In chapter seven, Dickens introduces the character Monseigneur at his reception. The author’s description of the Lord, his house, and those attending his reception show the extreme differences between aristocracy and peasant life in France as well as the aristocratic hypocrisy. With a sarcastic tone, Dickens ensures the reader that this spoiled Lord would have died if less than four servants fed him his chocolate, when the poor in France are dying of famine. The Monseigneur also is too conceited to waste his time with his guests, only passing through the party quickly then “[getting] himself shut up in his sanctuary by the chocolate spites, and [is] seen no more” (7, 114). One lower lord at his party seems to be distraught over this behavior and upon leaving curses the Monseigneur to the Devil. The hypocritical guest, later identified as Monsieur the Marquis, then returns to his own village with the same attitude toward those lower than himself. The Marquis’s snobbish behavior could be categorized as worse than his Lord’s as he carelessly “threw out a gold coin” toward the father of the child he kills with his carriage. He is indifferent of the father’s condition and believes he “had accidentally broken some common thing, and had paid for it, and could afford to pay for it…” (7, 117). Dickens uses this irony to illuminate the hypocrisy and selfishness of the aristocracy during this time period. I thought I knew what negligence of leaders was before I read this section but was enlightened to a whole new level of sick neglect that the Lords in France paid to their subjects.
Everybody loves Lucie. At this point, there doesn't seem to be a single person with any bad opinion of the lovely Miss Manette. Even Mr.Carton, who denies her beauty, later admits his love of her, to the extent even of "(giving) his life, to keep a life (she) loves beside her."(13,159)In chapters 10 and 11, we learn of Charles Darnay and Mr.Stryver's admiration for Lucie.In chapter 16, we learn that Lucie is to marry Mr.Darnay. Mr.Darnay is probably viewed as the favorite of all readers compared to Mr.Stryver, whose cockiness is repulsive. His use of legal terms on page 147 and his assuredness of his 'case' with Lucie suggests that he does not really care for her at all. Mr.Darnay however goes directly to Dr.Manette to ask for his good word should Lucie decide that "(he) is essential to her perfect happiness."(10,141) Lucie's happiness is, of course,all that matters to her father. Since their reunion, the relationship between the Doctor and Miss Manette has been caring and gentle to the point of inspiration. Miss Manette is the thread that connects the many individual characters in this story and it will be interesting to see how she plays a part in the story as the revolution dawns.
In chapter fifteen, we are introduced to the 5 Jacques. We know that Jacques Four is Monsieur Defarge and Jacques Five is the “mender of the roads.” However, the other three Jacques remain nameless and faceless and we are only given certain characteristics. Jacques three is very interesting to me. He seems like he is the quietest but the most dangerous. His hunger for death completely consumes his thoughts: “the kneeling Number Three: his fingers ever wandering over and over those fine nerves with a strikingly greedy air, as if he hungered for something- that was neither for food nor drink” (15, 153). He later “gnawed one of his fingers… and his finger quivered with the craving that was on him” (15, 155). Dickens blatantly states that his hunger is not concrete but lets the reader make his own conclusions as to what he is hungering for, and since it is during the revolution, the conclusion is that of death. The fact that he is Jacques number three represents something as well. We know that the three social classes during this time are as follows: the royalty, the nobles, and the commoners; the commoners being the third class. The “man with the craving” represents the whole commoner class and their hunger for death of the royalty and nobility.
In Chapter 14, Dickens focuses on Jerry Cruncher and his secret. Dickens depicts Jerry Cruncher, through the eyes of his son, as a Jesus figure. Even though what Jerry Cruncher is doing is looked down upon and is actually criminal, to young Jerry his father is his "honored parent". While little Jerry is following his father on the way to dig up Roger Cly, his father is joined by two companions. The first one who joins him is described as a "disciple" and the second is called a "fisherman" (Part 2 Ch 14). which is a direct reference to the Bible. It's just like in Matthew 4:19 "'Come follow me,' Jesus said, 'and I will make you fishers of men'". He gathers his disciples and goes to resurrect a dead body. Young Jerry saw a ghost and subsequently ran from the church courtyard, but the next day when there was no fish for breakfast, he shows even more admiration for his father. "Oh father, I should so like to be a Resurrection-Man when I'm quite growed up." (Part 2, Ch 14). In young Jerry's eyes his father is like Jesus, someone who dug up bodies, not only to sell them to science, but to also resurrect them.
Even though his son sees him as a religious figure, he himself cannot stand the idea of religion. For this reason he especially cannot stand his wife. When we first encounter her she doesn't even have a name. He calls her "Aggerawayter" (Part 2, Ch 1) which sounds a lot like 'aggravator'. He hates the idea of his wife praying and says she's like the devil. This is really ironic because his son believes him to be a Christ figure and his wife always prays for him but he himself is paranoid and absolutely hates religion. He gets so upset to the point that he physically harms his wife. He beats her head against a headboard while saying "If you are a religious woman, give me an irreligious one! You have no nat'ral sense of duty than the bed of this here Thames river has of a pile, and similarly it must be knocked into you" (Part 2, Ch 14). Although we don’t know why he has this religious affliction, it's highly ironic that his family has such strong religious feelings all aimed towards him.
Madame Defarge is a mystery in a Tale of Two Cities, and her hobby of knitting adds to the inscrutability of her character. Throughout Book 2 Chapters 13-16, we see her knitting at key moments in the book, as a way to “capture the moments in yarn.” Knitting is the needlework created by interlacing yarn in a series of connected loops, and in a Tall of Two Cities Madame Defarge is the string that connects all the characters. She not only knits important events occurring around her, but also keeps a continuing list of people she encounters. When Barsard enters into her memory and begins to spit out his physically details, she states, “I shall knit Barsard” before you go (188). These incidents show her necessity for memorizing the details of everyone who crosses her path. Also in Chapter 15, titled “Knitting”, Madame Defarge sits quietly in the corner of the wine shop, knitting, and watching as the three Jacques entered the shop. “Knitted in her own stitches and her own symbols, it will always be as plain to her as a sun” (179). Her memory extends beyond knowing the person, for she knows every event that has ever occurred in their life. She “who had taken up her knitting and was at work” was observing, however saying nothing (173). This image of Madame Defarge quietly observing is an example of foreshadowing. The peasants in the French society sat back and watched but eventually overthrew the government to take control. They took note of the unreasonable conditions they were living in and eventually took action. So far, Madame Defarge hasn’t overthrown or conquered her “knitted” victims, but I feel that it is soon to come. “ So much was closing in about the women who sat knitting, knitting, that they their very selves were closing in around a structure yet unbuilt, where they were to sit knitting, knitting, counting dropping heads”(194). This sentence foreshadows the dropping heads cut off during the French Revolution by the guillotine, or “structure yet unbuilt” (194). These women knitting were witnesses to the chaos during the French Revolution.
Madame Defarge’s knitting can also be compared to the fates from Greek Mythology. “ It would be easier for the weakest poltroon that lives, to erase himself from existence, than to erase one letter of his name or crimes from the knitted register of Madame Defarge” (179). In mythology, Clotho, spends the thread of life; Lachesis, spreads the yarn out; and Atropos, cuts the last part. Madame is a combination of all three, although we have yet to see her “cut” the yarn. These three fates could alter the destiny, both through good and evil, by a jolt in their yarn pattern. With one cut, they could end the life of a person, and this is where I believe Madame Defarge is different. Although she still lays out the “plan” of each person’s life, I don’t believe her knitting controls the death of that person. The fate of many characters lies in the webbing of Mrs. Defarge’s knitting.
In Chapter 9, Dickens uses discreet symbolism in order to foreshadow the events to come. At the end of chapter 8, a woman approaches the Marquis and begs him to provide her with one stone to mark her husbands grave. Monsieur the Marquis coldly denies her request and retires to his castle made completely out of stone. "It was a heavy mass of building, that chateau of Monsieur the Marquis, with a large stone court-yard before it, and two stone sweeps of staircase meeting in a stone terrace before the principal door. A stony business altogether with heavy stone balustrades . . . and stone faces of men, and stone heads of lions, in all directions." (page 123) The fact that the Marquis denied the woman of her one request shows his greedy and arrogant nature and he has an abundance of the one thing she requests. The repetition of stone symbolizes the hardness of his heart and soul and gives a representation of the kind of man he is. It conveys that the Marquis consists of the same thing his château does; stone.
The fact that some of his castle consists of "stone faces of men, and stone heads of lions." (page 123) also foreshadows the death of the Marquis. Since the Marquis has a soul of stone and is one and the same as his building, the stone faces of man on his castle suggest that he will soon join them, and sure enough at the end of the chapter, another head has been added to the statue. "And added the one stone face wanting; the stone face for which it had waited about two hundred years" (page 134) It is as if the building had been waiting for it's master to return to it. This is the head of the Marquis which is described as "a fine mask, suddenly startled, made angry, and petrified." (page 134) The meaning of petrified is literally "wood turned into stone". Thus symbolizing that the Marquis has become part of his castle, and become what he initially consists of. The fact that he was turned into stone by a French revolutionist, Jacques, foreshadows the overthrowing of the oppressive french government which is to come.
As an Englishman Charles Dickens is biased. It is automatically easier for him to ridicule the outlandish ways of the French noblemen in Chapter 7 because he is of an opposing nationality. The irony, mimicry, and satire found in the beginning of the chapter are threaded within Chapters 8 and 9 as well. Dickens paints the Monseigneur to be arrogant and contradictory to his title. “His morning chocolate could not so much as get into [his] throat…without the aid of four strong men” (Ch. 7, 108) and he “had bestowed her [his sister] as a prize upon a very rich Farmer-General” (Ch. 7, 109) as a way to avoid taxes. The Marquis, in Chapters 7 and 8, runs over a little boy and denies the needs and wishes of the people in his town. This is Dickens way of continuing his illustration of the arrogance and ludicrous actions of the leaders of France during the time.
