About the Poem
The author of Les Misérables defended the plight of the people. They inspired Hugo with deep and constant pity, because of their suffering. But when he saw these same people reach a certain level of awareness, his feelings alternated between fear and hope. This ambivalence can be seen in the poem “To the People.” In it, Hugo compared two enormous powers: the people, with whom he was familiar, and the ocean, with whom he spoke daily in the solitude of exile.
| French – Au Peuple |
| Il te ressemble ; il est terrible et pacifique. |
| Il est sous l’infini le niveau magnifique ; |
| Il a le mouvement, il a l’immensité. |
| Apaisé d’un rayon et d’un souffle agité, |
| Tantôt c’est l’harmonie et tantôt le cri rauque. |
| Les monstres sont à l’aise en sa profondeur glauque ; |
| La trombe y germe ; il a des gouffres inconnus |
| D’où ceux qui l’ont bravé ne sont pas revenus ; |
| Sur son énormité le colosse chavire ; |
| Comme toi le despote, il brise le navire ; |
| Le fanal est sur lui comme l’esprit sur toi ; |
| Il foudroie, il caresse, et Dieu seul sait pourquoi ; |
| Sa vague, où l’on entend comme des chocs d’armures, |
| Emplit la sombre nuit de monstrueux murmures, |
| Et l’on sent que ce flot, comme toi, gouffre humain, |
| Ayant rugi ce soir, dévorera demain. |
| Son onde est une lame aussi bien que le glaive ; |
| Il chante un hymne immense à Vénus qui se lève ; |
| Sa rondeur formidable, azur universel, |
| Accepte en son miroir tous les astres du ciel ; |
| Il a la force rude et la grâce superbe ; |
| Il déracine un roc, il épargne un brin d’herbe ; |
| Il jette comme toi l’écume aux fiers sommets, |
| Ô Peuple ; seulement, lui, ne trompe jamais |
| Quand, l’œil fixe, et debout sur sa grève sacrée, |
| Et pensif, on attend l’heure de sa marée. |
| English – To the People |
| It reminds me of you: terrible and peaceful. |
| Its magnificent depth reaches beneath infinity; |
| It has movement, it is immense. |
| Soothed with a ray and a restless breath, |
| Sometimes there’s harmony and other times, the hoarse cry. |
| Monsters are comfortable in its murky depths. |
| The waterspout germinates there; it has unknown chasms |
| From where those who were brave did not return. |
| On its enormity the colossus capsizes; |
| Like you, the despot, it obliterates the ship. |
| The beacon is on it just as the spirit is on you; |
| It strikes down, it caresses, and only God knows why; |
| Its wave, which we hear like shocks of armor, |
| Fills the night with monstrous whispers, |
| And we feel that this wave, like you, human abyss, |
| Having roared tonight, will devour tomorrow. |
| Its wave is a blade as well as the sword; |
| It sings an immense song to Venus rising; |
| Its formidable roundness, universal azure, |
| Accepts in its mirror all the stars of the sky; |
| It has rugged strength and superb grace; |
| It uproots a rock; it spares a blade of grass; |
| Like you it throws the foam to the proud summits, |
| Oh, people; it only ever tricks us |
| When, staring, and standing on its sacred shore |
| And, pensive, we wait for the hour of its tide. |
Listen to the Poem in French
Read by Barbara Viner
Author Information
Victor Hugo, a literary giant and politician, was born on February 26, 1802 in Besançon, France. A prolific writer in many genres, Hugo is best known for his poetry collections and novels such as Les Misérables and The Hunchback of Notre-Dame. He was an active member of the Académie Française as well as multiple legislative assemblies and, in both his writing and political engagements, he spoke out against the death penalty and poverty and in favor of freedom of the press, education, and universal suffrage. Hugo passed away on May 22, 1885 and is interred in the Panthéon in Paris. He continues to be a French national hero as his legacy lives on through his literature and his political views of liberty, equality, and fraternity.
Historical Information
Victor Hugo lived through many governmental and societal changes in France that underscore both the tyranny of an autocratic regime as well as the violence of mob rule. He fought against France’s authoritarian leaders and the reckless rioting of the French masses. An advocate for liberal ideals, Hugo believed that order and peace were the methods with which the people should fight for freedom and justice. He fluctuates between feeling inspired by the people’s power and fearful of their brutality. These ambivalent feelings towards the people are expressed in “Au Peuple” through a comparison between the people and the ocean.
First published in 1853, “Au Peuple” is a part of Les Châtiments, Hugo’s collection of poems attacking Napoleon III. Les Châtiments was banned in France because of its criticisms of the government, but, at the time, Hugo had fled his homeland because Napoleon III had strayed from democratic leadership. In exile, Hugo wrote many of his most prominent works, including Les Châtiments, and, to emphasize his stance against authoritarianism and the restrictions of the press and the people in France, he even chose to stay in exile after being offered amnesty in 1859. It was not until 1870, when the Republic was restored in France, that Hugo moved back to Paris and Les Châtiments was unbanned. “Au Peuple” is an important addition to the collection because it adds complexity to the fight for the people. Though Les Châtiments strongly supports the working class and challenges the injustices of the government, “Au Peuple” balances Hugo’s belief in popular freedom with the manner in which he believes the people should attain it.
Note: Les Châtiments is commonly translated as “The Punishments” although other sources translate this title as “The Chastisements”, which seems to more accurately reflect the intent of the author to criticize and attack Napoleon III.
Sources
Portrait of Victor Hugo: “Victor Hugo” Library of Congress, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., 1870, https://www.loc.gov/resource/cph.3c05605/?st=image. Accessed 21 July 2022.