Police inspector
40-542: King Rat may mean: Arts and entertainment [ edit ] King Rat (1962 novel) , a novel by James Clavell set in World War II King Rat (film) , released in 1965, based on the James Clavell novel King Rat (1998 novel) , an urban fantasy novel by China Miéville "King Rat" (song) , a 2 track vinyl promo by Modest Mouse King Rat,
80-554: A P.O.W. since 1942. Marlowe comes to the attention of the "King" - an American corporal who has become the most successful trader and black marketeer in Changi - when King sees him conversing in Malay . Marlowe's languages, intelligence, honesty, and personality cause King to befriend him and attempt to involve him in black market deals, which bring Marlowe to the attention of Robin Grey,
120-412: A British officer and Provost Marshal of the camp, who has developed a Javert -like obsession with King and hopes to arrest him for violating camp regulations. Grey is attempting to maintain military discipline among the prisoners and sees King as the antithesis of his beliefs. As the son of a working-class family, Grey follows the rules for their own sake, using his position as Provost Marshal to gain
160-465: A blind and profound faith everyone who had a function in the state, from the prime minister to the rural policeman." Reflective thought is "an uncommon thing for him, and singularly painful" because thought inevitably contains "a certain amount of internal rebellion." He is without vices, but upon occasion will take a pinch of snuff . His life is one "of privations, isolation, self-denial, and chastity—never any amusement". Javert has been described as
200-476: A law officer on the basis of "an irrepressible hatred for that bohemian race to which he belong[s]" and a personal foundation of "rectitude, order, and honesty." So devoted is he to this choice that, Hugo writes, "[h]e would have arrested his own father if he escaped from prison and turned in his own mother for breaking parole. And he would have done it with that sort of interior satisfaction that springs from virtue." Following his encounters with Jean Valjean during
240-480: A legalist: His "moral foundation... is built strictly on legalism"; he is "one of the most tragic legalists in Western literature" and "the consummate legalist". Born in a prison (his mother a fortune-teller and his father serving in the prison galleys ), Javert sees himself as excluded from a society that "irrevocably closes its doors on two classes of men, those who attack it and those who guard it." He becomes
280-531: A novel set in Hong Kong in the early 1960s, when Marlowe is a writer visiting Hong Kong to conduct research about the great British trading companies there. Grey, embittered by his failure to obtain a commission in the postwar British Army despite his suffering during the war, has become a radical socialist Member of UK Parliament and is also in Hong Kong on an official visit. Unknown to Marlowe, Grey has become
320-463: A policeman and denounces him. They find on him a little round card pasted between two pieces of glass, and bearing on one side the arms of France, engraved, and with this motto: Supervision and vigilance, and on the other this note: "JAVERT, inspector of police, aged fifty-two," and the signature of the Prefect of Police of that day, M. Gisquet. The revolutionaries imprison him. When Valjean appears at
360-488: A secret Communist and a Soviet agent who tries to thwart efforts to improve relations between China and the West. A film adaptation was released in 1965, the first of several of Clavell's novels to be so adapted. Javert Javert ( French pronunciation: [ʒavɛʁ] ), no first name given in the source novel, is a fictional character and a main antagonist of Victor Hugo 's 1862 novel Les Misérables . He
400-518: A species of rat See also [ edit ] Rat king (disambiguation) Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title King Rat . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=King_Rat&oldid=1185603597 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
440-680: A status otherwise unavailable to him in British society . Despite being an enlisted man and undistinguished in civilian life, King has become a major power in the closed society of the POW camp through his charisma and intelligence. Trading with Korean guards, local Malay villagers, and other prisoners for food, clothing, information, and what few luxuries are available, King keeps himself and his fellow American prisoners alive. Senior officers come to him for help in selling their valuables to buy food, and other officers are secretly on his payroll. Marlowe
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#1732780543834480-611: A traditional character and main antagonist in the pantomime Dick Whittington Other uses [ edit ] King Rat , the head of the Grand Order of Water Rats , a music hall society of Great Britain "King Rat", nickname of Billy Wright (loyalist) (1960–1997), Ulster loyalist paramilitary leader during the Troubles in Northern Ireland, and an autobiography he wrote detailing his activities Uromys rex ,
520-488: Is considered a bass-baritone or baritone role. He wears a standard costume designed to look like a mid-19th century French policeman. He was portrayed by Roger Allam in the Original London Production and Terrence Mann in the original Broadway cast of Les Misérables. Ethan Freeman was notable for highlighting Javert's inner pain and his more emotional connection to Valjean. Philip Quast played
560-464: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages King Rat (Clavell novel) King Rat is a 1962 novel by James Clavell and the author's literary debut. Set during World War II , the novel describes the struggle for survival of American, Australian, British, Dutch and New Zealander prisoners of war in a Japanese camp in Singapore. Clavell