“Monseigneur could swallow a great many things with ease, and was by some few sullen minds supposed to be rather rapidly swallowing France” (Ch. 7, 108) This sentence is referring to the revolutionists idea of France. As I stated in my previous paragraph, the nobles of France are being depicted as controlling and arrogant. The “sullen minds” are the revolutionists and the peasants that are being affected by the ridiculous control of the Monseigneur. They are afraid that Monseigneur is “swallowing” France and further ruining the social and political aspect of the country. This sentence stood out to me as a hint to the French Revolution and as a comprehension to the views of the revolutionists.
In Book Two we begin to learn more about Madame Defarge and her role in The French Revolution. Without her encouragement and restraint the portion of the Revolution that she is participating in would not be able to occur. I believe that she is the actual brains behind The Revolution, planning everything carefully and allowing the men to act as mediators. Throughout the book, she has been secretly knitting peoples’ names into her shrouds using symbols that only she can understand: “if madame my wife undertook to keep the register in her memory alone, she would not lose a word of it – not a syllable of it. Knitted, in her own stitches and her own symbols, it will always be plain to her as the sun” (15, 179). By controlling the knitting, she controls who goes into the registry and the opinions of the other Jacques about the men in the registry: “deftly knitting an extra something into his name that boded him no good” (16, 188). When Mr. Defarge or other Jacques become restless and hungry for action, Madame Defarge keeps them patient using thoughtful and intelligent responses: “how long does it take to make and store the lighting? Tell me…. But when it is ready, it takes place, and grinds to pieces everything before it. In the mean time, it is always preparing, though it is not seen or heard. That is your consolation. Keep it” (16, 185).
Even Mr. Defarge, her own husband, acts like she is the one in charge, allowing her to work alone and sufficiently: “all this while, Defarge, with his pipe in his mouth, walked up and down, complacently admiring but never interfering; in which condition, indeed, as to the business and his domestic affairs, he walked up and down through life” (16, 184). While Madame Defarge works on the plans of The Revolution, Mr. Defarge acts solely as a mediator between Jacques. When Barsad enters into the wine-shop while trying to get information, Madame Defarge demonstrates her control by covertly telling everyone to leave by using a rose: “the moment Madame Defarge took up the rose, the customers ceased talking, and began gradually to drop out of the wine-shop” (16, 187). She also tells Mr. Defarge what to say and how to say it: “in an accidental touch of his wife’s elbow s she knitted and warbled, that he would do best to answer, but always with brevity” (16, 190). While Madame Defarge is steadfast when talking to Barsad, Mr. Defarge lacks confidence and allows Barsad to make “one hit.” Unlike Mr. Defarge, she knows what she is doing and handles it with poise and still manages to scheme and come up with a plan to successfully destroy the monarchy.
I believe that the plan Madame Defarge is creating will eventually lead to the death of many nobles as symbolized by the flies in chapter 16. As she is sitting in the wine-shop before Barsad comes, the flies surround her and suddenly drop dead: “heaps of flies, who were extending their inquisitive and adventurous perquisitions into all the glutinous little glasses near madame, fell dead at the bottom…. Curious to consider how heedless flies are! – perhaps they thought as much at Court that sunny summer day” (16, 186). Because they all fall and die while surrounding Madame Defarge, it portrays her as a giant in comparison to them and also as the killer. Since she is a woman, she most likely will not be participating in the killing and therefore she can be viewed as the master planer of the deaths. This again relates to the many references to the Fates. Madame Defarge controls everything from the opinions of people to the decision between who lives and who dies.
While reading chapter fourteen, irony was the main aspect that caught my attention. There are several examples of irony, but the main one is the title of the chapter. The title,"The Honest Tradesman", screams irony. While reading this chapter, we discover that Jerry Cruncher is the "honest tradesman". We learn that he is a Resurrection-Man. A Resurrection-Man is a person who digs up newly buried bodies, and sells them to doctors. How is this trade honest? Digging up someone's grave is immoral, and wrong. There is no way this trade is honest, which makes it ironic. Another example of irony is the reactions of the people during the funeral. When someone dies, people are mournful and they show respect to the deceased. However, the complete opposite takes place in this situation. At the funeral, a mob is wrecking the procession. A mourner ran away from the funeral, leaving his belongings behind. "These, the people tore to pieces and scattered far and wide with great enjoyment." (chapter 14, 162) At the last funeral I attended, I am sure there wasn't a mob who celebrated the deceased by destroying people's property and harrassing innocent bystanders. As you can see, irony is displayed in this situation. Futhermore, another ironic passage in this chapter is the mention of the deceased. The deceased man was Robert Cly, and he died because he was a spy. This is extremely ironic because, Robert Cly accused Darnay of being a spy more than a year ago. In actuality, Cly was the spy. I believe all the irony not only makes the book more interesting, but also shows how twisted and messed up these people really are.
The prospect of death has been especially present throughout book two and has started to become a more imminent creature as the novel has progressed. All throughout chapter 14, the honest tradesman, the theme of death can be felt in almost every line. Young Cruncher has the dream “that the coffin he had seen was running after him,” and “hid in doorways too, rubbing its horrible shoulders against doors “(14, 146). He can’t seem to escape death, no matter how fast he runs, and even when he thinks he has escaped that feeling, his father’s “rusty hands” remind him (14, 147). Dickens uses young Cruncher’s constant fear of death to portray what everyone else felt around that time-that death is a shadow beginning to overwhelm them. The “women who sat knitting, knitting, as darkness encompassed them” ends chapter 16 with a feeling of death (16, 168). They sit, “counting heads drop,” as one by one, France’s commoners are slowly being executed (16, 168). The knitters knit names of the people they’d like to see dead in their work, again pertaining to the theme of death. Mrs. Defarge even thinks to herself “[he should] stay long enough, and [she] shall knit ‘Barsad’ before [he] goes,” wanting to add him to her list (16, 164). The work they knit can be seen as a symbol of oncoming death, a sign of what will come. Dickens uses the theme of death progressively as the novel goes on, symbolizing the increasing number of deaths and violence in France that will only get worse as the Revolution begins. Death becomes an ominous shadow that hides in the pages of A Tale of Two Cities, just as it hides in the minds of the peasants and revolutionaries of the 1770’s.
In Book Two, chapters twelve and thirteen, Dickens's characterization of Mr. Stryver and Mr. Carton centered around the idea of "delicacy" is ironic, as the reader is able to see that these two chapter titles are not accurate. Through this irony, more insight is seen into who these two men actually are. Chapter twelve titled "The Fellow of Delicacy" is a laugh in itself. This is the chapter in which Mr. Stryver "having made up his mind to that magnanimous bestowal of good fortune on the doctor's daughter" goes to Mr. Lorry to tell him of this decision (12, 147). Mr. Stryver had come "to the conclusion" that this proposal "was a plain case" and "as to the strength of his case, he had not a doubt about it" because he "clearly saw his way to the verdict" (12, 147). The repetition of terms centered around his work in the law such as "case" and "verdict" emphasize his lack of compassion and interest in Lucie, and when speaking of her he says that she is "no plainer case [that] could be" (12, 147). It is ironic that his work is so prevalent in his discussions because as we know from Book the Second, chapter five "The Jackal," in reality, Mr. Stryver does not care about his work, as Mr. Carton "renders service to Stryver" doing everything for him (5, 90). In the discussion between Mr. Lorry and Mr. Stryver , Stryver's inability to be sensitive or act at all emotionally attached towards Miss Manette further display the irony of the inappropriate chapter title, as this man is quite the opposite of a "fellow of delicacy".
Chapter thirteen, "The Fellow of No Delicacy" is a continuation of the irony created by Dickens, giving us a clearer image of the true Mr. Carton. In this chapter, Mr. Carton goes to visit Lucie and though "she had never been quite at ease with him" "she observed a change in [him] (13, 155). The two start off their conversation discussing the life that Mr. Carton leads, and how it "is not conducive to health," causing Lucie to look "gently at him" and "she was surprised and saddened to see that there were tears in his eyes" (13, 155-156). Mr. Stryver had broken down by this point, and Lucie "had never seen him softened, and was much distressed" (13, 156). This is the first time that we know of for Mr. Carton to appear vulnerable in front of others. Through his tears, he tells Lucie that "if it had been possible, that [she] could have returned the love of the man [she] see[s] before [her]" "he would have been conscious this day and hour, in spite of his happiness, that he would bring [her] to misery" (13, 156). This helpless yet caring and sensitive side of Mr. Carton is new to both Lucie and the reader. The irony in this is that the new side of Mr. Carton's is not a match with the title "The Fellow of No Delicacy" because unlike Mr. Stryver, Mr. Carton showed great sensitivity in his feelings towards Lucie, giving us new insight into his true character.
Throughout A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens uses the literal descriptions of characters to portray their true personalities. On page 148, Stryver is described as seeming to be “too big for any place, or space.” Stryver literally has to push everyone around because he is so big, just like he shoulders his way up in life in order to reach the top. Like Raegan said, Stryver’s cockiness is repulsive. Stryver’s large size resembles his overconfident personality. Also, the name “Stryver” sounds like the word “strive.” I think that Dickens is saying that Stryver really strives in life to get what he wants.
