Literature / Writers Datebook: February 26
Brief biography and works of French writer Victor Hugo, novelist, dramatist & poet, creator of 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame' and 'Les Miserables.'
Victor Hugo was the most important of the French Romantic School of writers. He is most popular today as the author of The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1831) and Les Miserables (1862.)
Early Life
Victor Hugo, (1802-1885), French novelist, dramatist and poet, was born on February 26 in Besancon, France, the third son of a soldier in the army of the great French leader Napoleon. He was raised and educated by his mother. At the age of 14, he showed talent as a poet.
Influence and Early Works
Inspired by the example of the statesman and author Francois Rene Chateaubriand, he published poetry, plays and novels. His works showed a strong sense of social responsibility. The production of his play Hernani, a highly romantic and unconventional poetic drama, caused ripples between supporters and opponents of the new socially challenging drama at that time. Due to the controversy, Hugo established himself as leader of the French literary romanticism. His novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame, published when he was 29, made him famous.