Hugo does a great job with this chapter. Valjean slowly learns that this is Cosette as he walks back to Montfermeil with her, carrying the bucket of water. On Cosette’s side she has an implicit trust in this man, seeing him as an answer to her cry to God for help. For the first time we hear of Cosette’s predicament not through the eyes of a narrator, but told from her own perspective. It’s quite revealing.
- She doesn’t have a mother and she doesn’t know if she has ever had a mother
- She does not view the Thenardiers as her family
- She sees herself as a servant
- She is well aware of the leisurely life of the Thenardier’s daughters and the way it contrasts with her own
- She makes no mention fo their son at all
- She cries when she talks about the difference between her and the girls she lives with
- She is afraid of being beaten and insists on carrying the bucket before the mistress Thenardier sees her letting someone else carry it.
Hugo also makes it a point to call out that she forgot about the bread. This, combined with what we saw earlier with her losing the coin sets us up for a sure crisis ahead when she comes home without the bread or the money she was intended to use to guy it.
The larger questions are clear: What will Valjean say to the Thenardiers? How will he present himself? Will he take Cosette and raise her himself? Will there be a fight over her future?
As we’re now accustomed to, we have to wait and see!