600-620: Is honorable. I have failed in my duty; I ought to be punished; I must be turned out." He condemns himself at length—"if I were not severe towards myself, all the justice that I have done would become injustice"—and begs to be dismissed. Madeleine/Valjean travels to the court in Arras, discloses his identity, and saves Champmathieu. He returns to Montreuil-sur-Mer, where Javert arrests him the next morning at Fantine's hospital bedside. Valjean asks for three days to bring Fantine's daughter Cosette to her, but Javert denies his request. Valjean escapes from
640-521: Is initially put off by King's perspective and behaviour, which clash with the British upper class ideals he has been taught. He turns down a lucrative business partnership with King because "Marlowes aren't tradesmen. It just isn't done, old boy". Marlowe soon understands that King is not the thief and con artist that Grey would have him believe. Rather, King asks for the best of each man and rewards him accordingly, irrespective of class or position. Through
680-429: Is observed by a tall figure, which is revealed to be Javert. Valjean repeats that he is ready to surrender, but he asks for Javert's help in delivering the wounded boy to safety. They travel to Valjean's house, and Javert says that he will wait for Valjean to come back downstairs. However, when Valjean looks out of the window, Javert is gone. Javert wanders the streets in emotional turmoil: his mind simply cannot reconcile
720-511: Is really Valjean and whom several former convicts have already identified as Valjean. Unsure, Javert goes to Arras to see Champmathieu and satisfies himself that this is the real Valjean. He returns and visits Madeleine and asks him to dismiss him from the police because he "has failed in respect, and in the gravest manner, towards a magistrate" by suspecting Madeleine. He tells Madeleine: "You will say that I might have handed in my resignation, but that does not suffice. Handing in one's resignation
760-462: Is shunned by the others. Grey ironically thanks King on the grounds that his hatred of King was the only thing keeping him alive. At the end the rats are abandoned in their cages when the camp is abandoned. The final scene has the rats consuming each other one by one, with the final survivor becoming "king of the rats". Two characters from King Rat also appear in Noble House (published 1981),
800-478: The June Rebellion , in which he is first spared by Valjean and, later, spares him arrest, Javert experiences a deep torment caused by the compromise of his previous worldview. Where previously he has "never in his life known anything but one straight line", Jean Valjean's behavior compels him to see two: "both equally straight", and "contradictory." The profound confusion caused by this—by the realization that
840-522: The barricade with the intent of finding Marius , the beloved of his adopted daughter, he and Javert recognize one another. Valjean requests, as reward for protecting the barricade from soldiers and national guardsmen, that he be allowed to execute Javert. Enjolras, the leader of the insurrection, acquiesces, and Valjean leads Javert away from the barricade and into a side street. There, instead of killing Javert, Valjean cuts his bonds and implores him to run and save himself. He also gives Javert his address, in
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#1732780543834880-645: The character in the 10th Anniversary Concert in 1995. He has also been played by notable broadway actor Norm Lewis in the 2010 25th anniversary concert . Russell Crowe played the policeman in the 2012 movie of Les Misérables . Other people who have played the character include Bradley Jaden , Michael Ball , Earl Carpenter , Clive Carter , Robert Cuccioli , Anthony Crivello , Hadley Fraser , Shuler Hensley , Brian Stokes Mitchell , Geoffrey Rush , Will Swenson , Hayden Tee , David Thaxton , Chuck Wagner , and Robert Westenberg . Inspector Franklin Jalbert,
920-576: The character of Valjean. In the novel, Hugo describes Javert as "a marble informer, Brutus in Vidocq". Javert first becomes familiar with the convict Jean Valjean as an assistant guard in the Bagne of Toulon . Years later, in 1823, the fugitive Valjean is living under the name Monsieur Madeleine and serving as the mayor of a small town identified as Montreuil-sur-Mer , where he is a successful manufacturer. Javert arrives in 1820 to serve as an inspector with
960-552: The chief concern is obtaining enough food to stay alive from day to day and avoiding disease or injury, since almost no medical care is available. Some are degraded and come close to losing their humanity, while others display levels of courage and compassion beyond expectations. Some steal food out the mouths of their comrades, while others give away what they have or take terrible risks to help their friends. King decides he and his friends should breed rats to sell for food. His comrades, though nearly starving themselves, are repelled by
1000-414: The city jail, is later recaptured and returned to the galleys, and escapes a few months later, though the authorities think he has drowned. Javert is recruited to be an inspector in the capital. Javert is informed of Valjean's presumed death (which the latter had feigned during his last escape) not long after it happens. Early in the year 1824, Javert hears of an alleged kidnapping: a foster child taken from
1040-579: The couple that kept her. When he hears that this is supposed to have taken place in Montfermeil (Valjean was captured just as he was trying to get there), he visits the Thénardiers. Thénardier, however, does not want to become involved with the police, and tells Javert that the girl was fetched by her grandfather, and that he saw the man's passport. In March of the same year, Javert hears of a man nicknamed "the beggar who gives alms." Curious, he tracks
1080-441: The dark and muck of the sewer, does not recognise him. Thénardier assumes that Valjean is a robber who had just killed a well-to-do young man, and he offers to let Valjean out of the sewer if Valjean splits the loot found on Marius' person in half. Valjean pays him, and Thénardier opens for him a sewer grate with a stolen government-issued key. Valjean's joy at finally being out of the sewer does not last long. Valjean notices that he
