Clopin:
[while watching the whipping of Quasimodo, Clopin tells Gringoire that he too has been whipped]
Twice. Now I buy protection.
Gringoire:
From Who?
Clopin:
Nobility.
Gringoire:
The guardians of the old and holy tradition.
Clopin:
The very same. They buy it from the king, and sell it to those beneath them. It's quite alright. You see, after the war - and don't forget it lasted a hundred years - thousands of us went from door to door asking for honest work, and we were whipped for begging. The ruling class didn't say, Work or starve; they said, Starve, for you shall not work.
Gringoire:
And I starved.
Clopin:
Thousands did, until I organised the beggars guild.
Gringoire:
Of which I am beggar number 7419.
Clopin:
You needn't be ashamed. True we're not great thieves like nobles. Our robberies are petty compared to the wholesale plunder of the nation.
Gringoire:
I wonder if the moral difference isn't in our favour
Clopin:
Right. Some day you and I will write a book on the truth of beggary.
Riportata da il
05/03/2025 alle ore 08:34
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