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finally met my wheat threshing quota and got sent my one (1) pack of playing cards for the complimentary reconditioning... look who are the on the jacks
Welcome to another installment of my slightly insane project to try and find all of the books that the members of Les Amis have canonically read based on the references they make in the book. The Cafe Musain Book Club, if you will. This time itβs all the allusions made by, about, or to Combeferre throughout Les Mis. And itβs a long one, so letβs jump right in.
In Combeferreβs introduction, Victor Hugo says βhe read everythingβ and heβs not kidding. The guyβs a voracious and eclectic reader. Throughout the book, Combeferre doesnβt talk all that much, but when he does itβs dense with allusions. The references to words spoken ratio on this guy is crazy. Overall, he cares a lot about making information accessible to common people, and he backs that up by reading a bunch of pop science and pop fiction in addition to more dense academic stuff. Think Hank Green type sources.
TLDR: the people Combeferre references all tend to be proponents of public access to education, feminism, and racial equality. These are the big three for him. Heβs got a dry sense of humor and he actually really loves comedy. He also, perhaps more than anyone else in the group, explicitly seeks out opinions that are controversial or contrary to his own in order to understand his adversaries. Heβs an empathetic and down-to-earth guy!
Also, for the record, I feel like Combeferreβs usual typecast as a nerdy intellectual is missing a little something. The nerdiest things he does are all based in anti-elitism. When he points out inaccuracies in the dictionary, heβs not being pedantic, heβs doing it to criticize an institution that wants to impose restrictive rules on people to prove thereβs one proper way to speak. When he talks about the wave theory of light or the structure of an artery, he didnβt learn those things from an expensive private education, he showed up to a public lecture focused on equalizing access to education! He would support the fuck out of PBS. (Actually, if youβre American and you love Combeferre, go donate to your local PBS station, Iβm not even kidding.) Also, he loves comedy plays and believes in ghosts and the healing power of magnets. Heβs honestly such a manic pixie dream girl.
Sketch for a Historical Picture of the Progress of the Human Mind by the Marquis de Condorcet (English)
βOn the Admission of Women to the Rights of Citizenshipβ by the Marquis de Condorcet (English)
βEnjolras gave expression to its [the Revolutionβs] divine right and Combeferre its natural right. The former aligned himself with Robespierre, the latter stood close to Condorcet.β (Les Mis 3.4.1)
This comparison refers to the Marquis de Condorcet: a mathematician and politician who advocated for public education, a constitutional government, and equal rights for people of all races and genders. He was an active member and eventually the president of the Society of the Friends of the Blacks and apparently was known for being pretty radical in his advocacy for women to have full equal rights of citizenship to men. In his essay βOn the Admission of Women to the Rights of Citizenship,β he actually said that anti-feminism and preventing women access to birth control or divorce was an act of tyranny. What a cool guy. Ultimately, though he wasnβt officially executed during the Reign of Terror, he did die in prison after being arrested by the Jacobin faction.
One of his most notable books is his Sketch for a Historical Picture of the Progress of the Human Mind. It was published posthumously in 1795 and essentially claims the progress of science and human rights are interconnected throughout history. So by furthering access to education, we will further the fight for social justice. This is, in a nutshell, a really good summary of Combeferreβs basic worldview as well and a really good starting point to understanding his character.
I feel like itβs also worth pointing out that even though Combeferre does give a big speech about women at the barricade, it seems like Condorcet was WAY more feminist than Victor Hugo was capable of portraying. Which is unfortunate, because so many of the people Combeferre looks up to are super feminist. Feminist king, letβs gooo!
