Written by Victor Hugo after the French Revolution, Les Misérables is a story that examines the many levels of social injustice in nineteenth-century France. Its protagonist, Jean Valjean, is central to the understanding of this injustice. Sentenced to 19 years in prison for committing a petty crime, Valjean comes to observe the law as an arbitrary force lacking in compassion and equality. However, Valjean's view is fanatically contradicted by Inspector Javert, a man whose commitment to the law is absolute. Through Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Reasoning, the successive conflicts between these two characters are given a basis of reason that is defined by the stages at which they function. Kohlberg's theory can also explain the opposing interpretations of the Common Good in relation to the moral stages of Valjean and Javert.
Functioning at the highest stage of Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Reasoning, Jean Valjean is guided by personal ethical principles. Even Valjean's initial crime of stealing a loaf of bread can be justified if a more important principle, such as the prevention of suffering, is upheld. This correlates with a fundamental concept of Stage 6, Universal Ethical Principle, which dictates that law should be discarded when it fails to represent justice. This concept repeats itself when Valjean shelters Fantine, a woman forced into illegal prostitution by a society that is incapable of maintaining her welfare. As with social justice, "?if the soul is left in darkness, sins will be committed. The guilty one is not he who commits the sin, but the one who causes the darkness." [1] Thus, Valjean was able to view Fantine not as a criminal, but as a victim. Jean Valjean is also capable of e ...