Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes ProCon History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture Money Videos
Les Châtiments
Table of Contents
Introduction References & Edit History Related Topics
Quizzes
Illustration of "The Lamb" from "Songs of Innocence" by William Blake, 1879. poem; poetry
A Study of Poetry
4:043 Dickinson, Emily: A Life of Letters, This is my letter to the world/That never wrote to me; I'll tell you how the Sun Rose/A Ribbon at a time; Hope is the thing with feathers/That perches in the soul
Famous Poets and Poetic Form
Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) only confirmed photograph of Emily Dickinson. 1978 scan of a Daguerreotype. ca. 1847; in the Amherst College Archives. American poet. See Notes:
Poetry: First Lines
Related Questions
Read Next
poem. A poet in a Heian period kimono writes Japanese poetry during the Kamo Kyokusui No En Ancient Festival at Jonan-gu shrine on April 29, 2013 in Kyoto, Japan. Festival of Kyokusui-no Utage orignated in 1,182, party Heian era (794-1192).
World Poetry Day
Close up of books. Stack of books, pile of books, literature, reading. Homepage 2010, arts and entertainment, history and society
12 Novels Considered the “Greatest Book Ever Written”
Discover
Title: Senate Square, St. Petersburg, December 14, 1825: repression of the troop mutiny - watercolor by Carl Ivanovitch Kollman, 1825 depicts Decembrist uprising clashing with cavalry, with spectators watching. (new style December 26, 1825) Europe. Saint
8 of the Largest Empires in History
Baseball laying in the grass. Homepage blog 2010, arts and entertainment, history and society, sports and games athletics
10 Greatest Baseball Players of All Time
Thanksgiving Celebration Traditional Dinner Setting Food Concept
Why Is Thanksgiving in the U.S. Celebrated on a Thursday?
A human Inuit skull in a stone chambered cairn in Ilulissat in Greenland. These ancient graves are pre christian and are at least 2000
14 Tough Questions Answered
Santa Claus flying in his sleigh, christmas, reindeer
Was Santa Claus a Real Person?
Rural Irish landscape, Sligo, Ireland.
Why Is Ireland Two Countries?
Super Typhoon Noru over the western tropical Pacific Ocean as observed by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA Aqua satellite July 31 2017
What Is the Difference Between a Typhoon and a Super Typhoon?

Les Châtiments

poetry by Hugo
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Share
Share to social media
URL
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Les-Chatiments
Feedback
Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login).
Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

External Websites
Written and fact-checked by
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Article History
French:
“The Punishments”
See all related content

Les Châtiments, collection of poems by Victor Hugo, published in 1853 and expanded in 1870. The book is divided into seven sections containing more than 100 odes, popular songs, narrative poems, and anthems in which Hugo denounces injustice and tyranny and rails against Louis-Napoleon (Napoleon III) and the abuses of the Second Empire. The work was composed in Brussels and Jersey during Hugo’s first year of voluntary exile from France. Les Châtiments is suffused with his horror and indignation but ends with his commitment to progress and peace and his belief in freedom and brotherhood.

Six of the work’s seven sections are ironically titled with such slogans of the Empire as “Society Is Saved,” “The Family Is Restored,” and “Stability Is Assured.” The non-ironic title of the final section is “The Saviors Will Save Themselves.” Among events rendered in vivid poetic detail are those leading up to the emperor’s coup d’état in 1851 and the subsequent deception and death of innocent people.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Kathleen Kuiper.