Popular Lectures on Astronomy by François Arago (English)
βFresnelβ Biographies of Distinguished Scientific Men by FranΓ§ois Arago (English)
βHe read everything, went to the theatre, attended public lectures, learned from Arago about the polarization of light, was fascinated by a talk in which Geoffroy Sainte-Hilaire explained the twin functions of the external carotid artery and the internal carotid artery, the one that leads into the face and the other that leads into the brain.β (Les Mis 3.4.1)
Dominique-FranΓ§ois Arago was a director of the Paris Observatory, who was well known in Paris for conducting a very popular series of lectures to the general public explaining scientific developments. Arago amassed a pretty huge following over the 33 years he did these public lectures and had an entire amphitheater built at the Observatory to accommodate all the people who attended. (Which his successor destroyed to build himself a personal apartment smh.) Throughout his career, he supported Augustin-Jean Fresnelβs wave theory of light, and the two worked together conducting experiments on the polarization of light. He also dabbled in magnetism but put a pin in that for now.Β
Arago was pretty busy with these lectures so he wasnβt publishing much during his (or Combeferreβs) lifetime, but his posthumous publications cover a lot of the same material he would have been talking about while Combeferre was alive. For example, Popular Lectures on Astronomy was published in 1845 but covered material from (youβll never guess) popular lectures on astronomy that he gave at the Royal Observatory of Paris between 1812 and 1845. These included the public lectures he gave on the polarization of light, which Combeferre is referencing here. Likewise, Fresnelβs biography in Biographies was originally delivered as a lecture in 1830. Actually, it was read precisely on July 26, 1830, apparently literally right after Arago read the news about Charles X passing the July Ordinances which suspended the press that led to the July Revolution of 1830. Just a fun fact.Β
It should surprise no one that the guy was also a pretty liberal republican who advocated for public education. After Combeferre would be dead, he also managed to abolish flogging in the military and succeeded in procuring the abolition of slavery in the French colonies. Cool!
Philosophie Anatomique by Geoffrey Sainte-Hilaire (French)
βHe read everything, went to the theatre, attended public lectures, learned from Arago about the polarization of light, was fascinated by a talk in which Geoffroy Sainte-Hilaire explained the twin functions of the external carotid artery and the internal carotid artery, the one that leads into the face and the other that leads into the brain.β (Les Mis 3.4.1)
Saint-Hilaire was a naturalist who was part of the Academy of Sciences and worked as a professor of zoology at the University of Paris. During his time there, he did research in anatomy and wrote the Philosophie Anatomique and generally did a lot of work pushing forward the science of evolutionary biology. Presumably the talk he gave would have been a lecture while he was a part of the staff for the University of Paris after he released this book. Combeferre goes to a lot of public lectures on science!
The Political Thought of Saint-Simon selected texts by Saint-Simon (English)
The Utopian Vision of Charles Fourier selected texts by Charles Fourier (English)
Henri de Saint-Simon and Charles Fourier were both early utopian socialists and proto-feminists who had a huge impact on early international socialism. Basically, utopian socialists believed that, instead of achieving socialism through rebellion or class war, the masses would naturally adopt a socialist society if they were convinced well enough. Fourier and Saint-Simon started different schools of socialist thought, but they both pushed the idea of gender equality really strongly. Charles Fourier is actually credited with coining the term βfeminism,β which is cool. (But the guy was also really, really antisemitic, which is not cool.) Yet again, Combeferre is reading up on his feminist theory. Good for him.
There was plenty of criticism about the elitism of Saint-Simonian socialism because it didnβt seem to abolish social classes, just invent new ones. Saint-Simon also says some wild shit about how his ideological opponents should be βtreated like cattleβ and at one point shot himself in the head SIX TIMES but didnβt die. Damn. He also tried to worship Isaac Newton. None of thatβs important, but itβs all kind of weird so I wanted to mention it.Β
Charles Fourier had some ideas that are thought of as really commonplace today (like feminism) but also some that just soundβ¦ odd. He had this whole theory about βpassionsβ that didnβt stick around and he predicted that when the world reached its utopian ideal state the ocean would turn to lemonade and the polar ice caps would melt, whichβ¦ yβknow actually he might not be all wrong about the polar ice caps. He was also ardently pro-gay in his advocacy for free love, and even explicitly talked about lesbians and non-binary people! This guy was either really ahead of his time or completely off the wall and nothing in between.
