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In "Les Miserables" a poor and needy Jean Valjean steals a loaf of bread to feed his family and that one act haunts him for a long time, even after he becomes a

• javert 17y ago
  Props for the literature reference, that's a great book. I think Jean Valjean was right to steal the bread, if that was the only way his family could survive for that day. But rarely do we meet a criminal who can honestly say, as Jean Valjean could, that he honestly did everything in his power to live honestly and morally. I also think JV's punishment was much too harsh, given his particular circumstances. But, when people break the law, justice to those they have harmed still must be done. That is the purpose of the law, and the law is not mocked.