“To wipe out abuse is not enough; you have to change people's whole outlook. The mill is no longer standing, but the wind's still there, blowing away.”

French novelist and playwright of the Romantic era, Victor Hugo is best known for his sweeping historical novels and passionate advocacy for social justice. His works like *Les Misérables* and *The Hunchback of Notre-Dame* explore human suffering and resilience, while his political essays championed abolition and democratic reform.