The link I found above is to an archive of old issues of Le Moniteur. There are YEARS of them, with a lot of the speeches from the National Convention that iconic people like Robespierre, Saint-Just, or Danton gave. In fact, many of the transcriptions we have today came from the reporting in Le Moniteur. Itβs a hugely significant newspaper for historians to understand that entire period of history, and it seems like Combeferre has tapped into that significance early.
βPreface to Cromwellβ by Victor Hugo (English)
βAt the sight of a theatre poster displaying the title of a tragedy from the old, so-called classical, repertoire, Bahorel cried, βDown with the bourgeoisie's beloved tragedy!β
And Marius heard Combeferre reply, βYouβre mistaken, Bahorel. The bourgeoisie likes tragedy, and on that score the bourgeoisie should be left alone. Tragedy in wigs has its own justification, and Iβm not one of those who in the name of Aeschylus dispute its right to exist. There are in nature some crude designs; there are in creation some ready-made parodies: a beak thatβs not a beak, wings that arenβt wings, flippers that arenβt flippers, feet that arenβt feet, a plaintive cry that makes you want to laugh - and there you have the duck. Now, since poultry and birds co-exist, I donβt see why classic tragedy shouldnβt play opposite antique tragedy.ββ (Les Mis 3.4.3)
βIn the last corner they were talking politics. The 1814 Charter was coming under criticism. Combeferre was weakly defending it, Courfeyrac was energetically attacking it.β (Les Mis 3.4.4)Β
Combeferre loves to play the devilβs advocate. The 1814 Charter was the basis for the constitutional monarchy under King Louis XVIII and then, briefly, King Charles X. The July Revolution of 1830 would be a direct response to King Charles X using it as an excuse to suspend the liberty of the press and other tyrannical changes. But that wonβt be for a couple more years. Combeferre doesnβt actually believe in this Charter, but this is a group of friends that likes arguing for fun, so heβs always being contrary.
βThe Cat That Turned Into a Womanβ Fables by Jean de La Fontaine (English)
βCombeferre philosophically watched Louis XVIIIβs masterpiece burn, and confined himself to the remark, βThe charter that turned to ashes.ββ (Les Mis 3.4.4)
This is a reference to La Fontaineβs fable βThe Cat That Turned Into a Womanβ. A lot of characters throughout Les Mis reference La Fontaineβs Fables, which is no surprise because theyβre very popular. The moral of this one is that somethingβs true nature will always reveal itself no matter how its physical shape changes. Since he makes the allusion after Courfeyrac throws the charter into the fire for effect, heβs basically saying that the nature of the charter is unchanged despite Courfeyracβs dramatic gesture.
Le Misanthrope by Molière (English, French song, French play recording)
βIt was Combeferre, and this is what he was singing:Β
βIf Caesar had offered me glory and war,
But on pain of forsaking my motherβs love,
Iβd have told great Caesar his prizes to keep,
I love my mother more, tra-la, I love my mother more.ββ (Les Mis 3.4.5)
During the Revolution, it became extremely popular to recast, or make new lyrics for familiar tunes and publish or perform these new lyrics publicly, often for political reasons. This continued to be prevalent throughout the early 1800βs, so itβs a pretty normal thing for Combeferre to be doing here (link). Specifically, Combeferre is recasting a song the character Alceste sings in MoliΓ¨reβs Le Misanthrope (Act I scene ii), a comedy of manners that satirizes the hypocrisies of the French aristocracy. Combeferre loves MoliΓ¨re! Iβve included a link to a choir performing the song so you can get a sense of the tune, as well as a link to that part of the play, though the melody is less distinct in that one. For further reference, I found a university project uploaded on youtube that performs a skit of the act with Combeferreβs little song, though they cut off before that actual line (link). It does a good job conveying the vibe of this scene in English, and if you watch it just keep in mind that this is apparently peak comedy for Combeferre. He saw this and he memorized that song to use as a sick burn later. Like, βHA, Marius, youβre just as cringe as Oronte performing his sonnet in Le Misanthrope Act I scene ii!β Devastating. And honestly? β¦Accurate. Poor Marius will never recover.Β
Iβve seen people say that MoliΓ¨re is the French equivalent of Shakespeare, and I think thatβs pretty accurate. His plays are funny, accessible reads that mocked the society of his time and tbh a lot of it holds up today. Combeferre makes another reference to MoliΓ¨re later and calls him a genius, so I think itβs safe to assume heβs a big fan. In fact, Combeferre really loves comedy in general and I think thatβs really cute. Much like MoliΓ¨re, Combeferre has a dry, sarcastic sense of humor and heβs always saying short little cutting remarks to his friends. Heβs often characterized by fans as the serious one with glasses when he canonically loves comedy more than anyone else in his friend group. The boys are all seeing Oppenheimer and heβs at Barbie having the time of his life.
