Love and Tragedy - Marius x Eponine
Title: Love and Tragedy
Author: eponine89
Email: kiru_zutto@lycos.com
Fandom: Les Misérables
Pairing: Marius Pontmercy x Eponine Thénardier
Spoilers: The entire novel and musical adaptation.
Notes: Wrote without a beta-reader, but I revised and corrected anything I could find.
Introduction
Les Misérables, a novel by the amazing writer Victor Hugo, focuses on a man by the name of Jean Valjean and his struggle to fit into society after being released after seventeen years for stealing a loaf of bread. Many of the characters in this novel have one time or another faced the injustices in 19th century France. Among these miserable characters are a spoiled child turned pauper by the name of Eponine Thénardier and Marius Pontmercy who was estranged from his family due to conflicting political views.
Marius Pontmercy
The handsome fellow on the left is a gentleman named Marius Pontmercy, the son of Georges Pontmercy who served as a colonel in Napoleon’s army. Under the pressure of his father-in-law Gillenormand, Pontmercy eventually agrees that Marius be raised by his grandfather to prevent his son from being disinherited. Throughout his childhood Marius is told that his biological father abandoned him, and holds no affection whatsoever towards his father. Shortly after Marius turns eighteen he is informed that his father is ill, and despite the hatred Gillenormand holds towards Pontmercy he orders Marius to visit his father before he dies.
Tragically Pontmercy passes away minutes before Marius is able to speak with him, and leaves a final letter asking Marius to find a man named Thénardier who had saved his life at the battle of Waterloo. He instructs his son to assist Thénardier in anyway possible if they happen to cross paths in the future. It turns out that Marius’ grandfather had lied to him, and truth be told Pontmercy cared deeply for his son. A church warden, Mabeuf, tells him of times when his father would go watch him at mass around every two to three months. Marius struggles to understand his father’s legacy and reads in multiple history books of the ways his father assisted Napoleon. He comes to admire his father, and eventually adopts Pontmercy’s politics. This eventually leads Marius to be exiled from his home, and after he leaves Marius refuses any money sent from his family.
While in Paris Marius comes across a group of law students like himself at the Café Musain and befriends, Courfeyrac, one of the students at the café. Though Marius passes his law exams with great scores he still remains in poverty, and eventually learns German and English to earn money translating. Marius is constantly struggling with his harsh living conditions, but refuses to borrow money from anyone. Little does he know next door to him is the Thénardiers that he had searched long and hard for. Among them is their eldest daughter whom I will be speaking of next.
Eponine Thénardier
On the right is Eponine Thénardier the daughter of two greedy parents M. Thénardier and Mme. Thénardier. As a child Eponine was quite the beauty as well as a pampered brat with no respect for Cosette, a child currently living with her family while Fantine paid the parents to take great care of her child. Despite the fact that Fantine had paid their fees even if it meant sacrificing her own beauty the Thénardiers were anything but caring towards poor Cosette. When Fantine would send money they’d selfishly use it for themselves and when she’d send gifts to her child Mme. Thénardier would give them to Eponine instead. The Thénardiers passed their cruel habits down to their daughters who came to resent Cosette. After Fantine’s death and many other hardships Valjean makes his way to fetch Cosette, and pays a huge fee to the Thénardier for housing her before he leaves with the girl.
When we meet Eponine once again she isn’t the beauty she used to be instead she is an unclean pauper with only a streak of beauty remaining. Her greedy father currently works in a street gang while she and her younger sister Azelma keep look out for the gang. Eponine is a very useful asset to her father, and he uses her skills in direction to find addresses of wealthy people to panhandle off of. Due to this most of Eponine’s life out doors consists of begging from the wealthy, and to a smaller extend with Marius Pontmercy the man she harbors secret romantic feelings for.