The young Jerry Cruncher notices his father’s rusty fingers and muddy boots in previous chapters. In chapter 14, we find out that the rust and mud comes Mr. Cruncher’s “fishing trips.” Since rust is the same color as blood, could Dickens be saying that Mr. Cruncher is out for violence and blood? This might be foreshadowing violent crimes committed by Jerry later on in the book. Jerry definitely seems comfortable and even excited about joining the mob at the spy’s funeral. Mr. Cruncher commits a horrible crime when he digs up coffins from the cemetery. Could his muddy boots resemble his “dirty” conscience or his “stained” reputation?
There is a significant progression of the action of flies from when we first see them, until Chapter 16 of Book Two. Just like the people of the Revolution, the flies start out thriving, but they end up dead. The motif of the flies first occurs in Book Two, Chapter 3. In this chapter, the flies are very active. “When the Attorney- General ceased, a buzz arose in the court as if a cloud of great blue-flies were swarming about the prisoner, in anticipation of what he was soon to become” (Ch.3, 69). Here, the “flies” or the court spectators are thriving because of Darnay’s punishment they will witness. There is much anticipation here, which hints the anticipation of the French Revolution.
The last place where we see the flies so far is in the wine-shop in Chapter 16 of Book Two. “The day was very hot, and heaps of flies, who were extending their inquisitive and adventurous perquisitions into all the glutinous little glasses near madame, fell dead at the bottom. Their decease made no impression on the other flies out promenading, who looked at them in the coolest manner (as if they themselves were elephants, or something as far removed), until they met the same fate” (Ch. 16, 186). The flies are no longer thriving, they are dying. This hints that the French Revolution is almost here because of all the dying. “Their decease made no impression on the other flies out promenading,” shows that when the people of the Revolution start dying, the other people will take no interest; they will keep to their own business. Also, I think it is peculiar that the flies die both in the wine-shop which resembles blood and they die near Madame Defarge. She holds the fate of the people and of the French Revolution.
Gaspard is portrayed as an antithesis of Christ by the mender of the roads. He describes the soldiers escorting Gaspard to the prison with dust surrounding them: “Also, I see that they are covered with dust, and that the dust moves with them as they come, tramp, tramp!” (16, 175). The dust that moves along with them makes them glow in the darkness, but instead of a hallowed light, the glow is made by dirt. They shine from their sins. Like Christ, he is led by soldiers up a hill and he falls: “As they descend the hill like madmen running a race, he falls. They laugh and pick him up again,” (16, 175). All of his friends and neighbors turn their back on him as soon as he is held as a prisoner just as Christ’s apostles denied knowing him: “They bring him into the village, all the village runs to look,” (16, 175). He is ridiculed in his lowest state when he can’t defend himself: “His arms are swelled because of being bound so tight, his wooden shoes are large and clumsy, and he is lame,” (16, 175). Although Gaspard’s journey to his death has similarities to the Stations of the Cross, Dickens’s purpose to relate the two is to foreshadow that death will come instead of salvation.
Gaspard is executed on a gallows that is right above the fountain: “Workmen dig, workmen hammer, soldiers laugh and sing; in the morning, by the fountain, there is raised a gallows forty feet high, poisoning the water,” (16, 177). Foreshadowing is expressed by the gallows “poisoning the water” because most Parisians source of water during the French Revolution was the fountain. Gaspard’s death will lead to the death of many. His death “poisoning the water” is paralleled to the cleansing and saving waters of religion that cleans humans of their original sin in Baptism. His deathis the harbinger of the persecution of other revolutionaries like him as after Christ’s death, Christians were persecuted. Through Gaspard’s death, Dickens also alludes to his earlier idea that “Death is Nature’s remedy for all things,” (1, 56) when he states that the only escape is through death: “all the village dreams of that unhappy one, within the lock bars of the prison on the crag, and never to come out of it, except to perish,” (16, 175). Although Gaspard isn’t Christ in that Christ brings salvation and eternal life, Gaspard does save humans from their world of chaos and disaster through an escape from life: death.
Throughout the novel, foreshadowing has been a common element used by Dickens to create suspense and hint at events to come. His usage of foreshadowing often pertains to death, as it did when speaking of the spilled wine in Book One and the blood red fountain in Book Two. After reading Chapter 13, The Fellow of No Delicacy, I couldn’t help but notice the constant theme of death, which leads me to believe Dickens is using foreshadowing to prepare the reader for a tragic event to come.
As we know, Chapter 13 is the chapter in which Carton, the "man of no delicacy," professes his love to Lucie. In doing so, he words his sentences in such a way that suggests his death is near. "The cloud of caring for nothing, which overshadowed him with such a fatal darkness, was very rarely pierced by the light within him." (13, 155) He later goes on to say, "I am like one who died young," also implying a young death. (13, 156) Though his words are romantic and kind, he has discreet tones of death which may or may not foreshadow a lifeless Carton.
Whom will Lucie choose: Darnay or Carton? The love triangle between Lucie, Darnay, and Carton becomes more intertwined as the novel deepens. In Chapter 10, “Two Promises”, Charles Darnay goes to Dr. Manette and admits his love for his daughter Lucie. “[Darnay] had loved Lucie Manette from the hour of his danger” (ch. 10, 135). “Dear Dr. Manette, I love your daughter fondly, dearly, disinterestedly, devotedly. If ever there were love in the world, I love her” (ch. 10, 137). But, this declaration, while very open, seems to be too direct and well, plain boring. The alliteration of “dearly, disinterestedly, devotedly” highlights the monotonous tone of his proclamation, making it as if he s reading from a script. Seeming like a parody to romantic love poetry, Darnay expresses his love as something deep within, but does so with the most mundane possible phrasing, making his words seem uninteresting and not from the heart. On the other hand, Carton’s words convey deep emotional struggles and feelings, suggesting the existence of passion more complex than that of Darnay’s. He declares to Lucie “I wish you to know that you have been the last dream of my soul… I have had unformed ideas of striving afresh, beginning anew, shaking off sloth and sensuality, and fighting out the abandoned fight…I have known myself to be quite undeserving. And yet I have had the weakness, and have still the weakness, to wish you to know with what a sudden mastery you kindled me, heap of ashes that I am, into fire -- a fire, however, inseparable in its nature from myself, quickening nothing, lighting nothing, doing no service, idly burning away” (ch. 13, 157). His words, being poured out from his heart, highlight the true feelings that he has for Lucie, and is amplified because he spoke them directly to her. Some may say that he is a fool for telling his feelings to her directly without any warning, but the fact that he came right out and said it speaks for itself to the fact that he truly does love Lucie. Also, this point in the book could be the changing point in Mr. Carton. Because of his declaration of love, and the fact that “for Lucie], and for any dear to [Lucie], [he] would do anything” (ch. 13, 159), this could be the beginning of Mr. Carton sobering up in order to please the woman he so helplessly loves.
From the very beginning, Dickens makes it explicitly clear what wine symbolizes: blood. In Chapter five of Book the First, the scene of the spilt wine, the descriptions of the greedy wine-stained people clearly portray blood. The word is even written with the wine on the wall. Because of this, it is extremely intriguing to me how Dickens equates the current conditions of the period to the conditions of the wine. “Monsieur Defarge sold a very thin wine at the best of times, but it would seem to have been an unusually thin wine that he sold at this time” (15, 171). This eludes back to the famous introduction of the book, “it was the best of times, it was the worst of times,...” (1, 5). Dickens is identifying the best of times with the best (thinnest) wine, and the wine “would seem to have been an unusually thin wine that he sold at this time” (15, 171). The conditions of the wine are being compared to the conditions France and England. The times are not the best, which is why it is “unusual” that Monsieur Defarge is selling the best wine. If wine symbolizes blood and Dickens is comparing the conditions of the people to the wine, I don’t think it is an overstretch to say that the more wine the people drink, the sooner we are approaching the revolution and the bloodshed.
In Chapter 15, Dickens describes the increasing frequency of drinking. Like Lia said in an earlier blog post, the people begin to drink more and more often as the book progresses. In Chapter 5 of Book the Second, Dickens describes “those days,” meaning the conditions of the period, as “drinking days.” He goes on to say, “most men drank hard.” Drinking and wine are almost as commonly appearing as death and shadows. Also in Chapter 15, “there had been earlier drinking than usual.” At this point, the people are beginning to drink as early as six in the morning. Dickens describes the people peeping through the window, waiting for the wine, as sallow and greedy. They need their wine.
If these people are so desperate to drink they are waiting at the window for the wine-shop to open, they must like the effect of the wine, right? The passage goes on, “A sour wine, moreover, or a souring, for its influence on the mood of those who drank it was to make them gloomy” (15, 171). If the wine makes them gloomy then why do they continue to drink so much? They can’t stop. At this point, the revolution is inevitable.
In these chapters, a main point is Lucie and her three suitors. Three different suitors tell three different people and have three different approaches. Amidst the treason, impending Revolution and death, and the grave robbery, Lucie remains beloved with an unshakable love for her father.
Two suitors – Charles Darnay and Sydney Carton – acknowledge the love between Lucie and Dr. Manette and are encouraged in their suit. “’When the little picture of a happy father’s face looks up in yours...think now and then that there is a man who would give his life, to keep a life you love beside you‘” (153). Carton vows to do whatever Lucie asks and help her however she can if she’s in trouble. He knows she doesn’t love him and probably never realized he felt anything for her, but he wanted her to know how he felt so she could have someone to turn to in times of need. Mr. Darnay talked to Dr. Manette and asked for help in his suit if Lucie ever showed an inclination for him over someone else. He also promises to do whatever he can if Lucie ever needs help and makes an additional promise to never take Lucie away from her father and to come between anyone who tries to separate them. “’I well understand that, without you, I could have no hope…I could retain no place in [her heart] against her love for her father’” (135).
