Les Misérables Volume 4, Chapter 2 Summary

Summary

At the barricade in the Rue Saint-Denis, Father Mabeuf has remained in the wine-shop, withdrawn and seemingly absent, though still among the crowd. Courfeyrac and others have tried to rouse or remove him, but he sits with fists on his knees, lips moving as if in private reply, eyes vacant. During the preparations for the assault he remains in the tap-room, near the bound Javert, apparently disengaged from the fighting spirit around him.

When the attack begins and a detonation shakes the street, Mabeuf suddenly starts and strides out to the barricade. The insurgents and onlookers, struck by the spectacle of this venerable man grasping the flag, cry out that he is the voter and representative of the people. Unheeding, Mabeuf takes the flag from Enjolras and, with faltering but determined steps, mounts the makeshift stair of the barricade. In the torchlight his white hair and aged face seem like a spectre from 1793. On the summit he proclaims revolutionary slogans. The government voice orders a summons and then fires; Mabeuf is hit, falls, tries to rise, and dies with the flag dropped beside him. His death deeply moves the insurgents; Enjolras declares Mabeuf's death an example to the young, commands that his body be sheltered and honored, and proclaims the dead man's coat and wounds as the new banner around which they rally: "This is our flag now."

Key events

1. Father Mabeuf remains in the wine-shop, appearing withdrawn and unresponsive.
2. A detonation awakens him; he strides to the barricade carrying the red flag.
3. The crowd recognizes him as a symbolic revolutionary figure and fall silent.
4. Mabeuf mounts the barricade, shouts revolutionary cries and repeats "Long live the Republic!"
5. A summons is given and soldiers fire; Mabeuf is shot and falls dead on the pavement.
6. Enjolras honors the corpse, declares it an example, and proclaims the body and coat as the new flag.

Analysis

This chapter transforms Mabeuf from a disengaged, pitiable elder into an emblematic martyr in a few dramatic gestures. Hugo stages the moment as ritual and theatre: torchlight, the ascent, the crowd's hushed awe, and the invocation of 1793 make Mabeuf both pathetic and sublime. The contrast between his physical feebleness and the moral authority he suddenly exerts underscores themes of generational continuity, sacrifice, and the power of symbolic acts to forge communal identity. Enjolras' response — calling the dead man an example and converting his body into the barricade's standard — shows how revolutionary movements create and consecrate icons to sustain morale.

Narratively, the episode interrupts tactical details with a concentrated emotional tableau, providing a moral high point that heightens the stakes before combat resumes. Hugo uses close visual imagery (white locks, decrepit face, upraised arm) and the crowd's reaction to elevate a private madness or grief into public significance, suggesting that individual madness and political myth can merge. The firing and immediate death prevent any sentimentalization through speech from Mabeuf himself; instead his silence and physical fall become the language of martyrdom. The scene also foreshadows how death will bind the insurgents together and how symbols (flag, body, wounds) operate as organizing principles for collective courage.

Important quotes

“It is the voter! It is the member of the Convention! It is the representative of the people!”

Bystanders/InsurgentsThe crowd recognizes Mabeuf on the threshold and interprets his appearance as a powerful revolutionary symbol.

“Long live the Revolution! Long live the Republic! Fraternity! Equality! and Death!”

M. MabeufFrom the top of the barricade, Mabeuf shouts a litany of revolutionary slogans, transforming into a sacrificial emblem.

“This is our flag now.”

EnjolrasAfter Mabeuf is killed, Enjolras consecrates the dead man's coat and wounds as the new standard around which the insurgents rally.

Characters in Volume 4, Chapter 2

• M. Mabeuf
• Courfeyrac
• Enjolras
• Javert
• Commissary of police
• Insurgents
• Bystanders