One of the more interesting things about Eponine’s character is that she can be selfish when it comes to material wealth, but is selfless when it comes to her romantic feelings. The musical elaborates on her hidden feelings for Marius as well as her wish to see that his happy while the book doesn’t touch the subject quite as much. Her most noble act is when she selflessly gives away any chance of her love to be requited by leading Marius to Cosette whom he has loved from afar. Though in the novel she eventually succumbs to her jealously and tries to make Marius hers in death in the musical it is changed so Eponine’s feelings remain selfless.
The Relationship
In the musical adaptation of Les Misérables, we are introduced to the pair towards the end of the first act. This is during the scene The Robbery in which Marius and Eponine meet together. Their conversation begins as an innocent discussion of books and students, but closes with a few flirtatious sentences. One could interpret this as just two friends enjoying themselves, or others may interpret it as something more than just that.
Marius: Eponine, what's up today? I haven't seen you much about.
Eponine: Here, you can always catch me in.
Marius: Mind the police don't catch you out.
Eponine: Here, whatcher doing with all them books? I could have been a student too! Don't judge a girl on how she looks, I know a lot of things I do!
Marius: Poor Eponine, the things you know you wouldn't find in books like these.
Eponine: I like the way you grow your hair.
Marius: I like the way you always tease.
Eponine: Little he knows little he sees.
In the musical adaptation the viewers do not know how these two met, but this event is explained in the novel. On his way home, Marius spots Eponine and her younger sister Azelma scurrying down the hallway apparently running form the police. During this event Eponine accidentally drops a package of letters. Marius finds the letters, and out of morbid curiosity decides to have a look at them. Each letter is written by the same person, and each of letter is pleading for money from the wealthy. Not knowing what to do with them, Marius holds on to these letters until Eponine returns for them.
Shortly after dropping the letters, Marius spots Eponine in the doorway. He does not recognized her at first, but Marius knows without a doubt that he has seen her somewhere before. Marius asks what she would like from him, and she responds that she has a letter for him. Inside the letter Eponine’s father, now under the name Jondrette, is demanding money for food. He closes the letter with a note that his daughter awaits Marius’ orders.
During this event Eponine is exploring Marius’ apartment and ventures off to a stack of books on Napoleon Bonaparte. She points out that her and her family both support Napoleon, and then decides to prove that she is literate by writing down on a parchment of paper the boobies are coming. She ends her conversation with him with the words, “Do you know, Monsieur Marius, that you are a very handsome fellow?”
Her words cause Marius to smile as well as blush, which is in my opinion one of the sweetest scenes in the novel. Eponine steps closer to him, and rests her hand on his shoulder. She explains though he may not notice her, that she does notice him. This statement shows that before this meeting Eponine has at least a childlike crush on Marius.
Marius informs Eponine that he has a package that belongs to her. She claps her hands together joyfully, and explains that she and her sister had searched high and low for the package. She also explains that she had to lie to her father that they had delivered the letters, for if they had told the truth both of them would be beaten. Out of sympathy, Marius gives Eponine some money. She thanks him for his charity, and bows to him before she leaves.
In doubt of his neighbors’ current financial situation, Marius spies on them through a hole he finds in the wall. What he sees is nothing but appalling; it turns out that Jondrette is willing to destroy his own property, and even injure his youngest daughter to gain more sympathy from those he is begging from. Marius continues to watch in horror while this scene takes place.
An old man and young lady enter the tenement, and instantly Marius recognizes the lady whom he currently loves from afar. Jondrette manipulates both Valjean and his adoptive daughter Cosette in to paying the rent for him. Valjean agrees to give him money later in the day which angers Jondrette, but he successfully suppresses this anger to receive the desired money from the two.
After Valjean and Cosette leave the tenement, the now love sick Marius follows them desperately. He finds a couch to follow their carriage, but ironically he had given the amount needed to Eponine earlier. He returns to his tenement in utter despair at the loss of any hope of finding Cosette. Though Marius is a kind gentleman, he succumbs to his anger and disappointment. Thus he blames his loss on Eponine, despite the fact that she could not have possibly known that Marius may need the money later.