The Athenian Constitution by Aristotle (English)
βSurrounded by students and artisans, Combeferre was talking about the dead, Jean Prouvaire, Bahorel, Mabeuf, and even Cabuc, and about Enjolrasβs stern sorrow. He said, βHarmodius and Aristogeiton, Brutus, Chaerea, Stephanus, Cromwell, Charlotte Corday, Sand, have all had their moment of anguish after the event.ββ (Les Mis 5.1.2)
The Tyrranicides are back! Enjolras was previously compared to Harmodius and Aristogeiton during his introduction to emphasize his disinterest in dating women, and now Combeferre is referencing them for a very different reason. Whereas, for Enjolras, the emphasis was on their revolutionary violence, Combeferre is more interested in what comes after that act of violence.
Looking over this whole list of names, when Combeferre mentions the βmoment of anguish after the eventβ heβs not talking about literal regret or sadness so much as heβs talking about the unexpected consequences of these peopleβs revolutionary actions. Their own executions, political retaliation, that sort of thing. All the primary ancient sources on the Tyrranicides are really celebratory of them, so there isnβt a lot of focus on their deaths after the assassination, but Aristotle talks a little bit more than others about Aristogeitonβs torture and eventual death. Heβs mostly talking about how cool Aristogeiton is the whole time, but still. Combeferre is using these examples to ponder over the potential future consequences of their own revolution now that some of his friends have already died. Unlike Enjolras, heβs more interested in humanizing these people in order to understand how his friends might be remembered as well.
βSurrounded by students and artisans, Combeferre was talking about the dead, Jean Prouvaire, Bahorel, Mabeuf, and even Cabuc, and about Enjolrasβs stern sorrow. He said, βHarmodius and Aristogeiton, Brutus, Chaerea, Stephanus, Cromwell, Charlotte Corday, Sand, have all had their moment of anguish after the event.ββ (Les Mis 5.1.2)
β[Combeferre:] βCicero metes out justice by the intellect just as Brutus metes out justice by the sword. For my own part, I condemn this latter form of justice, the blade, but antiquity allowed it.ββ (Les Mis 5.1.2)
β[Combeferre:] βCaesar, violator of the Rubicon, bestowing as it they derived from him the dignities that derived from the people, not rising for the Senate, acted, as Eutropius says, like a king and almost like a tyrant, regia ac poene tyrannica. He was a great man. Too bad. Or so much the better - the lesson is all the more edifying. His twenty-three wounds affect me less than the spitting in Jesus Christβs face. Caesar is stabbed by senators. Christ is treated with contempt by lackeys. In the greater outrage you sense the deity.ββ (Les Mis 5.1.2)
And, secondly, we have Combeferreβs Hugo-assigned Biblical reference! This oneβs pretty simple, since Combeferre references the Gospel of Matthew, aka the Jesus part of the Bible. As opposed to Enjolrasβs righteous fury, Combeferre is all about being nice to people, specifically women and the underprivileged.