Mr. Stryver, on the other hand – as Emma and Nicole both noted – is a much harsher character. He turns to Mr. Lorry for advice and is the only one of the three hopeful suitors who is advised against pursuing Lucie. He’s also the only one of the three men who doesn’t mention Dr. Manette and seems to be slighting her and her social position at every turn, even when apparently trying to compliment her. “’I don’t care about fortune…She will have in me a man already pretty well off…It is a piece of good fortune for her, but she is worthy of good fortune’” (140). He wants to marry her because he thinks she will make him look good and not embarrass him, but expects her to stay a pretty face on his arm and since he is well-off agree to marry him without a second thought.
In Chapter 10,"Two Promises," Charles Darnay talks to Lucie's father, Monsieur Manette. Mr. Darnay confesses his love for Manette's daughter when he says, "I love her. Heaven is my witness that I love her!" and he asks for Manette's promise to "think so well of [him], as to urge no influence against [him]." (10, 141) Mr. Manette expresses his feelings for his daughter: "She is everything to me; more to me than suffering, more to me than wrong, more to me." (10, 141) This is implying the Lucie means more to him than anything else in the world and that she is his reason for being alive.
Monsieur Manette says Lucie means more to him than suffering and wrong. This is perhaps the life that he had while in prison. Similar to Mr. Manette, Charles Darnay had spent a great time dealing with suffering and wrong. Dickens is trying to say that once her father had been through the pain and suffering, she was the only reason for him to live. Similarly, Darnay had suffered and feels that his only reason for living is through loving Lucie. Therefore, when Mr. Manette passes on, Darnay will feel even stronger for Miss Lucie Manette because she will feel pain and he will be able to relate. He will eventually get to the point where the only reason he continues to live is to love her. Dickens is trying to express that the life in prison at that time was full of torture. He is implying that it is so bad that people will feel they have no reason to live unless they have the love of a woman who possesses "The Golden Thread," or something of that high standard, like Lucie does. Like Reagan said, Everybody loves Lucie, and she represents the ideal love that a person who has suffered looks for.
A major symbol of wealth is the size and manner of a house. Monsieur the Marquis lives in not just a house, but a château; “a heavy mass of a building.” The entire building is made of stone “as if the Gorgon’s head had surveyed it. (Ch. 9, 123) It is lavishly decorated with grim stone faces and stone flowers. There is no movement and no joy, reflecting the attitude of the Marquis towards his suffering people: cold, distant, pitiless. Yet, in this house the first ripple of the “triumph” that Defrages speak of takes place, disturbing his refuge and penetrating his comfortable sanctuary. A blood-colored sunset sets the scene with pathetic fallacy as the Marquis dies at the hand of Gaspard. The fountain has turned to blood; a source of life now is plagued with death. Yet through this “one little bird sang its sweetest song.” (Ch.9 132) There is still hope for the Revolution. The château is referenced once again in Chapter 16. The stone faces change from “faces of pride to faces of anger and pain.” (Ch 16 182) This house personifies the impending emotion that the affluent society will feel after their king is dethroned following the rising action of the Revolution. But in the next paragraph Dickens reminds us that each human is responsible for his own mistakes, in “every thought and act” in “greatness and littleness.” (Ch 16, 183) Yes, the Marquis was wrong, but was Gaspard right to kill the Marquis? Was Gaspard just setting right the wrong of the slaughter of his son? The bloodshed of the Marquis, “the red stain on the stone floor,” may have changed everything. (Ch 16 183) This one action might be the first fall of in the domino effect that united the peasants of France in their revolt. The change is shown in appearance of the château. Things are waking up and seeing what is happening. Unfortunately, times have become so rough and intolerable that they must now suffer the consequences of their own cruel actions.
Like Sydney, I have noticed Madame Darnay's excessive knitting in chapters fourteen and fifteen of book two. However, I believe that this hobby shows her incredible wisdom. She picks out patterns and knits what she sees and hears and even what is "inaudible or invisible."(book 2, 15, 172) In chapter 15, madame knits throughout the visit of the King and Queen. She then confronts the mender of the road telling him,"You have seen both dolls and birds today."(book 2,15,182) Meaning, with rest perspicacity, that he had seen the rich and finest dolls or birds that they must pluck.
In chapter sixteen, The reader is shown Madame Defarge's true intelligence while she is talking to her husband. While he admires her and talks of the revolution, she begins to place their money into her handkerchief for safekeeping. With every knot, it is like she is ending someone's life. She ties, " a knot with flashing eyes, as if it throttled a foe," while she is telling her husband that he needs to slow down. (Book 2, 16, 185) Like Brighton, I believe that madame is the "brains behind The Revolution." When Defarge tells her how long it takes for lighting to strike a man down, she wisely retorts, "How long does it tar to make and store the lightning?"(Book 2,16, 185) She continues to teach Defarge as she kills off more enemies' knot by knot. "There Madame, with her teeth set, tied a very Terrible knot indeed." (book 2,16,186) One can only wonder who she decided to kill. In this way she is fry much like the mythological "fates." Furthermore, I believe that, because Madame Defarge knits everything and everyone she meets, she is able to understand what will happen in the future. This is shown when she is talking with Barsad in chapter 16. As she talks with him, she begins to knit his name. However, as they talk longer she realizes something interesting and possibly deceitful that the reader does not yet understand. For that reason, Madame deftly knits," an extra something into his name that bided hum no good. When Barsad tells Madame and Monsieur Defarge of the marriage between Miss Manette and Mr Charles Darnay, Defarge reacts dramatically hoping that Darnay will stay out of France. His wife merely replies, "Her husbands destiny will take him where he is go go, and will lead him to the end that is to end him. That is all I know" This suggests that Madame Defarge is aware of something that both the reader and Defarge know not. It also refers her to a Greek Fate once more. For if she is like one of the fates, then it will be her decision to decide when Charles Darnay is to meet his end.
In the last blog I brought up the point that in a Tale of Two Cities, Dickens is relating certain characters to Hope, Time, Fate, and Death. His capitalization of these words in chapters one through six made them stand out. Even though he does not use these words in chapters ten through sixteen, the text supports this idea. I still believe that Lucie represents hope in the book. Before, she was hope for her father because she was the only person that could make him happy and it was said she “recalled him to life.” In chapter thirteen she becomes hope for Sydney Carton as well. While Carton is at the Manette’s he is depressed. Lucie asks him “Without it, can I not save you, Mr Carton? Can I not real you -- forgive me again! -- to a better course?” (156) So right now Lucie is a definite symbol of hope in the lives of her father and Carton. The idea that Doctor Manette represents time was brought forth by his imprisonment. After being locked away for eighteen years, he of all people must know how valuable time is. In these chapters, not much is said about Doctor Manette. I think Doctor Manette will be brought back in to the story in the next chapters and more textual support will be given that he represents time especially when the relationship between Darnay and Lucie grows. In Greek mythology the fates control everyones life by the threads they weave. The title of book two is The Golden Thread. Sure enough, we are seeing threads in book too, especially with Madame Defarge who is always knitting. She represents fate. Earlier in the book, I stated that Madame Defarge was going to be a representation of the French people and how they feel about the revolution. This may not be completely wrong, but it is not correct. After finishing chapter sixteen, it seems like Madame Defarge is going to be more involved in the start of the revolution. I doubt she will be running through the streets screaming, but her knitting the names of people the revolutionaries do not like into a registry shows her assisting them. This brings up the point that her knitting their names is like her holding the fate of those people in her hands. Nothing happens in the wine shop that she does not control or at least know about. “Madame Defarge looked superciliously at the client, and nodded in conformation.” (Ch 15, 181) She doesn’t have to say a thing, but she still controls everything. Madame Defarge definitely controls some actions of the revolutionaries. So who represents Death? When I first thought of this theory, I had not progressed far enough in the text to find the right character. Now, Darnay could be a representation of death because his family has caused death for the poor people of France. The question now is will Darnay change things for France or will he fail. If he does not change things in France, he is just like everyone before him in his family. A sign of Death and destruction for France.
Dr. Manette is back to his old ways. In Chapter 10, at the beginning, it seems that Dr. Manette has fully “recovered” from his past. Darnay goes to Dr. Manette to tell him how he feels about his daughter, Lucie. Before Darnay can fully tell him, Dr. Manette stops him and guesses what he’s going to say. Dr. Manette says that “it is very hard for [him] to hear her spoken in that tone of Charles Darnay’s.” (154) Hearing about someone’s love for Lucie makes Dr. Manette very sad. “His cry was so like the cry of actual pain.” Just the thought of Lucie being away from him puts him in pain, but Darnay promises to Dr. Manette that he will never disrupt the love between him and Lucie. After Darnay leaves the house, Lucie returns to see that her father’s “reading-chair [is] empty.” “She heard a low hammering sound in the bedroom.” (160)He was in his room working on the shoes. He has relapsed back to life he had without Lucie, when it all was work and misery. Hopefully Dr. Manette realizes, since Lucie now has her father in her life, she will never leave his side.