Marius returns to his tenement in despair, and closes the door behind him only to have it caught by none other then Eponine. He asks who it is, only to turn around to see Eponine holding the door open. Marius asks her what she wants of him rudely, and she points out that he appears frustrated. He denies this, but Eponine knows exactly why Marius is upset. In attempts to cheer him up, Eponine agrees to find Cosette for him. There is a similar scene to this in the musical adaptation entitled Eponine's Errand where Marius asks Eponine to find Cosette and she hesitantly agrees to his request.
After Eponine leaves, Marius returns to his spy hole only to find that Jondrette recognized the old man as well as the young lady. Out of spite Jondrette plots with his wife to rob Valjean of his money. Marius is disgusted by the man’s cruelty, and rushes to a nearby police station to report the crime. There he explains to Inspector Javert of the crime that is about to take place. Javert gives him two pistols, one for self defense and the other to signal the police when Jondrette’s trap is sprung. Marius returns to the tenement, and watches through the spy hole as Valjean enters Jondrette’s trap.
During this time Jondrette announces that he is Thénardier, the man who had taken care of Cosette for her mother. Marius pauses at this statement due to the fact that he feels he owes it Thénardier for saving his father's life. In order to save both Valjean and Thénardier Marius tosses the note Eponine had written during their first conversation. Thénardier reads the leader and fleas in fear of being arrested, but to his dismay Javert and his police force are waiting outside for him. Thénardier along with his wife and daughters are arrested for their misdeed, and shortly after this Marius decides to room with his friend Courfeyrac to insure his safety.
After Eponine serves her short term in prison, she searches high and low for Marius, but do to his new living arrangements she cannot find him. To find his whereabouts she goes to a churchwarden by the name of Mabeuf, and she offers to water his garden for him. Once she is finished she asks Mabeuf where Marius is, and he mentions that he can frequently be found in the Lark’s Meadow. She goes to Marius who still seems upset with her, and once again to see him smile she reluctantly informs him that she has found Cosette’s address. Marius follows Eponine to Cosette’s residence and after Marius watches over Cosette for a few days he emerges. The two instantly confess that they both loved one another from afar as Eponine jealously watches on from a distance. In the musical adaptation this scene is depicted in the scenes In My Life and A Heart Full of Love.
While Marius and Cosette grow closer to each other Eponine stands at the gate in utter dismay. Her misfortune does not end there. It turns out that her father as well as his gang have escaped from prison, and have once again devised a plan to rob Valjean of his wealth. Despite her loss she stands between her father’s gang, and threatens to wake the entire neighborhood if he dares to harm anyone inside the home. Thénardier takes his daughters threats seriously and leaves the house with his gang. In the musical this scene is depicted in Attack in the Rue Plummet, the only difference is that Eponine does warn Marius and Cosette of her father and his gang.
Shortly after Eponine informs Valjean of the growing crime in the area, and she encourages him to leave for his personal safety. Marius learns that Cosette will soon be miles away, and in despair joins the students at the barricades in hopes that he will be killed. While Marius is fighting at the barricade he is almost shot, but an unknown person claps a hand over the gun before he is shot.
Tragically Eponine was the one who clapped her hand over the gun. To her dismay the bullet pierced through her hand and into her chest. With her last ounce of strength she crawls over to Marius to confess her romantic feelings for him. She admits that she had devised a plan for both of them to die together at the barricades, but even so she had gone against her plan to save his life. She tries to deny the fact that she truly wanted Marius to live by declaring how foolish it was of her to save him. Before she dies she gives Marius a letter from Cosette, and asks for a kiss after she dies. Marius fulfills her final wish, and places a kiss on her forehead.
In the musical adaptation the entire situation involving the barricades is completely different then in the book. Instead of devising a plan for the both of them to die, Eponine joins Marius at the barricades insisted that she feels safe so long as she is with him. Marius asks for her to assist him by sending a letter to Cosette, only for her to fulfill this request even though she secretly loves him. She is given another letter to deliver to Marius, but to her dismay she is shot on the way. With her last ounce of strength she returns to Marius with the letter in hand. It is then that they perform my favorite song in the show A Little Fall of Rain. Before she passes Eponine kisses him directly on the lips, leaving Marius in complete shock and despair.