βCaligulaβ and βClaudiusβ Lives of the Twelve Caesars by Suetonius (English, English)
βSurrounded by students and artisans, Combeferre was talking about the dead, Jean Prouvaire, Bahorel, Mabeuf, and even Cabuc, and about Enjolrasβs stern sorrow. He said, βHarmodius and Aristogeiton, Brutus, Chaerea, Stephanus, Cromwell, Charlotte Corday, Sand, have all had their moment of anguish after the event.ββ (Les Mis 5.1.2)
Weβll talk a little bit more about Emperor Caligula during Grantaireβs booklist, but if youβre not familiar with the name, basically heβs an infamous corrupt ruler of the Roman Empire. He did really weird things like trying to make his favorite horse a Consul so he tends to come up when people talk about comically evil Roman Emperors. Most of the information we know about Caligula comes from an account by the historian Suetonius, which includes a record of his eventual assassination. One of these assassins, and reportedly the one who struck the first blow, was Cassius Chaerea. He was later executed by the following emperor, Claudius, who was afraid the conspirators had also intended to assassinate him. The assassination itself is covered in the chapter βCaligulaβ and the ensuing execution is covered in the chapter βClaudiusβ so I included both of those here. Like the rest of this list, itβs another example of a guy who died as a consequence of his radical political action.
Roman History by Cassius Dio (English)
βSurrounded by students and artisans, Combeferre was talking about the dead, Jean Prouvaire, Bahorel, Mabeuf, and even Cabuc, and about Enjolrasβs stern sorrow. He said, βHarmodius and Aristogeiton, Brutus, Chaerea, Stephanus, Cromwell, Charlotte Corday, Sand, have all had their moment of anguish after the event.ββ (Les Mis 5.1.2)
Stephanus was one of three assassins who plotted to kill the Roman Emperor Domitian, as recorded in the Epitome of Book LXVII of Dioβs Roman History. I wasnβt familiar with Domitian before this booklist, but this chapter on him was such a wild ride. The chapter opens with the line βDomitian was not only bold and quick to anger but also treacherous and secretiveβ and continues to somehow be even less flattering than that line prepared me for. Most of the account is just a list of comically evil things he did during his reign and how βthere was no human being for whom he felt any genuine affection.β Heβs paranoid, insecure, bloodthirsty, a sex menace to both women and men, and he wonβt stop executing people for predicting his death. According to Dio, Domitian had an astrologer tell him all the people whose horoscopes indicated theyβd try to usurp him and he just started going down the list having them all murdered. Thereβs actually a lot of astrologers and psychic visions that come into play in this story, but the important part is the assassination itself.Β
During the assassination, Stephanus led the charge and threw Domitian to the ground, but apparently everyone was so eager for this guy to die that some people who werenβt part of the plan also rushed into the room all at once to kill Domitian and they killed Stephanus too. So, Stephanusβs misstep was just being caught in the crossfires while killing Domitian, though his assassination was ultimately successful.
Cromwell by Victor Hugo (English)
βSurrounded by students and artisans, Combeferre was talking about the dead, Jean Prouvaire, Bahorel, Mabeuf, and even Cabuc, and about Enjolrasβs stern sorrow. He said, βHarmodius and Aristogeiton, Brutus, Chaerea, Stephanus, Cromwell, Charlotte Corday, Sand, have all had their moment of anguish after the event.ββ (Les Mis 5.1.2)
We know this guy. Victor Hugo wrote a whole play about the aftermath of Cromwellβs revolution and the moral ambiguity of attaining power after toppling those in power, etc. etc. I cited this play in Enjolrasβs booklist with the stipulation that, though the timeline checks out, Iβm not sure the play would actually be to Enjolrasβs taste. I donβt feel that way about Combeferre, I do think he wouldβve checked this play out. I already mentioned the preface of this play when Combeferre was going off about classical theater, and I think Combeferre is actually very tapped into the discourse surrounding the rules of classical theater so he wouldnβt have missed this one.
