Who fell in love with Esmeralda. The compositional role of Notre Dame Cathedral in the novel of the same name by V. Hugo

Esmeralda(French Esméralda) - main character Victor Hugo's novel Notre Dame de Paris, as well as films, plays, musicals, ballets and poems based on this work.

Esmeralda in the original novel

In Victor Hugo's novel, Esmeralda's story is revealed gradually. Esmeralda first appears as a beautiful young girl living in the Parisian “Courtyard of Miracles” (an abode of beggars and criminals), earning money by dancing and performing with a trained goat, Jalli. The poet Pierre Gringoire, the priest Claude Frollo and the ugly bell-ringer Quasimodo fall in love with her. Frollo, with the help of Quasimodo, tries to steal Esmeralda, but she is saved by officer Phoebus de Chateaupert. Esmeralda falls in love with her savior.

In the novel we see detailed description appearance of the heroine: “She was short in stature, but she seemed tall - that was how slender her figure was. She was dark-skinned, but it was not difficult to guess that during the day her skin acquired a wonderful golden hue, characteristic of Andalusians and Romans. The little foot was also the foot of an Andalusian woman - she walked so lightly in her narrow, graceful shoe. The girl danced, fluttered, twirled on an old Persian carpet carelessly thrown at her feet, and every time her radiant face appeared in front of you, the gaze of her large black eyes blinded you like lightning. The crowd's eyes were glued to her, all mouths agape. She danced to the rumble of a tambourine, which her round, virgin hands raised high above her head. Thin, fragile, with bare shoulders and slender legs occasionally glimpsed from under her skirt, black-haired, quick as a wasp, in a golden bodice that tightly fitted her waist, in a colorful billowing dress, shining eyes, she seemed like a truly unearthly creature..." (" Notre Dame Cathedral, III. Besos para golpes (18)

The image of Esmeralda in the novel is complex and tragic. She is the embodiment of chastity and naivety, completely different from the other inhabitants of the “Court of Miracles”. Even the fact that she has to dance for a living does not corrupt her. She has kind heart: she brings water to Quasimodo when he is tied to pillory; In order to save Gringoire, a stranger to her, from death, she agrees to formally be called his wife. But her openness and naivety almost lead to disaster: having fallen in love for the first time in her life, she is ready to give herself to Captain Phoebus, even though she is sure that with the loss of her innocence, the opportunity to ever meet her parents will go away.

The girl knows that the gypsies who raised her are not her parents, she passionately wants to find her real mother and wears an amulet around her neck, in which is stored a tiny child's embroidered shoe - the only thing that she inherited from her real mother: Esmeralda hopes to someday find it, but, according to the order given to her with the shoe, for this she must preserve her virginity. Gradually, the story of Esmeralda's origin is revealed to the reader.

The girl's mother's name was Paquette Chantfleury, she was the daughter of a famous minstrel from Reims. But the minstrel died, leaving his little daughter and wife without funds. They made a living by embroidery and lived extremely modestly. Paquetta blossomed early and began to attract the attention of noble men. She fell in love with one of them and became his mistress when she was barely 14 years old. But the flighty signor soon abandoned the girl, and she “went from hand to hand,” sinking lower and lower: from aristocrats to simpler men. Paquette, who had become an ordinary prostitute, was saved from complete degradation by pregnancy: at the age of 20, she gave birth to a lovely girl, whom she named Agnes. After giving birth, the girl who had once faded became very prettier, and her “services” were again valued. She spent everything that Paquetta earned on clothes for her beloved baby.

One day a gypsy camp arrived in Reims, and Paquette, like many other mothers, could not resist and went with her daughter to the gypsies to find out the future of their child. Beautiful girl delighted the gypsies, and a few days later they stole it, throwing Paquette into the cradle of an ugly, hunchbacked and lame boy four years old. Unhappy Paquette turned gray from grief overnight and lost her mind: having found traces of fires and blood stains in the place where the camp that disappeared one night stood, she decided that the gypsies had eaten her child.

Paquette soon disappeared from Reims. Some said that she drowned herself, others that she was seen on the road to the capital. The Archbishop of Reims ordered the deformed foundling to be sent to Paris and placed in a nursery near the orphanage (this child was Quasimodo).

...Esmeralda is sentenced to death on false charges: Claude Frollo, tormented by jealousy, wounds Phoebus during his meeting with Esmeralda, and goes into hiding. Quasimodo takes her out of the loop and hides her in the Cathedral. There she lives for some time, without stopping to think about Phoebus (whose wound turned out to be light, but who had already managed to forget the gypsy). Quasimodo understands that she will never be able to reciprocate his feelings, but he is happy because he can protect her.

