Note that spoiler markings don't appear on mobile, so please use the weekly spoiler topic, which will be posted every Saturday, if you would like to discuss later events.   Link to chapter

Discussion prompts:

1. Madame de Beaufort d’Hautpoul and Madame la marquise Dufresne are real people. What do you think of Hugo constantly inserting real people in his fictional convent?
2. What did you think of Madame de Genlis' Latin verses against thieves? Diamas and Getmas were the thieves with Jesus on the cross. Adding the footnotes and other relevant details in the comments.
3. Where do you think is Hugo going with this? Is he simply criticizing monastic cloisters and the Catholic Church in general, or will this play a role in the plot?
4. Other points of discussion? Lines that stood out to you?

Final line:

When the nuns were present at services where their rule enjoined silence, the public was warned of their presence only by the folding seats of the stalls noisily rising and falling.

Link to the previous chapter

Link to the 2020 discussion