A Tale Of Two Cities By Charles Dickens

Of the extraordinary amount of literary devices available to authors, Charles Dickens uses quite a few in his novel A Tale of Two Cities, which is set during the French Revolution. One of his more distinctive devices is character foils. The five sets of foils are Carton and Darnay, Carton and Stryver, Darnay and the Marquis de Evremonde, Madame Defarge, and Mr. Lorry and Jerry Cruncher. Dickens uses foil characters to highlight the virtues of several major characters in order to show the theme of personal, loving relationships having the ability to prevail over heartless violence and self-consuming vengeance.

Humanity is inherently flawed. Charles Dickens illustrates this in his novel A Tale of Two Cities as he writes about the lives of the Manettes and the people they draw around them. In this novel, Dickens uses Sydney Carton, a main character in the novel and the lover of Lucie Manette, to reveal his thoughts about the inherent nature of humanity. The characteristics of humanity change and mutate with the experiences of each person and the workings of their own mind, as illustrated by Mr. Stryver’s inhumane and thoughtless treatment of Sydney, the first time Sydney saves Charles Darnay’s life, and Sydney’s love for Lucie Manette.

In this scene Dickens foreshadows how the peasants will react during the Revolution by stating, “There was a special companionship in it, an observable inclination on the part of everyone to join some other one, which led, especially among the luckier or lighter hearted, to frolicsome embraces, drinking of healths, shaking of hands, and even joining of hands and dancing, a dozen together” (21). The foreshadowed Revolution’s destruction and discourse will bring these people together in way they have never been before, and they will unite. Except with everything “good’ there must be something “bad”, and Dickens tells the reader that these peasants will stay the same hungry and weak people left to fend for themselves. Dickens also portrays how the peasants will look and act during the Revolution when he states, “Those who had been greedy with the staves of the cask, had acquired a tigerish smear across the mouth” (22). The smear of the wine across the mouths of the poor will be the blood from the nobles that the peasants brutally murder. The greed and tiger like qualities foreshadow how the peasants act during the fight, and also how they will kill the aristocracy. Dickens then adds commentary on the stains of the wine and how it will affect France and its history with the remark, “The time was to come, when that wine too would be spilled on the street stones, and when the stain of it would be red upon the many there” (22). The wine is the blood that will be spilt by the many violent deaths of the nobles and peons. The passage also shows how the history of the Revolution will be forever remembered. The scenes of the blood-thirsty frolicking peasants and predestined future of France add an element of horror and fate which entices the readers’

A Tale of Two Cities has several recurring themes, including the failure of the French Revolution. In the book, the peasants defeated the aristocrats by imprisoning and murdering them. Although many of the imprisonments and executions were unjust, the peasants had gain complete power. The peasants’ revolution did not end the tyranny that existed with the aristocrats ruling, but created a new tyranny with lack of justice and mercy.

A tale of two cities by Charles Dickens is centered at a time of despair and corruption. This time is known as the french revolution and takes place within a 17 year period, starting in 1775 - 1792. This book shows the injustice and some consequences leading to the revolution and the events in which they happened. It is also focused on the spiritual and political freedoms desired by the many people involved in the revolution. The revolution is driven by the need and desire for power.

In France, the years between 1789 and 1799 were a time of thoughtless inhumanity and brutality toward fellow man. These inhumane acts are carried through the by Revolutionaries and the nobility of France in these years and the years leading up to the French Revolution. The best illustration of the inhumanity felt and shown during this time is A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. Dickens uses metaphors as symbols throughout this book to exemplify his theme of thoughtlessness toward people from other people. Dickens develops these metaphors throughout the novel and manipulates them to fit different circumstances. He uses every day objects and ideas and makes them personifications of the Revolution and their unsympathetic mindsets and agendas. The symbols of the scarecrows and the birds of fine song and feather, the sea, and the wine represent the theme of inhumanity in Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities.

