Charles Dickens French Revolution Rhetorical Analysis

In the story it is clear that the peasants had valid motives to kill and be angry, but some nobles were unjustly persecuted. Dickens uses character foils, flashbacks, and the theme of suffering throughout the book to create an even balance of portraying both sides of the revolution as victims. This allows readers to sympathize with both sides of the revolution in the story, but also in the historical event. This book allows readers to see into the lives of characters who very likely could have been real people during the French Revolution, and that that there truly are two sides to every

The gruesome image of Foulon’s mouth being stuffed with grass to the point of agony, and the repeated display of an aristocrat’s head, accurately depicted the violent nature of the revolution. These people had been tormented for years and Dickens displayed this through the violent murders they committed against their oppressors.

In the book, Dickens portrays the people as having the hatred necessary for mob violence. Immediately, the book shows us an example how such hatred was created. When a youth’s hands were chopped off, “tongue torn out with pincers” and “his body burned alive” it shows the violence and torture that led to the French revolution. The youth represents the weak in French society

Throughout Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities, the guillotine is a persisting symbol of the French Revolution. It represents the revolutionary violence through which humanity loses its religious morality and a new, savage standard is created. By looking at the passage as a Student of Literature, the revolutionists, straying from ethics and God, are depicted through religious allusions. A Historian lens reveals Dickens condemnation of the bloodthirsty revolution that has normalized violence and stripped the people of humanity.

Not only did he show the evil in the aristocrats, but also the evil in the peasants that became from their mistreatment. It is true that Dickens portrayed the peasants of France as sinful, brute, and vengeful, but not without reason. If the aristocrats had never committed the injustices they did onto the peasants, the peasants would not have justification to rebel and begin the blood-soaked revolution. The peasants were like dogs being trained to fight, becoming aggravated and violent against their will. The aristocrats, their owners, were the true source of savagery. The peasants were not to blame for those dark times in France because their actions were only in response to what the aristocrats had begun. In the final chapter of the book, Carton’s letter reads: “I see a beautiful city and brilliant people rising from the abyss, and, in their struggles to be truly free, in their triumphs and defeats, through long years to come, I see the evil of this time and of the previous time of which this is the natural birth, gradually making expiation for itself and wearing out,”. All that was painful was set in motion by the aristocrats. The peasants wanted a new life, and to be free from the restrictions that were upon them. Though the revolution was carried through by hatred and revenge, it was necessary to amend the actions commited against the peasants. Be it in hate, or in secrecy, or in negotiation, change was

Revolutions have occurred since the first oppressed people got fed up with a tyrannical leader. It has been the cry of the downtrodden since the beginning of time. Revolution is a word that symbolizes hope for a better future. It can be a dangerous thing because if not successful life for the common people might get worse than it originally was. Even if successful the new leaders can be as bad as those preceding. Dickens captures the essence of a revolution gone bad in his novel A Tale Of Two Cities. The intent of this short essay is to discuss and analyze Dickens' treatment of the theme of revolution in A Tale of Two Cities. It will attempt to show you how Dickens changes his mind midway through the novel about whether or not the revolutionaries in France are better than their aristocratic predecessors.

The French Revolution is considered by most historians as a major turning point in World History. Many major shifts took place in France, causing many uproars by the people of France. In A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens he stated, “Liberty, equality, fraternity, or death; - the last, much the easiest to bestow, O Guillotine!” Charles Dickens, along with many other Frenchmen, were dedicated to their cause and would not let their voices go quietly into the night, no matter the consequence. This lead to changes not only in the French government, but lead to changes within the world.

The French Revolution was havoc and consisted of disturbing cruelty and manslaughter. Charles Dickens wrote the book A Tale Of Two Cities about a century after the French Revolution happened. During the French Revolution the peasants took revenge on the aristocrats. The avengers during this time attempted to find satisfaction. Dickens throughout the novel presents that the idea of getting revenge can never heal a person and this is shown through the characters of Gaspard, Madame Defarge, and the Revolutionaries.