Claude Frollo and Gringoire rescue the girl from the besieged cathedral, thereby saving her from death. They take it across the Seine. Claude gives her a choice: either she agrees to be with him, or she will be hanged. Esmeralda refuses to flee the city with the “murderer” of Phoebus. The archdeacon leaves her to the old woman Gudula, and goes after the guards to hand over the gypsy. Gudula, a recluse who fiercely hates the gypsies because they once stole her only daughter, holds Esmeralda. Gudula curses the girl and shows her her daughter’s shoe, at this moment Esmeralda shows exactly the same bootie. Here it turns out that Gudula is Paquetta Chantfleury, Esmeralda’s mother, but it turns out too late. Paquetta hides the girl from the soldiers, but seeing Phoebus among them, Esmeralda, not thinking about the consequences, naively calls him. The girl was immediately hanged, and her mother died, unable to bear the second loss of her daughter.

In productions and film adaptations of the novel, the details of the heroine's birth are usually omitted and she is portrayed as a gypsy (only in the 1923 film adaptation with Patsy Ruth Miller in leading role the details of the heroine’s birth are preserved, and the image of her character from the original source is also preserved, except that she is not afraid of her pursuer). The image of brilliant purity and innocence invented by Hugo is often omitted; instead, Esmeralda appears in the image fatal beauty.

Esmeralda in the musical "Notre Dame de Paris"

Esmeralda in the musical is not a stolen French girl, but a gypsy orphan girl from Spain. If the novel implied that everything positive in her is from French origin, then in the musical these are her personal qualities, which are also possible for a simple gypsy. In the musical, she does not have a trained goat; she earns money only by dancing. Many researchers of Hugo's work [ Who?] believe that the presence of Djali in the musical is fundamentally important, because there is an opinion that the goat embodies tragedy (“tragedy” in Greek is “goat song”).

Esmeralda in film adaptations

In the film Notre Dame (1956)

Gina Lollobrigida in this film is considered the most successful screen embodiment of Esmeralda. One of the reasons for the success, apparently, is serious work on the external component of her image: on the one hand, it uses associations with gypsyism (bare feet, a bright scarf, a torn hem), on the other hand, it reflects her character (both of Esmeralda’s dresses are pure “ fiery" colors, red and yellow, their style emphasizes her youthful fragility and the impetuosity of her movements). The ending is partially changed compared to the original source: Esmeralda was killed with an arrow during the storming of the cathedral. Her last words: “Life is beautiful” (French: C "est beau, la vie).

Many years later, Lollobrigida created a sculpture depicting Esmeralda in dance.

In the 1996 Walt Disney Studios cartoon

In the cartoon, Esmeralda is a purebred gypsy. This beautiful girl who makes a living by dancing. It is believed that the prototype of her image was two famous actresses: Gina Lollobrigida and Demi Moore (voice actor for the character in the original). It is also interesting that in the first sketches (during work on creation) Esmeralda looked exactly 16 years old, in the final version she was depicted a little older (in fact, she is 16 years old in the book, and 19 years old in the cartoon), perhaps because , so that the heroine does not look more fragile in comparison with other characters (Judge Claude Frollo and Captain Phoebus). In the cartoon, she is slender, has bronze skin, blue-black long hair, curly hair And green eyes, in the book version the skin is also bronze, but lighter - this may indicate that her father could be a gypsy. She has a lively and independent character. She is brave, smart, proud and strong, very kind and fair. If you look closely, you will notice that with her hair down, Esmeralda looks much younger than with her hair in a ponytail. She is also one of the most beautiful girls living in France.

France

Paris, Place de Greve

Paquette Chantfleury (mother, deceased), father unknown (possibly Gypsy)

Dancer

Patsy Ruth Miller, Maureen O'Hara, Gina Lollobrigida, Demi Moore (voice actress)

Esmeralda(fr. Esmeralda) - the main character of Victor Hugo's novel Notre Dame de Paris, as well as films, plays, musicals, ballets and poems based on this work.

Esmeralda in the original novel

In Victor Hugo's novel, Esmeralda's story is revealed gradually. Esmeralda first appears as a beautiful young girl living in the Parisian “Courtyard of Miracles” (an abode of beggars and criminals), earning money by dancing and performing with a trained goat, Jalli. The poet Pierre Gringoire, the priest Claude Frollo and the ugly bell-ringer Quasimodo fall in love with her. Frollo, with the help of Quasimodo, tries to steal Esmeralda, but she is saved by officer Phoebus de Chateaupert. Esmeralda falls in love with her savior.

