Wednesday, April 15, 2009

The Hunchback of Notre Dame- The Novel- Setting




Quasimodo's only friends...the gargoyles of the Cathedral !

Bonjour my students!!  I saw an amazing site today...The setting of "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" by Victor Hugo.

Hugo so loved this The Cathedral of Notre Dame that he lovingly described it in exquisite detail in his novel.  In fact, he always insited that the Cathedral was the protagonist of his novel.  The human protagonist is Quasimodo, a hunchbacked ringer of the Cathedral bells.

Ding! Dong! Ding! Dong!  Click "play" and you will hear the tolling of Quasimodo's bells.

This setting symbolizes one of the conflicts in the story.  The beauty and purity of the church contrasted with the hideous gargoyles.  In this way, Quasimodo was torn between his loyalty to the church and his love for the gypsy girl, Esmeralda.  

If you are a writer who loves to picture details for the reader- who loves to plan out a plot that includes Exposition, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action and Resolution...then novel writing is for you!!


8 comments:

  1. That is so cool that you are in Paris!! I miss you a lot and can't wait to talk to you again but, I hope you have a great time with your daughter.. Are you staying in a hotel? Oh, I better go dinners ready.. ttyl! Bye,

    Victoria A. Bennett

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  2. I hope you have a great time Ms. Grubbs!

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  3. Ms. Grubbs,Paris looks so beautiful! I hope you have a wonderful time with your daughter. You work so hard, and you deserve this.

    Love,
    Hannah :)

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  4. The Cathedral is so beautiful. I can't believe that we got to hear the bells ringing through Paris. I wish I were in Paris, too.

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  5. From the mother of Girl from YL... Desde mi convento a la catedral. I read this novel in Spanish when I was in high school. It was called, "El Jorobado De La Catedral De Nuestra Senora De Paris." I loved it. It's nice to see the cathedral on your blog.

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  6. Hi Mrs. Grubbs,

    Buy chocolate! Lots of Chocolate!!!

    Bring it home to us! YUM!

    Have fun! We are taking good care of your classroom!

    Mrs.Giardino-Zanegood

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  7. You are a credit to all francophiles. Love the photos! Especially the first.

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  8. Rossy! I love the pictures! The cathedral is absolutely gorgeous and incredible! I'd love to go there some day!

    You are SO lucky to be there! You will definitely have to give me a call when you come back and tell me all about it, OK?

    Love,
    Paige

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