Victor Javert Suicide

After relentless hunting for Jean Veljean over the course of many years, Javert is unable to capture the convict while given multiple opportunities. When adversity hits Javert, a man of the law, in the book Les Miserables by Victor Hugo, the individual uses suicide as his solution to escape his inability to understand compassion. While everyone in the community has dealt with Javert’s unwavering commitment to the law, the people instantly judge him, as they are unaware of his past which influences his decision making and actions. Despite public opinion, Javert takes his own life because of his upbringing and the mercy shown to him by Jean Veljean, which ruins his black and white world view.

Javert was not given many opportunities to succeed

Javert also received very little attention and guidance from his parents; his father was serving time in prison throughout his childhood and his mother’s occupation was a fortune-teller in which she earned very little pay to provide for her son Javert. There is a scene in the musical display of Les Miserables where Javert is singing and he states, “You know nothing of Javert, I was born inside a jail, I was born with scum like you, I am from the gutter too!” (The Confrontation). Javert is singing this to Jean Veljean while in the midst of fighting him. This is a cry for help from Javert, as he is explaining that his life was miserable starting from the first moment he entered the world. He also mentions that although people in the community see Javert as a disciplined man, what they don’t see is the pain inside of him because

Following his encounters with Jean Valjean during the June Rebellion, in which he is first spared by Valjean and, later, spares his arrest, Javert experiences a deep torment caused by the compromise of his previous worldview. Javert is unable to understand the compassion shown to him by Jean Veljean; throughout the course of the novel. Javert’s main mission is to track down the suspected convict Jean Veljean. However, every time Javert comes close to capturing him, Jean Veljean treats Javert with respect and is kind to him. This makes no sense to Javert who is used to people disrespecting and mistreating him when he enforces the law on them. Javert had dedicated his life to his version of law and order, though without compassion or understanding. When he was rescued by Jean Valjean, and saw his repeated actions to save others and live a good law-abiding life, Javert realized that it was he instead who was a villain and not Valjean. It was too much for him to try and comprehend. As the quote said by Jean Veljean to Javert states, “Javert, you are a man of honor and I esteem you. You exaggerate your fault. Besides, this is an offence which concerns me. You are worthy of promotion rather than disgrace. I desire you to keep your place.” (Hugo 67). Individuals in the community truly did respect Javert, however he cannot see that because of the way his brain is developed, he is