In the novel we see a detailed description of the heroine’s appearance: “She was short in stature, but she seemed tall - that’s how slender her figure was. She was dark-skinned, but it was not difficult to guess that during the day her skin acquired a wonderful golden hue, characteristic of Andalusians and Romans. The little foot was also the foot of an Andalusian woman - she walked so lightly in her narrow, graceful shoe. The girl danced, fluttered, twirled on an old Persian carpet carelessly thrown at her feet, and every time her radiant face appeared in front of you, the gaze of her large black eyes blinded you like lightning. The crowd's eyes were glued to her, all mouths agape. She danced to the rumble of a tambourine, which her round, virgin hands raised high above her head. Thin, fragile, with bare shoulders and slender legs occasionally glimpsed from under her skirt, black-haired, quick as a wasp, in a golden bodice that tightly fitted her waist, in a colorful billowing dress, shining eyes, she seemed like a truly unearthly creature..." (" Notre Dame Cathedral, III. Besos para golpes (18)

The image of Esmeralda in the novel is complex and tragic. She is the embodiment of chastity and naivety, completely different from the other inhabitants of the “Court of Miracles”. Even the fact that she has to dance for a living does not corrupt her. She has a kind heart: she brings water to Quasimodo when he is tied to the pillory; In order to save Gringoire, a stranger to her, from death, she agrees to formally be called his wife. But her openness and naivety almost lead to disaster: having fallen in love for the first time in her life, she is ready to give herself to Captain Phoebus, even though she is sure that with the loss of her innocence, the opportunity to ever meet her parents will go away.

The girl knows that the gypsies who raised her are not her parents, she passionately wants to find her real mother and wears an amulet around her neck, which contains a tiny embroidered children's shoe - the only thing that she got from her real mother: Esmeralda hopes for it someday find, but, according to the instructions given to her with the shoe, for this she needs to preserve her virginity. Gradually, the story of Esmeralda's origin is revealed to the reader.

The girl's mother's name was Paquette Chantfleury, she was the daughter of a famous minstrel from Reims. But the minstrel died, leaving his little daughter and wife without funds. They made a living by embroidery and lived extremely modestly. Paquetta blossomed early and began to attract the attention of noble men. She fell in love with one of them and became his mistress when she was barely 14 years old. But the flighty signor soon abandoned the girl, and she “went from hand to hand,” sinking lower and lower: from aristocrats to simpler men. Paquette, who had become an ordinary prostitute, was saved from complete degradation by pregnancy: at the age of 20, she gave birth to a lovely girl, whom she named Agnes. After giving birth, the girl who had once faded became very prettier, and her “services” were again valued. She spent everything that Paquetta earned on clothes for her beloved baby.

One day a gypsy camp arrived in Reims, and Paquette, like many other mothers, could not resist and went with her daughter to the gypsies to find out the future of their child. The beautiful girl delighted the gypsies, and a few days later they stole her, throwing Paquette into the cradle of an ugly, hunchbacked and lame boy of about four years old. Unhappy Paquette turned gray from grief overnight and lost her mind: having found traces of fires and blood stains in the place where the camp that disappeared one night stood, she decided that the gypsies had eaten her child.

Paquette soon disappeared from Reims. Some said that she drowned herself, others that she was seen on the road to the capital. The Archbishop of Reims ordered the deformed foundling to be sent to Paris and placed in a nursery near the orphanage (this child was Quasimodo).

...Esmeralda is sentenced to death on false charges: Claude Frollo, tormented by jealousy, wounds Phoebus during his meeting with Esmeralda, and goes into hiding. Quasimodo takes her out of the loop and hides her in the Cathedral. There she lives for some time, without stopping to think about Phoebus (whose wound turned out to be minor, but who had already managed to forget the gypsy). Quasimodo understands that she will never be able to reciprocate his feelings, but he is happy because he can protect her.

Claude Frollo and Gringoire rescue the girl from the besieged cathedral, thereby saving her from death. They take it across the Seine. Claude gives her a choice: either she agrees to be with him, or she will be hanged. Esmeralda refuses to flee the city with the “murderer” of Phoebus. The archdeacon leaves her to the old woman Gudula, and goes after the guards to hand over the gypsy. Gudula, a recluse who fiercely hates the gypsies because they once stole her only daughter, holds Esmeralda. Gudula curses the girl and shows her her daughter’s shoe, at this moment Esmeralda shows exactly the same bootie. Here it turns out that Gudula is Paquetta Chantfleury, Esmeralda’s mother, but it turns out too late. Paquetta hides the girl from the soldiers, but seeing Phoebus among them, Esmeralda, not thinking about the consequences, naively calls him. The girl was immediately hanged, and her mother died, unable to bear the second loss of her daughter.

In productions and film adaptations of the novel, the details of the heroine's birth are usually omitted and she is portrayed as a gypsy (only in the 1923 film adaptation with Patsy Ruth Miller in the title role, the details of the heroine's birth are preserved, and the image of her character from the original source is also preserved, except that she is not afraid of her pursuer). The image of brilliant purity and innocence invented by Hugo is often omitted; instead, Esmeralda appears in the image of a fatal beauty.

