Victor Hugo in the political arena

A Catholic and monarchist, a poet for the Ultra Party at the age of 20, Victor Hugo died a republican. Summarized thus, the great man's political trajectory could be reduced to a somewhat forced turnaround, an adaptation to the flow of history, like so many other less glorious ones. But how, then, can we explain the aura of the man who became a symbol, a herald of the Republic, the defender of the oppressed, the prophet of humanity? In *Victor Hugo in the Political Arena*, Michel Winock retraces this journey, uniting personal events with national upheavals, literary engagements with political struggles. Victor Hugo's various actions thus reveal points of reference that explain his shift: the death penalty, the Three Glorious Days (of the 1830 Revolution), the defense of the Polish people, freedom of the press, the fight against poverty and for primary education... Convinced of the magnitude of his destiny and its importance, Victor Hugo suffered terrible blows in his personal life. Not even the isolation of exile kept him from the public scene, and with his imposing presence he influenced not only France, but the entire Western world, throughout the 19th century.