βAdresse aux FranΓ§ais amis des lois et de la paixβ by Charlotte Corday (French)
βSurrounded by students and artisans, Combeferre was talking about the dead, Jean Prouvaire, Bahorel, Mabeuf, and even Cabuc, and about Enjolrasβs stern sorrow. He said, βHarmodius and Aristogeiton, Brutus, Chaerea, Stephanus, Cromwell, Charlotte Corday, Sand, have all had their moment of anguish after the event.ββ (Les Mis 5.1.2)
Charlotte Corday famously murdered the revolutionary journalist Jean-Paul Marat by stabbing him while he was in the bath. Thereβs an iconic painting done by Jacques-Louis David in the same year depicting the death that you might recognize, fittingly called The Death of Marat (link). Corday was also a revolutionary, but she was a Girondin and she didnβt like the Jacobins, so she thought that Marat was leading the people of France down a bad road. Yet again, we see a cheeky little example of how Combeferre is balancing out Enjolrasβs more Jacobin sympathies by mentioning Corday as a revolutionary hero instead of Marat. Anyway, Charlotte Corday didnβt even try to get away with the assassination. She waited on site to be arrested and had a manifesto letter that she sent to the papers to be published afterwards explaining why she did it. By all accounts she had no regrets about the murder, but she was convicted by the Revolutionary Tribunal and guillotined within a few days, so thatβs probably the anguish after the event Combeferre is referencing here.
βKarl-Ludwig Sandβ Celebrated Crimes by Alexandre Dumas (English)
βSurrounded by students and artisans, Combeferre was talking about the dead, Jean Prouvaire, Bahorel, Mabeuf, and even Cabuc, and about Enjolrasβs stern sorrow. He said, βHarmodius and Aristogeiton, Brutus, Chaerea, Stephanus, Cromwell, Charlotte Corday, Sand, have all had their moment of anguish after the event.ββ (Les Mis 5.1.2)
Ohohoho, okay weβve got a bit of a weird one here re: the timeline. Technically, German student Karl Ludwig Sand assassinated the conservative dramatist August von Kutzebue (an alleged Russian spy and German traitor) in 1819, leading to Sandβs execution in 1820. Itβs not an anachronistic reference for Combeferre to make in that regard. The event was a big deal in Germany and led to a lot of government restrictions on liberal and German nationalist groups. However, none of this was really common knowledge in Paris until Alexandre Dumas published a version of the story in his collection Celebrated Crimes, which wouldnβt be published until 1839. This is almost definitely the source that Combeferre is supposed to be referencing. A lot of the information Dumas published was based on interviews he personally did, so it wouldnβt have been widely available before his book came out. Plus Dumas and Hugo were friends, and Hugo wrote an unfinished play on the subject of another one of the crimes Dumas covered here. So I feel like all signs point to this being an anachronistic reference to Celebrated Crimes, but Iβll allow that technically Combeferre couldβve just been super ahead of his time and done his own research to make this reference.Β
Anyway, the point here is in line with all the other references Combeferre makes on this list. He was a man who, according to Dumas, βkings regarded as an assassin, judges as a fanatic, and the youth of Germany as a hero.β It is a good note to leave off on for Combeferre to punctuate his theme of what makes a martyr and how people will interpret the legacy of political violence after itβs done.
Georgics by Virgil (English)
Georgics translated by J.F. Raux, 1802 (French)
Georgics translated by Antoine de Cournand, 1804 (French)
Georgics translated by Jacques-Charles-Louis Clinchamps de MalfilΓ’tre, 1810 (French)
βAnd a moment later, such are the circuitous routes of conversational exchange, with Jean Prouvaireβs verses providing the transition, Combeferre was comparing the translators of the Georgics, Raux with Cournand, Cournand with Delille, referring to the few passages translated by MalfilΓ’tre, particularly the portents at Caesarβs death.β (Les Mis 5.1.2)
The Georgics are a four-book Latin poem by Virgil about agriculture, our relationship with the land, and hard work. There were several French translations released during the turn of the century, and apparently Combeferre has opinions about a lot of them. I went ahead and included all the versions he listed here in French. We donβt get to hear his specific opinions on these, but you can check them out if youβre interested.Β
Though most of the poem is instructional about agriculture, we are told that Combeferre is focusing specifically on the passages about Caesarβs death (in Book 1, lines 461-497). This is mostly covering the civil war following Caesarβs death, framing it as a cosmic upset that must be navigated carefully or Rome will suffer. This ties into the βanguish after the eventβ that he was discussing earlier; he remains focused on the consequences of these large political changes that must be survived.