The French Revolution was difficult to escape on the grounds that the gentry abused poor people, making them rebel. Oppression on a huge scale results in insurgency, and rebellion manufactures a police state. One of Dickens' most grounded feelings was that the English individuals would erupt whenever into a mass of bleeding revolutionists. It is justifiable today that he wasn't right, however the thought was solidly planted in his brain, and in the psyches of his associates. Dickens likewise feels terrible for poor people yet he doesn't concur with the brutality that was utilized amid the war.

Contrary to the stereotype of French Revolution as the symbol of liberty and democracy, Dickens portrayed the revolution in his mind as violent and savage. He did not eulogize the campaign from the perspective of revolutionists, but critically reflected upon

The French Revolution is frequently referred to as one of the bloodiest time periods in history, being branded as an event that would evidently spawn ideals that were barely indulged in before and were built primarily on equality. The historical premise presented within Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities introduces similarities between the Revolutionaries he created, and of the prominence of the French Revolution, as well as the Revolution itself; however, its representation of figures as well as society in relation to the French Revolution is misleading and historically unsound. Dickens is one of many to have stood for equality within his time, yet he demonized such a revolution in order to both enhance a storyline as well as to alert his contemporaries of the dangerous path he felt would result from the social inequalities of his own time.

It is stated, “Dickens proceeds to work through the tension caused by such an idea in his consideration of characters trapped within political forces prior to the French Revolution that they can neither control nor affect. The result takes its place among Dickens’ other works as a finely crafted tale, brimming with characters all necessary to its complicated plot” (Brackett 329). Dickens takes the stance that people are trapped within their class and cannot surmount these political boundaries, however, “It is a tragic view, unrelieved by a belief in human dignity, or in the human ability to attain nobility through exertion of will” (Dickens “A Tale”). He pokes fun at the aristocracy, and ultimately at the governmental structure of such. He incorporates the concept of the powerful not earning their power and the poor being born into their poverty, showing his stance that he is against this system. Dickens also decides that if humans wish to join the scheming forces of society, then they must be corrupt in order to do so (Dickens “A Tale”). He means to say that only the crooked minded believe that they can change society, for better or for worse. This is also proven by the statement, “Dickens clearly indicates that society cannot be made to progress or even be substantially

Dickens adds his emotion in the novel through his characters that he has created. Moving towards the French Revolution that Dickens knew was not far in the near future, he began to configure what other countries would have made of the same idea. This uprising; one that may not be controllable. Quickly coming across the sister city of Paris, London was not too far. He would come to figure that these two cities are separate tales to the same story. His depth to the Revolution begins at this point. Of course as I say this, Dickens does not write out the Revolution for the reader, he implicates the effect of it through his book. Dickens to me may be that man who answers a question with a question, at least thats what I get from reading this book. This attraction of giving his own twist to the French Revolution and how the two cities dealt with a somewhat similar problem. He wants it to be evident that these two cities could face

The words that Dickens uses in that quote are cruel towards the poor showing that Charles Dickens often portrays the rich as cruel and uncaring towards the lower classes. Some of the common themes in Charles Dickens books are, a higher class child placed in a lower class situation and the rich being disgusted by the poor. Dickens family situation was less than ideal but his experiences only increased his pity for the poor. Did you know Dickens would walk ten to twenty miles a day inside the city? Charles Dickens was always trying to look out for the poor. The world of Charles Dickens is best understood through his own life, industrialized

During the time of the French Revolution, the nobles were very powerful, and this allowed them to have much control over the peasants and the way they lived. In Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities, he illustrates the disparity of the peasants, and the great contrast between the social classes. The peasants lived in harsh conditions with very little, and were greatly mistreated by the nobles, who abused their power over them. The peasants realized around the time of the Revolution that they must change their state of living, and take revenge on the nobles for the evil ways they had been treated for many, many years. Man’s inhumanity towards fellow man is a theme that is constantly repeated and thoroughly developed throughout the novel, beginning with the wine cask, then with the birds and the scarecrows, and lastly with the grindstone.