Themes and Motifs

        Themes and Motifs are a big part of what creates the plot of any movie, book or musical. While viewing the movie version of Les Misérables I learnt that there are several Themes and Motifs throughout the entire show, such as Morality and Righteousness, Suffering of the Poor and Insects and Birds. All of these themes and motifs are very important because they show several points of view and understanding in the show for the viewer to relate to personally. Morality and Righteousness was very rare in this time period because of the poverty, but there is an abundance of it radiating from the Bishop, which was absorbed by ValJean creating a very large theme in the musical. The Motif of Insects and Birds is portrayed mostly by Javert in his belief that all criminals are insects and the police are the birds swooping down and taking the insects away. This Motif was used to describe the character of Javert and give us the feeling that he is a despicable antagonist. The Suffering of the Poor is a theme portrayed constantly throughout the entire movie, and is a very important theme to the plot of the film. The suffering of the poor starts with ValJean and his family starving and then he goes to prison. This theme is carried to Fantine who works hard for her daughter and ends up resorting to prostitution, Cosette who slaves for the Thenardiers and then to the people of France who rise up and rebel against their government in hopes of having change. All these themes and motifs help the audience relate to and feel the emotions of the characters.