Les Mis begins as simply as "In 1815," and ends as tragically as...actually, never mind.
To set the stage, 1815 saw the beginning and end of the Hundred Days War, the end of the First Restoration and beginning of the Bourbon restoration, a new French constitution, and the infamous Battle of Waterloo, which brought about Napoleon's exile.
The Hundred Days War (aka the War of the Seventh Coalition) was brought about by Napoleon's return from exile. Three years earlier, Napoleon suffered monstrous defeats when he tried to invade Russia (and here I was, thinking it was common knowledge that you can't take Russia by land). Prussia and Napoleon fought for the next couple of years, and finally, in 1814, a coalition of eastern European countries took Paris after the Battle of Montmartre. Two weeks later, Napoleon abdicated his throne, and Louis XVIII took over. This led to the beginning of the Bourbon Restoration, which lasted until The July Revolution of 1830 (we'll get into that later).
The Bourbon Restoration was rooted in conservatism and conveniently rediscovered respect of a monarchical government. Napoleon forced them to leave France for a Hundred Days, but the Bourbons were again returned to power in July after the defeat of Napoleon by the Seventh Coalition. The reigning of King Louis XVIII was relatively stable.
Bishop of ---- is Bishop of Digne (southeastern France). Allegedly, Hugo based M. Myriel on the real Bishop of Digne, Bienvenu de Miollis. According to Reddit, the reason that Hugo omits the names of so many places and people is so that he would not get in trouble if a character resembled a real person a little too much, e.g. at the movies when it says that any resemblance to real places or people is purely coincidental... Also, it adds to the mystery and flow of writing. According to Reddit.
A few paragraphs down, I believe it is safe to assume that the "charming spectacles of 1993" are a reference to the Reign of Terror.
Definitions that elude me:
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vicarage: the residence of a vicar
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vicar: a representative or deputy of a bishop
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representative: haha jk
All the names that M. Henri Puget invites for entertainment are members of the clergy.
The Council of the Five Hundred is part of the Directory, which was brought down by the coup on 18 Brumaire, which installed Napoleon to power after the Revolution. Any guesses on why this guy was pro-Napoleon? It makes me want to like him, but his letter is just so mean :(
"Matters were getting embroiled with Rome" is a reference to the Congress of Vienna, where the Papal States were in the process of getting restored.
Notable quotes:
"...the treasurer of all benevolence and the cashier of all those in distress."
Definitions that elude me:
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amelioration: the act of making something better; improvement
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asperity: harshness of tone or manner
Notable quotes:
"What a stout back Death has! he exclaimed. "What a strange burden of titles is cheerfully imposed on him, and how much wit must men have, in order thus to press the tomb into the service of vanity!"
"He was tolerably eloquent."
"Examine the road over which the fault has passed."
"...the most sublime things are often those which are the least understood..."
"The guillotine is the concretion of the law..."
Definitions that elude me:
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appellation: a name or title
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asperities: harshness of tone or manner
Marquis de Champtercier is "an ultra-royalist and an ultra-Voltairian. This variety of man actually existed." Royalists advocated for the restoration of monarchist aristocracy, while Voltaire was a champion of the Age of Enlightenment, known for his opposition to tyranny and bigotry. Needless to say, these were a bit contradictory.
The Bishop was "Born a Provençal," which is a dialect spoken by some in Southern France, mostly in Provence- see the bottom right of the map below (the white part). Provence is to the right of the River Rhine, and Dauphiné is the area above and to the right of Lyons.
The man that counterfeited money for his lover and child was sent to "Aix," which at the time was the seat of the Intendance of Provence. I think the Intendance of Provence was the governing body at the time, or at least an administrative body. It seems that intendancies served as an agent of the monarchy, and were used to achieve administrative unification and centralization.
The Court of Assizes, or Cour d'assises, were criminal trial courts.
When speaking about the intensity of the guillotine, Hugo mentions that de Maistre admires it, and Beccaria execrate it. Joseph de Maistre was a pro-Monarchy philosopher and key figure of the Counter-Enlightenment (I know, I didn't know that was a thing, either). He thought that the victims of the Reign of Terror got what they deserved. Cesare Beccaria, on the other hand, was counter-counter-Enlightenment (AKA one of the greatest thinkers that was a part of the Age of Enlightenment). He is considered the father of both modern law and criminal justice, that man-whore! Haha JK, he was actually one of the first people to denounce torture and the death penalty, so we like him.