In chapter seven, Dickens introduces the character Monseigneur at his reception. The author’s description of the Lord, his house, and those attending his reception show the extreme differences between aristocracy and peasant life in France as well as the aristocratic hypocrisy. With a sarcastic tone, Dickens ensures the reader that this spoiled Lord would have died if less than four servants fed him his chocolate, when the poor in France are dying of famine. The Monseigneur also is too conceited to waste his time with his guests, only passing through the party quickly then “[getting] himself shut up in his sanctuary by the chocolate spites, and [is] seen no more” (7, 114). One lower lord at his party seems to be distraught over this behavior and upon leaving curses the Monseigneur to the Devil.
ReplyDeleteThe hypocritical guest, later identified as Monsieur the Marquis, then returns to his own village with the same attitude toward those lower than himself. The Marquis’s snobbish behavior could be categorized as worse than his Lord’s as he carelessly “threw out a gold coin” toward the father of the child he kills with his carriage. He is indifferent of the father’s condition and believes he “had accidentally broken some common thing, and had paid for it, and could afford to pay for it…” (7, 117). Dickens uses this irony to illuminate the hypocrisy and selfishness of the aristocracy during this time period. I thought I knew what negligence of leaders was before I read this section but was enlightened to a whole new level of sick neglect that the Lords in France paid to their subjects.
Everybody loves Lucie. At this point, there doesn't seem to be a single person with any bad opinion of the lovely Miss Manette. Even Mr.Carton, who denies her beauty, later admits his love of her, to the extent even of "(giving) his life, to keep a life (she) loves beside her."(13,159)In chapters 10 and 11, we learn of Charles Darnay and Mr.Stryver's admiration for Lucie.In chapter 16, we learn that Lucie is to marry Mr.Darnay. Mr.Darnay is probably viewed as the favorite of all readers compared to Mr.Stryver, whose cockiness is repulsive. His use of legal terms on page 147 and his assuredness of his 'case' with Lucie suggests that he does not really care for her at all. Mr.Darnay however goes directly to Dr.Manette to ask for his good word should Lucie decide that "(he) is essential to her perfect happiness."(10,141) Lucie's happiness is, of course,all that matters to her father. Since their reunion, the relationship between the Doctor and Miss Manette has been caring and gentle to the point of inspiration. Miss Manette is the thread that connects the many individual characters in this story and it will be interesting to see how she plays a part in the story as the revolution dawns.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter fifteen, we are introduced to the 5 Jacques. We know that Jacques Four is Monsieur Defarge and Jacques Five is the “mender of the roads.” However, the other three Jacques remain nameless and faceless and we are only given certain characteristics.
ReplyDeleteJacques three is very interesting to me. He seems like he is the quietest but the most dangerous. His hunger for death completely consumes his thoughts: “the kneeling Number Three: his fingers ever wandering over and over those fine nerves with a strikingly greedy air, as if he hungered for something- that was neither for food nor drink” (15, 153). He later “gnawed one of his fingers… and his finger quivered with the craving that was on him” (15, 155). Dickens blatantly states that his hunger is not concrete but lets the reader make his own conclusions as to what he is hungering for, and since it is during the revolution, the conclusion is that of death.
The fact that he is Jacques number three represents something as well. We know that the three social classes during this time are as follows: the royalty, the nobles, and the commoners; the commoners being the third class. The “man with the craving” represents the whole commoner class and their hunger for death of the royalty and nobility.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIn Chapter 14, Dickens focuses on Jerry Cruncher and his secret. Dickens depicts Jerry Cruncher, through the eyes of his son, as a Jesus figure. Even though what Jerry Cruncher is doing is looked down upon and is actually criminal, to young Jerry his father is his "honored parent". While little Jerry is following his father on the way to dig up Roger Cly, his father is joined by two companions. The first one who joins him is described as a "disciple" and the second is called a "fisherman" (Part 2 Ch 14). which is a direct reference to the Bible. It's just like in Matthew 4:19 "'Come follow me,' Jesus said, 'and I will make you fishers of men'". He gathers his disciples and goes to resurrect a dead body. Young Jerry saw a ghost and subsequently ran from the church courtyard, but the next day when there was no fish for breakfast, he shows even more admiration for his father. "Oh father, I should so like to be a Resurrection-Man when I'm quite growed up." (Part 2, Ch 14). In young Jerry's eyes his father is like Jesus, someone who dug up bodies, not only to sell them to science, but to also resurrect them.
ReplyDeleteEven though his son sees him as a religious figure, he himself cannot stand the idea of religion. For this reason he especially cannot stand his wife. When we first encounter her she doesn't even have a name. He calls her "Aggerawayter" (Part 2, Ch 1) which sounds a lot like 'aggravator'. He hates the idea of his wife praying and says she's like the devil. This is really ironic because his son believes him to be a Christ figure and his wife always prays for him but he himself is paranoid and absolutely hates religion. He gets so upset to the point that he physically harms his wife. He beats her head against a headboard while saying "If you are a religious woman, give me an irreligious one! You have no nat'ral sense of duty than the bed of this here Thames river has of a pile, and similarly it must be knocked into you" (Part 2, Ch 14). Although we don’t know why he has this religious affliction, it's highly ironic that his family has such strong religious feelings all aimed towards him.
Madame Defarge is a mystery in a Tale of Two Cities, and her hobby of knitting adds to the inscrutability of her character. Throughout Book 2 Chapters 13-16, we see her knitting at key moments in the book, as a way to “capture the moments in yarn.” Knitting is the needlework created by interlacing yarn in a series of connected loops, and in a Tall of Two Cities Madame Defarge is the string that connects all the characters. She not only knits important events occurring around her, but also keeps a continuing list of people she encounters. When Barsard enters into her memory and begins to spit out his physically details, she states, “I shall knit Barsard” before you go (188). These incidents show her necessity for memorizing the details of everyone who crosses her path. Also in Chapter 15, titled “Knitting”, Madame Defarge sits quietly in the corner of the wine shop, knitting, and watching as the three Jacques entered the shop. “Knitted in her own stitches and her own symbols, it will always be as plain to her as a sun” (179). Her memory extends beyond knowing the person, for she knows every event that has ever occurred in their life. She “who had taken up her knitting and was at work” was observing, however saying nothing (173). This image of Madame Defarge quietly observing is an example of foreshadowing. The peasants in the French society sat back and watched but eventually overthrew the government to take control. They took note of the unreasonable conditions they were living in and eventually took action. So far, Madame Defarge hasn’t overthrown or conquered her “knitted” victims, but I feel that it is soon to come. “ So much was closing in about the women who sat knitting, knitting, that they their very selves were closing in around a structure yet unbuilt, where they were to sit knitting, knitting, counting dropping heads”(194). This sentence foreshadows the dropping heads cut off during the French Revolution by the guillotine, or “structure yet unbuilt” (194). These women knitting were witnesses to the chaos during the French Revolution.
ReplyDeleteMadame Defarge’s knitting can also be compared to the fates from Greek Mythology. “ It would be easier for the weakest poltroon that lives, to erase himself from existence, than to erase one letter of his name or crimes from the knitted register of Madame Defarge” (179). In mythology, Clotho, spends the thread of life; Lachesis, spreads the yarn out; and Atropos, cuts the last part. Madame is a combination of all three, although we have yet to see her “cut” the yarn. These three fates could alter the destiny, both through good and evil, by a jolt in their yarn pattern. With one cut, they could end the life of a person, and this is where I believe Madame Defarge is different. Although she still lays out the “plan” of each person’s life, I don’t believe her knitting controls the death of that person. The fate of many characters lies in the webbing of Mrs. Defarge’s knitting.
In Chapter 9, Dickens uses discreet symbolism in order to foreshadow the events to come. At the end of chapter 8, a woman approaches the Marquis and begs him to provide her with one stone to mark her husbands grave. Monsieur the Marquis coldly denies her request and retires to his castle made completely out of stone. "It was a heavy mass of building, that chateau of Monsieur the Marquis, with a large stone court-yard before it, and two stone sweeps of staircase meeting in a stone terrace before the principal door. A stony business altogether with heavy stone balustrades . . . and stone faces of men, and stone heads of lions, in all directions." (page 123) The fact that the Marquis denied the woman of her one request shows his greedy and arrogant nature and he has an abundance of the one thing she requests. The repetition of stone symbolizes the hardness of his heart and soul and gives a representation of the kind of man he is. It conveys that the Marquis consists of the same thing his château does; stone.
ReplyDeleteThe fact that some of his castle consists of "stone faces of men, and stone heads of lions." (page 123) also foreshadows the death of the Marquis. Since the Marquis has a soul of stone and is one and the same as his building, the stone faces of man on his castle suggest that he will soon join them, and sure enough at the end of the chapter, another head has been added to the statue. "And added the one stone face wanting; the stone face for which it had waited about two hundred years" (page 134) It is as if the building had been waiting for it's master to return to it. This is the head of the Marquis which is described as "a fine mask, suddenly startled, made angry, and petrified." (page 134) The meaning of petrified is literally "wood turned into stone". Thus symbolizing that the Marquis has become part of his castle, and become what he initially consists of. The fact that he was turned into stone by a French revolutionist, Jacques, foreshadows the overthrowing of the oppressive french government which is to come.
As an Englishman Charles Dickens is biased. It is automatically easier for him to ridicule the outlandish ways of the French noblemen in Chapter 7 because he is of an opposing nationality. The irony, mimicry, and satire found in the beginning of the chapter are threaded within Chapters 8 and 9 as well. Dickens paints the Monseigneur to be arrogant and contradictory to his title. “His morning chocolate could not so much as get into [his] throat…without the aid of four strong men” (Ch. 7, 108) and he “had bestowed her [his sister] as a prize upon a very rich Farmer-General” (Ch. 7, 109) as a way to avoid taxes. The Marquis, in Chapters 7 and 8, runs over a little boy and denies the needs and wishes of the people in his town. This is Dickens way of continuing his illustration of the arrogance and ludicrous actions of the leaders of France during the time.