Esmeralda in the musical "Notre Dame de Paris"

Esmeralda in the musical is not a stolen French girl, but a gypsy orphan girl from Spain. If in the novel it was implied that everything positive about her came from her French origin, then in the musical these were her personal qualities, which are also possible in a simple gypsy. In the musical, she does not have a trained goat; she earns money only by dancing. Many researchers of Hugo's work [Who?] They believe that the presence of Djali in the musical is fundamentally important, because there is an opinion that the goat embodies tragedy (“tragedy” in Greek is “goat song”).

Esmeralda in film adaptations

In the film Notre Dame (1956)

Gina Lollobrigida in this film is considered the most successful screen embodiment of Esmeralda. One of the reasons for the success, apparently, is serious work on the external component of her image: on the one hand, it uses associations with gypsyism (bare feet, a bright scarf, a torn hem), on the other hand, it reflects her character (both of Esmeralda’s dresses are pure “ fiery" colors, red and yellow, their style emphasizes her youthful fragility and the impetuosity of her movements). The ending is partially changed compared to the original source: Esmeralda was killed with an arrow during the storming of the cathedral. Her last words: “Life is beautiful” (fr. C'est beauty, la vie).

Many years later, Lollobrigida created a sculpture depicting Esmeralda in dance.

In the 1996 Walt Disney Studios cartoon

In the cartoon, Esmeralda is a purebred gypsy. She is a beautiful girl who dances for a living. It is believed that the prototype for her image was two famous actresses: Gina Lollobrigida and Demi Moore (the voice actor of the heroine in the original). It is also interesting that in the first sketches (during work on creation) Esmeralda looked exactly 14-16 years old, in the final version she was depicted a little older (in fact, she is 16 years old in the book, and in the cartoon she is 18-19 years) perhaps because the heroine does not look more fragile in comparison with other characters (Judge Claude Frollo and Captain Phoebus). In the cartoon, she is slender, has bronze skin, blue-black long, curly hair and green eyes; in the book version, her skin is also bronze, but lighter - this may indicate that her father could be a gypsy. She has a lively and independent character. She is brave, smart, proud and strong, very kind and fair. If you look closely, you will notice that with her hair down, Esmeralda looks much younger than with her hair in a ponytail. She is also one of the most beautiful girls living in France.

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Excerpt characterizing Esmeralda (character)

The next day, having said goodbye to only one count, without waiting for the ladies to leave, Prince Andrei went home.
It was already the beginning of June when Prince Andrei, returning home, again entered that birch grove, in which this old, gnarled oak struck him so strangely and memorably. The bells rang even more muffled in the forest than a month and a half ago; everything was full, shady and dense; and the young spruces, scattered throughout the forest, did not disturb the overall beauty and, imitating the general character, were gently green with fluffy young shoots.
It was hot all day, a thunderstorm was gathering somewhere, but only a small cloud splashed on the dust of the road and on the succulent leaves. The left side of the forest was dark, in shadow; the right one, wet and glossy, glistened in the sun, slightly swaying in the wind. Everything was in bloom; the nightingales chattered and rolled, now close, now far away.
“Yes, here, in this forest, there was this oak tree with which we agreed,” thought Prince Andrei. “Where is he,” Prince Andrei thought again, looking at the left side of the road and without knowing it, without recognizing him, he admired the oak tree he was looking for. The old oak tree, completely transformed, spread out like a tent of lush, dark greenery, swayed slightly, swaying slightly in the rays of the evening sun. No gnarled fingers, no sores, no old mistrust and grief - nothing was visible. Juicy, young leaves broke through the tough, hundred-year-old bark without knots, so it was impossible to believe that this old man had produced them. “Yes, this is that same oak tree,” thought Prince Andrei, and suddenly a causeless, spring feeling of joy and renewal came over him. All the best moments of his life suddenly came back to him at the same time. And Austerlitz with the high sky, and the dead, reproachful face of his wife, and Pierre on the ferry, and the girl excited by the beauty of the night, and this night, and the moon - and all this suddenly came to his mind.
“No, life is not over at the age of 31, Prince Andrei suddenly finally, permanently decided. Not only do I know everything that is in me, it is necessary for everyone to know it: both Pierre and this girl who wanted to fly into the sky, it is necessary for everyone to know me, so that my life does not go on for me alone So that they don’t live so independently of my life, so that it affects everyone and so that they all live with me!”