Definitions that elude me::
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venial: denoting a sin that is not regarded as depriving the soul of divine grace
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indigent: poor; needy
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pontifically: I think in this context, it means "relating to the pope." Another definition that dictionary.com (simple, yet effective) gives is "characterized by a pompous and superficial air of infallibility." However, these are both adjectives, so I'm not exactly sure how the word translates.
Notable quote:
"'The mind is a garden,' said he."
Definitions that elude me:
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catechisms: a summary of the principles of Christian religion in the form of questions and answers, used for the instruction of Christians
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cassock: a full-length garment of a single color worn by certain Christian clergy, members of church choirs, acolytes, and others having some particular office or role in a church.
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trappist: relating to a branch of the Cistercian order of monks founded in 1664 and noted for an austere rule that includes remaining silent for much of the time.
Okay, I'm not going to get into researching the portraits of the clergymen that are in the Bishop's bedroom. I'm really hoping Hugo just went into a little too much detail on this one.
Not particularly anything new, but we are introduced to the candlesticks in this chapter.
Jussieu and Linnæus are French and Swedish botanists, respectively.
Notable quotes:
"Nothing is more easy to present to the imagination than the Bishop's bedchamber." This is the funniest and classiest way to present simplicity to the reader. Hugo is king of the one-liners and that's that on that.
"'The beautiful is as useful as the useful.' He added after a pause, 'More so, perhaps."
"He liked...hoeing..." Finally, something the Bishop and I have in common.
Definitions that elude me:
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prie-Dieu: a piece of furniture for use during prayer, consisting of a kneeling surface and a narrow upright front with a rest for the elbows or for books.
Gaspard Bés is an obscure man. There is next to nothing about him on the Internet, and what little there is about him happens to be a Wikipedia article that I ever-so-wisely copy + pasted into Google Translate.
According to the two most reliable sources of Wiki and Google Translate, Gaspard Bés was a brigand from Provence. But--the cool brigand; the brigand we romanticize in movies and not in real life; the Robin Hood-esque brigand that stands up for women and children and inspires men to do the same. The motto of his band was "Frighten but don't kill!" and they specialized in robbing the wealthy and giving to the poor. By 1779, he was a local legend. He was sentenced to death in 1781 (allegedly betrayed at the hands of one of his men), and was killed in front of an emotional and despondent crowd.
(Also interesting, though probably not relevant- there is rumor that he has a buried treasure in the plain of Cuges-les-Pins).
As far as Cravatte goes, I'm fairly certain he is a fictional character. Can't really tell if Hugo is pro-Bés or anti, but I think, based on the last few lines, we can take a gander...
Notable quotes:
"Let us never fear robbers nor murderers. Those are dangers from without, petty dangers. Let us fear ourselves. Prejudices are the real robbers; vices are the real murderers. The great dangers lie within ourselves. What matters it what threatens our head or our purse! Let us think only of that which threatens our soul." (um hello let's talk about foreshadowing for Jean Valjean's constant internal monologues)
Okay, we all know the Bishop is like an insanely virtuous character and if I met him I would probably hate him because he's such a good guy. But I feel like it's necessary to point out that he is truly one of the funniest characters in this book. Let's talk about self-awareness. I mean, "There is M. Géborand purchasing paradise for a sou." is quite possibly the greatest roast of all time. Also, "God gives air to men; the law sells it to them." is my new Insta bio. Another one: "He visited the poor so long as he had any money; when he no longer had any, he visited the rich." He called his place in the cow shed his "winter salon." I'm telling you, it's pure gold after pure gold.
Definitions that elude me:
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gendarme: an armed police officer in France and other French-speaking countries
The senator seems like a pretty typical dude. I enjoy the verbiage "just sufficiently educated to think himself a disciple of Epicurus."
I, too, am just sufficiently educated to think myself a disciple of Jeff Goldblum.
Anyway, Epicurus was an ancient Greek philosopher that founded Epicureanism, a school of thought/philosophy/big-word-for-little-girl. Epicureanism seems to be a morally-correct, ethically-justifiable hedonism. According to the omniscient http://wikipedia.com, "Epicurus believed that the greatest good was to seek modest, sustainable 'pleasure' in the form of a state of tranquility and freedom from fear and absence of bodily pain through knowledge of the workings of the world and the limits of our desires. The combination of these two states constitutes happiness in its highest form."