A Fan's Interpretation
Many fans unfairly judge Eponine as a selfish creature whose soul purpose is to damage the relationship between Marius and Cosette. Though Eponine does act rashly as well as selfishly at times her character runs deeper than your ordinary selfish brat. If it weren’t for her devotion towards Marius I remind you that Cosette and Marius might not have found one another. Her intentions at the time were to see that Marius was happy, and this further proves my point that Eponine is more than a wretched creature out to destroy Cosette for successfully, as some fans of both sides ridiculously put it, stealing her man.
Throughout the book it is evident that at times Marius needs help struggling with his inner emotions, and what better to help him with his emotional problems than an understand woman willing to sacrifice anything just to see the one dearest to her smile. I also note that Eponine is very capable of controlling her emotions, and only lost control before she died. At the time though she was completely alone without her family or a friend, and it is understandable why she so easily lost control.
Though Eponine hid her feelings towards Marius she wasn’t afraid to defy her cruel father to protect him which I find very noble as well as touching. Cosette, however, was open to Marius about her feelings towards him, but was afraid to admit to an understanding fatherly figure that she was in love with Marius. This is one of the major differences between the two women competing for Marius’ love, and one of the leading factors in why I favor Marius with Eponine over Cosette.
One of the most irritating statements in the fandom is that Eponine doesn’t even deserve Marius’ friendship for trying to condemn him to death. This bothers me, because it is as if novel fans refuse to acknowledge that Eponine is far from evil as well as the fact that Cosette is far from perfect. I’d like to bring up that Cosette did tap into Marius' emotions by agreeing to leave to England with Valjean. This had caused Marius to wish for his own death which hurt him far more emotionally than Eponine’s attempt to send him to his death.
Also I’d like to state that though I favor Eponine I still respect Cosette for her own strength which is to refuse to succumb to resentful feelings even if she was harshly abused throughout her childhood. Though she is sheltered she takes pride in the charity she offers to those less fortunate than herself, because at one time she had been one of the less fortunate. These traits are very admirable, but not enough to sell me to Marius/Cosette over Marius/Eponine. My reasons being that Marius had rarely seen these traits in her when he fell in love with her. Marius had fallen in love with her image rather than her personality. However, I also like to mention that I have nothing against others who support these two together. This is just my own interpretation of the love triangle that causes such controversy in the fandom. After all I am involved in a fandom that focuses a lot on personal freedom, and though others do not always return the favor I’m always sure to accept others for their differences.
The Fandom
Livejournal Communties
A Little Fall of Rain - A community I started to bring Marius/Eponine supporters together.
Eponine Thenardier Fans - The members at this community are very civil and accepting. We’ve had quite a few interesting discussions about Eponine and Les Misérables in general.
Les Miserables Community - This is a general Les Misérables community where you may be able to find snippets of Marius/Eponine every now and then.
Fanfiction
Lamentably a lot of the elitists in the fandom try to make it their job to put down Marius/Eponine supporters. Due to this quality fanfiction involving the two is difficult to find, and when you do find one it comes along with flames in which certain individuals belittle the author just for writing the pairing. It’s really a shame as well since so many writers have so much potential, but are unable to express their love for the pair because others find it amusing to suppress them.
The Les Miserables Fan Fiction Index - There are some Marius/Eponine centric fanfiction on this site. A lot of them are overkill on Eponine's death scene, but if you dig deep you might find something worthwhile.
Special Thanks and Resources
Les Miserables Illustrations - Big thanks to this helpful site for the beautiful illustrations used in this manifesto.
The Literature Network - This site helped me access the original text of the novel in an organized manner. Huge thanks to this wonderful site.
Persuassive Essay Description - I give major thanks to this helpful resource for helping me organize my data as well giving tips on how to express my feelings towards Marius/Eponine.