Cicero has a lot of written work that was hugely influential in ancient Rome, and Ciceroβs impact on the Enlightenment and later the French Revolution was so huge that I really donβt have time to cover all of it here. Francesca Romana Berno wrote a whole essay on the relationship between Ciceroβs work and the French Revolution (link) thatβs super interesting if you want to know more about the topic, but in short he was an idol to the French republicans. Cicero also appeared as a minor character in Shakespeareβs Julius Caesar, where the conspirators consider inviting him to the assassination and then say never mind because βhe will never follow any thing that other men begin.β Hysterical.
However, in the realm of actual historical documents, I think De Officiis is a good contender for the source of Combeferreβs little anecdote about Cicero criticizing Caesar here. It was one of his last publications, written at the end of his life during the fall of the Roman Republic, and considered one of his masterpieces. De Officiis literally means something like βOn Dutiesβ or βOn Moral Obligationsβ and it was basically a practical guide to the moral duties of citizens. He criticized Caesarβs tyranny in large part because of the way that a lack of political rights negatively affects peopleβs moral virtues. All of this would be very topical to France at the turn of the century. Cicero also wrote letters that were critical of Caesar (Iβm a big fan of the one where Cicero wishes heβd been invited to the Ides of March, that oneβs really funny), but ultimately I think this treatise is more substantial and historically significant. Fun fact, it was the second book ever printed on a printing press!
Anyway, this whole anecdote is very utopian socialist of Combeferre, to say that publishing a particularly cutting critique of Caesar is as valid an execution as stabbing him to death and is an equally valid path to overthrowing a tyrant. I talked a little bit about Combeferreβs take on Caesar and Brutus earlier, but basically of course Combeferre idolizes this man who could rally an educated population with words instead of violence. This is Combeferreβs entire thing. However, even Cicero said βthe ides of march was a fine deed, but half doneβ and Combeferre does admit that, despite his personal preferences, there was nothing unjust about killing Caesar. Just as weβre told that Enjolras has become a gentler version of himself by the time he gets to the barricade due to Combeferreβs influence, Combeferre is also at the barricade and ready to fight due to Enjolrasβs influence. Theyβre a good balance to each other.
Here, Combeferre rattles off a long list with examples of people who made a name for themselves by criticizing someone who was more talented than them out of envy. So we can assume that Combeferre has read both the criticism heβs referencing, and the works theyβre criticizing. Letβs break those down!
First up weβve got Zoilus insulting Homer. Zoilus was a scholar in the fourth century BC whose entire legacy is just how much he hated Homer. None of his works, including Against the Poetry of Homer, survived but we still know about this guy because of how much drama he was embroiled in. The ancient architect Vitruvius (of the Vitruvian Man fame) writes about him in On Architecture, mentioning a completely unverifiable account of Zoilus being such an insufferable Homer-anti that the king, a Homer stan, had him crucified or stoned to death by an angry mob (link). He even called him Homeromastix, or literally βHomer hater.β Wow. People truly never change, they are always getting pissed off about peopleβs bad takes and then writing fictionalized accounts of them publicly dying. Or maybe a mob really did kill Zoilus for being so insufferable, who can say. Anyway, a lot of authors have gone on to mention Zoilus as a catch-all term for a bitter and envious critic. So many that it has an entry in Merriam-Webster (link). Honestly Iβve gotta respect the legacy this man managed to garner. Miguel de Cervantes brought hating on Zoilus back into vogue in the Middle Ages when he called Zoilus a slanderer in his preface to Don Quixote. And then by the 18th century another hater from later in Combeferreβs list, Alexander Pope, ironically calls out Zoilus in his An Essay on Criticism: βNay, should great Homer lift his awful head, Zoilus again would start up from the dead. Envy will Merit as its shade pursue, But like a shadow proves the substance trueβ¦β Victor Hugo has referenced both of these, but since Combeferre himself mentions Pope later in the same sentence and itβs more contemporary, I opted to go with that one as Combeferreβs source for this insult. But thereβs a strong argument to be made for just the preface to Don Quixote as well.Β
Oh yeah, and as for Homer, I couldβve gone with The Iliad or The Odyssey because apparently Zoilus hated them both, but I opted for The Iliad because the other boys mention it so much and I wanted Combeferre to match his friends.