"...while he was, in reality, only a product of Pigault-Lebrun." While I am, in reality, only a product of my surroundings. Pigault-Lebrun (1753-1835) was a French novelist and playwright. It's safe to say that I have no idea what this is implying. Wikipedia describes him as "almost" the father of a widely growing genre of literature. I can't tell if Pigault-Lebrun wrote anything anti-Epicurean, or was a pseudo-Epicureanism, or just a pseudo-intellectual. I don't know! Nothing on Google! Might have to hit up the library for this one (as if).
Later in the chapter, the Bishop tells the Senator he is "on the bed of purple." This one took a lot* of research. The only site on the entirety of the Internet that had an example of the phrase "lit de pourpre" was completely in French, so here's the best translation I (Google Translate) has to offer: "he made him lay in a bed of purple, where his tilted head, with the pallor of death, resembled a young tree, which, having covered the earth with its shadow and pushed its flowering branches to the sky, was started by the cutting edge of a lumberjack's hatchet: "(François de Salignac de La Mothe-Fénelon, dit Fénelon 1699" Les aventures de Télémaque")." Beautifully said, sir! My marginally-educated guess is that a bed of purple is where a rich/important person dies, since purple is the color of luxury.
*more than one Google inquiry
Time to get in to some more philosophers:
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Marquis d' Argens: friend of Voltaire; French rationalist and critic of the Catholic church; relied on empirical reason and personal ethics
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Pyrrho: ancient Greek philosopher that founded his eponymous Pyrrhonism, which is dedicated to the achievement of a state of freedom from mental perturbation (similar to Epicureanism); took a more skeptical approach to things, declaring that non-evident propositions e.g. dogma cannot be known
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Hobbes: English; one of the founders of modern political philosophy; people are animalistic by nature and need an absolute form of government to control them; people enter a "social contract" to form government and protect themselves; also argued that citizens are not obligated to submit to the government when it is unable to suppress civil unrest
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M. Naigeon: 1738-1810; no original philosophies himself, but worked with Diderot; staunch atheist
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Diderot: 1713-1784; prominent figure during the Enlightenment, and co-founder of the Encyclopédie, a skeptical magazine that was banned by the Catholic church in 1759 and one of the forerunners of the French Revolution; Hugo does a pretty good job of describing Diderot's beliefs in the next paragraph
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Voltaire: 1694-1778; a fighter; satirical philosopher; AKA the "conscience of Europe"
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Needham: 1713-1781; Catholic priest and English biologist that researched spontaneous generation, which caused a dispute between him and Voltaire
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Tertullian: 155-240 AD; "father of Latin Christianity" and "founder of Western Theology"
In the Senator's soliloquy:
Le Moniteur Universel was a French newspaper founded in Paris in 1789, and ceased publication in 1868. A distinctly reasonable place to not publish your polemics.
"Inter pocula" means, literally, between cups; during a drinking-bout. The Senator will say his controversial thoughts with friends, between drinks.
I'm fairly certain "Monsieur le Comte Nought" is the Senator calling himself the Count of Nought--very powerful words, very humble, sir!
Sardanapalus was the last king of Assyria--he lived in decadent indulgence, and believed that the purpose of life is physical gratification. Not sure if this is relevant or not, but when he was overthrown, he burned himself and his eunuchs and concubines in a funeral pyre that was filled with his riches. He went out with a bang, in every sense of the word.
Vincent de Paul, on the other hand, is the polar opposite of Sardanapalus. He was a French Catholic priest and all-around a pretty A1 dude.
In the Bishop's response:
There are two Catos--one the Elder, and one the Younger. The Cato that the Bishop is referring to is Cato the Younger, great-grandson of Cato the Elder and conservative, Stoic Roman statesman that was exiled for attempting to implicate Julius Caesar in a conspiracy.
Stephen is a Biblical character (New Testament) and was the first Christian martyr. He was stoned to death, because of his defense of his faith for a dissenting and apparently violent audience.
Notable Quotes:
"We shall be the grasshoppers of the stars."
"Be the dupe of the infinite!" (I'm 100% sure I have romanticized whatever this means so if anyone has any interpretations, I'm all ears)
"Legends, chimeras, the soul, immortality, paradise, the stars, are provided for them to swallow. They gobble it down. They spread it on their dry bread. He who has nothing else has the good."
"...seasons the voluptuousness of life exquisitely."