End
Author: eponine89
Email: kiru_zutto@lycos.com
Fandom: Les Misérables
Pairing: Marius Pontmercy x Eponine Thénardier
Spoilers: The entire novel and musical adaptation.
Notes: Wrote without a beta-reader, but I revised and corrected anything I could find.
Introduction
Les Misérables, a novel by the amazing writer Victor Hugo, focuses on a man by the name of Jean Valjean and his struggle to fit into society after being released after seventeen years for stealing a loaf of bread. Many of the characters in this novel have one time or another faced the injustices in 19th century France. Among these miserable characters are a spoiled child turned pauper by the name of Eponine Thénardier and Marius Pontmercy who was estranged from his family due to conflicting political views.
Marius Pontmercy
The handsome fellow on the left is a gentleman named Marius Pontmercy, the son of Georges Pontmercy who served as a colonel in Napoleon’s army. Under the pressure of his father-in-law Gillenormand, Pontmercy eventually agrees that Marius be raised by his grandfather to prevent his son from being disinherited. Throughout his childhood Marius is told that his biological father abandoned him, and holds no affection whatsoever towards his father. Shortly after Marius turns eighteen he is informed that his father is ill, and despite the hatred Gillenormand holds towards Pontmercy he orders Marius to visit his father before he dies.
Tragically Pontmercy passes away minutes before Marius is able to speak with him, and leaves a final letter asking Marius to find a man named Thénardier who had saved his life at the battle of Waterloo. He instructs his son to assist Thénardier in anyway possible if they happen to cross paths in the future. It turns out that Marius’ grandfather had lied to him, and truth be told Pontmercy cared deeply for his son. A church warden, Mabeuf, tells him of times when his father would go watch him at mass around every two to three months. Marius struggles to understand his father’s legacy and reads in multiple history books of the ways his father assisted Napoleon. He comes to admire his father, and eventually adopts Pontmercy’s politics. This eventually leads Marius to be exiled from his home, and after he leaves Marius refuses any money sent from his family.
While in Paris Marius comes across a group of law students like himself at the Café Musain and befriends, Courfeyrac, one of the students at the café. Though Marius passes his law exams with great scores he still remains in poverty, and eventually learns German and English to earn money translating. Marius is constantly struggling with his harsh living conditions, but refuses to borrow money from anyone. Little does he know next door to him is the Thénardiers that he had searched long and hard for. Among them is their eldest daughter whom I will be speaking of next.
Eponine Thénardier
On the right is Eponine Thénardier the daughter of two greedy parents M. Thénardier and Mme. Thénardier. As a child Eponine was quite the beauty as well as a pampered brat with no respect for Cosette, a child currently living with her family while Fantine paid the parents to take great care of her child. Despite the fact that Fantine had paid their fees even if it meant sacrificing her own beauty the Thénardiers were anything but caring towards poor Cosette. When Fantine would send money they’d selfishly use it for themselves and when she’d send gifts to her child Mme. Thénardier would give them to Eponine instead. The Thénardiers passed their cruel habits down to their daughters who came to resent Cosette. After Fantine’s death and many other hardships Valjean makes his way to fetch Cosette, and pays a huge fee to the Thénardier for housing her before he leaves with the girl.
When we meet Eponine once again she isn’t the beauty she used to be instead she is an unclean pauper with only a streak of beauty remaining. Her greedy father currently works in a street gang while she and her younger sister Azelma keep look out for the gang. Eponine is a very useful asset to her father, and he uses her skills in direction to find addresses of wealthy people to panhandle off of. Due to this most of Eponine’s life out doors consists of begging from the wealthy, and to a smaller extend with Marius Pontmercy the man she harbors secret romantic feelings for.
