Quasimodo's first encounter with Esmeralda occured when he tried to kidnap her for Frollo. The next day, he met her and fell in love with her while being punished in the square. She gave him water; the only kindness anyone other than Frollo had ever shown him.
It was revealed throughout the course of the book that Quasimodo's mother was probably a gypsy. He was switched with another woman's baby, who was considerably much prettier. The woman, Paquette la Chantefleurie, upon discovering her child had been kidnapped and replaced, abandoned Quasimodo and left for self-penance in Paris. Quasimodo was baptized, exorcized, and sent off by the bishop of the town to Paris, where he was put in the foundlings crib.
"It was a marvelous grimace, in effect, which shown at that moment through the rose window. After all the pentagonal , hexagonal and heteroclitic figures which succeeded each other at the window without realizing this ideal of grotesque which was constructed in the imaginations exalted by the orgy, it needed nothing less, to gain the votes, than the sublime grimace which just amazed the assembly. Master Coppenole himself applauded; and Clopin Trouillefou, who had competed, and God knows what intensity of ugliness his visage could attain, admitted himself defeated. We will do the same. We will not try to give to the reader an idea of that tetrahedonish neck, of that iron horse's mouth, of the small left eye obstructed by a hairy red eyebrow, while the right eye disappeared entirely under an enormous wart, of the disordered teeth, with gaps here and there, like the crannies of a fortress, of that callous lip, on which one of the teeth projected like the defense of an elephant, of that forked chin, and especially of all the physionomy pervading on top of all this, of that mixture of malice, amazement, and sadness. That one imagines, if one can, that ensemble.
"Or rather all of his person was a grimace. A large head covered with red hair; between two shoulders an enormous hump, of which in the front, there was a similar prominence; a system of legs and thighs so uniquely crooked that they could only touch by the knees, and, viewed in front, resembled two reaping hooks which are joined by the handle; of large feet, of monstrous hands; and, with all this deformity, there was a redoutable allure of vigor, of agility and courage; strange exception to the eternal rule which makes strength, like beauty, the result of harmony. Such was the pope that the fools chose to rule."
-- Victor Hugo, Quasimodo, Book 1, Notre Dame de Paris
Ostracized from the outside would, Quasi never seemed too upset by his own looks only until later, when his looks upset Esmeralda. I would say, personally, Quasimodo didn't have any self-esteem, but he didn't need it, for there was no need to impress anyone. He was quite happy with the bells, for they were the only things that didn't shun him, and the only things he could control in his life. With the bells, Quasimodo was the master, not Fate.
And, now, about his propesnity to kill without regret.......I suppose if the only human contact you ever had is with people who throw vegetables at you, you probably won't regret doing away with the source.
Well, when the 1923 version of Hunchback of Notre Dame came out, staring Lon Chaney as Quasimodo, I doubt this was Chaney's intention. When he donned the make-up that would make Quasi go down in the record books as a good Halloween costume, he was actually trying to be true to the novel. Quasi is, of course, portrayed as a tragic, romantic hero. Someone who knows how prejudice and his ugliness has fated him to a life of suffering and loneliness. But Lon Chaney, I think, takes this to an extreme degree. He is perhaps another reason why Quasi became a figure of horror, for his portrayal tends to lean in the direction of violence. Because Quasi was so horribly ostracized, he acts crude, rude, and obnoxious toward just about everyone. He seems almost crazed in his hatred. The original Quasimodo was more inclined to ignore people. Filled with bitterness, perhaps, but he never displayed it in cruelty. He just hid from them. As for his fondness for Frollo.....no, that's gone as well. He kind of has to work through Frollo because he's forced into slavery. Not because he's grateful.
In 1939, Charles Laughton starred as Quasimodo in yet another remake of the movie. Yet again, the hunchback is a tragic hero who suffers all for love (Notre-Dame de Paris fans will know what verse I'm ripping off). I think, however, his performance is lacking. Quasi comes off more to me as pathetic than really sad. And half-way through one monologue, I was so fed up with his been-to-the-dentist voice that I was silently begging Esmeralda to pull out the cotton balls stuck in his mouth. Horrid flashbacks to The Elephant Man....unpleasant memories... "No, don't look at me! *sluuuuurp*"
In 1956, there was Anthony Quinn....and now that I've actually seen it.....well, Quasi is made to be a complete idiot in this version. Absolutely lacking in any form of intelligence. I mean, the Quasi in the book wasn't fast by no stretch of the imagination, but he was brighter than many. This Quasi is reduced to 3rd grade mentality. The director seemed to think that if a person is deformed, he must be stupid, too. Honestly, the producers struggled to make Quasi a sympathetic, tragic hero by making him someone no one could simply not like. A sort of Charlie from "Flowers for Algernon." Yet unlike that novel, Quasi doesn't seem like much of a tragic hero. Instead, the romance he feels for Esme seems contrived. As if she appears to him more of a pretty flower than a woman he loves. The crush of a preschooler on his favorite teacher....