Definitions that elude me:
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crotchet: a perverse or unfounded belief or notion
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augur: (in ancient Rome) a religious official who observed natural signs, especially the behavior of birds, interpreting these as an indication of divine approval or disapproval of a proposed action (fun fact: as a verb, it means to foresee or predict)
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sinecure: a position requiring little or no work but giving the holder status or financial benefit
I'm not exactly sure why Madamoiselle Baptistine's friend is asking about the Faux family. Caen is a commune in the northwest of France. Bretagne is in west France (now known as Brittany). There does not seem to be anything remarkable about them, other than the fact that the Bishop knows a lot about them. TBD on if I'm missing something or not.
Notable quotes:
"...which without being good are very tolerable." This is how I'm replacing "aggressively average" in my vocabulary.
Words I had to look up (please don't judge me):
remonstrance: a forcefully reproachful protest
Reminder that the National Convention was elected to provide a new constitution for the country after the overthrow of the monarchy, and was replaced by the Directory at the end of the French Revolution. I think the reason people hated him so much was because the Convention got all the heat for the Reign of Terror (they created the committee of Public Safety), even though they were the ones that executed Robespierre. I can't find any resources talking about members of the National Convention that voted for the execution of Louis XVI being exiled so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ we'll call that a loss until some kind soul fills me in.
During the Bourbon monarchy (1814-1830), the appellation "citizen" was associated with the Reign of Terror. Although it started as a way to refer to others as being equals, it, just like everything else in the French Revolution, was taken too far. Hence, the negative connotation.
"Beyond the pale" is a colloquial phrase meaning "outside the limits of acceptable behavior or judgment."
1793 is when the Reign of Terror began.
Cartouche was a bandit of Paris in the early 1700s.
Sinite parvulos originates in the book of Mark in the Bible. It comes from a longer phrase (Sinite parvulos venire ad me), which means "let the little children come to me."
Not too sure about the next part- a dauphin is the eldest son of the King of France. Barabbas and Herod are Biblical New Testament characters: Barabbas is the man Pontius Pilate freed in order to crucify Jesus, and Herod is the king that decreed all newborns must die (because he was afraid Jesus would usurp him).
Jean-Paul Marat was leader of the radical Montagnard (faction of the National Convention that held close ties with sans-culottes; expunged Girondins and created the Committee of Public Safety, which is responsible for the Reign of Terror) during the French Revolution. Can't find anything about him clapping in support of the guillotine, but Hugo's language speaks for itself.
Jacques-Bénigne Bossuet was a French Catholic bishop that died in 1704. The hymn Te Deum is Latin Christian, and Jean-Baptiste Lully wrote a setting of it for the court of Louis XIV. The dragonnades were a French government policy instituted by King Louis XIV in the late seventeenth century to intimidate Huguenot families into either leaving France or converting to Catholicism. Dragoons (a class of mounted infantry), had the right to abuse and steal from those whose houses they were staying in.
According to Google Translate, a fetiche is a fetish (??????)
G---'s long paragraph where he literally just name drops:
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Carrier: no idea
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Montrevel: a place? sorry idk
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Fouquier-Tainville: French prosecutor during Reign of Terror
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Lamoignon-Baville: died 1788; French statesman responsible for issuing the Edict of Versailles, which granted civil status and freedom of worship to France's Protestants, and for the abolition of judicial torture
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Maillard: died 1794; captain of the Bastille Volunteers
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Saulx-Tavannes: died 1573; French Roman Catholic military leader during Italian Wars and French Wars of Religion
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Duchene: no idea
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Letellier: there are many of those that go by the name of Letellier in French History, and from Hugo's subsequent use of "M. the Marquis de Louvois," I believe he is referring to Michel Le Tellier, a French statesman that encouraged persecution of the Huguenots
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Jourdan-Coupe-Tete: implicated in the atrocities of the Massacres of La Glacière at the beginning of the French Revolution, condemned to death and guillotined
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M. the Marquis de Louvois: died 1691; son of Michel Le Tellier; one of the great war ministers of France; complicit with the dragonnades, and originator of the destruction of the Palatinate, which was a diplomatic failure
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Tantalus: figure from Greek mythology who was a rich but wicked king; attempted to serve his own son for din din, and punished by Zeus in Hades to be forever thirsty while in a pool of water, and forever hungry while almost within reach of a fruit tree
Google doesn't know what Dead Tree Street is. Neither do I! According to Wikipedia, however, the trees on Champs-Élysées were cut down and used for firewood during the Hundred Days' War (after the fall of Napoleon). Not sure if that's what the conventionary is talking about! I am not a helpful person! And neither is Google!
The Merovingian dynasty was the ruling family of the Franks from the middle of the 5th century until 751.