Returning from his trip, Prince Andrei decided to go to St. Petersburg in the fall and came up with the idea different reasons this decision. Whole line reasonable, logical arguments, why he needed to go to St. Petersburg and even serve, was ready for his services every minute. Even now he did not understand how he could ever doubt the need to take an active part in life, just as a month ago he did not understand how the thought of leaving the village could have occurred to him. It seemed clear to him that all his experiences in life would have been in vain and would have been meaningless if he had not applied them to action and taken an active part in life again. He did not even understand how, on the basis of the same poor reasonable arguments, it had previously been obvious that he would have humiliated himself if now, after his life lessons, he again believed in the possibility of being useful and in the possibility of happiness and love. Now my mind suggested something completely different. After this trip, Prince Andrei began to get bored in the village, his previous activities did not interest him, and often, sitting alone in his office, he got up, went to the mirror and looked at his face for a long time. Then he turned away and looked at the portrait of the deceased Lisa, who, with curls whipped up a la grecque [in Greek], tenderly and cheerfully looked at him from the golden frame. She no longer spoke the same terrible words to her husband; she simply and cheerfully looked at him with curiosity. And Prince Andrei, clasping his hands back, walked around the room for a long time, now frowning, now smiling, reconsidering those unreasonable, inexpressible thoughts, secret as a crime, connected with Pierre, with fame, with the girl on the window, with the oak tree, with feminine beauty and love that changed his whole life. And at these moments, when someone came to him, he was especially dry, strictly decisive and especially unpleasantly logical.
“Mon cher, [My dear,],” Princess Marya would say when entering at such a moment, “Nikolushka can’t go for a walk today: it’s very cold.”
“If it were warm,” Prince Andrei answered his sister especially dryly at such moments, “then he would go in just a shirt, but since it’s cold, we need to put warm clothes on him, which were invented for this purpose.” This is what follows from the fact that it’s cold, and not like staying at home when the child needs air,” he said with particular logic, as if punishing someone for all this secret, illogical inner work that was happening in him. Princess Marya thought in these cases about how this mental work dries out men.

Prince Andrey arrived in St. Petersburg in August 1809. This was the time of the apogee of the glory of the young Speransky and the energy of the revolutions he carried out. In this very August, the sovereign, while riding in a carriage, fell out, injured his leg, and remained in Peterhof for three weeks, seeing daily and exclusively with Speransky. At this time, not only two so famous and alarming decrees were being prepared on the abolition of court ranks and on examinations for the ranks of collegiate assessors and state councilors, but also an entire state constitution, which was supposed to change the existing judicial, administrative and financial order management of Russia from the State Council to the volost government. Now those vague, liberal dreams with which Emperor Alexander ascended the throne were being realized and embodied, and which he sought to realize with the help of his assistants Chartorizhsky, Novosiltsev, Kochubey and Strogonov, whom he himself jokingly called comite du salut publique. [committee of public safety.]
Now everyone has been replaced by Speransky on the civilian side and Arakcheev on the military side. Prince Andrei, soon after his arrival, as a chamberlain, came to the court and left. The Tsar, having met him twice, did not honor him with a single word. It always seemed to Prince Andrei that he was antipathetic to the sovereign, that the sovereign was unpleasant about his face and his whole being. In the dry, distant look with which the sovereign looked at him, Prince Andrei found confirmation of this assumption even more than before. The courtiers explained to Prince Andrey the sovereign's lack of attention to him by the fact that His Majesty was dissatisfied with the fact that Bolkonsky had not served since 1805.
“I myself know how much we have no control over our likes and dislikes,” thought Prince Andrei, and therefore there is no need to think about personally presenting my note on the military regulations to the sovereign, but the matter will speak for itself.” He conveyed his note to the old field marshal, a friend of his father. The field marshal, having appointed an hour for him, received him kindly and promised to report to the sovereign. A few days later it was announced to Prince Andrey that he had to appear before the Minister of War, Count Arakcheev.
At nine o'clock in the morning, on the appointed day, Prince Andrei appeared in the reception room of Count Arakcheev.
Prince Andrey did not know Arakcheev personally and had never seen him, but everything he knew about him inspired him with little respect for this man.
“He is the Minister of War, the confidant of the Emperor; no one should care about his personal properties; he was instructed to consider my note, therefore he alone can give it a go,” thought Prince Andrei, waiting among many important and unimportant persons in the reception room of Count Arakcheev.
Prince Andrey during his for the most part The adjutant service saw a lot of receptions of important persons and the different characters of these receptionists were very clear to him. Count Arakcheev had a very special character in his reception room. A sense of shame and humility was written on the unimportant faces waiting in line for an audience in Count Arakcheev’s reception room; on the more official faces one common feeling of awkwardness was expressed, hidden under the guise of swagger and ridicule of oneself, one’s position and one’s expected face. Some walked thoughtfully back and forth, others laughed in whispers, and Prince Andrei heard the sobriquet [mocking nickname] of Andreich’s forces and the words: “uncle will ask,” referring to Count Arakcheev. One general (an important person), apparently offended that he had to wait so long, sat crossing his legs and smiling contemptuously at himself.

The story of Quasimodo, Claude Frollo and Esmeralda is one of the most powerful, touching and tragic stories love created in literature.

Quasimodo was born hunchbacked and lame. A huge wart covered his left eye. In infancy, he was given to Paquette Chantfleury, and in return, her beautiful daughter Esmeralda was stolen (thus, their destinies were connected from childhood). She, horrified, got rid of the little monster, and Quasimodo would have died if the priest Claude Frollo had not adopted him. Claude raised the unfortunate man and made him a bell-ringer at the Cathedral Notre Dame of Paris.

