Les Misérables Volume I Book 5 Chapter 12 - M. Bamatabois's Inactivity

In which a provincial dandy, emblematic of idle and superficial youth, takes cruel amusement at a lone woman wandering the snowy streets, provoking a fierce and unseemly encounter that draws the attention of the gathered townsfolk. Into this scene steps a tall, commanding figure who abruptly interrupts the tumult, compelling the woman to follow him and scattering the crowd.