Enjolras

Enjolras is the clear, steady leader of a circle of student rebels in Paris. He is striking to look at, calm face, bright eyes, and even more striking in spirit. He speaks little, but when he does, people listen. His faith is simple and fierce: a free and just society is worth any cost. He keeps himself apart from small pleasures so he can stay sharp for the cause.

He is not warm in the usual way. Enjolras loves people through ideas, through the dream of a city where no one is hungry or afraid. This makes him tender to the poor in the abstract and strict with his friends in the moment. He expects courage. He expects truth. Beside him, a friend like Grantaire, who doubts everything, shows how Enjolras’s certainty can both inspire and unsettle.

Yet he is not hard for the sake of hardness. His severity comes from care for the future he imagines. When danger rises, he grows stiller, clearer, almost peaceful, as if purpose itself holds him upright. Enjolras stands in the story as the bright edge of idealism, beautiful, demanding, and brave enough to carry hope where hope is most at risk.