Not much is known about Maevius since none of his works (if he even had them) or biographical information survived. The two main sources proving this guy even existed are Virgilβs Eclogue 3, which mockingly mentions a poet named Maevius, and Horaceβs Epode 10, which is just a long prayer to manifest βthat stinker Meviusβ dying horribly at sea. These two are commonly thought to be the same guy, remembered just for being really hated by guys who are more talented than him, presumably.
Pope both loved and insulted Shakespeare throughout his career. He published a translation of the works of Shakespeare in 1725, but he edited the plays to make them βmore appealingβ to a contemporary reader. He explained this decision and some of his changes in the preface of the first edition (link) but the reception of this adaptation was contentious. One guy in particular, Lewis Theobold, really came for Pope and published a scathing pamphlet called Shakespeare Restored that catalogued all of the changes and perceived errors in Popeβs translation (link). You may hear βpamphletβ and think this is a short criticism, but itβs like 200 pages. Savage. It pissed off Pope so much he went on to make Theobald a major character in his The Dunciad, a poem about mediocre people who bring stupidity and tastelessness to Britain. Heβs so messy!
Hugo himself described Voltaire as he βwho must always be fought against and fought forβ in his William Shakespeare, because Voltaire is such a hater and constantly picking fights with other writers. The literary infighting is a never-ending circle. I have to stop making this same joke over and over again, but RIP Combeferre, you wouldβve loved booktok drama.
Summary of Roman History by Eutropius (English)
β[Combeferre:] βCaesar, violator of the Rubicon, bestowing as it they derived from him the dignities that derived from the people, not rising for the Senate, acted, as Eutropius says, like a king and almost like a tyrant, regia ac poene tyrannica. He was a great man. Too bad. Or so much the better - the lesson is all the more edifying.ββ (Les Mis 5.1.2)
And, finally, we have Combeferreβs last allusion in the novel. This line he quotes is from the end of book 6 of Eutropiusβs Brevarium Historiae Romanae, which covers the death of Caesar. The chapter is a condensed version of several books in Livyβs super long History of Rome and is, as the title suggests, a brief summary of the events covered. Iβm not surprised that Combeferre is quoting the version that is more accessible. Heβs true to his mission for equitable access to education until the very end.
As for the quote itself, the Latin is just a translation of the phrase Combeferre says immediately before comparing kings and tyrants. The original quote was specifically calling out Caesar, who Combeferre has mentioned before, and the conclusion Combeferre is making is that no matter if Caesar is a βgood man,β his actions as a king are akin to a tyrant. Regency is inherently tyrannical. There are no good kings. Victor Hugo also talks at length in Les Mis about how Louis-Phillipe was a βgood man,β and the parallel is hard to miss. As Combeferre says here, even if a βgood manβ is a king, it is still tyranny and the people should still oppose it. Much of what Combeferre talks about on the barricade deals with the legacy of revolutionary actions, and he continues to dwell on that here. Combeferre is aware of their doom, but heβs still looking forward and contemplating what truths about their current situation the people will learn from their sacrifice. Itβs so fitting that the last thing Combeferre quotes is, he hopes, a lesson.
β¦And thatβs it! As always, Iβm not an expert so if you spot anything I missed, please hit me up! Iβve started compiling all the lists on a page (here) if you want to see the other ones and some more involved notes on where all these sources came from.
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a lot of people dont care about insect biomass collapse bc when they hear we are losing 2.5% of the insect biomass per year they just imagine the cockroach and housefly population decreasing by that much. they dont realize those are among the only ones that will remain unbothered
every year of restoring native plants I see a great increase in the insect populations, and loads of new insects i never saw before (all of them harmless--the insects that are harmful or parasitic on humans are the main ones being unaffected by the decrease in insect populations)
(a large part of) the problem is Plant Sameness. we must restore plant diversity
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