The Ladies of Les Miz and Why I Like Eponine Best

Yes, I know, this blogpost is incredibly late. But you see, dear reader, organizing my life and dealing with things we call emotions are very taxing tasks. Excuses put aside, I haven’t been writing much. I plan to make up and keep up.

Finally getting out of my damned mini-depression through reading an inspirational book, crying my eyes out, and telling myself that my heart is less significant than so many other things, I finally watched Les Miserables.  I must admit: I’ve never read the book, nor have I seen the musical. I’m still looking for people kind enough to give me a copy though.

Watching Les Miz was an awesome experience. The characters were raw and very much human: Jean Valjean's strength of character, Javert's obsessive and myopic tendencies, Fantine's self-sacrifice, Enjolras's love for his country.

I love Enjolras. He was an activist ready to put aside his own life for his country. Marius, despite breaking through his elite roots to fight for France (which is enough a reason as to why I'd want to date a guy), loses points for falling in love within a span of 3.98 seconds and for being an overall insensitive jerk. More on this later.

I don't know about other girls, but I would almost always look for a female character that I would identify as the heroine of any story. And thus this mini-nalysis of the femmes of the movie.

The stark contrast between the ladies of Les Miz is very obvious.
Images are stills from the movie as well as promotional pictures.

Anne Hathaway, whose version of "I Dreamed a Dream" I watched several times on Youtube, was as good as I expected her to be (although, unfortunately, I had also watched her Ricky Lo interview). Her portrayal of Fantine made my inner feminist roar for justice. Had I been a character in the novel, I would have probably formed a barricade for a totally different purpose: protecting women's rights. In the movie, Fantine has a child out of wedlock. She leaves the child with the Thenardiers so she can look for work and provide for her daughter. This is not uncommon today. Apparently penis-less men who would voluntarily abandon their children are as common before as it is today. The problem is, in Fantine's time, being a single mom can mean the difference between decent work and and a not-so-decent one. And because it is Les Miz, she gets fired from the factory she works in and had to result to prostitution (as well as selling her glorious hair and a couple of teeth) to provide for her kid. Fantine later dies of consumption, breaking my heart for the first time.

Which leads us to Cosette (played by Amanda Seyfried, but this isn't really about her, is it?). Cosette is many things: Fantine's daughter, Jean Valjean's redemption, Marius's love. Ironically, she also does absolutely nothing, except sing a few songs and go emo for about a couple of minutes. A friend of mine told me that Cosette is not really a character, but more of a symbolism for "hope", but I find her lack of character almost as offensive as Bella Swan. Nothing beats the Twilight protagonist, though. At least Cosette is somewhat self-sacrificing, whereas Bella is just plain selfish. Despite this obvious trait, her passive personality makes her fade into the background. I mean, Javert is obsessive to the point of being borderline immoral, Enjolras is ready to die for France, whereas Cosette is just there, doing nothing, unaware of what is happening. It would have been an interesting to see her character develop. After all, she does have an interesting back story, but I guess Victor Hugo believed that her role as a symbol means she must be as unreal as possible in a cast of tangible personalities. 

A stark contrast to what my officemate called as "bland blonde Cosette" is Eponine. If Cosette is translucent, Eponine is fire. She is introduced as the daughter of of Cosette's former caretakers, a poor, unkempt girl with bad rep who's in love with the unattainable Monsieur Marius. She loses Marius's heart to beautiful Cosette and is friendzoned bigtime. But she dies as the most badass female character in the movie. I mean, after Marius leaves her heart in pieces, she binds her breasts, runs off to the barricade, shoots down a couple of Javert's men, then gets killed by a bullet through the chest so she can save Marius. Wow. Just wow. 

Marius does not pay much attention to Eponine because, in a setting where a woman is desirable mostly if she is well-clothed and beautiful and virtuous, Eponine does not meet the requirements. She is no Cosette. And thus the merits of her character are not appreciated: her bravery, her self-sacrifice to make a loved one happy, her attempt at redemption. 

Eponine's character is much more endearing than Cosette's, simply because instead of standing in the sidelines and being Mary Sue-ish, as in the case of many badly-written literature portraying women, Eponine chose to act. She chose to get down and dirty. She chose to actively participate in creating her destiny rather than stand idly and letting her anyone manipulate it. Her struggle, despite the inevitable tragic end (it is Les Miz, after all), is bittersweet and very much human. 

Five Women I’d Happily Go Bi For

Of course I have my ovaries, my estrogen and all the other physical attributes of being a woman. I am in a relationship with a certified member of the male sex and am very happy with him. However, that does not change the fact that I have girl crushes: I admire other women for their simple kick-arse-ness. There are a LOT of them - strong, intelligent, brave women who are no fairy tale princesses or old school Maria Claras – ladies that I would happily trade my eggs for.
And here are my five hottest picks.



