Getting Un-Convent-ionalHugo separates exposition & action, spending pages on character & setting before telling you what they did. Ex: The convent where Valjean & Cosette shelter.
Buried Alive!Valjean must leave the grounds without being seen. Fauchelevent must get an empty coffin out without suspicion. How can they possibly solve these problems?
ConventionalityVictor Hugo on social practices once commonplace, but now seen as harmful: Let the past die. Kill it if you have to.