ReplyDelete“Monseigneur could swallow a great many things with ease, and was by some few sullen minds supposed to be rather rapidly swallowing France” (Ch. 7, 108)
This sentence is referring to the revolutionists idea of France. As I stated in my previous paragraph, the nobles of France are being depicted as controlling and arrogant. The “sullen minds” are the revolutionists and the peasants that are being affected by the ridiculous control of the Monseigneur. They are afraid that Monseigneur is “swallowing” France and further ruining the social and political aspect of the country. This sentence stood out to me as a hint to the French Revolution and as a comprehension to the views of the revolutionists.
In Book Two we begin to learn more about Madame Defarge and her role in The French Revolution. Without her encouragement and restraint the portion of the Revolution that she is participating in would not be able to occur. I believe that she is the actual brains behind The Revolution, planning everything carefully and allowing the men to act as mediators. Throughout the book, she has been secretly knitting peoples’ names into her shrouds using symbols that only she can understand: “if madame my wife undertook to keep the register in her memory alone, she would not lose a word of it – not a syllable of it. Knitted, in her own stitches and her own symbols, it will always be plain to her as the sun” (15, 179). By controlling the knitting, she controls who goes into the registry and the opinions of the other Jacques about the men in the registry: “deftly knitting an extra something into his name that boded him no good” (16, 188). When Mr. Defarge or other Jacques become restless and hungry for action, Madame Defarge keeps them patient using thoughtful and intelligent responses: “how long does it take to make and store the lighting? Tell me…. But when it is ready, it takes place, and grinds to pieces everything before it. In the mean time, it is always preparing, though it is not seen or heard. That is your consolation. Keep it” (16, 185).
ReplyDeleteEven Mr. Defarge, her own husband, acts like she is the one in charge, allowing her to work alone and sufficiently: “all this while, Defarge, with his pipe in his mouth, walked up and down, complacently admiring but never interfering; in which condition, indeed, as to the business and his domestic affairs, he walked up and down through life” (16, 184). While Madame Defarge works on the plans of The Revolution, Mr. Defarge acts solely as a mediator between Jacques. When Barsad enters into the wine-shop while trying to get information, Madame Defarge demonstrates her control by covertly telling everyone to leave by using a rose: “the moment Madame Defarge took up the rose, the customers ceased talking, and began gradually to drop out of the wine-shop” (16, 187). She also tells Mr. Defarge what to say and how to say it: “in an accidental touch of his wife’s elbow s she knitted and warbled, that he would do best to answer, but always with brevity” (16, 190). While Madame Defarge is steadfast when talking to Barsad, Mr. Defarge lacks confidence and allows Barsad to make “one hit.” Unlike Mr. Defarge, she knows what she is doing and handles it with poise and still manages to scheme and come up with a plan to successfully destroy the monarchy.
I believe that the plan Madame Defarge is creating will eventually lead to the death of many nobles as symbolized by the flies in chapter 16. As she is sitting in the wine-shop before Barsad comes, the flies surround her and suddenly drop dead: “heaps of flies, who were extending their inquisitive and adventurous perquisitions into all the glutinous little glasses near madame, fell dead at the bottom…. Curious to consider how heedless flies are! – perhaps they thought as much at Court that sunny summer day” (16, 186). Because they all fall and die while surrounding Madame Defarge, it portrays her as a giant in comparison to them and also as the killer. Since she is a woman, she most likely will not be participating in the killing and therefore she can be viewed as the master planer of the deaths. This again relates to the many references to the Fates. Madame Defarge controls everything from the opinions of people to the decision between who lives and who dies.
While reading chapter fourteen, irony was the main aspect that caught my attention. There are several examples of irony, but the main one is the title of the chapter. The title,"The Honest Tradesman", screams irony. While reading this chapter, we discover that Jerry Cruncher is the "honest tradesman". We learn that he is a Resurrection-Man. A Resurrection-Man is a person who digs up newly buried bodies, and sells them to doctors. How is this trade honest? Digging up someone's grave is immoral, and wrong. There is no way this trade is honest, which makes it ironic. Another example of irony is the reactions of the people during the funeral. When someone dies, people are mournful and they show respect to the deceased. However, the complete opposite takes place in this situation. At the funeral, a mob is wrecking the procession. A mourner ran away from the funeral, leaving his belongings behind. "These, the people tore to pieces and scattered far and wide with great enjoyment." (chapter 14, 162) At the last funeral I attended, I am sure there wasn't a mob who
ReplyDeletecelebrated the deceased by destroying people's property and harrassing innocent bystanders. As you can see, irony is displayed in this situation. Futhermore, another ironic passage in this chapter is the mention of the deceased. The deceased man was Robert Cly, and he died because he was a spy. This is extremely ironic because, Robert Cly accused Darnay of being a spy more than a year ago. In actuality, Cly was the spy. I believe all the irony not only makes the book more interesting, but also shows how twisted and messed up these people really are.
Tiana Mills
The prospect of death has been especially present throughout book two and has started to become a more imminent creature as the novel has progressed. All throughout chapter 14, the honest tradesman, the theme of death can be felt in almost every line. Young Cruncher has the dream “that the coffin he had seen was running after him,” and “hid in doorways too, rubbing its horrible shoulders against doors “(14, 146). He can’t seem to escape death, no matter how fast he runs, and even when he thinks he has escaped that feeling, his father’s “rusty hands” remind him (14, 147). Dickens uses young Cruncher’s constant fear of death to portray what everyone else felt around that time-that death is a shadow beginning to overwhelm them.
ReplyDeleteThe “women who sat knitting, knitting, as darkness encompassed them” ends chapter 16 with a feeling of death (16, 168). They sit, “counting heads drop,” as one by one, France’s commoners are slowly being executed (16, 168). The knitters knit names of the people they’d like to see dead in their work, again pertaining to the theme of death. Mrs. Defarge even thinks to herself “[he should] stay long enough, and [she] shall knit ‘Barsad’ before [he] goes,” wanting to add him to her list (16, 164). The work they knit can be seen as a symbol of oncoming death, a sign of what will come.
Dickens uses the theme of death progressively as the novel goes on, symbolizing the increasing number of deaths and violence in France that will only get worse as the Revolution begins. Death becomes an ominous shadow that hides in the pages of A Tale of Two Cities, just as it hides in the minds of the peasants and revolutionaries of the 1770’s.
In Book Two, chapters twelve and thirteen, Dickens's characterization of Mr. Stryver and Mr. Carton centered around the idea of "delicacy" is ironic, as the reader is able to see that these two chapter titles are not accurate. Through this irony, more insight is seen into who these two men actually are. Chapter twelve titled "The Fellow of Delicacy" is a laugh in itself. This is the chapter in which Mr. Stryver "having made up his mind to that magnanimous bestowal of good fortune on the doctor's daughter" goes to Mr. Lorry to tell him of this decision (12, 147). Mr. Stryver had come "to the conclusion" that this proposal "was a plain case" and "as to the strength of his case, he had not a doubt about it" because he "clearly saw his way to the verdict" (12, 147). The repetition of terms centered around his work in the law such as "case" and "verdict" emphasize his lack of compassion and interest in Lucie, and when speaking of her he says that she is "no plainer case [that] could be" (12, 147). It is ironic that his work is so prevalent in his discussions because as we know from Book the Second, chapter five "The Jackal," in reality, Mr. Stryver does not care about his work, as Mr. Carton "renders service to Stryver" doing everything for him (5, 90). In the discussion between Mr. Lorry and Mr. Stryver , Stryver's inability to be sensitive or act at all emotionally attached towards Miss Manette further display the irony of the inappropriate chapter title, as this man is quite the opposite of a "fellow of delicacy".
ReplyDeleteChapter thirteen, "The Fellow of No Delicacy" is a continuation of the irony created by Dickens, giving us a clearer image of the true Mr. Carton. In this chapter, Mr. Carton goes to visit Lucie and though "she had never been quite at ease with him" "she observed a change in [him] (13, 155). The two start off their conversation discussing the life that Mr. Carton leads, and how it "is not conducive to health," causing Lucie to look "gently at him" and "she was surprised and saddened to see that there were tears in his eyes" (13, 155-156). Mr. Stryver had broken down by this point, and Lucie "had never seen him softened, and was much distressed" (13, 156). This is the first time that we know of for Mr. Carton to appear vulnerable in front of others. Through his tears, he tells Lucie that "if it had been possible, that [she] could have returned the love of the man [she] see[s] before [her]" "he would have been conscious this day and hour, in spite of his happiness, that he would bring [her] to misery" (13, 156). This helpless yet caring and sensitive side of Mr. Carton is new to both Lucie and the reader. The irony in this is that the new side of Mr. Carton's is not a match with the title "The Fellow of No Delicacy" because unlike Mr. Stryver, Mr. Carton showed great sensitivity in his feelings towards Lucie, giving us new insight into his true character.
Throughout A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens uses the literal descriptions of characters to portray their true personalities. On page 148, Stryver is described as seeming to be “too big for any place, or space.” Stryver literally has to push everyone around because he is so big, just like he shoulders his way up in life in order to reach the top. Like Raegan said, Stryver’s cockiness is repulsive. Stryver’s large size resembles his overconfident personality. Also, the name “Stryver” sounds like the word “strive.” I think that Dickens is saying that Stryver really strives in life to get what he wants.