The Convent of Urbanists, founded in 1633, was partly destroyed by a fire in 1794. During the Revolution, it served as a military prison and barracks.
The Abbey of Sainte Claire en Beaulieu was a convent of Clarisse ("Order of the Poor Ladies) nuns located in Peteghem, in Belgium. It was founded in 1290, but closed in 1783 as a "useless convent." Not quite sure how the Senator saved it, so if anyone has any insight on this, pls lmk.
There was a type of red cap (the Liberty cap) worn by Revolutionaries at the Fall of the Bastille. I believe, but again not totally sure, that the red hat that the Bishop says people revere is the camauro, a red had traditionally worn by the Pope of the Catholic Church. OR it could be the zuchetto, a Roman Catholic cleric's skullcap--a Cardinal would wear a red one.
Notable quotes:
"And his smile quitted the sun to rest upon the child."
"I shall die by starlight."
"We have caused the fall of the old world, and the old world, that vase of miseries, has become, through its upsetting upon the human race, an urn of joy."
"I will weep with you over the children of kings, provided that you will weep with me over the children of the people."
"It was almost an explosion."
That is so powerful I'm screaming
"Bear this well in mind sir: the French Revolution had its reasons for existence; its wrath will be absolved by the future; its result is the world made better. From its most terrible blows there comes forth a caress for the human race."
"Yes, the brutalities of progress are called revolutions. When they are over, this fact is recognized,--that the human race has been treated harshly, but that it has progressed."
Definitions that elude me:
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regicide: a person who kills or takes part in killing a king
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caprice: a sudden and unaccountable change of mood or behavior
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octogenarian: a person who is from 80 to 89 years old
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exordium: the beginning or introductory part, especially of a discourse or treatise
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engender: cause or give rise to (a feeling, situation, or condition)
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prelate: a bishop or other high ecclesiastical dignitary
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inexorable: impossible to stop or prevent
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rejoinder: a reply, especially a sharp or witty one
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epithet: an adjective or descriptive phrase expressing a quality characteristic of the person or thing mentioned
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abjure: solemnly renounce (a belief, cause, or claim)
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succor: give assistance or aid to
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august: respected and impressive oh and also my bday month B)
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coteries: a small group of people with shared interests or tastes, especially one that is exclusive of other people
The arrest of the Pope that Hugo is referring to is, surprise surprise, referring to Napoleon's arrest of Pope Pius VII. Long story short: (After a tense few years) Napoleon kept invading the Papal States, Pope Pius VII excommunicated Napoleon and those involved in the invasions, French general Miollis arrested the Pope, who did not return to Rome for another five years.
France suffered many defeats during the Peninsular War in 1813. In the middle of 1814, Napoleon was exiled to Elba. Finally, in 1815, after Napoleon escapes from Elba, the notorious Battle of Waterloo (decisive defeat of French forces, Napoleon announces his abdication six days later) took place. Napoleon was exiled again at the end of 1815, this time to St. Helena.
The Legion of Honor is the highest French order of merit for military and civil merits, established in 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte.
Napoleon's armies carried eagles atop flagpoles. Upon Bonaparte's first fall, the restored monarchy of Louis XVIII ordered all eagles to be destroyed. After his second, many of the eagles were again destroyed.
The symbol of the Frankish Merovingian dynasty of kings was three frogs. Unfortunately, I can't quite figure out why that's a bad thing.
Notable quotes:
"I embarrassed them. The outside air penetrated to them through me. I produced on them the effect of an open door."
"What beautiful clocks! What beautiful carpets! What beautiful liveries! They must be a great trouble. I would not have all those superfluities, crying incessantly in my ears: `There are people who are hungry! There are people who are cold! There are poor people! There are poor people!'"
interlude and friendly reminder that the Bishop is the most quotable character probably of all time
"He who has not been a stubborn accuser in prosperity should hold his peace in the face of ruin."
Definitions that elude me:
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ultramontane: advocating supreme papal authority in matters of faith and discipline
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gallican: of or holding a doctrine (reaching its peak in the 17th century) which asserted the freedom of the Roman Catholic Church in France and elsewhere from the ecclesiastical authority of the papacy
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vicissitudes: a change of circumstances or fortune, typically one that is unwelcome or unpleasant
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seditious: inciting or causing people to rebel against the authority of a state or monarch
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imprecation: a spoken curse
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tacitly: in a way that is understood or implied without being directly stated
Saint Francois de Sales (died 1622) is known for his deep faith and "and his gentle approach to the religious divisions in his land resulting from the Protestant Reformation" (Wikipedia, once again). (I'm not really sure what other relevant information there is here.)
