Character traits of Jean Valjean and Bishop Beinvenu from Les Miserables
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Bishop Charles-François-Bienvenu Myriel, referred to as Bishop Myriel or Monseigneur Bienvenu, is a fictional character in Victor Hugo's Les Misérables.[1] Myriel is the Bishop of Digne in southeastern France.
Bishop Myriel
Les Miserables character
Mgr Bienvenu par Gustave Brion.jpg
Bishop Myriel, depicted by Gustave Brion, 1862.
Created by
Victor Hugo
Portrayed by
Henry Krauss
Cedric Hardwicke
Edmund Gwenn
Fernand Ledoux
Claude Dauphin
Peter Vaughan
Colm Wilkinson
Derek Jacobi
Information
Full name
Charles-François-Bienvenu Myriel
Nickname
Monseigneur Bienvenu
Gender
Male
Title
Bishop
Occupation
Priest (Bishop)
Family
Unnamed father (deceased)
Unnamed General (brother)
Unnamed Prefect (brother)
Baptistine Myriel (sister)
Spouse
Unnamed wife (deceased)
Religion
Roman Catholic
Nationality
French
Born
1739
Death
1821 (age 82)
The actual Bishop of Digne during the time period in which Myriel's appearance in the novel is set was Bienvenu de Miollis (1753–1843). He served as Hugo's model for Myriel.[2] In both the novel as well as the film and musical adaptions of it, the Bishop is a heroic figure who personifies compassion and mercy.
As Hugo set to work on the novel in 1848 after a long interruption, his anti-clerical son Charles objected to presenting Myriel as "a prototype of perfection and intelligence", suggesting instead someone from "a liberal, modern profession, like a doctor". The novelist replied:[3]
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