The Hunchback of Notre-Dame

Some days later, Jehan wakes and realizes that he is broke. He seeks out his brother, hoping that Frollo will give him some money (and steeling himself for a lecture about morals). At Notre-Dame, Frollo is working in his private office. Jehan climbs the stairs and peeks through the gap in the door. He sees his brother in a Faustian setting, sitting pensively and silently in his chair. Alchemy instruments surround him, and the walls are covered in obscure inscriptions. Frollo does not notice his brother. Instead, he reads to himself from a manuscript, muttering about fire and creation, about light and gold, and about the purity of the name Esmeralda. He then sits back in the chair, frustrated that he cannot turn his mind away from this thought. His experiments always end in failure, he moans, as he is taunted by a single matter that stands between himself and his work. He carves a Greek word into the wall and then sinks into his chair with his head in his hands. Jehan, mesmerized by Frollo’s behavior, pretends to have just arrived, surprising Frollo with a knock at the door. Frollo is irritated to see Jehan rather than the person he was expecting: the court official, Jacques Charmolue. When Jehan explains the reason for his visit, Frollo immediately launches into the inevitable lecture. Bemoaning his brother’s lack of education, he challenges Jehan to read the Greek word carved into the wall. Jehan cannot. The word means fatality, Frollo reveals, followed by the word uncleanliness. Frollo interrogates his brother’s need for money and is horrified at Jehan’s admission that he plans to visit a sex worker. Jehan tries a range of insincere tactics to get money from his brother. When they hear a visitor outside the door, Frollo agrees to lend Jehan money if he agrees to hide under a table. Jacques Charmolue enters.

Charmolue greets Frollo. From beneath the table, Jehan recognizes the visitor, who admits to Frollo that his attempts at alchemy have failed. Jehan surmises that Charmolue is Frollo’s student. Frollo changes the subject, asking about a prisoner who has been accused of witchcraft. Charmolue admits that the man has refused to confess to anything. When Charmolue shows Frollo a parchment from the man’s house, he announces that the parchment is covered in Latin incantations. As the men talk about alchemy, Charmolue asks Frollo whether he should bring Esmeralda in for interrogation. Frollo, his face whitening, says that Charmolue should delay. Charmolue continues to talk, but Frollo is no longer listening, instead watching a fly caught in a spider’s web. He stops Charmolue from freeing the fly, advising him to “let fate do its work” (299). Frollo compares Esmeralda to the fly and himself to the spider. At the same time, however, he is also like the fly, as he has been caught in the web of fatality. He squeezes Charmolue’s arm painfully tight as he talks about his philosophical journey. Frollo and Charmolue prepare to leave the room together. When Charmolue hears Jehan chewing a piece of cheese, Frollo claims that the sound is simply his cat. Charmolue suggests, wryly, that this cat is Frollo’s familiar. They leave the room.

Jehan emerges from under the table and looks around his brother’s office. Taking money from Frollo’s wallet, he hurries out. In the square, he hears someone swear. He recognizes Phoebus and invites the guard for a drink, offering to pay with Frollo’s money. They head to a tavern. Frollo follows and watches them, listening to their loud conversation as they boast about their sexual activity. When Esmeralda’s name is mentioned, Phoebus whispers lecherously in Jehan’s ear. He is confident that she will meet him. Frollo is disgusted that they would speak this way about Esmeralda. He watches the men enter a tavern.

The Pomme d’Eve tavern has a reputation for debauchery and drunkenness. Frollo waits anxiously outside in a newly purchased cloak to hide his priestly attire. When the two men emerge, Jehan is very drunk. Phoebus, a more experienced drinker, announces that he must go to meet Esmeralda. When Jehan has no more money to lend him, Phoebus pushes him away. Pausing to study his brother for a moment, Frollo chases after Phoebus. The captain of the guard pauses to urinate on a statue depicting a famous Cardinal and, when he turns around, sees Frollo, who is staring at him with burning hatred. Not recognizing Frollo, Phoebus continues onward, dismissing Frollo as some kind of ghost. Frollo grabs him, demanding to know the name of the woman Phoebus plans to meet and then calling Phoebus a liar when he gives Esmeralda’s name. Phoebus draws his sword but then says that he will duel Frollo another time. When Phoebus realizes that he has no money, Frollo offers to pay for his room if Phoebus allows him to watch the meeting with Esmeralda. Phoebus accepts the deal, and in the room he tells Frollo to hide himself in a cupboard. Phoebus shuts the priest inside.

Cramped inside the cupboard, Frollo feels a terrible sense of mounting fatality. His head throbs, and his face burns. He watches the room through a crack in the cupboard door. Esmeralda enters, and Frollo faints. By the time he wakes, he can see Phoebus sitting beside her on a pallet. She is explaining to Phoebus that she has taken a vow of chastity, and she asks him not to hate her for it. Phoebus begins a rehearsed speech in which he declares his love for Esmeralda, pleasing her. In the cupboard, the furious Frollo grips a dagger tightly. Phoebus begins to undress Esmeralda. At first she is willing, but then she calls out that she wishes they were married before having sex. Phoebus dismisses the idea of marriage. Frollo is increasingly angry. When Phoebus removes Esmeralda’s dress, she is shocked. The amulet hangs atop her breasts and she tries to explain its purpose. When Phoebus taunts her, she relents, agreeing to forsake her vow and accept that she will never find her parents in exchange for being his mistress. Phoebus maneuvers Esmeralda onto the bed, and she lies down. Behind Phoebus, she sees Frollo’s face appear. He stabs Phoebus with his dagger, causing Esmeralda to faint. When she comes to, the injured Phoebus has been taken away. In his place is the landlady, accusing Esmeralda of the attack. Frollo has vanished.