Gwynplaine was disfigured as a child by a criminal gang who carved a permanent grin into his face, then abandoned him in a snowstorm. He rescues a blind baby girl, Dea, and both are taken in by the traveling showman Ursus and his wolf Homo. As adults, Gwynplaine performs as "the man who laughs," while he and Dea fall in love. Then he learns he is the heir to a noble house and is thrust into the House of Lords in seventeenth-century England, where Victor Hugo uses the contrast to attack aristocratic privilege.
It suits readers of Hugo who enjoy melodrama and social critique with vivid grotesque characters.
Deep and thought-provoking; a demanding read.
Best for readers like The Deep Diver. Which reader are you?
- Published
- 2002
- Publisher
- Folio
- ISBN
- 9782070418718
- Language
- FR
