Javert, the obsessed police inspector, is perhaps one of the most wronged characters in literature. He appears very fierce and menacing, and has intimate knowledge of all of Paris, and pursues criminals with his attention. He only believes in the law. Many view him as evil, but he is only misguided. He has a strong sense of righteousness like Valjean, but he does not know of kindness. In his view of the world, the law is to be rigidly obeyed, and there are no in between, only wrong and right. When we first see him, his keen sense of perception is reflected by his immediate connection of the lifting of the cart to Jean Valjean. We can see his vague morality when he demands for Valjean to fire him because he thinks he falsely accused him. From this action, we can see that he has very high standards for himself, and wants to be just. We cannot completely blame him for arresting Fantine. He did not know of the circumstances; all he knew was that a prostitute attacked a free man. Through the rest of the book, he unyieldingly pursues Valjean. The events at the barricades echo the beginning of the book; Javert is caught and expects to be punished but is redeemed. However, unlike Valjean, his foil, he is caught in a moral dilemma, and his sparing Valjean adds to it. He starts to wonder if there is something more than the law. The realization that his life was built on false assumptions and that he may not be really enforcing what is right drives him to suicide.