One of the more interesting things about Eponine’s character is that she can be selfish when it comes to material wealth, but is selfless when it comes to her romantic feelings. The musical elaborates on her hidden feelings for Marius as well as her wish to see that his happy while the book doesn’t touch the subject quite as much. Her most noble act is when she selflessly gives away any chance of her love to be requited by leading Marius to Cosette whom he has loved from afar. Though in the novel she eventually succumbs to her jealously and tries to make Marius hers in death in the musical it is changed so Eponine’s feelings remain selfless.
The Relationship
In the musical adaptation of Les Misérables, we are introduced to the pair towards the end of the first act. This is during the scene The Robbery in which Marius and Eponine meet together. Their conversation begins as an innocent discussion of books and students, but closes with a few flirtatious sentences. One could interpret this as just two friends enjoying themselves, or others may interpret it as something more than just that.
Marius: Eponine, what's up today? I haven't seen you much about.
Eponine: Here, you can always catch me in.
Marius: Mind the police don't catch you out.
Eponine: Here, whatcher doing with all them books? I could have been a student too! Don't judge a girl on how she looks, I know a lot of things I do!
Marius: Poor Eponine, the things you know you wouldn't find in books like these.
Eponine: I like the way you grow your hair.
Marius: I like the way you always tease.
Eponine: Little he knows little he sees.
In the musical adaptation the viewers do not know how these two met, but this event is explained in the novel. On his way home, Marius spots Eponine and her younger sister Azelma scurrying down the hallway apparently running form the police. During this event Eponine accidentally drops a package of letters. Marius finds the letters, and out of morbid curiosity decides to have a look at them. Each letter is written by the same person, and each of letter is pleading for money from the wealthy. Not knowing what to do with them, Marius holds on to these letters until Eponine returns for them.
Shortly after dropping the letters, Marius spots Eponine in the doorway. He does not recognized her at first, but Marius knows without a doubt that he has seen her somewhere before. Marius asks what she would like from him, and she responds that she has a letter for him. Inside the letter Eponine’s father, now under the name Jondrette, is demanding money for food. He closes the letter with a note that his daughter awaits Marius’ orders.
During this event Eponine is exploring Marius’ apartment and ventures off to a stack of books on Napoleon Bonaparte. She points out that her and her family both support Napoleon, and then decides to prove that she is literate by writing down on a parchment of paper the boobies are coming. She ends her conversation with him with the words, “Do you know, Monsieur Marius, that you are a very handsome fellow?”
Her words cause Marius to smile as well as blush, which is in my opinion one of the sweetest scenes in the novel. Eponine steps closer to him, and rests her hand on his shoulder. She explains though he may not notice her, that she does notice him. This statement shows that before this meeting Eponine has at least a childlike crush on Marius.
Marius informs Eponine that he has a package that belongs to her. She claps her hands together joyfully, and explains that she and her sister had searched high and low for the package. She also explains that she had to lie to her father that they had delivered the letters, for if they had told the truth both of them would be beaten. Out of sympathy, Marius gives Eponine some money. She thanks him for his charity, and bows to him before she leaves.
In doubt of his neighbors’ current financial situation, Marius spies on them through a hole he finds in the wall. What he sees is nothing but appalling; it turns out that Jondrette is willing to destroy his own property, and even injure his youngest daughter to gain more sympathy from those he is begging from. Marius continues to watch in horror while this scene takes place.
An old man and young lady enter the tenement, and instantly Marius recognizes the lady whom he currently loves from afar. Jondrette manipulates both Valjean and his adoptive daughter Cosette in to paying the rent for him. Valjean agrees to give him money later in the day which angers Jondrette, but he successfully suppresses this anger to receive the desired money from the two.
After Valjean and Cosette leave the tenement, the now love sick Marius follows them desperately. He finds a couch to follow their carriage, but ironically he had given the amount needed to Eponine earlier. He returns to his tenement in utter despair at the loss of any hope of finding Cosette. Though Marius is a kind gentleman, he succumbs to his anger and disappointment. Thus he blames his loss on Eponine, despite the fact that she could not have possibly known that Marius may need the money later.