The great Chinese philosopher, Confucius, once stated, “Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.” In the French Revolution, there was major tension between the peasants of France and the affluent monarchy, which oppressed the peasants to the point of starvation. Forced to fight for their lives, the peasants revolted, and became the leaders of France. This change is seen with characters with Madame Defarge and Sydney Carton as they adapt to these changes in their society. The concept of foolishness happened to the peasants in Paris because the aristocrats did not believe that the peasants were worth their respect. This can be seen when Marquis St. Evrémonde is not anxious when he kills the son of Gaspard he believes that his gift of one gold coin will suffice and he will forgive him. This was not the case and this is what led to his demise. This was additionally the idea that was seen when Madame Defarge was the only one who was willing to kill Lucie and her daughter. Despite the fact they are the family of Dr. Manette, a friend of the revolution, because they were related with the St. Evrémonde. This scene showed her real intentions. Moreover, the idea of good intentions are apparent when Carton was smart enough to realize that his opportunity to show Lucie he would do anything for her happiness. He knew that he would have to die, but that did not deter his thought process. Everyone has good intentions, but sometimes their intentions are

Tale of Two Cities Charles Dickens, a meticulous British novelist, imposes ambiguity in the personalities of Sydney Carton, Madame Defarge, and Ernest Defarge to reveal the preeminent theme of his novel that people are dynamic. Sydney Carton is an extremely ambiguous character in The Tale of Two Cities. Sydney Carton transforms from debauchery to admirable. At first, Carton is a drunkard, and he is willing to help out C.J. Stryver whenever he demands his help Stryver. Carton assisted Stryver to become of the most respected, brilliant, and popular lawyers in all of London.

Vengeance, a reckless vehicle of destruction, harms both its enactors and its victims. In A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, violent desires of revenge devour their creators. During the French Revolution and the time leading up to it, there are many people who hold intense grudges against others. The peasants finally begin to fight back against the oppressive and greedy aristocracy. Madame Defarge has wanted to avenge the obliteration of her family since the day it happened. She uses the chaos as an excuse to oversee the destruction of the family that transgressed her. Sydney Carton despises himself for his lifelong unfulfilled potential. Throughout his life, he blames everything he does on his disappointing past, present, and future. When he meets Lucie Manette, he finds that his sole purpose in life is keeping her happy. While Madame Defarge and the French revolutionaries are consumed and obliterated by a thirst for reprisal on their offenders, Sydney Carton is only imprisoned by a vicious cycle of self-punishment until he is able to forgive himself by finding his value in his devotion to Lucie Manette.

“Constant goodness and purity can accomplish much. As the sun makes ice melt, love and compassion bring people together, and often transform them.” –Albert Schweitzer. It is a central idea in our world that when an individual sows love and compassion for mankind, their actions will positively impact those around them, and they will most certainly reap the benefits. Although a person of this magnitude seems rare in our society today, in Charles Dickens’, A Tale of Two Cities, Lucie Manette is the embodiment of compassion for those around her. In the novel, those whom encounter Lucie view her as pure, noble, strong and loving, and through her endeavors as a compassionate young woman she brings her father peace, transforms various

A Tale of Two Cities, the 1859 classic written by Charles Dickens, tells the story of two men who look similar, but have different characters, begins with the famous verbiage,

The French Revolution from 1789 to 1799 was a time of uprising in France, followed by the decline of monarchies and the rise of democracy and nationalism. A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens, is set in the cities of Paris and London and flawlessly captures the angst and changing times of these places during this unforgettable period. Dickens extensively researched the events that occurred to set up perfect scenes that stick with the reader even after the novel is finished. Dickens masterfully uses the literary element of imagery throughout the novel to enforce his theme of man’s inhumanity toward his fellow man and to first create a sense of sympathy towards the peasants with an underlining feeling of hatred towards the nobles, then

“A Tale of Two Cities” by Charles Dickens is an artfully crafted tale that unabashedly tells the story of the injustice, the horror and the madness of the French Revolution. More than this, it is a story of one man’s redemption, one man who Dickens vividly portrays as being “a nobody”. This nobody had thrown away his life. “A Tale of Two Cities” is the tale of Sydney Carton and his full circle redemption.

What could an honorable, prosperous man and a drunken, depressed man possibly have in common? A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens is a classic novel with a thrilling plot and captivating characters. The book takes place in the year 1775 right in the middle of the French Revolution. Charles Darnay and Sydney Carton are only two of the main characters that the author uses to further and advance the story. The author gives them each an important role to play which are worthy of further examination. The persons of Charles Darnay and Sydney Carton, their love for Lucie, and their aspirations, drove their actions and ultimately their destinies.

As described by Charles Dickens through his novel A Tale of Two Cities, he states, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”. (1) The novel, set in 1775 is in the midst of the French Revolution, a time that was embodied by dualities. Love and hate. Misery and happiness. Light and darkness. Hope and despair. The novel utilizes devices such as juxtaposition and repetition to help add meaning to the novel. One such example can be found in the last passage of the novel. With the use of imagery and repetition found in the final passage of the novel, the sacrificial death of Sydney Carton serves to reveal Sydney Carton and the nation of Paris as a symbol of redemption and` resurrection.