquette begs them not to and begins to tell them her story. The men hear her with tears in their eyes, but they must follow the king’s orders. Paquette throws herself upon Esmeralda and the men reluctantly pull her off.
Although the guards feel sorry for Paquette, they will likely face execution themselves if they flout the King’s orders. This suggests that a cruel justice or governmental system makes people cruel too, as they are forced to follow its rules or risk harm to themselves. Esmeralda’s reunion with Paquette is tragic and suggests that fate is also cruel.
Themes
Appearances, Alienation, and Hypocrisy Theme Icon
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
Justice, Punishment, and Freedom Theme Icon
Dawn breaks upon the square and a crowd gathers in the Place de Grève to watch the execution. Heriet Cousin, a guard, weeps as he carries Esmeralda towards the gallows. Paquette follows them and clings to Esmeralda, pleading helplessly for her daughter’s life. The noose is fastened around Esmeralda’s neck. Paquette sinks her teeth into the hangman’s arm, and he shoves her away. She hits her head on the cobblestones and dies. Esmeralda is carried up the scaffold.
Although the guards sympathize with Paquette, they cannot disobey the King’s order to hang Esmeralda because they may be hung themselves if they do this. This shows again that a cruel justice system breeds cruel people, as they must follow unjust laws or risk punishment themselves. Paquette’s fate is extremely tragic. Although in one way, she gets what always wanted—she wanted Esmeralda dead because Esmeralda is a gypsy, and Paquette believes gypsies killed her child—the fulfilment of her obsessive hatred of Esmeralda also brings about her own destruction because Esmeralda turns out to be her long-lost child. Paquette’s bleak end points out again that  overwhelming desires become self-destructive when they’re not channeled properly.
Themes
Lust, Sin, and Misogyny Theme Icon
Appearances, Alienation, and Hypocrisy Theme Icon
Fate and Predestination Theme Icon
Justice, Punishment, and Freedom Theme Icon