Marius returns to his tenement in despair, and closes the door behind him only to have it caught by none other then Eponine. He asks who it is, only to turn around to see Eponine holding the door open. Marius asks her what she wants of him rudely, and she points out that he appears frustrated. He denies this, but Eponine knows exactly why Marius is upset. In attempts to cheer him up, Eponine agrees to find Cosette for him. There is a similar scene to this in the musical adaptation entitled Eponine's Errand where Marius asks Eponine to find Cosette and she hesitantly agrees to his request.
After Eponine leaves, Marius returns to his spy hole only to find that Jondrette recognized the old man as well as the young lady. Out of spite Jondrette plots with his wife to rob Valjean of his money. Marius is disgusted by the man’s cruelty, and rushes to a nearby police station to report the crime. There he explains to Inspector Javert of the crime that is about to take place. Javert gives him two pistols, one for self defense and the other to signal the police when Jondrette’s trap is sprung. Marius returns to the tenement, and watches through the spy hole as Valjean enters Jondrette’s trap.
During this time Jondrette announces that he is Thénardier, the man who had taken care of Cosette for her mother. Marius pauses at this statement due to the fact that he feels he owes it Thénardier for saving his father's life. In order to save both Valjean and Thénardier Marius tosses the note Eponine had written during their first conversation. Thénardier reads the leader and fleas in fear of being arrested, but to his dismay Javert and his police force are waiting outside for him. Thénardier along with his wife and daughters are arrested for their misdeed, and shortly after this Marius decides to room with his friend Courfeyrac to insure his safety.
After Eponine serves her short term in prison, she searches high and low for Marius, but do to his new living arrangements she cannot find him. To find his whereabouts she goes to a churchwarden by the name of Mabeuf, and she offers to water his garden for him. Once she is finished she asks Mabeuf where Marius is, and he mentions that he can frequently be found in the Lark’s Meadow. She goes to Marius who still seems upset with her, and once again to see him smile she reluctantly informs him that she has found Cosette’s address. Marius follows Eponine to Cosette’s residence and after Marius watches over Cosette for a few days he emerges. The two instantly confess that they both loved one another from afar as Eponine jealously watches on from a distance. In the musical adaptation this scene is depicted in the scenes In My Life and A Heart Full of Love.
While Marius and Cosette grow closer to each other Eponine stands at the gate in utter dismay. Her misfortune does not end there. It turns out that her father as well as his gang have escaped from prison, and have once again devised a plan to rob Valjean of his wealth. Despite her loss she stands between her father’s gang, and threatens to wake the entire neighborhood if he dares to harm anyone inside the home. Thénardier takes his daughters threats seriously and leaves the house with his gang. In the musical this scene is depicted in Attack in the Rue Plummet, the only difference is that Eponine does warn Marius and Cosette of her father and his gang.
Shortly after Eponine informs Valjean of the growing crime in the area, and she encourages him to leave for his personal safety. Marius learns that Cosette will soon be miles away, and in despair joins the students at the barricades in hopes that he will be killed. While Marius is fighting at the barricade he is almost shot, but an unknown person claps a hand over the gun before he is shot.
Tragically Eponine was the one who clapped her hand over the gun. To her dismay the bullet pierced through her hand and into her chest. With her last ounce of strength she crawls over to Marius to confess her romantic feelings for him. She admits that she had devised a plan for both of them to die together at the barricades, but even so she had gone against her plan to save his life. She tries to deny the fact that she truly wanted Marius to live by declaring how foolish it was of her to save him. Before she dies she gives Marius a letter from Cosette, and asks for a kiss after she dies. Marius fulfills her final wish, and places a kiss on her forehead.
In the musical adaptation the entire situation involving the barricades is completely different then in the book. Instead of devising a plan for the both of them to die, Eponine joins Marius at the barricades insisted that she feels safe so long as she is with him. Marius asks for her to assist him by sending a letter to Cosette, only for her to fulfill this request even though she secretly loves him. She is given another letter to deliver to Marius, but to her dismay she is shot on the way. With her last ounce of strength she returns to Marius with the letter in hand. It is then that they perform my favorite song in the show A Little Fall of Rain. Before she passes Eponine kisses him directly on the lips, leaving Marius in complete shock and despair.