Despite his deformity, Quasimodo grew up strong and agile, but his mind and soul did not really awaken. To top it all off, the hunchback became deaf due to the ringing of the bells and the small thread connecting him with the world was broken.

...He was vicious because he was wild; he was wild because he was ugly. His nature, like any other, had its own logic. His exorbitantly developed physical strength was another reason for his anger. However, we should give him justice: his anger, one must think, was not innate. From his very first steps among people, he felt and then clearly realized himself as an outcast, persecuted, branded creature. Human speech was either a mockery or a curse for him. Growing up, he encountered only hatred around him and became infected with it. Pursued by everyoneembittered, he finally picked up the weapon with which he was wounded...

Quasimodo's only passion (besides the worship of Claudo) was the Cathedral. He fell in love with it, studying every nook and cranny of it and climbing it from top to bottom. The poor hunchback gave each bell his own name and loved ringing them.

"..hanging over the abyss, following the bell in its terrible scope, he grabbed the copper monster by the ears, squeezed it tightly with his knees, spurred it with the blows of his heels and with all the effort, with all the weight of his body, intensified the fury of the ringing. The whole tower shook, and he screamed and screamed his teeth, his red hair stood on end, his chest puffed like a blacksmith's bellows, his eyes flashed flames, the monstrous bell neighed, suffocating under him. And now this is no longer the bell of the Cathedral of Our Lady, not Quasimodo - this is delirium, a whirlwind, a storm riding on him. a sound; a spirit clinging to a flying croup; an unprecedented centaur, half-man, half-bell; some terrible Astolf, carried away by a monstrous winged horse made of animated bronze..."

One fine day, Quasimodo noticed a young gypsy dancing in the square (this was Esmeralda). His heart caught fire new love. Later, she was the only one who showed mercy to him when the court sentenced him to the pillory, and gave him water. This strengthened the feeling of Quasimodo, who had never seen anything good from those around him.

And then, one day, Quasimodo had the opportunity to save Esmeralda from execution. They wanted to hang the poor gypsy woman and force her to confess to witchcraft. Quasimodo, risking his life, pulled her out of the loop and hid her in the Cathedral.

"... Quasimodo stopped under the arch of the main portal. His wide feet seemed to be as firmly rooted in the stone slabs of the floor as heavy Romanesque pillars. His huge shaggy head went into his shoulders, like the head of a lion, under whose long mane is also not visible neck. He held the trembling girl, hanging on his rough arms, like a white cloth, holding her so carefully, as if he was afraid to break her or crush her, it seemed that he felt that it was something fragile, exquisite, precious, not created for his hands. he did not dare to touch her even with his breath, and suddenly he pressed her to his angular chest, like his property, like his treasure. So the gaze of this cyclops, turned to the girl, enveloped her with tenderness, sorrow and pity. then he suddenly rose, full of fire. And then the women laughed and cried, the crowd went wild with delight, for in these moments Quasimodo was truly beautiful, this orphan, this foundling, this rabble; he felt majestic and strong, he looked into the face of the society that had expelled him, but in whose affairs he had so authoritatively interfered; looked into the face of human justice, from whom he snatched the prey, all these tigers who were left to caress with their teeth, the bailiffs, judges and executioners, all the royal power, which he, insignificant, broke with the help of almighty God ... "

He decided to protect her from everyone (unfortunately, he mistook Esmeralda's friends for enemies and did not allow them to save her). Realizing his ugliness and insignificance, he realized that the beauty was unattainable for him and this brought him terrible torment. He was even jealous of Esmeralda's goat, seeing how she caressed her. Quasimodo's love was so strong that he, wanting to fulfill the gypsy's every whim, tried, at her request, to bring to her her lover, the beautiful, immoral and insensitive Phoebus (Esmeralda, in fact, was a naive dummy). This caused him even greater suffering.

...- Damn it! So this is how you should be! Beautiful outside!

Quasimodo did not save Esmeralda. When she was hanged, he killed his teacher, realizing his guilt in this tragedy (Claude was also in love with the gypsy and, being rejected, killed her), made his way into the crypt where the girl’s body lay, hugged her and lay there until he died.

Esmeralda- the main character of Victor Hugo's novel Notre-Dame de Paris.

Characteristics of Esmeraldi

In Victor Hugo's novel, Esmeralda's story is revealed gradually. Esmeralda first appears as a beautiful young girl living in the Parisian “Courtyard of Miracles” (an abode of beggars and criminals), earning money by dancing and performing with a trained goat, Jalli. The poet Pierre Gringoire, the priest Claude Frollo and the ugly bell-ringer Quasimodo fall in love with her. Frollo, with the help of Quasimodo, tries to steal Esmeralda, but she is saved by officer Phoebus de Chateaupert. Esmeralda falls in love with her savior.

