Political Elements in A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

Between 1789 and 1814 the French Revolution astonished and impacted the world. The Revolution has been talked about for years because of its contributions and the way it affected the world. The significant figures from the Revolution also played important roles in history and in areas outside of France. King Louis’ absolutism and the unfair treatment between classes were political, social, and economical causes of the French Revolution. This Revolution impacted the people of France by terrorizing and affecting their rights, yet at the same time the French Revolution served as a template for other countries when it came to radical changes and Revolutions.

During the French Revolution the two social classes, nobles and the peasants, clashed with each other because the peasants felt treated unfairly by the nobles. Dickens tells a story of both sides of the Revolution and emphasizes the fact that both sides endured hardships. Charles Dickens in his novel A Tale of Two Cities gets readers to sympathize with both sides of the revolution through character foils, flashbacks, and the theme of suffering by portraying both sides as victims.

2. How does Dickens indicate the severity of social conditions in both France and England?

The novel, A Tale of Two Cities, was written by Charles Dickens and was published in 1859. A Tale of Two Cities is a historical fiction based during the French Revolution. As two groups of people who both live in London and Paris find themselves in a situation that affects all of them, which ends with some deaths and suffering. Charles Dickens purpose for writing A Tale of Two Cities was to inform and amplify the readers mind on human nature. Throughout the book Charles Dickens uses many themes and characteristics, that bring out human nature in all his characters, to broaden the view of the readers.

The French Revolution was a period of far-reaching social and political change in France that lasted from 1789 to 1799. Before the revolution there was a period of time called the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment was a philosophical movement in which followers considered that human reason brought a move from theory to practice and criticism to reforming education, household administration, social reactions and politics. Voltaire, a French philosopher and contributor to the Age of Enlightenment, expressed these ideas utilizing his intelligence, wit and style to mark his name as one of France’s greatest writers. The Enlightenment influenced the French Revolution to a great extent by introducing new ideas that encouraged questioning of authority and religion, advancing people’s outlook on commodities, and forcing citizens to compare their need with the Republic’s needs. This further brought an uprising of people wanting more such as equality and civil rights. In the process to do so there were 250,000 casualties in the Reign of Terror followed the Thermidorian Reaction which implemented an oligarchy government called the Directory. Royalist riots prompted the Coup d’etat of Fructidor which brought Napoleon into Directory which he later overthrows and creates an Authoritarian Republic.

In the late eighteenth to the early nineteenth century, France was undergoing major changes. Before the French Revolution, France was experiencing political, social and economic problems. During this time period France was unstable, and wasn’t able to keep up with the new arising Enlightenment ideas. In addition, there were high taxes, unequal power distribution and social inequality. The French Revolution not only impacted the citizens of France, but people from other countries as well.

The French revolution which is also referred to as the Revolution of 1789 was a period characterized by both social and political upheaval that span close to a decade in France. It was during this period that the country’s political landscape was redesigned and it involved

Not only is the king attempting to restore wealth by solely taxing the lower class but he is also living luxuriously in his palace while years of bad harvest brings starvation to most of the country. Known as a symbol of the monarchy's dictatorial rule, the Bastille is attacked by a bellicose mob initiating the French Revolution. A few months later, a large group of women marches to Versailles, making allies with revolutionaries along the way, and together they besiege the palace. The crowd victoriously presses their demands and returns the following day to force the monarch to move to Paris. The remainder of the revolution and a couple years after, however, are politically and economically unstable. Although France does not achieve all of its goals, the war influences the development of many nations by conveying the power vested in the will of the people which is demonstrated by their

The French Revolution, from 1789-1799, was full of social turmoil. According to Robert Strayer’s textbook Ways of the World, during the American

The year 1789 was an important one for France. The American Revolution had recently ended in a victory and now the French wanted to take their stand. France had helped the Americans in their war and the ideas of democracy and liberty were in the air. Liberty is the idea of living freely within a society, being able to think, speak and act any way that you want to without being controlled by the government. Because of the French Revolution it led to the overthrow of the monarchy and the creation of a democracy. Another influential point that the Revolution made was that the French created the Constitution of 1792 which granted freedom of speech, religion, and equality before the law, and they also abolished slavery and gave legal rights to women. The French Revolution was inspired by the ideals of the American Revolution but carried the ideas one step further. The Americans spoke about liberty and equality but still kept people as slaves and did not grant rights to women, while the French did. The American Revolution was led by wealthy, educated men, but the French Revolution was led by peasants and ordinary

This is a very important passage because it establishes the theme of duality from the get-go. It was the most luxurious time for the upper class, and the worst of times for everyone else. It was the age of wise philosophy and learning, it was also the age of\ foolish policies and unnecessary suffering. This theme is further expressed in the first chapter when Dickens talks about the religious and justice systems in each country. England is fascinated by supernatural ghosts and other religious phenomenon. In France people pay attention to religion out of fear rather than actual interest. The author also compares France's harsh justice system to England's lax one. Criminals overrun England; And when the courts do serve justice they do so indiscriminately,

In A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, it uses duality throughout the story. Duality often refers to having two parts and is usually used with opposite meanings. Charles Dickens wanted us to know about duality by the very first paragraph of his novel. One of the dualities has to deal with the two cities of the title, London, England and Paris, France. Also, some of the dualities show us opposite parallels dealing with two or more people. The two emotions love and hate also have something to do with the theme. I think the use of the doubles is significant

In the sociopolitical novel, A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens analyzes the events of one of the bloodiest revolutions in history, the French Revolution, characterized by its violence after no less than 40,000 people were sentenced to death. The violence of the revolution put irreversible change into motion, helping to bring greater equality between French citizens as a result of the upheaval, and causing political changes that affected millions. Through his changing tone, Dickens conveys that rebellion is necessary to amend the ever-growing divide between the social classes, but the mindless nature of the violence, as a result of mob mentality, is excessive, and blood is unnecessarily spilled.

The French Revolution, also known as the Revolution of 1789 was a traumatic movement that had an affect on both France and the world during the late 17th and early 18th century. This Revolution lasted from 1789 until 1814, for it made a large impact on the nation that caused a turning point in the history of the world. During this time, many events occurred like the executing of KIng Louis XIV and the rule of Napoleon.

The French Revolution mainly took place in the city of Paris during the late 1700’s. The Revolution did not only affect the people of France, but also the citizens of England as well. The French Revolution is known as one of the most brutal and inhumane periods of history. If one studied the beliefs and views of the people involved at the time, one would see a reoccurring theme of “ being recalled to life”. Born from the world of literature, Charles Dickens’ novel, A Tale of Two Cities takes a deeper look at the culture of the late 1700’s, in both England and France. Dickens uses the character of Lucie Manette to further examine one of the major themes presented in the novel, consisting of the belief of one being