Introduction

Born in Besançon on February 26, 1802, Victor Hugo, poet, dramatist, essayist, novelist, critic, politician, draftsman and painter, was perhaps the greatest exponent of French literature and universal Romanticism of the nineteenth century.

He started out writing poetry and drama and at the age of 14 won an award from the Académie Française. His career took off from here. "I want to be Chateaubriand or nothing", he said. Having the good fortune of living to age of 83, he was witness to and took an active part in the social and political changes of the time, immortalizing the plight of the working class in such universally popular novels such as "Hernani", "Notre Dame de Paris" and "Les Misérables", and taking him to the exile for 19 years as consequence of his intense political life.

Gentleman of Honour's Legion, Pair of France, Member of the French Academy, of the National Assembly, of the Senate and Deputy are some of the charges that he occupied and that revealed his committed attitude and his literary talent.

Victor Hugo was one of the few people whose enormous talent was acclaimed during his lifetime. His funeral on May 22, 1885 drew over two million people.