In the novel we see a detailed description of the heroine’s appearance: “She was short in stature, but she seemed tall - that’s how slender her figure was. She was dark-skinned, but it was not difficult to guess that during the day her skin acquired a wonderful golden hue, characteristic of Andalusians and Romans. The little foot was also the foot of an Andalusian woman - she walked so lightly in her narrow, graceful shoe. The girl danced, fluttered, twirled on an old Persian carpet carelessly thrown at her feet, and every time her radiant face appeared in front of you, the gaze of her large black eyes blinded you like lightning. The crowd's eyes were glued to her, all mouths agape. She danced to the rumble of a tambourine, which her round, virgin hands raised high above her head. Thin, fragile, with bare shoulders and slender legs occasionally flashing from under her skirt, black-haired, quick as a wasp, in a golden bodice that tightly fitted her waist, in a colorful billowing dress, shining with her eyes, she seemed like a truly unearthly creature...”

The image of Esmeralda in the novel is complex and tragic. She is the embodiment of chastity and naivety, completely different from the other inhabitants of the “Court of Miracles”. Even the fact that she has to dance for a living does not corrupt her. She has a kind heart: she brings water to Quasimodo when he is tied to the pillory; In order to save Gringoire, a stranger to her, from death, she agrees to formally be called his wife. But her openness and naivety almost lead to disaster: having fallen in love for the first time in her life, she is ready to give herself to Captain Phoebus, even though she is sure that with the loss of her innocence, the opportunity to ever meet her parents will go away.

The girl knows that the gypsies who raised her are not her parents, she passionately wants to find her real mother and wears an amulet around her neck, which contains a tiny child's embroidered shoe - the only thing that she got from her real mother: Esmeralda hopes for it someday find, but, according to the instructions given to her with the shoe, for this she needs to preserve her virginity. Gradually, the story of Esmeralda's origin is revealed to the reader.

The girl's mother's name was Paquette Chantfleury, she was the daughter of a famous minstrel from Reims. But the minstrel died, leaving his little daughter and wife without funds. They made a living by embroidery and lived extremely modestly. Paquetta blossomed early and began to attract the attention of noble men. She fell in love with one of them and became his mistress when she was barely 14 years old. But the flighty signor soon abandoned the girl, and she “went from hand to hand,” sinking lower and lower: from aristocrats to simpler men. Paquette, who had become an ordinary prostitute, was saved from complete degradation by pregnancy: at the age of 20, she gave birth to a lovely girl, whom she named Agnes. After giving birth, the girl who had once faded became very prettier, and her “services” were again valued. She spent everything that Paquetta earned on clothes for her beloved baby.

One day a gypsy camp arrived in Reims, and Paquette, like many other mothers, could not resist and went with her daughter to the gypsies to find out the future of their child. The beautiful girl delighted the gypsies, and a few days later they stole her, throwing Paquette into the cradle of an ugly, hunchbacked and lame boy of about four years old. Unhappy Paquette turned gray from grief overnight and lost her mind: having found traces of fires and blood stains in the place where the camp that disappeared one night stood, she decided that the gypsies had eaten her child.

Paquette soon disappeared from Reims. Some said that she drowned herself, others that she was seen on the road to the capital. The Archbishop of Reims ordered the deformed foundling to be sent to Paris and placed in a nursery near the orphanage (this child was Quasimodo).

...Esmeralda is sentenced to death on false charges: Claude Frollo, tormented by jealousy, wounds Phoebus during his meeting with Esmeralda, and goes into hiding. Quasimodo takes her out of the loop and hides her in the Cathedral. There she lives for some time, without stopping to think about Phoebus (whose wound turned out to be minor, but who had already managed to forget the gypsy). Quasimodo understands that she will never be able to reciprocate his feelings, but he is happy because he can protect her.

Claude Frollo and Gringoire rescue the girl from the besieged cathedral, thereby saving her from death. They take it across the Seine. Claude gives her a choice: either she agrees to be with him, or she will be hanged. Esmeralda refuses to flee the city with the “murderer” of Phoebus. The archdeacon leaves her to the old woman Gudula, and goes after the guards to hand over the gypsy. Gudula, a recluse who fiercely hates the gypsies because they once stole her only daughter, holds Esmeralda. Gudula curses the girl and shows her her daughter’s shoe, at this moment Esmeralda shows exactly the same bootie. Here it turns out that Gudula is Paquetta Chantfleury, Esmeralda’s mother, but it turns out too late. Paquetta hides the girl from the soldiers, but seeing Phoebus among them, Esmeralda, not thinking about the consequences, naively calls him. The girl was immediately hanged, and her mother died, unable to bear the second loss of her daughter.

