How we cite our quotes: (Book.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
[…] we shall not attempt to give the reader any idea of that tetrahedron nose, of that horseshoe mouth, of that little left eye, obscured by a bristly red eyebrow, while the right was completely overwhelmed and buried by an enormous wart; of those irregular teeth, jagged here and there like the battlements of a fortress; of that horny lip, over which one of those teeth protruded, like the tusk of an elephant; of that hooklike chin; and, above all, of the expression, that mixture of spite, astonishment, and melancholy, spread over all these features. Imagine such an object, if you can. (I. V.33)
Okay, so the narrator is having a little bit of a go at the reader here. He tells you that he's not going to attempt to describe Quasimodo's face to you, but then he totally goes ahead and does it. Then, to top it all off, he tells you to imagine it "if you can." As if you can't, after a description like that. But why go through that whole song and dance? Well, even though we might like to pretend that appearances don't matter, we're actually really eager to hear about how grotesque and messed up Quasimodo's face is. It's so messed up that your imagination can barely handle it. The truth is, as readers, we're totally going to imagine it, and we're probably going to enjoy every minute of it.
Quote #2
[…] two elegant, delicate, charming creatures, whose small feet, handsome shapes, and graceful manners he admired, almost confusing them in his imagination. (II.IV.16)
Gringoire definitely has an, um, unconventional relationship with Esmeralda's goat. While most of the characters in the novel are taken by the gypsy's beauty, in Gringoire's mind Esmeralda and the goat are just as beautiful. He even confuses them here. It just goes to show you that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. It also makes us question Gringoire's judgment as a poet: shouldn't a poet know the difference between a woman's beauty and a goat's? We love goats just as much as anyone, but this seems a little weird.
Quote #3
Pressing her hands on his shoulders, she looked at him intently for a few moments, as if hypnotized by his handsome face and grateful for the timely salvation that he had afforded her. (II.IV.24)
Notice that Esmeralda is first hypnotized by Phœbus's good looks, then grateful that he just saved her from being kidnapped. Isn't it convenient when your hero also just so happens to be drop-dead gorgeous? Compare Esmeralda's reaction her to her reaction when Quasimodo rescues her from the crowd.