After nineteen years in the galleys, Jean Valjean has begun anew—he has acquired a new identity. Monsieur Madeleine is now a respected dignitary. As an industrialist and the mayor of Montreuil-sur-Mer, he dedicates himself to the good of the community and is highly regarded for his generosity, courage and philanthropy. One day, however, his past catches up with him when police inspector Javert arrives to announce the arrest and imminent trial of a certain Champmathieu, a simpleton who is accused of having stolen some apples and who is mistakenly identified as Jean Valjean, the ex-convict. For Jean Valjean’s innocent lookalike the consequences are dire because the theft is requalified as a repeat offense. The misdemeanor is then treated as a crime and is no longer an affair for the misdemeanor division, but becomes an affair for a Criminal Court. Will Madeleine-Valjean allow a poor innocent man to pay for crimes he has not committed? It would be quite easy: he could simply let things run their course. Or will he on the contrary reveal his true identity to clear the man, exposing himself to a reexamination of his entire past and submit himself to trial?

Philosophers, writers, poets—they have probed the depth of the human heart and opened perspectives on the meaning of life, encompassing both personal and universal dimensions. These “classics” take on particular importance when read again today from a spiritual perspective. For those seeking to nurture their practice of self-perfection, their works abound in living examples, astute observations of psychological or ethical questions, as well as points of wisdom or analogies to ponder.