Tina Siuagan, Nurse, Musician, Writer and Model
(On the left: Tina featured in Zen Health Magazine)

I’ve got to tell you the truth: I am giddy to be able to call this girl my babe. Tina Siuagan is an all-in-one kind of woman. She is like the perfect girl friend: pretty in a rock star way, but smart and funny. A woman of substance who can drive you nuts with her wit. Never a dull moment when you’re with this girl. What’s really great about Tina, though, is that despite the not-so-good situation nurses are now facing, this girl makes it a point to pull up the morale of nurses whether through her articles or her music.

A registered nurse, Tina is also the lead vocalist of the rock band Amihan, and is the face of Rachell Allen Reviewers, USA, a center for exams such as the NCLEX and IELTS. This hot chick was also the cover of Zen Health magazine’s August-October.

Why she rocks: Because Tina is Nursing pride personified.




Ana Santos, Single Mom, Writer and Sexual Health Advocate
(On the left: Ms. Ana's Project Headshot Clinic for HIV advocacy)

I met Ms Ana during Writers Block Philippines’ Jumpstart Your Freelance Writing Career 2.0. I was a lost little wannabe writer with absolutely no idea of what to write and how the publishing world works, but I did have a lot of idea about sexuality and the stupidity of being strict conformists to age-old beliefs that maggots are now feasting on. Ms Ana was the inspiration as to why I came out as a reproductive health supporter and a women’s health advocate, particularly the sexual abuse victims. Her way of presenting sex and sexual health is passionate, intelligent, funny, but far from lewd (although a lot of her articles are also no-nonsense advice on how to get things hotter in bed).

Ana Santos is the editorial director of sexandsensibilities.com and co-founder of Writers Block Philippines. She is also a reproductive health and HIV/AIDS awareness advocate.

Why she’s hot: Because she can say “vagina” without flinching.



Dr. Raquel del Rosario-Fortun, Forensic Pathologist and Teacher
(On the left: Dr Fortun, featured in "Filipina Firsts: A Salute to 100 Women Pioneers 1898-1998")

I saw Dr. Fortun for the first time when I was having lunch at UP Diliman’s Chocolate Kiss, in Bahay ng Alumni, August 19, 2011. Yes, I know the EXACT date of when I first saw her. I was totally star struck that I forgot to swallow. She was talking to some people, and I had to fight the urge to get up and ask for an autograph.

Long before the introduction of the hit show CSI, I had wanted to be a forensic pathologist because I thought it was most awesome profession in the entire world. Actually, I still think it is one. Forensic pathology, the subdivision of pathology, is mostly concerned with the determination of the cause of death of a victim via external and internal examination. Specializing on the field means having an intensive background in medicine and pathology. The multi-awarded Dr. Fortun had her formal training abroad, but is now teaching in the University of the Philippines College of Medicine. She is still tapped by the National Bureau of Investigation whenever her expertise in cause of death determination and procedure is in need. Dr. Fortun, after all, is the First Filipino Woman Forensic Pathologist

True to her desire to battle ignorance, Dr. Fortun has been very outspoken about the need for training and better protocols when it comes to crime scene processing and corpse examination.

Why she’s awesome: Because she has opted to stay in the Philippines to teach.



Miriam Defensor-Santiago, Philippine Senator, First Filipino and First Asian from a Developing Country Elected as Judge in International Criminal Court
(On the left: Senator Miriam in her Filipiniana)

She is not the kind of woman you’d want to piss off. Debating with her is suicide and her verbal rebuttals are enough to send even the most hard-headed opponent into hiding under their mama’s skirts. Apart from her prowess in discussions, Senator Miriam is also the author of controversial laws-to-be such as the RH Bill and the much-needed and much-sensible Anti-Epal Bill.

Considered as one of the most intellectually prepped politician, Senator Miriam is also known for her witty one liner. My personal favorite: “I eat death threats for breakfast.”

Wow.

Why she’s hardcore: Because Senator Miriam’s so crazy by normal people’s standards, she makes total sense.




Grace Bondad-Nicolas, Writer, Engineer, RH and Environmental Activist
(Ms. Grace celeberating Jose Rizal's birthday, wearing the traditional Filipiniana in abaca)

I met Ms. Grace during a rally in Ayala Alabang, protesting the condom ban, and again during the RH Bill-I Support Facebook group eyeball in Carlos Celdran’s The Living Room. Looking at her, you would probably not think that she frequents the rally lines, lobby for better laws for reproductive health and the environment, and write power pieces for several print and online publications. Possibly because this petite lady loves going around in killer shoes and her signature Louis Vuitton bag.

Ms. Grace is also an online activist and a very approachable person. She is always happy to educate people with regard to her stands, regardless of how hostile they are in opposing her. Regardless of how hot-headed and whatever cusses spew from the mouths of those who oppose her, Ms Grace would still talk to that person calmly and respect their beliefs.

Why she’s cool: She’s so into her advocacy, she literally wears it.