Les pretres blancs-becs translates to "the white-billed priests."
Perrette's pot of milk is a reference to a 1430 folktale about interrupted daydreams of wealth and fame. The premise of the tale is that as Perrette is carrying a pot of milk atop her head, she is thinking of everything she will buy with the money, almost convinced she already has the money. However, as she is leaping on her way to sell the milk, it falls. Ruh roh! Instead of riches, she'll receive blows from her husband and an incredible sum of nothing.
Menaechmus is a reference to Menaechmi, a play written by Plautus (254-184 BC). It's a classic twin-brother switch-up comedy, that features two twins of the same name that were separated at birth (hence, "Success, that Menaechmus of talent...").
Juvenal is a Roman poet active in the late first and early second century AD. He wrote a series of satirical poems called the Satires; Tacitus wrote of similar themes. Although Juvenal's work cannot be completely relied on, as it was written in the vein of satire, Tacitus is known as one of the greatest Roman historians.
Aeschylus is ancient Greek, and known as the father of tragedy.
Corneille (died 1684) is a French tragedian. Tiridate (1691) is a tragedy written by Campistron, a French dramatist. Perhaps Campistron and Corneille are rivals? Perhaps Corneille's writing style is more elevated than Campistron's? IDK! I have no idea what they have to do with each other and I'm really starting to think I've bit off more than I can chew?
A Prudhomme may refer to a knightly ideal in mediaeval chivalry.
Sambre et Meuse was a department of the French First Republic and French First Empire, but I'm struggling to find what that has to do with shoes. There's a poem that was published in the late 19th century that mentions soldiers without shoes, following the defeat of the French in the Franco-Prussian War.
The 1786 Mousqueton D Hussard is a rifle. It was used by revolutionaries during the French Revolution, as its parts were cheaper to produce.
I can't really find anything on Claude, other than the fact that he "was assured an important place in French history when he opened his Château de Vizille near Grenoble to the famous meeting of the estates of the Province of Dauphiné (21 July 1788) heralding the coming of the French Revolution" (Wikipedia, obviously).
Notable quotes:
"A saint who dwells in a paroxysm of abnegation is a dangerous neighbor; he might communicate to you, by contagion, an incurable poverty, an anchylosis of the joints, which are useful in advancement, and in short, more renunciation than you desire; and this infectious virtue is avoided."
"Be it said in passing, that success is a very hideous thing. Its false resemblance to merit deceives men."
"With the constellations of space they confound the stars of the abyss which are made in the soft mire of the puddle by the feet of ducks."
Definitions that elude me:
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covey: a small group of people or things
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callow: (of a young person) inexperienced and immature
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miter: a tall headdress worn by bishops and senior abbots as a symbol of office, tapering to a point at front and back with a deep cleft between
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paroxysm: a sudden attack or violent expression of a particular emotion or activity
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anchylosis: abnormal adhesion and rigidity of the bones of a joint
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livery: a provision of food or clothing for servants
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espouse: adopt or support (a cause, belief, or way of life)
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usury: the illegal action or practice of lending money at unreasonably high rates of interest
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mien: a person's look or manner, especially one of a particular kind indicating their character or mood
"Credo in Patrem" is Latin for "I believe in the father."
Notable quotes:
"Poor beast! It is not its fault!"
"Mysterious exchange of the abysses of the soul with the abysses of the universe!"
"At one's feet that which can be cultivated and plucked; over head that which one can study and meditate upon: some flowers on earth, and all the stars in the sky."
Definitions that elude me:
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locution: an utterance regarded in terms of its intrinsic meaning or reference, as distinct from its function or purpose in context; a particular form of expression or a peculiarity of phrasing
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pedantry: excessive concern with minor details or rules palimpsest: a manuscript or piece of writing material on which the original writing has been effaced to make room for later writing but of which traces remain
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puerile: childishly silly and trivial
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anent: concerning; about
In the Old Testament in the Bible, the mantle passing from Elijah the prophet, to Elisha, his successor, symbolizes the passing of prophetic authority.
Notable quotes:
"This humble soul loved, and that was all."
TBH this whole chapter is extremely quotable
Definitions that elude me:
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expiates: atone for (guilt or sin)
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somnambulism: sleepwalking
Thus concludes Vol. I, Book One! I feel smarter even though I will most likely not retain any of this information :) it's the thot that counts, right???
xoxo,
liz miserablés