A Fan's Interpretation
Many fans unfairly judge Eponine as a selfish creature whose soul purpose is to damage the relationship between Marius and Cosette. Though Eponine does act rashly as well as selfishly at times her character runs deeper than your ordinary selfish brat. If it weren’t for her devotion towards Marius I remind you that Cosette and Marius might not have found one another. Her intentions at the time were to see that Marius was happy, and this further proves my point that Eponine is more than a wretched creature out to destroy Cosette for successfully, as some fans of both sides ridiculously put it, stealing her man.
Throughout the book it is evident that at times Marius needs help struggling with his inner emotions, and what better to help him with his emotional problems than an understand woman willing to sacrifice anything just to see the one dearest to her smile. I also note that Eponine is very capable of controlling her emotions, and only lost control before she died. At the time though she was completely alone without her family or a friend, and it is understandable why she so easily lost control.
Though Eponine hid her feelings towards Marius she wasn’t afraid to defy her cruel father to protect him which I find very noble as well as touching. Cosette, however, was open to Marius about her feelings towards him, but was afraid to admit to an understanding fatherly figure that she was in love with Marius. This is one of the major differences between the two women competing for Marius’ love, and one of the leading factors in why I favor Marius with Eponine over Cosette.
One of the most irritating statements in the fandom is that Eponine doesn’t even deserve Marius’ friendship for trying to condemn him to death. This bothers me, because it is as if novel fans refuse to acknowledge that Eponine is far from evil as well as the fact that Cosette is far from perfect. I’d like to bring up that Cosette did tap into Marius' emotions by agreeing to leave to England with Valjean. This had caused Marius to wish for his own death which hurt him far more emotionally than Eponine’s attempt to send him to his death.
Also I’d like to state that though I favor Eponine I still respect Cosette for her own strength which is to refuse to succumb to resentful feelings even if she was harshly abused throughout her childhood. Though she is sheltered she takes pride in the charity she offers to those less fortunate than herself, because at one time she had been one of the less fortunate. These traits are very admirable, but not enough to sell me to Marius/Cosette over Marius/Eponine. My reasons being that Marius had rarely seen these traits in her when he fell in love with her. Marius had fallen in love with her image rather than her personality. However, I also like to mention that I have nothing against others who support these two together. This is just my own interpretation of the love triangle that causes such controversy in the fandom. After all I am involved in a fandom that focuses a lot on personal freedom, and though others do not always return the favor I’m always sure to accept others for their differences.
The Fandom
Livejournal Communties
A Little Fall of Rain - A community I started to bring Marius/Eponine supporters together.
Eponine Thenardier Fans - The members at this community are very civil and accepting. We’ve had quite a few interesting discussions about Eponine and Les Misérables in general.
Les Miserables Community - This is a general Les Misérables community where you may be able to find snippets of Marius/Eponine every now and then.
Fanfiction
Lamentably a lot of the elitists in the fandom try to make it their job to put down Marius/Eponine supporters. Due to this quality fanfiction involving the two is difficult to find, and when you do find one it comes along with flames in which certain individuals belittle the author just for writing the pairing. It’s really a shame as well since so many writers have so much potential, but are unable to express their love for the pair because others find it amusing to suppress them.
The Les Miserables Fan Fiction Index - There are some Marius/Eponine centric fanfiction on this site. A lot of them are overkill on Eponine's death scene, but if you dig deep you might find something worthwhile.
Special Thanks and Resources
Les Miserables Illustrations - Big thanks to this helpful site for the beautiful illustrations used in this manifesto.
The Literature Network - This site helped me access the original text of the novel in an organized manner. Huge thanks to this wonderful site.
Persuassive Essay Description - I give major thanks to this helpful resource for helping me organize my data as well giving tips on how to express my feelings towards Marius/Eponine.
End