This Inconsistently Admirable was Headlined on May 2024.
“
And I am Javert! Do not forget my name! Do not forget me — 24601!
„
~ Javert drilling Jean Valjean as he enters parole.
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...Another brawl in the square, another stink in the air. Was there a witness to this? Well let them speak to Javert! Monsieur these streets are not safe, but let these vermin beware I'll see that justice is done.
„
~ Javert's commitment to the law.
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...and if you fall as Lucifer fell, you fall in flames! And so it must be, for so it is written on the doorway to Paradise, that those who falter and those who fall must pay the price!
„
~ Javert's resolve to uphold the law and bring Valjean to justice.
Inspector Javert is the main antagonist of the Victor Hugo novel Les Misérables.
He is a French prison guard who devotes himself completely to the law and follows it unflinchingly, displaying a total lack of empathy for criminals of all forms. Eventually being promoted to a police inspector, he becomes destructively obsessed with the pursuit and capture of the convict Jean Valjean, becoming his former prisoner's archenemy.
He is known to be incorruptible and treats all crimes equally.
He legitimately believes Valjean is dangerous and wants to bring him to justice because Valjean robbed a young boy after leaving prison.
He tries to get help when a man is trapped under his cart, ordering a jack to come free the man.
Despite suspecting M. Madeleine of being Valjean, he does not want to accuse him without hard evidence, and tries to be respectful toward him.
He is appalled when he believes he has falsely accused M. Madeleine, and zealously asks to be dismissed, believing he acted shamefully, and says he must be as hard on himself as on anyone else.
When not chasing Valjean, he focuses on arresting legitimately dangerous criminals, such as bringing charges against a thuggish man who we're told nearly crushed a woman and her child to death.
He respects Sister Simplice for her reputation for honesty, and when she claims she has not seen Valjean, Javert takes her word for it and even apologizes for disturbing her.
He investigates the reported kidnapping of a young girl by an unknown man, and is concerned for the girl's safety. He suspects that Valjean is behind it, and is able to deduce that Valjean has faked his death, and comes close to recapturing him.
He is committed to bringing down the Patron-Minette gang, which has been terrorizing Paris for years.
He personally arrests the Thénardiers and most of Patron-Minette, inadvertently saving Valjean in the process, and shows considerable bravery, as when Thénardier tries to shoot him, Javert stays calm and accurately predicts that his gun will misfire, then dodges a stone hurled by Madame Thénardier before arresting them both.
He holds his men in high regard, as despite evidence that some are corrupt and working for Thénardier, Javert refuses to believe it.
He is composed and respectful toward the rebels when threatened with execution.
He shows some regret over Eponine's death at the barricades.
He admits that Valjean has a right to kill him due to his years of pursuit, and even urges that Valjean kill him rather than spare his life.
He tries to recapture an escaped Thénardier when he finds his trail.
He is grateful that Valjean spared his life, and does not report his presence at the barricade.
When he finds Valjean again, he is conflicted about arresting him, and agrees to first get help for a wounded Marius, despite him being a rebel, and returns him to his grandfather, which helps him get medical treatment and saves his life. He then agrees to let Valjean go home to Cosette.
He comes to accept that Valjean is a good man and lets him go (likely sparing him from the death penalty as Valjean was helping the rebels).
Before his suicide, he submits a proposal to his superiors, giving them a list of steps that should be taken to reform the prison system, and even shows sympathy for the prisoners, as he notes various ways that the penal system is abusing them.
What Makes Him Inconsistent?[]
He is overzealous in punishing criminals, refusing to believe that they can reform, and is cold and unempathetic to their needs.
He obsessively chases Valjean for years, ignoring the good he has done as mayor and refusing to believe that he has changed.
He tries to send Fantine to prison for six months over a street brawl, and is biased against her for being a prostitute, while ignoring all evidence that it was the other man who attacked her first.
He mistakenly identifies an innocent man as Valjean due to his bias in wanting to capture him, which nearly gets that man sent to prison for life.
He arrests Valjean at Fantine's bedside, and is hostile and insulting to both of them, refusing to allow Valjean three days to retrieve Cosette, and the ensuing scene results in Fantine, who was critically ill, dying from shock.
He spies on the rebels for the government, viewing them as traitors.
While he does the right thing in letting Valjean go, he cannot fully reconcile the fact that his beliefs were wrong, and commits suicide as a result.
Trivia[]
He's so far the oldest Inconsistently Admirable in all of media, as well as the earliest Book Inconsistently Admirable.
Ironically, since Javert also counts as a villain, this also makes him the oldest Villainous Inconsistently Admirable.
He's so far the only Inconsistently Admirable in Les Misérables, as well as the only Victor Hugo's Inconsistently Admirable.
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