ReplyDeleteThe young Jerry Cruncher notices his father’s rusty fingers and muddy boots in previous chapters. In chapter 14, we find out that the rust and mud comes Mr. Cruncher’s “fishing trips.” Since rust is the same color as blood, could Dickens be saying that Mr. Cruncher is out for violence and blood? This might be foreshadowing violent crimes committed by Jerry later on in the book. Jerry definitely seems comfortable and even excited about joining the mob at the spy’s funeral. Mr. Cruncher commits a horrible crime when he digs up coffins from the cemetery. Could his muddy boots resemble his “dirty” conscience or his “stained” reputation?
There is a significant progression of the action of flies from when we first see them, until Chapter 16 of Book Two. Just like the people of the Revolution, the flies start out thriving, but they end up dead. The motif of the flies first occurs in Book Two, Chapter 3. In this chapter, the flies are very active. “When the Attorney- General ceased, a buzz arose in the court as if a cloud of great blue-flies were swarming about the prisoner, in anticipation of what he was soon to become” (Ch.3, 69). Here, the “flies” or the court spectators are thriving because of Darnay’s punishment they will witness. There is much anticipation here, which hints the anticipation of the French Revolution.
ReplyDeleteThe last place where we see the flies so far is in the wine-shop in Chapter 16 of Book Two. “The day was very hot, and heaps of flies, who were extending their inquisitive and adventurous perquisitions into all the glutinous little glasses near madame, fell dead at the bottom. Their decease made no impression on the other flies out promenading, who looked at them in the coolest manner (as if they themselves were elephants, or something as far removed), until they met the same fate” (Ch. 16, 186). The flies are no longer thriving, they are dying. This hints that the French Revolution is almost here because of all the dying. “Their decease made no impression on the other flies out promenading,” shows that when the people of the Revolution start dying, the other people will take no interest; they will keep to their own business. Also, I think it is peculiar that the flies die both in the wine-shop which resembles blood and they die near Madame Defarge. She holds the fate of the people and of the French Revolution.
Gaspard is portrayed as an antithesis of Christ by the mender of the roads. He describes the soldiers escorting Gaspard to the prison with dust surrounding them: “Also, I see that they are covered with dust, and that the dust moves with them as they come, tramp, tramp!” (16, 175). The dust that moves along with them makes them glow in the darkness, but instead of a hallowed light, the glow is made by dirt. They shine from their sins. Like Christ, he is led by soldiers up a hill and he falls: “As they descend the hill like madmen running a race, he falls. They laugh and pick him up again,” (16, 175). All of his friends and neighbors turn their back on him as soon as he is held as a prisoner just as Christ’s apostles denied knowing him: “They bring him into the village, all the village runs to look,” (16, 175). He is ridiculed in his lowest state when he can’t defend himself: “His arms are swelled because of being bound so tight, his wooden shoes are large and clumsy, and he is lame,” (16, 175). Although Gaspard’s journey to his death has similarities to the Stations of the Cross, Dickens’s purpose to relate the two is to foreshadow that death will come instead of salvation.
ReplyDeleteGaspard is executed on a gallows that is right above the fountain: “Workmen dig, workmen hammer, soldiers laugh and sing; in the morning, by the fountain, there is raised a gallows forty feet high, poisoning the water,” (16, 177). Foreshadowing is expressed by the gallows “poisoning the water” because most Parisians source of water during the French Revolution was the fountain. Gaspard’s death will lead to the death of many. His death “poisoning the water” is paralleled to the cleansing and saving waters of religion that cleans humans of their original sin in Baptism. His deathis the harbinger of the persecution of other revolutionaries like him as after Christ’s death, Christians were persecuted. Through Gaspard’s death, Dickens also alludes to his earlier idea that “Death is Nature’s remedy for all things,” (1, 56) when he states that the only escape is through death: “all the village dreams of that unhappy one, within the lock bars of the prison on the crag, and never to come out of it, except to perish,” (16, 175). Although Gaspard isn’t Christ in that Christ brings salvation and eternal life, Gaspard does save humans from their world of chaos and disaster through an escape from life: death.
Throughout the novel, foreshadowing has been a common element used by Dickens to create suspense and hint at events to come. His usage of foreshadowing often pertains to death, as it did when speaking of the spilled wine in Book One and the blood red fountain in Book Two. After reading Chapter 13, The Fellow of No Delicacy, I couldn’t help but notice the constant theme of death, which leads me to believe Dickens is using foreshadowing to prepare the reader for a tragic event to come.
ReplyDeleteAs we know, Chapter 13 is the chapter in which Carton, the "man of no delicacy," professes his love to Lucie. In doing so, he words his sentences in such a way that suggests his death is near. "The cloud of caring for nothing, which overshadowed him with such a fatal darkness, was very rarely pierced by the light within him." (13, 155) He later goes on to say, "I am like one who died young," also implying a young death. (13, 156) Though his words are romantic and kind, he has discreet tones of death which may or may not foreshadow a lifeless Carton.
Whom will Lucie choose: Darnay or Carton? The love triangle between Lucie, Darnay, and Carton becomes more intertwined as the novel deepens.
ReplyDeleteIn Chapter 10, “Two Promises”, Charles Darnay goes to Dr. Manette and admits his love for his daughter Lucie. “[Darnay] had loved Lucie Manette from the hour of his danger” (ch. 10, 135). “Dear Dr. Manette, I love your daughter fondly, dearly, disinterestedly, devotedly. If ever there were love in the world, I love her” (ch. 10, 137). But, this declaration, while very open, seems to be too direct and well, plain boring. The alliteration of “dearly, disinterestedly, devotedly” highlights the monotonous tone of his proclamation, making it as if he s reading from a script. Seeming like a parody to romantic love poetry, Darnay expresses his love as something deep within, but does so with the most mundane possible phrasing, making his words seem uninteresting and not from the heart.
On the other hand, Carton’s words convey deep emotional struggles and feelings, suggesting the existence of passion more complex than that of Darnay’s. He declares to Lucie “I wish you to know that you have been the last dream of my soul… I have had unformed ideas of striving afresh, beginning anew, shaking off sloth and sensuality, and fighting out the abandoned fight…I have known myself to be quite undeserving. And yet I have had the weakness, and have still the weakness, to wish you to know with what a sudden mastery you kindled me, heap of ashes that I am, into fire -- a fire, however, inseparable in its nature from myself, quickening nothing, lighting nothing, doing no service, idly burning away” (ch. 13, 157). His words, being poured out from his heart, highlight the true feelings that he has for Lucie, and is amplified because he spoke them directly to her. Some may say that he is a fool for telling his feelings to her directly without any warning, but the fact that he came right out and said it speaks for itself to the fact that he truly does love Lucie. Also, this point in the book could be the changing point in Mr. Carton. Because of his declaration of love, and the fact that “for Lucie], and for any dear to [Lucie], [he] would do anything” (ch. 13, 159), this could be the beginning of Mr. Carton sobering up in order to please the woman he so helplessly loves.
From the very beginning, Dickens makes it explicitly clear what wine symbolizes: blood. In Chapter five of Book the First, the scene of the spilt wine, the descriptions of the greedy wine-stained people clearly portray blood. The word is even written with the wine on the wall. Because of this, it is extremely intriguing to me how Dickens equates the current conditions of the period to the conditions of the wine. “Monsieur Defarge sold a very thin wine at the best of times, but it would seem to have been an unusually thin wine that he sold at this time” (15, 171). This eludes back to the famous introduction of the book, “it was the best of times, it was the worst of times,...” (1, 5). Dickens is identifying the best of times with the best (thinnest) wine, and the wine “would seem to have been an unusually thin wine that he sold at this time” (15, 171). The conditions of the wine are being compared to the conditions France and England. The times are not the best, which is why it is “unusual” that Monsieur Defarge is selling the best wine. If wine symbolizes blood and Dickens is comparing the conditions of the people to the wine, I don’t think it is an overstretch to say that the more wine the people drink, the sooner we are approaching the revolution and the bloodshed.
ReplyDeleteIn Chapter 15, Dickens describes the increasing frequency of drinking. Like Lia said in an earlier blog post, the people begin to drink more and more often as the book progresses. In Chapter 5 of Book the Second, Dickens describes “those days,” meaning the conditions of the period, as “drinking days.” He goes on to say, “most men drank hard.” Drinking and wine are almost as commonly appearing as death and shadows. Also in Chapter 15, “there had been earlier drinking than usual.” At this point, the people are beginning to drink as early as six in the morning. Dickens describes the people peeping through the window, waiting for the wine, as sallow and greedy. They need their wine.
If these people are so desperate to drink they are waiting at the window for the wine-shop to open, they must like the effect of the wine, right? The passage goes on, “A sour wine, moreover, or a souring, for its influence on the mood of those who drank it was to make them gloomy” (15, 171). If the wine makes them gloomy then why do they continue to drink so much? They can’t stop. At this point, the revolution is inevitable.
In these chapters, a main point is Lucie and her three suitors. Three different suitors tell three different people and have three different approaches. Amidst the treason, impending Revolution and death, and the grave robbery, Lucie remains beloved with an unshakable love for her father.
