Tale of Two Cities: French Revolution

The initial impulse of the French revolution was destructive. For those who lived through all, or even part, of these vast upheavals, the shock was overwhelming. Maximilien Robespierre was a proud disciple of the enlightenment and declared that no political writer had foreseen this revolution. Robespierre (1758-1794) was one of the leaders of the Committee of Public Safety, the effective governing body of France during the most radical phase of the revolution. The leaders of this revolution attempted, perhaps more than any other revolutionary leaders before or since, to totally transform human society in every way. (Supreme Being) Although Robespierre began with patriotic intent he still was the face of the Reign of Terror and was viewed as being a radical person.

Individuals tend to presume that “recalled to life” could only possibly address resurrection from the dead, for they don’t realize the greater meaning of this phrase. Through deep contemplation, the true meaning of this expression can be found both physically and psychologically, as one can be resurrected in various ways besides death. This is also true in literature, such as in the novel A Tale of Two Cities. A Tale of Two Cities follows various fictional characters during the French Revolution who face tyranny as the plot progresses. Throughout the novel, many of the characters’ lives reflect upon the theme of resurrection. In the novel A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, the main theme of “recalled to life” is conveyed through Dr. Manette, Charles

Just about any country that one can name has some history of civil unrest, class issues, rioting in the streets, and outright warfare. These patterns of behavior are common denominators for most civilization in the world. The names, faces, and places may change, but the motivations are generally the same, because of the need for change and the willingness to do whatever is necessary to achieve it. In contrast to the United States, which was in the process of freeing itself from British colonial rule, France was working to free itself from royal absolutism. This period is historically known as the French Revolution. Many scholars do not agree on the chronology of the French Revolution; some scholars suggest that the Revolution took place between 1789 to 1799 while others feel that it did not end until Napoleon lost power in 1815. To better understand the history of the French Revolution it is necessary to discuss the causes, major events, significant figures, and the outcomes associated with these political developments. Without this uprising, that changed the face of the entire country and influenced local political life in many countries in Europe, in all likelihood the France we know today would never have existed.

The topic that I will be writing about is the French Revolution and how it affected France as a nation. The book that I read was "The French Revolution, A tale of Terror and Hope for Our Times", by Harold Behr. This book gave a very large and broad overview of what transpired during the French Revolution, which occurred during the years of 1789-1799. Though the book covered a lot of material that happened throughout those years, I will be covering the main topics, such as what were the events leading up to the revolution, how the revolution affected the people of France, how the revolution affected the country as a whole, how the revolution affected the world, and whether or not the revolution in the end helped or was more detrimental to the country. All of the topics will be covered from my point of view and how I interpreted the author, there is another point of views on the revolution but this will be from what I felt the book meant to me.

How can someone be “recalled to life”? It is a blazing strange statement. In Charles Dickens’ novel, A Tale of Two Cities, there are many people who are or help someone else to be recalled to life. In particular, there are three main characters that experience this. Dr. Manette, Charles Darnay, and Sydney Carton are all resurrected, as implied by the statement “recalled to life”.

Sydney Carton is this figure, once tormented and saddened by his own dreadful life, he is now able to redeem himself by taking this risk, dying for Darnay. This wouldn’t be possible without his one true motivation, his passionate appreciation and love that he has for Lucie, and because of this love, he will do anything for her, even death.People take risks to achieve certain goals, and Sydney Carton took a huge risk, pretending to be Charles Darnay and going to the guillotine in Darnay’s place to die. But Carton is able to disregard all these consequences, taking an enormous risk of death to complete a motivational task in which he envisioned to have great everlasting effects on the ones he

Sydney Carton proved that his life was purposeless since he is always drunk and lazy, but he wants to make right decisions that would help others since he doesn’t really care about himself. Sydney finally tells Lucie Manette that he loves her bye he say’s, sorrow and repentance, blight you, disgrace you, pull you down with him”. Sydney say’s that he is not worth it and it will bring her down too.“For you, and for any dear to you, I would do anything . . . I would embrace any sacrifice for you and for those dear to you” (Dickens 156). Even though Sydney is lost and hopeless, he promises Lucie that he will be ready to give his life for her happiness. Sydney Carton comes a long way where it is hard for him to find it’s true potential. Sydney’s words are so fragile but later these words help him find freedom for himself and leave a mark, so people remember him.

For my book review, I have read and evaluated Sylvia Neely’s history book entitled A Concise History of the French Revolution published in 2007 by Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. Neely’s purpose is to gives an overview of the French revolution with the most important events, the most prominent people and the essential terms. We can see that the author proved her thesis by explaining the background causes of the revolution such as the ancient regime with Louis XVI. Also she described all important events in chronological orders which made it easier for the reader to understand. Neely’s book is at the same time an history book, but also an kind of encyclopedia because she included all essentials terms which were use during that time period, such as “dérogeance”, which means the loss of nobility.

