It uses bizarre and contrasting techniques to write a story that took place in France in the 15th century: Claude, the vice-president of Notre Dame de Paris, was sanctimonious and vicious, loving first and then hating, and persecuting the gypsy girl Esmeralda. The ugly but kind-hearted bell ringer Quasimodo sacrifices his life to save the girl. The novel exposes the hypocrisy of religion, declares the bankruptcy of asceticism, praises the kindness, friendship, and self-sacrifice of the lower working people, and reflects Hugo's humanitarian thoughts.