ReplyDeleteTwo suitors – Charles Darnay and Sydney Carton – acknowledge the love between Lucie and Dr. Manette and are encouraged in their suit. “’When the little picture of a happy father’s face looks up in yours...think now and then that there is a man who would give his life, to keep a life you love beside you‘” (153). Carton vows to do whatever Lucie asks and help her however she can if she’s in trouble. He knows she doesn’t love him and probably never realized he felt anything for her, but he wanted her to know how he felt so she could have someone to turn to in times of need. Mr. Darnay talked to Dr. Manette and asked for help in his suit if Lucie ever showed an inclination for him over someone else. He also promises to do whatever he can if Lucie ever needs help and makes an additional promise to never take Lucie away from her father and to come between anyone who tries to separate them. “’I well understand that, without you, I could have no hope…I could retain no place in [her heart] against her love for her father’” (135).
Mr. Stryver, on the other hand – as Emma and Nicole both noted – is a much harsher character. He turns to Mr. Lorry for advice and is the only one of the three hopeful suitors who is advised against pursuing Lucie. He’s also the only one of the three men who doesn’t mention Dr. Manette and seems to be slighting her and her social position at every turn, even when apparently trying to compliment her. “’I don’t care about fortune…She will have in me a man already pretty well off…It is a piece of good fortune for her, but she is worthy of good fortune’” (140). He wants to marry her because he thinks she will make him look good and not embarrass him, but expects her to stay a pretty face on his arm and since he is well-off agree to marry him without a second thought.
In Chapter 10,"Two Promises," Charles Darnay talks to Lucie's father, Monsieur Manette. Mr. Darnay confesses his love for Manette's daughter when he says, "I love her. Heaven is my witness that I love her!" and he asks for Manette's promise to "think so well of [him], as to urge no influence against [him]." (10, 141) Mr. Manette expresses his feelings for his daughter: "She is everything to me; more to me than suffering, more to me than wrong, more to me." (10, 141) This is implying the Lucie means more to him than anything else in the world and that she is his reason for being alive.
ReplyDeleteMonsieur Manette says Lucie means more to him than suffering and wrong. This is perhaps the life that he had while in prison. Similar to Mr. Manette, Charles Darnay had spent a great time dealing with suffering and wrong. Dickens is trying to say that once her father had been through the pain and suffering, she was the only reason for him to live. Similarly, Darnay had suffered and feels that his only reason for living is through loving Lucie. Therefore, when Mr. Manette passes on, Darnay will feel even stronger for Miss Lucie Manette because she will feel pain and he will be able to relate. He will eventually get to the point where the only reason he continues to live is to love her. Dickens is trying to express that the life in prison at that time was full of torture. He is implying that it is so bad that people will feel they have no reason to live unless they have the love of a woman who possesses "The Golden Thread," or something of that high standard, like Lucie does. Like Reagan said, Everybody loves Lucie, and she represents the ideal love that a person who has suffered looks for.
A major symbol of wealth is the size and manner of a house. Monsieur the Marquis lives in not just a house, but a château; “a heavy mass of a building.” The entire building is made of stone “as if the Gorgon’s head had surveyed it. (Ch. 9, 123) It is lavishly decorated with grim stone faces and stone flowers. There is no movement and no joy, reflecting the attitude of the Marquis towards his suffering people: cold, distant, pitiless. Yet, in this house the first ripple of the “triumph” that Defrages speak of takes place, disturbing his refuge and penetrating his comfortable sanctuary. A blood-colored sunset sets the scene with pathetic fallacy as the Marquis dies at the hand of Gaspard. The fountain has turned to blood; a source of life now is plagued with death. Yet through this “one little bird sang its sweetest song.” (Ch.9 132) There is still hope for the Revolution.
ReplyDeleteThe château is referenced once again in Chapter 16. The stone faces change from “faces of pride to faces of anger and pain.” (Ch 16 182) This house personifies the impending emotion that the affluent society will feel after their king is dethroned following the rising action of the Revolution. But in the next paragraph Dickens reminds us that each human is responsible for his own mistakes, in “every thought and act” in “greatness and littleness.” (Ch 16, 183) Yes, the Marquis was wrong, but was Gaspard right to kill the Marquis? Was Gaspard just setting right the wrong of the slaughter of his son? The bloodshed of the Marquis, “the red stain on the stone floor,” may have changed everything. (Ch 16 183) This one action might be the first fall of in the domino effect that united the peasants of France in their revolt. The change is shown in appearance of the château. Things are waking up and seeing what is happening. Unfortunately, times have become so rough and intolerable that they must now suffer the consequences of their own cruel actions.
Like Sydney, I have noticed Madame Darnay's excessive knitting in chapters fourteen and fifteen of book two. However, I believe that this hobby shows her incredible wisdom. She picks out patterns and knits what she sees and hears and even what is "inaudible or invisible."(book 2, 15, 172) In chapter 15, madame knits throughout the visit of the King and Queen. She then confronts the mender of the road telling him,"You have seen both dolls and birds today."(book 2,15,182) Meaning, with rest perspicacity, that he had seen the rich and finest dolls or birds that they must pluck.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter sixteen, The reader is shown Madame Defarge's true intelligence while she is talking to her husband. While he admires her and talks of the revolution, she begins to place their money into her handkerchief for safekeeping. With every knot, it is like she is ending someone's life. She ties, " a knot with flashing eyes, as if it throttled a foe," while she is telling her husband that he needs to slow down. (Book 2, 16, 185) Like Brighton, I believe that madame is the "brains behind The Revolution." When Defarge tells her how long it takes for lighting to strike a man down, she wisely retorts, "How long does it tar to make and store the lightning?"(Book 2,16, 185) She continues to teach Defarge as she kills off more enemies' knot by knot. "There Madame, with her teeth set, tied a very Terrible knot indeed." (book 2,16,186) One can only wonder who she decided to kill. In this way she is fry much like the mythological "fates." Furthermore, I believe that, because Madame Defarge knits everything and everyone she meets, she is able to understand what will happen in the future. This is shown when she is talking with Barsad in chapter 16. As she talks with him, she begins to knit his name. However, as they talk longer she realizes something interesting and possibly deceitful that the reader does not yet understand. For that reason, Madame deftly knits," an extra something into his name that bided hum no good. When Barsad tells Madame and Monsieur Defarge of the marriage between Miss Manette and Mr Charles Darnay, Defarge reacts dramatically hoping that Darnay will stay out of France. His wife merely replies, "Her husbands destiny will take him where he is go go, and will lead him to the end that is to end him. That is all I know" This suggests that Madame Defarge is aware of something that both the reader and Defarge know not. It also refers her to a Greek Fate once more. For if she is like one of the fates, then it will be her decision to decide when Charles Darnay is to meet his end.
In the last blog I brought up the point that in a Tale of Two Cities, Dickens is relating certain characters to Hope, Time, Fate, and Death. His capitalization of these words in chapters one through six made them stand out. Even though he does not use these words in chapters ten through sixteen, the text supports this idea.
ReplyDeleteI still believe that Lucie represents hope in the book. Before, she was hope for her father because she was the only person that could make him happy and it was said she “recalled him to life.” In chapter thirteen she becomes hope for Sydney Carton as well. While Carton is at the Manette’s he is depressed. Lucie asks him “Without it, can I not save you, Mr Carton? Can I not real you -- forgive me again! -- to a better course?” (156) So right now Lucie is a definite symbol of hope in the lives of her father and Carton.
The idea that Doctor Manette represents time was brought forth by his imprisonment. After being locked away for eighteen years, he of all people must know how valuable time is. In these chapters, not much is said about Doctor Manette. I think Doctor Manette will be brought back in to the story in the next chapters and more textual support will be given that he represents time especially when the relationship between Darnay and Lucie grows.
In Greek mythology the fates control everyones life by the threads they weave. The title of book two is The Golden Thread. Sure enough, we are seeing threads in book too, especially with Madame Defarge who is always knitting. She represents fate. Earlier in the book, I stated that Madame Defarge was going to be a representation of the French people and how they feel about the revolution. This may not be completely wrong, but it is not correct. After finishing chapter sixteen, it seems like Madame Defarge is going to be more involved in the start of the revolution. I doubt she will be running through the streets screaming, but her knitting the names of people the revolutionaries do not like into a registry shows her assisting them. This brings up the point that her knitting their names is like her holding the fate of those people in her hands. Nothing happens in the wine shop that she does not control or at least know about. “Madame Defarge looked superciliously at the client, and nodded in conformation.” (Ch 15, 181) She doesn’t have to say a thing, but she still controls everything. Madame Defarge definitely controls some actions of the revolutionaries.
So who represents Death? When I first thought of this theory, I had not progressed far enough in the text to find the right character. Now, Darnay could be a representation of death because his family has caused death for the poor people of France. The question now is will Darnay change things for France or will he fail. If he does not change things in France, he is just like everyone before him in his family. A sign of Death and destruction for France.
Dr. Manette is back to his old ways. In Chapter 10, at the beginning, it seems that Dr. Manette has fully “recovered” from his past. Darnay goes to Dr. Manette to tell him how he feels about his daughter, Lucie. Before Darnay can fully tell him, Dr. Manette stops him and guesses what he’s going to say. Dr. Manette says that “it is very hard for [him] to hear her spoken in that tone of Charles Darnay’s.” (154) Hearing about someone’s love for Lucie makes Dr. Manette very sad. “His cry was so like the cry of actual pain.” Just the thought of Lucie being away from him puts him in pain, but Darnay promises to Dr. Manette that he will never disrupt the love between him and Lucie.
ReplyDeleteAfter Darnay leaves the house, Lucie returns to see that her father’s “reading-chair [is] empty.” “She heard a low hammering sound in the bedroom.” (160)He was in his room working on the shoes. He has relapsed back to life he had without Lucie, when it all was work and misery. Hopefully Dr. Manette realizes, since Lucie now has her father in her life, she will never leave his side.