But the 1997 version The Hunchback takes the exact opposite approach. In this one, Quasi (played by Mandy Patrinkin) is the only person with any level of intelligence, and this includes Frollo. Well...perhaps one of the king's advisors who ends up dying instead of Phoebus....but we didn't hear much from him. Quasi, however, seems about as in love with the books in the cathedral as he is the bells and Esme. Horribly out of character. He's pretty patronizing to just about everyone. Maybe he also realizes he's the only one with any sense. Gone is the raid on Notre-Dame and Quasi's inhuman ability to fend them all off. Instead, Quasi goes to Gringoire with a pamphlet for him to make copies of, hence saving the day with his utter genius, and not his brawn. His relationship with Frollo is seen as more of a bitter love. A love quite easily broken at the appearance of Esme. In the end, Frollo goes to him to confess, and Quasi comforts the poor lowly priest in his guilty sin. A very holier than thou scene. Which is just completely opposite of the book, which had Quasi as Frollo's obediant dog up until the fall from Notre Dame. Even his own beloved master is not safe from the condescension....
1982 had Anthony Hopkins as Quasimodo. Even watching this movie last week and reading the script several times, I cannot remember exactly what he did outstanding. I thought he was about the right intelligence (though we're back to the drooling-form of speaking) and his make-up looked to me to be the best job at recreating Hugo's original idea, even better than Lon Chaney. But, surprisingly, he's still relatively brighter than anyone else in the movie (and yes, that's taking in what I said earlier -- no one had any sense in this version). I'll have to watch again and try to find something worth mentioning...
In the 1996 Disney version, Quasi (voiced by Tom Hulce) is a hunchback more intent on seeing the world than anything else. Of course, the bad looks and the rough, grating voice is traded in for cutish, plush-toy looks and a voice that could do well in a few Broadway musicals. Ah, well. This actually introduces a new concept. How well does a hunchback without a voice and form of communication do with expressing his emotions as compared to one who has all the aforementioned means? I personally think the raw emotion involved in the making of Quasimodo was lost when he gained the ability to express it. The simple fact that he could never quite show what he was feeling in more convenient means made what he was feeling that much deeper. The Quasi in Disney was a good rendition, but not nearly as deep. His love for Esmeralda was made ridiculous in order to get her with the handsome guy. And was then replaced with an obsession for getting outside, which the Quasi from the book wanted no part of. Honestly? I think this is the worst Quasi. Not a bad Quasi in his own right! Just a bad one in terms of the book.
Then there's the Quasi from Notre-Dame de Paris. I'm going to speak from the original concept, because it's a musical, and there are a lot of different actors for this part. I think, again, Quasi's given too much of an ability to communicate (though he loses the beautiful voice in favor of.....a more accurate, beautiful voice. Don't ask). He tries to communicate to the audience this deep love he feels for Esmeralda, and in some songs, he manages to pull it off. Including, luckily, the next-to-finale song. As for how he feels about the outside world, it's never expressed clearly. Maybe only slightly in a few songs, but one is never given the idea what this man feels about his life, being couped up. "The Bells" (or Les Cloches) however, is beautiful in expressing Quasimodo. It shows his love for the bells, and it manages to show his hopelessness in his future happiness. I think that's the best song of Quasimodo's, to represent the novel. And then it depends on actor interpretation. Garou, from the Paris and London musical, has the perfect expressions in "The King of Fools" (Le Pape des Fous) to show Quasi and his reactions to being ridiculed.
And to end this way too long section, I'll bring to the reader's mind a certain character, if they may remember that 80's classic "The Goonies." His name was Sloth, and, for a long time, he was the way I pictured Quasimodo. I also remember running around as a young child, dragging one foot, hunching over, and shouting "The bells!" or "Sanctuary!" and making other kids laugh or squeal. I think they were laughing at me, and squealing because I had a hard time getting that been-to-the-dentist voice down, and slobbered on them numerous times. Yet this all goes to show (in my mind at least) how degraded this great character has become.
*Art used in background by Merson, used without permission
*Pictures in first applet are as follows:
Lon Chaney as Quasi, (c) 1924 Universal Studios, used without permission
Charles Laughton as Quasi, (c) 1939 RKO Radio Pictures Inc, used without permission
Anthony Quinn as Quasi, (c) 1957 Paris Film Productions, used without permission
Drawing of Quasi, (c) 1996 by Disney Corporation, used without permission
Garou as Quasi, (c) 1998 ?? Luc Plamondon and Richard Cocciante? Used without permisson
*Pictures in second applet are as follows:
Art by Merson, used without permisson
Mandy Patrinkin as Quasi, (c) 1997 Tristar Television, used without permission
Anthony Hopkins as Quasi, (c) 1982 Columbia Pictures Televion, used without permission
All written text on this page is (c) 2000-2001, Misty Woodard. Please ask for permission before using it, and be sure to give credit when quoting. This took months to write and years of reading the book to think up.
