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This article offers a deeper understanding of Hugo's social philosophy as expressed in Les Misérables through a reading of the novel's treatment of prostitution and Parisian sewers in the context of contemporary thought. Specifically, Hugo reframes the prostitute- as- sewer metaphor that was commonplace among contemporaries such as Parent- Duchâtelet. First, in the story of Fantine, he provides a narrative articulation of the social problem of prostitution that reveals the full import of Parent- Duchâtelet's work on the subject. Then he offers an alternate understanding of the sewer to which the prostitute was often compared, and simultaneously expands his metaphorical treatment of the sewers to include all of society's outcasts. Hugo thus rewrites prevailing social thought to advocate for a new relationship between society and its most disadvantaged members as well as the reintegration of les misérables into the social whole. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the relationships among female respectability, aesthetics, and national belonging in the wake of World War II. This was a time of tumult, and the French sought order through conformity. This conformity had much to do with conservative gender roles. The article analyzes images of female beauty and love in the feminine press. A complex reading of these images reveals an intriguing subtext: a woman needed to conform to certain images of respectable femininity, which included a properly feminine appearance and, perhaps most important, a satisfied man at her side. Articles in women's magazines warned that a woman's failure to conform to such standards would result in ostracism and a lifetime of loneliness. This article posits that establishing these strict guidelines for women was crucial to reinstating a sense of male virility and control in France after the chaos of war. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]