Abstract on the topic:

Esmeralda (character)

Plan:

Introduction

• 1 Esmeralda in the original novel
• 2 Esmeralda in the musical "Notre Dame de Paris"
• 3 Esmeralda in film adaptations
  • 3.1 In the film Notre Dame (1956)
  • 3.2 In Walt Disney Studios cartoons (1996 and 2002)

Introduction

Esmeralda and Quasimodo

Esmeralda(fr. Esmeralda) - the main character of Victor Hugo's novel Notre Dame de Paris, as well as films, plays, musicals, ballets and poems based on this work.

1. Esmeralda in the original novel

In Victor Hugo's novel, Esmeralda is the illegitimate daughter of a French prostitute from Reims, Paquette Chantfleury, who is stolen by Spanish gypsies. The kidnappers gave the girl the name Esmeralda, which means “Emerald,” but from birth her name was Agnes. In case the girl ever has to leave the camp, her adoptive mother gives her her baby shoe, which will help her find her real parents if she remains chaste.

It is interesting that the residents of Reims, who knew about Paquette’s tragedy, assumed that the gypsies ate little Agnes. The myth of gypsy cannibalism was indeed very widespread in Western Europe.

In the novel, Esmeralda appears as a beautiful girl who has already matured and earns money for the camp by dancing and performing with the trained goat Jalli. The poet Pierre Gringoire, the priest Claude Frollo and the ugly bell-ringer Quasimodo, who was once given to Paquette Chantfleury instead of his stolen daughter, fall in love with her. Frollo, with the help of Quasimodo, tries to steal Esmeralda, but she is saved by officer Phoebe de Chateaupert. Esmeralda falls in love with her savior.

The image of Esmeralda in the novel is complex and tragic. She is the embodiment of chastity and naivety, completely different from the other inhabitants of the “Court of Miracles”. Even the fact that she has to dance for a living does not corrupt her. She has a kind heart: she brings water to Quasimodo when he is tied to the pillory; In order to save Gringoire, a stranger to her, from death, she agrees to be called his wife. But her openness and naivety almost lead to disaster: having fallen in love for the first time in her life, she is ready to give herself to Phoebus, even though she is sure that with the loss of her innocence, the opportunity to ever meet her parents will go away.

Esmeralda is sentenced to death on a false charge: Claude Frollo, tormented by jealousy, wounds Phoebus during his meeting with Esmeralda, and goes into hiding. Quasimodo takes her out of the loop and hides her in the Cathedral. There she lives for some time, without stopping to think about Phoebus (whose wound turned out to be minor, but who had already managed to forget the gypsy). Quasimodo understands that she will never be able to reciprocate his feelings, but he is happy because he can protect her.

In the end, Claude Frollo manages to kidnap the girl from the Cathedral and he gives her a choice: either she agrees to be with him, or she will be hanged. Esmeralda refuses. The archdeacon leaves her to the recluse Gudula, who fiercely hates the gypsies because they once stole her only daughter, to await her fate. Here it turns out that Gudula is Esmeralda’s mother, but it turns out too late. Gudula (aka Paquetta Chantfleury) hides the girl from the soldiers, but seeing Phoebus among them, Esmeralda, not thinking about the consequences, naively calls him. The girl was immediately hanged, and her mother died trying to protect her.

In productions and film adaptations of the novel, the details of the heroine’s birth are usually omitted and she is portrayed as a gypsy. The image of brilliant purity and innocence invented by Hugo is often omitted; instead, Esmeralda appears in the image of a fatal beauty. Often the meaning of her name is played on in Esmeralda's appearance, making her green-eyed or dressing her in a green dress.

2. Esmeralda in the musical “Notre Dame de Paris”

Esmeralda in the musical is not a stolen French girl, but a gypsy orphan girl. If in the novel it was implied that everything positive about her came from her French origin, then in the musical these were her personal qualities, which are also possible in a simple gypsy. In the musical, she does not have a trained goat; she earns money only by dancing. Many researchers of Hugo's work [ Who?] believe that the presence of Djali in the musical is fundamentally important, because there is an opinion that the goat embodies tragedy (“tragedy” in Greek is “goat song”).

3. Esmeralda in film adaptations

3.1. In the film Notre Dame (1956)

Gina Lollobrigida in this film is considered the most successful screen embodiment of Esmeralda. One of the reasons for the success, apparently, is that the actress was the first to decide to play a barefoot gypsy, as in the novel. The ending is partially changed compared to the original source: Esmeralda was killed with an arrow during the storming of the cathedral. Her last words: “Life is beautiful” (fr. C'est beauty, la vie).

Many years later, Lollobrigida created a sculpture depicting Esmeralda in dance.

3.2. In Walt Disney Studios cartoons (1996 and 2002)

In these cartoons, Esmeralda, as in the musical, is a gypsy. She is a beautiful girl who dances for a living. She has a keen sense social injustice and is ready to defend her beliefs. She has good character, she is sensitive to people. As a tribute to her name, Esmeralda from the cartoon has green eyes.