1120-541: The experiences of Marlowe, King, and other characters, the novel offers a vivid, often disturbing portrayal of men brought to the edge of survival by a brutal environment. The P.O.W.s are given nothing by the Japanese other than filthy huts to live in and the bare minimum of food. Officers from various parts of Britain's Asian empire, accustomed to having native servants provide them with freshly laundered uniforms daily, are reduced to wearing rags and homemade shoes. For most,
1160-453: The gang. Unbeknownst to Javert, the venerable elderly gentleman whom the Thénardiers and Patron-Minette intend to extort is Jean Valjean. When Marius overhears the plans for capturing Valjean, he informs the police of the imminent crime, and is introduced to inspector Javert, who gives him two pistols to fire a signal for when he and his team should enter the building. Javert does not have the opportunity to recognize Valjean upon saving him from
1200-403: The gang; however, Valjean recognizes Javert almost immediately and makes a quick escape out the window of the attic where the confrontation was taking place. During the 1832 June Rebellion , Javert, working undercover to gather information about the revolutionaries, joins a group of them at the barricade they have erected in the rue de la Chanvrerie. Gavroche , a street urchin, recognizes him as
1240-516: The idea of eating rat meat , so King comes up with the plan of only selling the meat to officers without telling them the true source. A group of officers who stole money from their underlings are later seen greedily enjoying a meal of what they are told is mouse deer ( rusa tikus in Malay), not knowing they are actually eating rat meat. When the camp is ultimately liberated, most of the soldiers have trouble adjusting to freedom. King loses his power and
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1280-414: The image he had carried through the years of Valjean as a brutal ex-convict with his acts of kindness on the barricades. Now, Javert can be justified neither in letting Valjean go nor in arresting him. For the first time in his life, Javert is faced with the situation where he cannot act lawfully without acting immorally , and vice versa. Javert is unable to find a solution to this dilemma, and horrified at
1320-452: The law is not infallible, that he himself is not irreproachable, and that there exists a superior force (identified by Hugo with God) to what he has known—plunges him into such a despair that he commits suicide. The character of Javert is loosely based on Eugène François Vidocq , a criminal and adventurer who became a police official (though Vidocq wrote that he never arrested anyone who stole out of need). Hugo also drew on Vidocq's life for
1360-534: The local police. Javert suspects Madeleine's true identity and becomes convinced of it when he watches Madeleine demonstrate extraordinary strength by lifting a loaded cart off of a man trapped beneath it. Madeleine also antagonizes Javert by dismissing his attempt to arrest Fantine , a prostitute detained for having a violent row with a street idler. Javert decides to denounce Valjean as an ex-convict, but learns from Parisian authorities that they have already arrested someone who calls himself Champmathieu whom they believe
1400-608: The man to the Gorbeau House tenement, and recognizes Jean Valjean. When Valjean attempts to escape with Cosette, Javert chases them into what seems to him a dead end. Valjean evades capture by climbing over the stone wall of a convent and pulling Cosette up over the wall on a rope. In 1832, Javert chances to meet Valjean again while leading a squad of policemen in the capture of a gang which had been terrorizing Paris for years: Patron-Minette . The Thénardiers, who have lost their inn, now live at Gorbeau House and are associated with
1440-424: The original publication of Les Misérables in 1862, the character of Javert has appeared in a large number of adaptations in numerous types of media based on the novel, including books , films , musicals , plays , games , and web-comics. In the stage musical of the same name , Javert is a central character. His character, and his role in the plot, is largely unchanged and he remains the primary antagonist. His
1480-484: The sudden realization that Valjean was simultaneously a criminal and a good person — a conundrum which reveals deep flaws in his ethical system, and suggests to him the existence of a superior moral system. He feels that the only possible resolution for himself is in death, and—after leaving for the prefect of police a brief letter addressing lapses in the Conciergerie — he drowns himself in the river Seine . Since
1520-424: The unlikely case that he survives the uprising. Valjean then fires a shot into the air and returns to the barricade, where he tells everyone that the policeman is dead. As the army storms the barricade, Valjean manages to grab the badly wounded Marius and dives into a sewer, where he wanders with Marius on his shoulders, despairing of finding an exit. A stroke of luck brings him face to face with Thénardier , who, in
1560-555: Was a prisoner in the Changi Prison camp, where the novel is set. One of the three major characters, Peter Marlowe, is based upon Clavell. King Rat was the first book published of Clavell's sweeping series, the Asian Saga , and the fourth chronologically. Two characters from King Rat also appear in Noble House (1981). The novel opens in early 1945. Peter Marlowe, a young British RAF Flight Lieutenant , has been
1600-598: Was presumably born in 1780 and died on June 7, 1832. First a prison guard, and then a police inspector, his character is defined by his legalist tendencies, authoritarian worldview, and lack of empathy for criminals of all forms. In the novel, he persecutes the protagonist Jean Valjean after his violation of parole and theft from the child Petit Gervais. Hugo writes that Javert is composed of two "simple" sentiments, which are "respect for authority" and "hatred of rebellion." In Javert's eyes, "murder, robbery, all crimes, are only forms of rebellion." He also "(envelops) in
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