  In A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens, many characters are given second chances as their lives are resurrected. The central heroine woman, Lucy Manette, is responsible for the resurrections of Sydney Carton and Dr. Alexander Manette's lives. She gives them inspiration and love to help them recover from their seemingly hopeless states. In turn, Carton gives up his own life in order to save a friend. The lives of Sydney Carton, Dr. Manette, and Charles Darnay are all resurrected at times when hope is lost.

Throughout A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens creates several scenarios in which the main characters are called to sacrifice their personal comfort and pleasure as a means of serving the people they love. In some cases, these personal sacrifices resurrected or brought other characters in the novel back to life. Furthermore, these sacrifices signify the sacrifices all people must make to live a selfless life directed toward following God’s plan. In addition to advancing the plot, the main characters’ sacrifices improve the lives of other characters in the novel. However, in such cases, life is often traded for life as the sacrificial lamb must sacrifice his life to resurrect or save the life of another character.

The French Revolution (1789-1814) was a period that affected the outcome of world history tremendously. This is considered a major turning point in European history which has led to dramatic changes in France and other regions of the world. Various social and political issues led to the start of the revolution. Politically, France suffered under the rule of Louis XVI, who ruled by absolute monarchy. Many people had their natural rights renounced and weren’t able to have a political voice. Socially, France had divided its population within 3 estates (classes). French citizens took it upon themselves to remodel their country 's’ political structure. The French Revolution had encountered both positive and negative effects. However, many Europeans viewed the Revolution as much more than just a bloody massacre. The French Revolution was used to demonstrate new ideology that would emphasize the principles of liberty and equality throughout Europe.

Also, because Lucie believed she would see her father’s ghost rather than see him alive, she felt as if she were being recalled to life. Also during the beginning of the first book, Dickens lightly covered the theme of resurrection with Jerry Cruncher. His job as a person who dug up graves and sold the bodies to scientists granted him the label of, “Resurrection Man,” which demonstrated a direct characterization of Jerry Cruncher. He is soon given knowledge about a spy named Roger Cly after he discovers that the body was never buried at all. This could represent a literal resurrection of the spy through Cruncher’s actions and thoughts. Throughout the novel, the theme of resurrection was vastly associated with the dynamic character Sydney Carton. Towards the end of the novel, as Charles Darnay’s death sentence drew near, Carton arrived to Darnay’s prison cell and tricked him into changing clothes with him. Because of his love for Lucie and striking resemblance of Darnay, Carton makes the ultimate sacrifice. When Carton’s death occurred, those who witnessed said his death was “sublime and prophetic”

Sydney thinks, as his life is slipping away, “ The murmuring of many voices, the upturning of many faces, the pressing on of many footsteps in the outskirts of the crowd, so that it swells forward in a mass, like one great heave of water, all flashes away. Twenty-Three” (320). As Sydney Carton's life fades away, his life purpose comes together. He has always thought of himself as a drunk that no one could ever love, but he now knows Lucie will love him, because he gave her Charles Darnay. Sydney describes switching clothes with charles, “There was a hurry, too, in all his thoughts, a turbulent and heated working of his heart, that contended against resignation. If, for a moment, he did feel resigned, then his wife and child who had to live after him, seemed to protest and to make it a selfish thing” (297). For Carton this decision was one of the easiest decisions of his life; for Lucie, his love, he would give her Charles, whom is Lucie's love. This seems to be one of the bravest things done, although for Carton it was a duty. Carton describes what he thought, “ The spare hand does not tremble as he releases it; nothing worse than a sweet, bright constancy is in the patient face” (320). Carton values respect, though he never got it, he values loyalty, though he never received it, he values Lucie, though he gave her away. He values multiple things, but by

Liberté, égalité, fraternité was the cry of freedom that countless people used to propel them through, and to the end of the French Revolution. This long period of social, political and economic change in France lasted 10 years, starting in 1798 and ended with Napoleon Bonaparte. The French Revolution greatly affected all of Europe at the time and continues to represent the embodiment of revolution to this day. This constant struggle between the heavily taxed, burdened, and unrepresented third estate and those higher created an environment of monumental change for everyone. In the years leading up to the French Revolution, new beliefs and ideas were reaching every corner of Europe creating the thought that men should live free of oppression. However, in France the leader Louis XVI lead like a tyrant leaving the people impoverish and angry. Through the analysation of numerous circumstance present during the Ancien Régime, such as an inferior fiscal leadership, massive debt, and the forthcoming of new ideas during the Enlightened period, it can be concluded that the means for this revolution were justified as it is in our essence to revolt for a change.

Revolutions are a common occurrence throughout world history. With the amount of revolutions in history, there are those that get lost and those that are the most remembered or well known. One of the well known revolutions is the French Revolution which occurred in the years 1789 to 1799. Before the French Revolution, France was ruled by an absolute monarchy, this meaning that one ruler had the supreme authority and that said authority was not restricted by any written laws, legislature, or customs, a definition given by wikipedia.com and the feudal system, which was a system that said a peasant or worker would receive a piece of land in return for serving under a king, a definition given by vocabulary.com. Those who opposed the, then